Even tho the hornet (classic load is my only experience, 45 grs at 2600 fps) has no more momentum than a 260 gr .45 colt at 450 fps, and only 1/5th as much frontal area, I can guarantee you that the Hornet has considerably more observable effects on impact, with coyotes, feral dogs and the like. That experience is what led me to favor very lightweight, very high velocity bullets in my defensive handguns. I've shot hundreds of animals with all sorts of CCW handgun loads, and the big bore swc's, at low speeds never impressed me at all. Once you get 185 gr swc's going 1100 fps or so, they have a decent impact-effect, but they can't be driven that fast and still be adequately controlable in rapidfire, with a lw, compact ccw pistol. gun people pre-judge "new-fangled" ammo and guns as being nothing but hype, without shooting even one flesh and blood target with the really lw bulleted, 2200+ fps type loads.. I heard the same thing about the glock, about stainless steel guns, about hard-chrome plated guns, about fiberglass stocks, when these innovations came out. The nay-sayers were proven to be wrong. - - - Updated - - - 2200 fps perfomance CAN be had (safely) in controlable ccw pistols. THV Arcane had a 2300 fps, 45 gr 9mm load over 30 years ago. It was banned here because it featured a solid brass bullet, illegal under the Federal anti-AP handgun ammo law. some will say "the hornet experience was 400 fps greater speed". well, that's not true of the velocity for the animals hit out at 100 yds. look at the ballistics charts. the blunt, hpsp Hornet bullet has a lot of air resistance, so it slows down really fast. The impact speed was 2200-2400 fps. MagSafe ammo has a 2500 fps 357 Sig load, as of this day, still. Sure, their bullet has an epoxy core and (probably) doesn't penetrate enough, but the velocity is real. That velocity can be had with bullets that do not just fragment at impact. And while they do offer AP performance, they are not illegal to possess or make.
