Gold dot is one of those legend projectiles that you know you can always rely on. Theres been millions of rounds of it fired with almost zero failures that ive ever seen or heard of. Gold dot is a proven performer.

I’m impressed by Fiocchi here. Held it’s own against HST which is what I consider the most consistent carry round. 👍🇺🇸

I carried the hst consistently for 5-6 years. My lgs always had them $30 per 50 box of 124gr. Eventually, they went up to $35, then quickly upt to $45. Now, I can't find them for less than $30-35 for a 20 box. On my last mag rotation, I decided to go with the Sig 124gr. At $25 a 50 box, I felt like it was 2017 again. Not the bullet I want, but fairly comparable from what I've seen and far better on the pocketbook.

I’m an old guy so I can remember ammo form the 1970’s. The performance gap you are seeing is really amazing! My FOP range was a testing ground for our PD in the 1980’s and “duty” ammo would not reliably expand fired down into 55gal drums of water! Now it’s possible to get reliable bullets in budget ammo. That’s a win for everyone!

I think for was it is being a budget friendly hollow point it definitely didn't do bad. The HST is probably more consistent if you were to test it multiple times over and I feel across multiple barrel length (3-4-5 inch's ) would perform better . The biggest advantage the fiocchi has is it's price for getting over half a box more of ammo is a big one , I guess it all depends on your outlook , budget and other things Do you wanna practice more with decent to good ammo or practice less with great amazing ammo if your wallets allows. Personally I switch out my hollow points twice a year so running the HSTs aren't a huge deal for me and the peace of mind is worth the price .

You made up my mind. Ill take 3,000 rounds of the cheap stuff over 1,000 of HST . great video thumbs up!

Ehhhh, gold dot and hst are proven performers. Over priced, of course! Worth it, also yes.

HST and Gold Dot always perform excellent on bare gel/t-shirt, and decent to good through the denim in my testing depending on caliber, pressure rating, and barrel length. Can't say the same for some "cheaper" hollow points I have tested. Also the sealed primer and bullet are a good point, especially for something that is going to be living in your sweaty waistband...

Here are a couple things, 1st I've carried Speer Got Dot professional for years and haven't seen it fail yet. But it's like Ford and Chevy people are going to like what they like, 2nd Gun Sam, your test is your test. I've watched tons of ballistic test vids. Everyone has a different take on real-world tests. your tube is full of vids people can watch, so don't apologize or defend your test. 51.3k subscribers must enjoy your vids like I do so, carry on.

At the risk of raising my prices. I've carried the Fiocchi defense dynamics for almost 3 years. It does what is needed.

One of the most systematic approaches to reviews I've seen! Good quantitative data mixed with objective qualitative impressions/ discussion all presented in a very clear format. About to go search your channel for hst vs critical defense, but if you haven't done it that would be an awesome one. Definitely earned a subscription, keep it up!

Considering the price difference the less expensive ammunition did very well, those wound tracks looked very similar as was the penetration. Definitely good ammo for the money 👍

I'm a police officer down in Houston, and I carry the 124 plus p in the gold dots as a duty round. I love the HST as well though. Your videos are awesome! And they help guys like me figure out what we want to trust in our duty guns. Keep up the awesome work!

Your testing being valid is a given, in that you consistently test with the same materials and procedure. Your videos are well done and informative. Don’t change a thing….

Great video. If you buy the 50rd packs of HST/Speer they are around $30-$40, and not a lot more expensive to the cheaper JHP. The 20rd boxes is where they really pump up the price. Though the bonding and sealing does help in many scenarios. The challenge with cheaper JHP is inconsistent performance with clothing and other barriers.

When it's this hard to tell the difference, for 1/3rd the price, Fiocchi did very well.

Good test and it doesn't really surprise me. Paul Harrell shows us all of the time that premium ammunition is generally better performing but only slightly. He usually uses 115gr Winchester white box and Remington green box JHPs to demonstrate that.

