i bought a box of the Federal Hydroshock Personal Defense Rounds the other day to use in my Springfield Armory 1911A1 .45ACP Stainless. i've heard that this is a reliable little stopper and it's very effective at close range (20yds or less). that was the statement that the rep was pitching me. . .is this true? what other good stopping, imobilizing, and defense rounds are there for this caliber? any help would be great. ..

i'm getting an increase of drunk, drugged, or "my car just died down the road, can i use your phone?" in the last couple of weeks and i need to step up things a bit.

The Hydra Shoks are good bullets. They should serve you well. Some other ones that are noteworthy are the Starfire, Gold Dot, Tap, and XTP. I personally use the Hydra Shoks in my 9mm and .40 S&W. I would suggest you run at least a couple mags through your gun to make sure they feed flawlessly. Good luck, and I hope you never have to find out how well they work.

I keep a mag loaded with them for self defence. Both Syracuse PD and Onondaga County Sheriff's Deputies carry that ammo in their service sidearms. I found them to be just as accurate as Federal American Eagle ammo. I trust my life with them. The bad part is the price of them but how do you put a price on your life.

I've got them loaded in my older 4" .357 Magnum S&W M19 revolver which is in a drawer in the night stand. Hydra-shok's are designed for maximum expansion and penetration. I have never tested them (on lined upwater jugs) but trust they will do the job as it does't take much for severe damage on a Human body with that bullet construction.[/align]