Federal Premium Hydra-Shok Deep’s bullet design brings the .380 Auto cartridge to all-new heights—or in this case, depths, the company announced.
This new micro-handgun ammunition offering is the first expanding .380 Auto load to consistently penetrate beyond the FBI-recommended 12-inch minimum in bare gel and through heavy clothing, the company said in a news release. Shipments of this product have begun to arrive at dealers.
“FBI protocol for handgun ammunition testing includes a series of rigorous scenarios,” said Federal Handgun Ammunition Product Manager Chris Laack. “Bullets are shot through materials such as 10-percent ordinance gelatin, laminated automotive safety glass, plywood, wallboard and heavy clothing specified by the FBI. While our larger caliber ammunition is designed to meet and exceed these requirements, the smaller 380 Auto is designed to offer the best possible blend of performance in a compact handgun platform.”
Testing done by Federal ammunition engineers in their Anoka, Minnesota facilities showed typical results of 13 to 13 ½ inches of penetration in bare gel and 13 ¼ to 14 inches through heavy clothing. Test gun barrel lengths were from common, compact handguns ranging from 2 ¾ to 3 ½ inches. The bullet and load are also fine-tuned to ensure delivery of consistent performance across all handgun platforms, including ones with longer barrels, to stay within that 13- to 14-inch goal range.
“It’s a completely new bullet design. We didn’t just take a 45 ACP, 40 S&W or 9mm Hydra-Shok Deep bullet and make it smaller,” said Laack. “During development, engineers looked at several design elements such as bullet weight, jacket, skiving, profile, and hollow point design elements to determine what modifications were necessary for the 380 Auto.
Hydra-Shok Deep 380 scores a blistering 1,000 feet per second at the muzzle and delivers full expansion in both the bare gel and heavy clothing tests when shot from a variety of common compact handguns. According to Federal, this new round is the first expanding .380 Auto to consistently penetrate beyond FBI-recommended 12-inch minimum in bare gel and through heavy clothing
The iconic center post design has been improved for better, more consistent expansion through standard barriers. The round is loaded with consistent, specially formulated propellant, and is launched by a reliable Federal primer with sealant.
