{"id":11578,"date":"2023-08-29T13:09:11","date_gmt":"2023-08-29T17:09:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/?p=11578"},"modified":"2025-12-22T15:46:24","modified_gmt":"2025-12-22T20:46:24","slug":"rifles-vs-pistols-the-basics-of-terminal-ballistics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/rifles-vs-pistols-the-basics-of-terminal-ballistics\/","title":{"rendered":"Rifles vs. Pistols: The Basics of Terminal Ballistics"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>For the last 100+ years, a great deal of the effort expended in ammo technology has gone toward trying to make pistol bullets act more like rifle bullets. Every few years, a new cartridge or bullet design arrives on the scene, claiming to have gotten us just a little closer to the fabled &#8220;pistol with rifle performance.&#8221;<\/p> <p>Before we try to evaluate these claims, it really helps to have a basic understanding of terminal ballistics. And that starts with understanding why rifles behave like rifles, and pistols behave like pistols.<\/p> <p>Details are in the video below, or scroll down to read the full transcript.<\/p> <div class=\"entry-content-asset\"><script src=\"https:\/\/fast.wistia.com\/assets\/external\/E-v1.js\" async><\/script><\/p> <noscript class=\"idle-load\"><div class=\"wistia_responsive_padding\" style=\"padding:56.25% 0 28px 0;position:relative;\"> <div class=\"wistia_responsive_wrapper\" style=\"height:100%;left:0;position:absolute;top:0;width:100%;\"> <div class=\"wistia_embed wistia_async_8e7vsicr2i dnt=1 seo=false videoFoam=true\" style=\"height:100%;position:relative;width:100%\"> <div class=\"wistia_swatch\" style=\"height:100%;left:0;opacity:0;overflow:hidden;position:absolute;top:0;transition:opacity 200ms;width:100%;\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/fast.wistia.com\/embed\/medias\/8e7vsicr2i\/swatch\" style=\"filter:blur(5px);height:100%;object-fit:contain;width:100%;\" alt=\"\" aria-hidden=\"true\" onload=\"this.parentNode.style.opacity=1;\" \/><\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div><\/noscript> <\/div> <hr \/> <p>Hey everybody, I\u2019m Chris Baker from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\">LuckyGunner.com<\/a> and today I\u2019m going to talk about why some bullets are more effective than others \u2013 specifically, why rifles completely out-perform pistols.<\/p> <p>Really, this is going to serve as kind of an introduction to terminal ballistics. That\u2019s the study of what bullets do once they hit the target. If the target is an animal or human, that\u2019s terminal wound ballistics. I\u2019m definitely not an expert on that topic, but I\u2019ve learned a lot from people who are. You don\u2019t have to get very deep into it before terminal ballistics can start to feel overly technical. I\u2019m going to try to skip the more academic stuff and keep us grounded in the real world question rifles versus pistols.<\/p> <p>Keep in mind that bullets and bodies behave in unpredictable ways and there are no guarantees about what will happen. Also, there is not actually any hard technical distinction between rifle and pistol cartridges. So bear with me here \u2013 I\u2019m going to make broad generalizations to keep this simple, but there are plenty of exceptions and gray areas that would just take too long to cover.<\/p> <p>We all know rifle rounds are more effective than pistol rounds. But what does \u201ceffective\u201d actually mean? For today, we\u2019re going to narrow our context to defending against a violent human attacker. In that case, an effective bullet would be one that makes that attacker stop trying to hurt people as quickly as possible.<\/p> <h3>The Dark Ages of Terminal Ballistics<\/h3> <p>Since the dawn of handheld firearms technology, we\u2019ve known that bigger and\/or faster projectiles are better. The \u201cwhy\u201d and \u201chow\u201d behind that is something we\u2019ve only recently come to understand. Endless myths and misconceptions pervaded the field of wound ballistics for many years, and some of those myths are still widely believed today. That\u2019s because until around the 1970s and 80s, wound ballistics research was mostly conducted by experts in firearm and ammo design who only had a layman\u2019s understanding of the human body.<\/p> <p>That led to a bunch of made-up bro-science theories that don\u2019t explain gunshot wounds in a meaningful way. For example, the theory of \u201cKinetic Energy transfer\u201d is still fairly popular. It\u2019s not entirely wrong, it\u2019s just incomplete. Kinetic energy is transferred from the bullet to the target. But nobody\u2019s ever had their official cause of death recorded as \u201cenergy transfer.\u201d What\u2019s important is how that energy is used and what kind of damage results.<\/p> <h3>The Modern Era<\/h3> <p>Modern wound ballistics research really started with Army surgeon <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/5AhcuLWIe3A?\" data-rel=\"lightbox-video-0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Dr. Martin Fackler<\/a>. He\u2019s the guy who gave us the standard for what we now call 10% FBI ballistic gelatin. Others had used gelatin before, but there was no standardized method for making the gel blocks or calibrating them. My gelatin could be more dense than yours, so any comparison of our test results would essentially be meaningless.<\/p> <figure id=\"attachment_11584\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-11584\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/martin-fackler.jpg\" data-rel=\"lightbox-image-0\" data-rl_title=\"\" data-rl_caption=\"\" title=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11584\" src=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/martin-fackler.jpg\" alt=\"Dr. Martin Fackler\" width=\"800\" height=\"599\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/martin-fackler.