by Joseph P. Tartaro | Executive Editor
In 2016, Black Hills Ammunition changed the rules for defensive ammunition in .380 and .38 Special by introducing a new concept; non-expanding pistol bullets with hard cutting edges and deep flutes that outperform the best defensive hollow point ammunition. These new bullets, developed in concert with
Black Hills Gold 2017 Lineup features Hornady’s New ELD-M® (Extreme Low Drag-Match) and ELD-X® (Extreme Low Drag – eXpanding) bullets in 11 new loadings from .260 Remington to .338 Lapua.
Lehigh Defense, literally and efficiently cut through barriers that plug conventional hollowpoints, while creating larger, deeper wound paths.
When first introduced only in .380 ACP and .38 Special loads last year, which were tested extensively by Contributing Editor R.K. Campbell for his article presented here, and sold last year, these all copper bullets were called Xtreme Defense in honor of the company that first developed them: Lehigh Defense. However, they proved so popular with other gun writers and consumers that Black Hills decided to introduce new handgun loadings in other calibers to the firearms industry at the 2017 SHOT Show. At the same time, Lehigh Defense and Black Hills changed the name of these unique all copper to Honey Badger™.
This year, Black Hills added three more loads, the all-new HoneyBadger™ 9mm 125-grain, the .45 ACP 135-grain for the ultimate in self-defense, plus a HoneyBadger™ .44 Magnum 160-grain for hunting or defense against four-legged predators. The new HoneyBadger™ 9mm and .45 ACP loads were designed to provide optimum performance in ballistic gelatin while avoiding over-penetration, as the illustration here indicates.
The 9mm, 125-grain HoneyBadger™ subsonic fired through a 4.4-inch barrel penetrated 18.625 inches of ballistic gelatin, producing a 14-inch long temporary cavity that varied from 2.5 inches to 9 inches in diameter.
The folks at Black Hills Ammunition are never satisfied with the status quo. They’re always striving for improvements, which is probably one of the reasons why the competitive teams of all four branches of the US military rely on Black Hills for their competition ammo and why law enforcement professionals bet their lives on it. Black Hills is all about improvements and is always on the lookout for new technology. Since they don’t make their own bullets, or cases, or powder, or primers, they are able to choose the best components available from legendary industry friends and carefully craft them into Black Hills Ammunition. And, above all, they concentrate on quality control with multiple inspections, from raw components, through production and into the boxes.
For example, when Hornady discovered ways to make already excellent bullets better, Black Hills wanted to utilize that new technology. Using Hornady’s new ELD-M® (Extreme Low Drag-Match) and ELD-X® (Extreme Low Drag – eXpanding) bullets, Black Hills upgraded their Gold rifle lineup with the highest BC bullets available. The result is flatter and more effective rifle shooting at longer ranges, in almost a dozen new loadings from .260 Remington to .338 Lapua, offering shooters and hunters many new choices with increased performance.
The new HoneyBadger™ pistol ammunition from Black Hills should be on dealer shelves as this issue goes to press, or very soon. To learn more and see videos, visit their website at: black-hills.com, or phone them at 605-348-5150.