Definitely an informative test. I really like that you use the fiber board in addition to the denim. To my knowledge, nobody else does that and I feel that it gives more of a realistic depiction of bullet performance.

The Fiocchi did well. Sometimes the cheap stuff works well (WWB .40 180 grain, Remington HTP 125 grain .38/.357) and that's a good thing. I don't trust a load until I see it go through the MDF or meat target test. I've seen too many cheap rounds fail. I think the point of this is if you are going to bet your life on a round, might as well spend the money.

Nice long distance shootin’ Tex ! Thanks for sharing and regards from new Washington.

I think your mdf test is valid in that it at least shows a round through a different media. The only determining factor in sd ammo is penetration. It enters, decelerates and stops inside the target. A one shot stop is dependent on it. Expansion looks neat but that's the brakes on the projectile. In my view both rounds were nearly identical with nearly ideal penetration to stop a threat without killing the rest of the neighborhood. Great video!

Sam you are correct about the real world scenario As for example take a look at your coat--- I would not count on any hollow point opening through that coat and maybe not 90% of others . That 148 grain wad cutter keeps on shining

Great test and comparison Sam! My, my that Fiocchi does perform! You mentioned that the higher end defensive loads have sealer factory-applied to the primer pockets and case mouths. This fact should not be underestimated. Over my many years of carry, I have inadvertently sent loaded speed strips and magazines (Speer Gold Dots, Remington Golder Saber and Federal HSTs) through the clothes washer and dryer in my pants pocket. It happens once or twice a year, no matter how hard I try to empty my pockets before my pants go in the wash... I always make it a point to shoot up the bullets in that washed speed strip, or shoot out that magazine within a week or so. If nothing else, it's my way of renewing my carry ammo periodically. Living in a hot summer climate, I also sometimes get a lot of green crud growing around the primers of my carry loads, just from constant contact with sweaty skin. This happens more so with revolvers for sure. Whether it be from sweat or from running through a washer/dryer cycle, I've never had a Good Dot, Golden Saber or HST that didn't fire off as expected. That means something to me. Not sure I could trust the Fiocchi to keep the moisture out long-term. If carrying the Fiocchi or something similar, I would renew it not less than twice a year of daily carry. I would also watch for bullet creep, especially in a semiauto!

Great test! I try to keep a healthy ammo stockpile. I have some of the Fiocchi 124 gr. If I’m going to pay high prices I’m going with Underwood extreme defender 🤠

Excellent shooting at that distance. Just subbed Great testing!!

At a time when people are carrying 10 or 12 rounds of 9mm plus an extra mag of 10-12 rounds, it becomes expensive to test, practice with, and carry these premium hollow points. I love Winchester white box stuff because I can buy enough to test and carry for like $30, and it's probably enough to get the job done. Thanks for the test!!!

That was some excellent shooting. What I will give to the HST is that with the sealant, it's going to resist sweat and stuff much better for people who just load up and never shoot it. The Fiocchi brand is not bad. I use it for practice ammo in 357 Magnum. The 142gr certainly lets you know you've launched something.

I love your no nonsense testing. I like “Everyman” type tests like this

Dude thank you sooo much for this test. I've been wondering about this exact comparison for a while now👍👍👍

When someone says something like "I buy the cheapest ammo I can find", you already know they don't know what in the hell they're talking about. There is alot of science and testing that goes in to defense ammunition. The budget stuff goes bang and will get the job done, but keep in mind, your life is depending on the ammo. Spend the extra couple bucks

About half of the ballistic gel tests I see on KZfaq with gold dots in 9mm and some HST’s the HP fails to expand. Almost all 380 HP’s either fail to expand or sub par penetration if they do. Federal HST’s are probably the best overall for 9mm with more ballistic success than others. Paul Harrel did some tests with WWB HP’s and they performed well.

I agree about the sealant and in particular the Nickel-plated brass is a must for me because I love smooth feeding, in fact it might be a bit obsessive but I "polish" my personal carry rounds to a perfect smoothed uniform shine and texture to ensure feed reliability. The little extra steps are worth your Life in my view.