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/martin-fackler-600x450.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/martin-fackler-768x575.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-11584\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dr. Martin Fackler<\/figcaption><\/figure> <p>Fackler, along with other researchers, also compared gel tests to actual gunshot wounds from the battlefield and from animal tests to verify that it\u2019s an accurate simulant. It\u2019s not perfect, but so far it\u2019s the best model we have for predicting what a bullet is likely to do in human tissue.<\/p> <p>Fackler and other medical professionals were also able to identify the specifics of how exactly bullets cause wounds. And it actually turned out to be pretty straightforward.<\/p> <p>There are two types of wounds bullets can inflict that will force the body to stop moving:<\/p> <ol> <li>They can disrupt the central nervous system (or \u201cCNS\u201d) with damage to the brain or spinal cord. That effect is instant.<\/li> <li>They can cause damage that ultimately deprives the brain of oxygen, either through blood loss or damage to vital organs. That tends to take a little longer. Sometimes just a couple of seconds, but it could also be several minutes. Someone who\u2019s really determined or in an altered mental state can potentially continue to be a deadly threat for 10 to 15 seconds even after the heart stops functioning.<\/li> <\/ol> <p>A CNS hit is the ideal way to stop a deadly threat. But the brain and spine are difficult targets to hit on a moving subject. So modern defensive shooting doctrine is to aim for the upper chest area because it\u2019s a larger target and it contains the heart, lungs, and aorta.<\/p> <p>So we\u2019ve got two types of incapacitating wounds and there are two ways bullets can cause that damage. They are:<\/p> <ol> <li>\u00a0The permanent cavity<\/li> <li>\u00a0The temporary cavity.<\/li> <\/ol> <h3>The Permanent Cavity<\/h3> <p>The permanent cavity is also known as the wound channel or wound track. This is simply the tissue that is cut and crushed by the bullet as it passes through. If the bullet hits something important enough, the target will be incapacitated. The larger the bullet, the more likely it is to hit something important. Larger permanent cavities also cause more rapid blood loss. But any bullet can be effective with good shot placement and adequate penetration. In ballistic gel, adequate penetration is considered to be at least 12 inches.<\/p> <h3>The Temporary Cavity<\/h3> <p>The temporary cavity is the one that\u2019s most often misunderstood. Shortly after the bullet impacts, it creates an opening in the tissue that lasts about 10 milliseconds. It looks really impressive in ballistic gelatin with a high speed camera, but the actual wounding effects are often exaggerated.<\/p> <p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/temp-cavity-3.jpg\" data-rel=\"lightbox-image-1\" data-rl_title=\"\" data-rl_caption=\"\" title=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-11592\" src=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/temp-cavity-3.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"438\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/temp-cavity-3.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/temp-cavity-3-600x219.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/temp-cavity-3-1024x374.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/temp-cavity-3-768x280.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/p> <p>The severity of damage caused by the temporary cavity is somewhat unpredictable. It depends a lot on the shape, size, and velocity of the bullet, as well as the size of the person and the organs affected. Most tissue in the body is fairly elastic and snaps right back into place with no lasting damage. To cause permanent damage, the temporary cavity has to stretch far enough to overwhelm the elastic limit of that tissue.<\/p><p><\/p> <p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/temp-and-perm-cavity.jpg\" data-rel=\"lightbox-image-2\" data-rl_title=\"\" data-rl_caption=\"\" title=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-11591\" src=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/temp-and-perm-cavity.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"494\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/temp-and-perm-cavity.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/temp-and-perm-cavity-600x247.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/temp-and-perm-cavity-1024x422.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/temp-and-perm-cavity-768x316.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/p> <h3>Handguns and the Temporary Cavity<\/h3> <p>Handguns typically do not have nearly enough velocity to create a temporary cavity that will make a difference within the few seconds of a gunfight. <strong>This is one of the major distinctions between rifles and pistols.<\/strong><\/p> <p>With pistols, we can <em>only<\/em> count on the permanent cavity. An expanding hollow-point will create a wider permanent cavity, but ballistics experts debate whether even that has any effect on the outcome of most cases. What they do all agree on is that shot placement and penetration are, by far, more important than any other considerations.<\/p> <p>Here\u2019s an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/9mm-147-grain-jhp-hst-federal-premium-le-1000-rounds\">expanding 9mm in FBI gel<\/a>. The temporary cavity makes a nice spiral shape that looks pretty intense. But let\u2019s see what it actually left behind. It\u2019s a good permanent cavity that just makes it to 12 inches. If it can do that consistently, this would be considered adequate by handgun standards. The tearing from the temporary cavity maxes out at about 2 and a half inches in height and width and it\u2019s five inches long. That\u2019s fairly insignificant compared to what we can count on an effective rifle bullet to do.