Please post coments regarding 147 grain bullets. As you may recall, I am a "Richard groupie" and regard the 147 grain as the premier bullet.
I don't know the math but it is my belief that the heavier bullet facilitates slide travel and (for me) erases concern over FTF AND FTE.
The debate over bullet loads in 9mm Parabellum is about as vigorous as that involving 1911 vs. Glock or revolver vs. semi-automatic. I personally prefer to use a heavier load in a defensive handgun, wanting to dump as much kinetic energy as possible into the threat in a defensive shooting. In order to "soup up" the lighter 9mm loads, such as 115 and 124-grain, manufacturers have loaded some of those bullets to +P and +P+ pressures. Of course, our R9 is not designed for +P or +P+ loads.
The 147-grain 9mm JHP was first developed, I believe, for the Navy Seals to execute accurate head shots from suppressed weapons. Some law enforcement agencies also adopted the load, but there were some spotty results with expansion of some brands in the early years. In the years since, however, there have been great improvements in bullet design for the 147-grain 9mm JHP, and it is my understanding that the San Diego Police Department has been using the load successfully for almost two decades.
I load the 147-grain Remington Golden Saber BJHP in my R9, and have found it to be very accurate. (I used to load it in my HK P7 as well until I learned that the P7's gas-retarded recoil system had been designed specifically around the 115/124 NATO round.) It just seems to me that the modern-day 147-grain 9mm JHP offers, in a smaller package of course, some of the terminal performance of the 230-grain .45 ACP JHP.
Now, as I said, the debate is vigorous and reasonable minds will differ.
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