Very good video. You have probably learned this by now but here goes. If you need to pull a bullet that has all sealant or been loaded for years. Your flare die to just bump the bullet down just so it breaks the sealant. Then whack as normal If you want to reload that bullet and want sealant again clear finger nail polish works and a bunch cheaper. Thanks for the work and the time you put in it Take care

Appreciate this video the difference is negligible i picked up these fiocchi today to practice with and they are laser accurate in my M&P so going to switch to them for good

Thanks for the comparison of the two. What I got from this is that, cheaper doesn't mean bad. If I can get more rounds without losing performacne, I'm going with cheaper rounds. That's my 2 cents.

Practice with the Fiocchi, but carry the HST in your defense pistols.

I'm a fan of the 124 gr HST and that's what's in any of my 9x19s that aren't loaded with Federal 9 BPLE (old habits die hard, LOL). My Walther P99, for instance, has had a steady diet of HST and likes it. In this test the Federal seemed to be a tiny bit more consistent with Fiocchi. The only surprise for me was that the Fiocchi was that consistent. I'm not knocking the brand, I use it in several guns (especially .25, .32, and such) and I find it to be good ammo, just maybe not quite up to Federal's quality. Of course it's significantly cheaper (usually) so you get lower cost with only slightly lower quality. I think I might consider Fiocchi as spare ammo -- something to stock up on when it's a lot cheaper than what's available or if HSTs aren't in stock. Great shooting, BTW. The accidental double-tap was quite impressive with the center hit followed by the head shot. LOL ... I'll be most of your critics can't pull that off. :)

Surprised the Fiocchi did so well. They do make some decent range ammo, but some of their other stuff, particularly revolver ammo, seems pretty weak and occasionally has accuracy issues. But these rounds seem like a valid choice. Doesn't quite match the HST's, but not much does.

I have Buffalo Bore, Underwood and Hornady Critical Defense stacked on the shelf because I prefer to keep my 357 Mags loaded with the much cheaper Remington UMC semi jacketed hollow point rounds. I recall you saying it was a round that modern ammo still couldn't beat. From everything I have seen I agree completely. That said, I do agree with your very points concerning why you would still prefer the HST here. If the new stuff came in a semi jacketed hollow point round I might load with something different. I wish Buffalo Bore or someone make something like that.

Have only used Fiocchi as practice ammo. They have some good loads, with sometimes offball bullet weights (like a 142 gr LRN in 38 Spl). I can vouch for the 170 gr 40. It is truncated, almost a flat nose. Years ago ny former agency sent 2 guys to SWAT school. They were having problems with their Glop 22's. They blamed the ammo (shortly after this, the info about the Glop mag problems came to light). So the sgt gave me most of a case to get rid of it. My XD40 especially loved it, and my P229 shot it well also. That was when i really started to like the XD, had had it for a year or so and was breaking it in. I liked it so much it became my upstairs housegun, with a very compact Streamlight light which was exactly contoured to the gun, and a Pachmayr Grip Glove. Only reason I didn't make it my duty gun was i am a dyed in the wool Sig guy, i was well experienced with the 229, and I didn't feel like buying another holster and trying to find one which would accommodate the light. When i move to a free state i will get an XDM in 10mm😁

Another great comparison test! Excellent shooting at 75 yards, very impressive, thanks for the video Sam!

The big question is the $1.00 difference per round justifies the difference. I think it's negligible.

Much tighter group with the HST at 75 yards, however, I was impressed with the Fiocchi's performance. You're a fine shot, not many guys can hit at 75 yards as well as you did.

The duty ammo for my former PD is Federal Premium LE 147 grain HST for the issued weapon, the Glock 19.

in my simple water jug tests Winchester white box (wwb) hollow point ammo seemed to work just as well as the expensive brands.

I've always been a fan of the HST's, but I think you just sold a lot of Fiocchi ammo with that test. Held its own pretty well I'd say.