<\/p> <figure id=\"attachment_11585\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-11585\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/9mm-HST.jpg\" data-rel=\"lightbox-image-3\" data-rl_title=\"\" data-rl_caption=\"\" title=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11585\" src=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/9mm-HST.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"507\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/9mm-HST.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/9mm-HST-600x254.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/9mm-HST-1024x433.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/9mm-HST-768x324.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-11585\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">9mm Federal 147 gr HST fired at 1010 fps into bare FBI ballistic gelatin<\/figcaption><\/figure> <h3>How Much Velocity is Enough?<\/h3> <p>The question everyone asks is \u201chow much velocity do we need in order to get adequate penetration and an effective temporary cavity?\u201d That\u2019s difficult to answer because velocity is not the only factor at play. A common rule of thumb is that you need a minimum velocity somewhere around 2000 to 2500 feet per second. But there\u2019s nothing magic about that threshold. There are plenty of loads that meet or well exceed that velocity but still have sub-par performance.<\/p> <p>A big temporary cavity requires velocity <em>and<\/em> effective bullet design. Usually, that means they have to deform, fragment, or yaw. Any of those three things can enlarge both the temporary and permanent cavities.<\/p> <p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/deform-fragment-yaw.jpg\" data-rel=\"lightbox-image-4\" data-rl_title=\"\" data-rl_caption=\"\" title=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-11588\" src=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/deform-fragment-yaw.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/deform-fragment-yaw.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/deform-fragment-yaw-600x338.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/deform-fragment-yaw-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/deform-fragment-yaw-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/p> <p>Let\u2019s see how that looks in gelatin. This is a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/223-rem-55-gr-tsx-barnes-vor-tx-20-rounds\">Barnes TSX all-copper expanding .223 Remington<\/a>. It opens up shortly after impact which creates drag. That slows the bullet down, and the energy is transferred to the surrounding tissue. This one has also fragmented a little. The biggest chunk does exit the back of the gel block, but it\u2019s not moving very fast. Most of its energy was used up in the block.<\/p> <figure id=\"attachment_11586\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-11586\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/barnes-223.jpg\" data-rel=\"lightbox-image-5\" data-rl_title=\"\" data-rl_caption=\"\" title=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11586 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/barnes-223.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"485\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/barnes-223.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/barnes-223-600x243.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/barnes-223-1024x414.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/barnes-223-768x310.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-11586\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">.223 Rem Barnes 55 gr TSX fired at 2574 fps into bare FBI ballistic gelatin<\/figcaption><\/figure> <p>As far as I know, there\u2019s not a specific pass\/fail standard for the temporary cavity like there is for penetration. I get the impression that most ballistic experts would probably say that what we get from an expanding .223 is close to the minimum threshold. The ones I\u2019ve seen tend to be at least four inches in height and width and seven or eight inches long. That\u2019s pretty much what we have in this case.<\/p> <h3>Failure to Perform<\/h3> <p>Now let\u2019s see what happens when a high velocity bullet fails to perform like it\u2019s designed to. M193 is an old 5.56 military load that\u2019s still very common today. When it works, the bullet will yaw and fragment. The fragmentation weakens the elasticity of the surrounding tissue which makes the temporary cavity do some really nasty things. But in our gel test\u2026 that\u2019s not what happened (seen at the 8:43 mark in the video above).<\/p> <p>The bullet yaws but does not fragment. It stops just shy of the 10-inch mark and then slowly makes its way up and out the top of the gel block. So we got lousy penetration, an unimpressive temporary cavity, and no fragmentation. This was either a bad batch of M193, or the 16-inch barrel didn\u2019t give it enough velocity to do what it was supposed to. In any case, this shows us why bullet quality is just as important as velocity or caliber. A sub-par rifle round may be less effective than even a mediocre pistol round that penetrates.<\/p> <h3>A &#8220;Real&#8221; Rifle Cartridge<\/h3> <p>5.56 and .223 are just on the edge of effective rifle cartridge territory. Let\u2019s look at a cartridge that has a lot more energy to work with. Here\u2019s another Barnes TSX, but this time it\u2019s a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/308-150-gr-ttsx-barnes-vor-tx-20-rounds\">150-grain .308 Winchester<\/a>. The bullet expands and creates a huge temporary cavity. It actually tore through the bottom of the block and messed up our table top. We would really need a larger gel block to adequately test cartridges like this. The leap from 5.56 to .308 is a pretty big one.