Buffalo Bore 45 Auto Rim +P 200gr JHP – Powerful Expanding Defense Load

Description

The Buffalo Bore 45 Auto Rim +P 200gr JHP is the defensive load in this family, and Buffalo Bore is unusually clear about what it is for. 200 grains at 1200 fps produces roughly 639 ft-lbs, and it is designed for expansion with approximately 14 inches of penetration, which is less than half what the hard cast +P load delivers. That is the point rather than a shortcoming. Twenty rounds per box, item 32B/20.

• Buffalo Bore 45 Auto Rim +P 200gr JHP Overview
• 45 Auto Rim +P Hollow Point Ammo Ballistics
• Why The 200 Grain Expanding Revolver Bullet Is The Carry Choice
• Specifications
• Which Guns Take This High Velocity 45 Auto Rim Ammunition

Buffalo Bore 45 Auto Rim +P 200gr JHP Overview

The bullet is a conventional lead core jacketed hollow point at 200 grains, light for the calibre. Driven to 1200 fps it has abundant speed to open, and a 45 calibre bullet that expands properly makes a very large hole indeed.

Buffalo Bore loads the Buffalo Bore 45 Auto Rim +P 200gr JHP above standard pressure. Their guidance is that it is safe in post war 45 ACP revolvers in good working order, with a note that some owners may need to have the chambers honed for easier extraction.

The case is a rimmed 45 ACP, made in 1920 so that 1917 service revolvers could be loaded and ejected without half moon clips. That rim is the only real difference, so this works in any 45 ACP revolver with no clips at all.

45 Auto Rim +P Hollow Point Ammo Ballistics

The published chronograph figures come from four real revolvers. A 6.5 inch Smith and Wesson 1955 Target gives 1249 fps, a 5.5 inch Model 1917 gives 1203, a four inch Mountain Gun gives 1197, and a 2.5 inch scandium Model 325 gives 1080 fps.

Those work out to roughly 693, 643, 636 and 518 ft-lbs. Even the 2.5 inch scandium revolver is producing more than a five inch 45 ACP pistol does with standard 230 grain ball, which is about 369.

The interesting comparison is with the hard cast +P in the same line. That load makes 566 ft-lbs and drives about 30 inches. This one makes 639 and drives about 14. More energy, far less depth, because 45 Auto Rim +P hollow point ammo spends its energy opening up rather than travelling.

Why The 200 Grain Expanding Revolver Bullet Is The Carry Choice

Fourteen inches of penetration is not a weakness, it is a specification. A fourteen inch penetration 45 AR load sits squarely inside the twelve to eighteen inch window most people consider appropriate for defence against a person, which is precisely where the hard cast loads in this line do not sit.

Against a human threat you want the bullet to expand, transfer its energy and stop inside rather than carrying on into whatever is behind. A 200 grain expanding revolver bullet at 1200 fps does that. A 255 grain hard cast at 30 inches of penetration very much does not.

The calibre gives you a good starting point. At 0.452 of an inch the bullet is already wider unexpanded than most service calibre bullets manage after opening, so expansion is building on a large base rather than compensating for a small one.

Recoil is brisk but manageable in a steel revolver. High velocity 45 Auto Rim ammunition at this level is noticeably livelier than the standard pressure loads, and in a lightweight scandium gun it is genuinely sharp.

Specifications

Which Guns Take This High Velocity 45 Auto Rim Ammunition

Buffalo Bore’s guidance is post war 45 ACP revolvers in good working order. Many Model 1917 revolvers predate the Second World War, so if yours is one of those, have a gunsmith confirm its condition before feeding it +P.

Note the extraction caveat. Buffalo Bore mentions that some owners may need to have their chambers honed for easier extraction with this 45 Auto Rim +P hollow point ammo. That is a straightforward gunsmith job and worth knowing about before it surprises you at the range.

This is the one in the family to choose for defence against people. A fourteen inch penetration 45 AR load will expand and stay inside, where the hard cast loads pass through and keep going into whatever is behind.

Confirm your point of impact. At 200 grains and 1200 fps this shoots considerably flatter than the 230 grain ball these revolvers were regulated around, so expect a different zero and find it on paper.

Fourteen Inch Penetration 45 AR Load Availability

This high velocity 45 Auto Rim ammunition is in stock and ready to ship from MAG5 Firearms, a family owned FFL dealer in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. Ammunition orders ship to most states, and local customers are welcome to pick up in the shop. If you need case quantities or a standard pressure version, call us and we will check what our distributors have on hand.

Manufacturer details are on the Buffalo Bore site. For the same bullet at standard pressure, see the 45 Auto Rim 200gr JHP. For maximum penetration instead, compare the 45 Auto Rim +P 255gr hard cast, or browse our full ammunition selection.