Thank you SO MUCH for this video! I picked up some Defense Dynamics a while back, and have been wondering how it performed. Normally, I'm an HST guy myself, but this video made me feel better about the F-DD. Any chance you could compare 45/230 Standard Defense Dynamics against 45/230 Standard HST? Would love to see that one also! Thanks! Great video!

I don’t carry 9mm (.40 S&W for the win 🥇!), but if I did, I have HST 124gr +P for the 396ft-lbs of energy it produces.

Don’t know if you get recent comment, Sam, but this is a reminder to me of how much you struggled with your health a year ago. So glad you were better now. Keep up the great work !

Good info on the bullet puller. The semi auto ammo is meant to make one trip up the ramp. Some of the cheaper ammo is made with the XTP bullet. I think this is a safe bet especially in +P. Thanks for making this great video.

I found some Fiocchi here at a local Atwood’s for 24.99$ picked up two boxes! I’ll carry it! Great video sir👍🏼🤠

For anyone who believes cheap hollow points are are just as good or better than HST projectiles I encourage you to spend just a few minutes reviewing testing done with comparisons to both. Ths HST will come out on top every single time in testing that replicates real world situations. Cheap hollow points are just that, cheap, and will under perform 9 times out of 10. The biggest obstacle that hollow point projectiles will ever encounter is clogging. It has plagued projectile engineers for decades. Federal is one of only a few companies that have been able to reduce the obstacle of clogging to the point it is barely an issue at all. A heavy clothing barrier test with calibrated gel will cause induce failure in almost every cheap round on the market. People (for the most part) dont run around unclothed so that is a huge factor that needs to be considered when saying cheap hollows are ok to trust you life with.

thanks for doing these tests, very impressed with Fiocchi, never carried but for 55 cents a round ill definitely stock up!

Fiocchi is fine starter defensive ammo. HST is great premium defensive ammo.

I would take the federal over any cheaper round. I’m sure federal has done way more testing and research which shows in the price of it.

I sure don’t want you to shot at me at 75 yards that’s some awesome shooting . America needs more people pack n like you and me . Keep up the awesome work

I have been carrrying Gold Dots for years. One of the best rounds out there IMO.

In 9mm I try try to stay with Gold Dot, HST, or Critical Duty, all preferably 124 grain +P. I don’t have any issues with 147, Rangers, or Golden Saber, just personal preference and experience. I was provided with some imported brand 124 grain HP a while back. I wasn’t sure how it would perform and the only thing I could find was a KZfaq video in 2017 showing how it zipped through a couple gel blocks and maybe a water jug and the bullet was not recovered. Not using that stuff for anything more than training. Do you have to use premium ammo? Probably not. Should you do some due diligence - at least see how others have fared testing the more generic stuff? Yes. And remember there are things like Federal 9BP or Remington or Winchester HPs that are not cutting edge technology anymore but are still respectable quality and aren’t as expensive as the premium stuff. And of course shot placement always makes the difference if a steel plate rings and shudders or doesn’t.

I think it’s perfect with ur MDF and that’s why we watch ur channel,cause of the Truth n Testing of calibers and thanks again for getting the S&W 389 EZ can’t wait to c more of them on it.!.!.!.

Glad you pointed out the primer sealer. A lot of people know nothing about that. Federal and speer (owned by Federal) make great quality, reliable ammo. For depending on for you life, I'll spend the money. Practice with cheap stuff.

Fiocchi tends to load Hornady xtp bullets in their defensive ammo. That looks like what we have here. It's a quality bullet with a decent loading for a budget price. I think of it as last generation ammo no longer the best on the market butbfar more advanced than Remington green box.

Throwing so many rounds down range like you do really shows the value.

About your target, it is cheaper than the meat target. But you don't have ribs to Bar-B-Q afterwards

I am a huge fan of the fiocchi defense rounds, however I do house the 147 gr, out of a 10.5 carbine. In my personal testing that has given the best home defense result. In hand guns I use both gold dot, and hst, depending on the gun and which they shoot better. Used both in Law Enforcement and have had the desired result.

