Hornady Critical Defense 410 Triple Defense
Updated: January 9th, 2013
Hornady has announced a new .410 defensive handgun load in their Critical Defense line. The 410 Triple Defense has a 115 grain .41 Caliber FXT slug backed by two .35 caliber lead balls (.35 caliber is just slightly smaller than 000 buck shot). The FXT slug will engage the rifling of a Taurus Judge.
The penetration and accuracy can be seen in the video below. It looks impressive to me.
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"No mention of muzzle velocity from various barrel lengths, suspicious from an established ammunition manufacturer.
I also note less than 12 inches of penetration in ballistic gel, which is the minimum most authorities on the subject seem to agree with when it comes to a reliable defensive round for a handgun.
That being said, it is poking another two holes in the target aside from the main slug, definitely not something I would want to be hit by."
Thats actually taken horrible out of context, as many so ignorantly do over the years. The 12 inch rule is not what "authorities agree" would make a reliable defensive round. It's what the FBI deem as a reliable "duty round". Their requirements list the 12 inches of penetration as a standard for the projectile to do through objects and still effectively take someone down. (i.e. windows, doors, automobiles) A defensive load does not need to do that, as most self defense situations will not include a barrier. (of course there are always excepetions) The video showed the projectiles penetrating over ten inches with thick clothing. That is more than enough to take someone down and is a suitable defensive round.
750 fps I believe is what is quoted from Hornady. 294 fp of energy.
That's only a bit less than say a .380 round or a .38 special. But more fp of energy. I've seen some .45 ammo with exactly or near those numbers and people carry those all the time for self defense.
Winchester:
185 Gr. FMJ 770244
230 Gr. FMJ SWC 835356
230 Gr. JHP Subsonic 880396
230 Gr. FMJ 835326