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Part of the answer will depend on the size of gun you have. 230 gr work better out of a 5" barrel than out of a 4.25" barrel or smaller. If you have a shorter barrel, then you the 185s.
SAM3 brought up some interesting issues. I don't understand what 's is in his equations. I had never heard that stopping power is equal to blood loss. Given that very few shots could instantly stop someone due to blood loss, I would not count on blood loss as being the determining factor for stopping power. Blood loss may eventually stop someone, but it can take a while. The classic case is of the Platt and Matix gunfight with the FBI. As one of the agents say, Platt and Matix were dieing, but not fast enough. I don't recall which it was, but one of them was fatally wounded by the first shot he received that cut a major blood vessel to/from the heart. He lived long enough to kill more than one agent and would several others. Blood loss stopping power may mean that you do stop the bad guy, but only after he has killed you. Don't count on blood loss as a determining factor.
Another issue brought up by SAM3 is penetration. The greater the mass of the bullet does not mean that it will necessarily have greater penetration. Other issues of bullet speed and shape will affect penetration performance. If the round is traveling too slow, you won't get sufficient penetration. This is an issue with shorter barreled guns and using the 230 gr bullets. The shorter barrels do not let the bullet get up to its fullest potential speed as produced in a 5" gun. Depending on the make and model of ammo, a 3" barrel may be as much as 150' per second slower, but probably closer to 80-100 with most brands. A 4.25" barrel won't be affected as much, but the bullet will still be slower than if fired from a 5" barrel. As for shape, a larger diameter bullet is likely to have more trouble penetrating than a smaller diameter if all other varialbes are the same.
What it all boils down to is having the most appropriate speed for your bullet given the bullet's size and weight. Speed is going to be determined, in part, by the barrel length and the powder load.
SAM3 brought up some interesting issues. I don't understand what 's is in his equations. I had never heard that stopping power is equal to blood loss. Given that very few shots could instantly stop someone due to blood loss, I would not count on blood loss as being the determining factor for stopping power. Blood loss may eventually stop someone, but it can take a while. The classic case is of the Platt and Matix gunfight with the FBI. As one of the agents say, Platt and Matix were dieing, but not fast enough. I don't recall which it was, but one of them was fatally wounded by the first shot he received that cut a major blood vessel to/from the heart. He lived long enough to kill more than one agent and would several others. Blood loss stopping power may mean that you do stop the bad guy, but only after he has killed you. Don't count on blood loss as a determining factor.
Another issue brought up by SAM3 is penetration. The greater the mass of the bullet does not mean that it will necessarily have greater penetration. Other issues of bullet speed and shape will affect penetration performance. If the round is traveling too slow, you won't get sufficient penetration. This is an issue with shorter barreled guns and using the 230 gr bullets. The shorter barrels do not let the bullet get up to its fullest potential speed as produced in a 5" gun. Depending on the make and model of ammo, a 3" barrel may be as much as 150' per second slower, but probably closer to 80-100 with most brands. A 4.25" barrel won't be affected as much, but the bullet will still be slower than if fired from a 5" barrel. As for shape, a larger diameter bullet is likely to have more trouble penetrating than a smaller diameter if all other varialbes are the same.
What it all boils down to is having the most appropriate speed for your bullet given the bullet's size and weight. Speed is going to be determined, in part, by the barrel length and the powder load.