Thank you for an informative, well presented video with a good dose of common sense. Keep up the good work.

In my experience 124gr +p gold dots don't expand at 100yds, 124gr +p HST does. Standard pressure federal punch expands at 100yds too, I got a feral hog with one from a g19. It would be interesting if you did some 100yd gel tests with JHP. Stand up 2 blocks of gel and put one behind the other, you'd get 12" of ballistics gel combined and it's a target you can hit.

So it turns out that Fiocchi was no Jokey! :)

Thanks, that was a very good test. I'd lean towards HST but we just went through a pandemic where Gold Dot and HST were very hard to find and $$$$$! Sometimes you have to buy what you can find. I've shot a lot of Fiocchi for practice, and it works! Very consistent and affordable. I'd still prefer one of the premium cartridges for carry, but for those extra magazines in my bail out bag or get home bag, Fiocchi would satisfy me there.

Thanks for a great video demonstration on the Fiocchi Ammo.

The deciding factor for me was it did its job well enough and you could get 50 of them for less. Now another factor is the big DEFENSE DYNAMICS print on the boxes so it looks better in court if it comes to that.

Nice shooting, strangler… I mean stranger. You put a bunch of those on target from a distance. Thanks for this video.

I use Federal HST 165 grain, .40 cal hollow points with my GLOCK22. To each his own. I'll go with Federal HST. This guy can go with his cut rate ammo. BTW, I pay $35 per 50 round box which comes out to 70 cents per round for .40 ca HST. This guy got ripped off at $1.50 per round for 9mm HST. He should check other ammo dealers.

Sounds like the sealant etc. will solve the problem with bullets unseating in revolvers. Also that stuff should have a shelf life of forever with no humidity making it in.

I have been using fiocchi hyperformance 115 gr xtp hp bullets for a couple of years now stemming from the ammo shortage we all experienced and i must say that the fiocchi ammo runs like a clock in my 3 9mm pistols. I do belive hst ammo is also great. But after using the fiocchi i have been impressed by the accuracy and the reliability.

I recently purchased standard pressure 124 grain HST for $.85 a round. Sam...that is some fine, fine shooting at 75 yards. HST is super accurate in your Smith. This Fiocchi load is impressive.

The Fiocchi did really well, I would carry it

I miss the woods like that. Out here in Colorado that doesn’t exist. Only hard wood that can survive is weeping widow. Sure if ya head into the mountains there’s pine trees but nothing like that east coast forest on either side of the road.

Appreciate the comparison Brother, be safe and take care

Very impressed with your shooting at 75 yards! Nice!!

DANG... I wish us reloaders could by these HPs. Hornady and Speer are the only ones I found so far that sell the bullets. Both brands work awesome if loaded with the right powder.

Biggest difference I noticed was it looked like the Fiocchi has a lot less energy hitting the steel at 75 yrds. The HST strikes were much more pronounced both physically and audibly. Also, the HST looked to hold a little better group at the 75. I'd like to see the same test out of a 9mm PCC. That would be pretty interesting.

Sealant is cheap and easy to apply. I apply sealant to all my carry ammo (and hunting ammo). If they perform the same, get the cheaper ammo (in my opinion). Fiocchi is quality ammo.

That doesn't surprise me. A lot of times the more expensive/better ammo isn't much better, if at all. Good video.

I just tested HST and Gold Dot 9mm 124 GR.plus P. I have only windage adj. The HST we're high on target.and tight .The gold dots were right on with a little RS adj. On the way back from the range I hit a running coyote at 20 yds and he rolled down. Either one is a great round.Bibdwd is good .I couldn't find any other bonded ammo brands to try. But I've made my choice . Gold Dot it is and easier for me to find and a little cheaper in the 50 count. 1220 fps and 410 fpe has to count for something. If I remember your F ammo is XTP. THEY are going bullets used them for 20 years.

