Here you are, reluctantly eyeing the anemic tomatoes in the produce section of the grocery store.

Then the unthinkable happens. The thing you have always hoped and prayed would not happen. A maniac walks through the front door of the store and pulls a pistol out of his sweatshirt.

Now you have decisions to make. You’ve got your pistol, concealed, loaded. This guy’s getting ready to jump off the cliff and take some folks with him–starting to aim at an innocent bystander–the whole bit.

You decide it’s time, draw your pistol, quickly aim, and fire. He’s down, but not completely, so you fire again. Miss. Again. Got him down for sure this time. 

That’s when you realize that you’ve accidentally hit a bystander. The bullet, full metal jacket, traveled straight through the maniac and into the leg of the guy behind him.

After first aid has been provided, he’s stable but bad off. The ambulance takes him to the hospital and you are left there, praying he’ll be okay.

Okay, let’s stop there. I know, that scenario was a bit heavy handed, but it’s worth thinking about. In our story you’re carrying your pistol loaded with full metal jacket ammunition. Let’s talk about the problems that came up as a result of that ammo choice.

1. The bullet didn’t immediately take down the intended target because it cleanly traveled through him.

2. Because the bullet traveled through the intended target and out the other side, it had the unfortunate opportunity to hit another person. An unintended casualty.

So to begin with, the full metal jacket, smooth and sharp, keeps all that force going straight through the intended target.

If you’re at the range, that’s fine. No big deal. However, if you’re trying to quickly and efficiently take down a threat, the last thing you want is a bullet that’ll just cleanly go right through. Of course, you might hit a crucial spot and take down your threat instantly, but there’s a higher chance that he’ll still be functional.

Here’s big reason number one to use self defense ammo when you carry. Upon impact, a self defense bullet, often a hollow point of some sort, will mushroom out. What does that do? Instead of all that force cutting cleanly through the intended target and coming out the other side, possibly without incapacitating him, it spreads out inside of the target and does a lot more damage to him.

I don’t know about you, but I’d like to make it count if I ever have to actually take someone down. Efficiency and effectiveness. Can I get an amen?

The second problem in our unfortunate hypothetical scene was that the bullet traveled right through the intended target and actually injured another person. That’s collateral damage, and that is obviously bad.

Because that clean, sharp bullet traveled right through the target instead of mushrooming out and stopping, it had the opportunity to cause more damage.

You’re responsible for every bullet that leaves your gun, and the less unintended damage you cause, the better.

So here’s big reason number two to use self defense ammo when you carry. Because the bullet (again, some type of hollow point) is going to mushroom out and be much more likely to stop inside the intended target, you’re much less likely to harm innocent people that might be behind him. 

By all means, use that full metal jacket ammo at the range. It’s typically less expensive. But keep in mind that it might not be the wisest choice to carry for self defense. God forbid if you ever have to shoot someone in defense of self or others, you certainly would want to quickly and efficiently take down only your intended target. 

We want our threat neutralized as quickly as possible, and we want zero collateral damage. 

If you haven’t received the required training to qualify for your Louisiana Concealed Handgun Permit, give us a call at 985-259-1225 or email Audrey at audrey@camelliagunschool.com to see when our next class is!