Great testing as always Gun Sam! Maybe do a cheap hollowpoint comparison like Win White Box and Rem UMC sometime? A while back Tools and Targets tested cheap Winchester WB and Remington UMC against each other in 9mm 115gr. in gel and chronoed them. He also tested 9mm Remington UMC alone in another video. In each it performed very well for an inexpensive HP ammo. Winchester WB did as well. I would love to see if your testing results would be similar to his for UMC and Win WB. I know you can buy Rem UMC in HP and in FMJs and many say they hit the same point of impact in their pistol. I haven't tested this myself but hope to sometime. Its good to know we have options for the frugal tight arse and the poor working man shooters. I keep both as well as my high $ nickel plated sealed big brand name ammo. But I shoot a lot more Rem UMC than anything in 9mm. I do like Atomic Ammunition and their nickel plated hollowpoint ammo in 380, they only offer +P and 147gr subsonic in 9mm tho.

I always appreciate your videos, the work you put in, and the solid info you provide. I'm a subscriber and happy to be one! But man, I always cringe when I see guntube testers use a beautiful sharp knife point to dig bullets out of anything but gel. Ouch! 😖 Surely a cheap awl or screwdriver would do the trick.

Fiocchi is my ammo of choice for range and defense. My Canik TP9 ELITE SC loves it.

I just picked up the M&P 2.0 10mm with the 4.6" barrel and tried the Nosler ASP 180 gr hollow point. It penetrated to the 4th jug but left the jacket and several lead fragments in the 3rd jug and more led in the 2nd jug. I'll be on the lookout for something with better structural integrity.

HST is badass, does the job it's supposed to do. Carried it in my duty pistol for years.

Thanks for the hard work Sam, much appreciated. The top tier ammo gives advantages but not massive advantages. However every little advantage is more than worth it when your life is at steak.

Another gr8 video and I’ve learned so much from u n can c you learning so new stuff at times 2!!! TY GunSam!!! Did you c Paul H gave ya a shout out!!!!! That’s telling ya all u need to know on the job ur doin on videos .!.!.

Actually surprised a bit how decent the fiochi did. They had a 115 that just frags and 124 xtps do good guess this is a newer bullet

The reason HST is so much better of a round is consistency, in all scenarios. Critical Duty is another round designed for pretty much the same reasons. But, if all you can get is the Fiocchi, you could do worse. HST is professional grade ammo, and we, the average user, pay more of a premium for it than Law Enforcement, due to special pricing and availability. It's those little added upgrades like the sealed nickel cases that make it important for the professional user. But for the average person, Fiocchi works pretty good, for a home defense gun, or one that lives in the glove box, or one that's carried concealed and shielded from the elements. So, in the tests, HST performed as expected, and Fiocchi held it's own. Not an indictment of the HST, but a praise for the Fiocchi.

Cheap ammo is good for training and the range NOT for keeping you safe or your loved ones safe. I love having cheap ammo of quality though, call me a snob but I don’t go with brands that have bad reviews or fail to fire often.

I'm lucky when it comes to being able to afford high end defense rounds. Gold dot 200 grain +p in my Glock 21 5th gen for home. And Glock 19 with HST 124 grain +p for carry. I love the nickel plated rounds....easy to find in the dark if you needed too. The GD 200 JHP 45ACP REALLY TEARS LARGE cavitys in a raw 12 pound turkey I was testing it on. Same for 9 mm 124 grain JHP HST rounds in my Glock 19. Could only afford 1 turkey at the Grocery store, but I was wanting to see the effects both rounds would have. Plus , I always buy in bulk. The only way to go.

Because of the sealant. HST Ammo does not need to be recycled as much, The Ammo Keeps Longer

Enjoy your video's and the time you take putting them together.

Thank you. Appreciate the honest assessment.

FEDERAL HST ALL DAY EVERY DAY only buy 50 rd boxes of hst cheaper by round and you bet more for 50 boxes less lately good video btw 4inch is my edc g48mos

Lol, "just as good" yeah, sure it is. I'm a big fan of +p gold dots even though I haven't seen any for sale anywhere for years. I appreciate your work Sam Thank you.