<\/p> <figure id=\"attachment_11587\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-11587\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/barnes-308.jpg\" data-rel=\"lightbox-image-6\" data-rl_title=\"\" data-rl_caption=\"\" title=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11587\" src=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/barnes-308.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"483\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/barnes-308.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/barnes-308-600x242.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/barnes-308-1024x412.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/barnes-308-768x309.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-11587\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">.308 Win Barnes 150 gr TSX fired at 2721 fps into bare FBI ballistic gelatin<\/figcaption><\/figure> <h3>Temporary Cavity at Low Velocity<\/h3> <p>Another question I hear all the time is \u201cWhat about really heavy but slow projectiles? Can\u2019t they be just as effective as high velocity rifle rounds?\u201d Yes, they can. With enough mass, a slower projectile can create a temporary cavity with serious wounding potential. You can get there with a handgun, but it\u2019s going to have to be one of the really big bore hunting revolvers for it to be on par with a rifle load. And bullet design is still a crucial component.<\/p> <p>For example, here we\u2019ve got a .45-70 with a 405-grain soft point bullet. It\u2019s going 1300 feet per second, about half the velocity of the .223s we looked at. It sailed right through the gel block, making a very long temporary cavity. It also penetrated an entire 16-inch block of Clear Gel that we had behind the first block. So we did not recover the bullet, but it\u2019s probably a safe bet that it didn\u2019t deform much. The temporary cavity is long, but the width and height max out at three inches. It\u2019s a lot of energy used in a very inefficient way.<\/p> <figure id=\"attachment_11590\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-11590\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/SnB-4570.jpg\" data-rel=\"lightbox-image-7\" data-rl_title=\"\" data-rl_caption=\"\" title=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11590\" src=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/SnB-4570.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"486\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/SnB-4570.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/SnB-4570-600x243.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/SnB-4570-1024x415.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/SnB-4570-768x311.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-11590\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sellier &amp; Bellot .45-70 Govt fired at 1354 fps into bare FBI ballistic gelatin<\/figcaption><\/figure> <p>If that bullet had expanded, it might have performed more like this next one. This is a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/12-gauge-2-3-4-1oz-fiocchi-exacta-aero-250-rounds\">12 gauge Fiocchi Low Recoil slug<\/a>. It\u2019s a 1-ounce slug (that\u2019s equivalent to about 438 grains) fired at 1100 feet per second. Pretty slow by 12 gauge standards. The slug expanded to a one inch donut shape and flipped sideways. 15.8 inches of penetration and a massive temporary cavity. You can see it tear right through the side of the block there. That is how you get rifle performance out of a slower projectile.<\/p> <figure id=\"attachment_11589\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-11589\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/fiocchi-slug.jpg\" data-rel=\"lightbox-image-8\" data-rl_title=\"\" data-rl_caption=\"\" title=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11589\" src=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/fiocchi-slug.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"472\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/fiocchi-slug.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/fiocchi-slug-600x236.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/fiocchi-slug-1024x403.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/media\/fiocchi-slug-768x302.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-11589\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">12 gauge Fiocchi 1 oz Exacta Aero Slug Low Recoil fired at 1101 fps into bare FBI ballistic gelatin<\/figcaption><\/figure> <h3>Psychological Factors<\/h3> <p>Now, what complicates all of this are psychological factors. I don\u2019t want to get too deep into this, but I have to at least mention it. In reality, a large percentage of attackers who are shot by armed citizens stop doing bad things without being physically incapacitated. Whether it\u2019s an unconscious reflex or survival instinct or a conscious decision, when a predator realizes they\u2019ve made a serious error in victim selection, they tend to go away. That doesn\u2019t mean bullet effectiveness is irrelevant. Some people just refuse to quit until you hit the off switch. I also think there\u2019s a very good chance that the severity of the wound can influence the psychological factors. But this is not a topic that\u2019s been studied much so that\u2019s just speculation.<\/p> <p>Regardless of your gear choices, just remember shot placement is what matters most. That requires a lot of practice, which means you\u2019re going to need some ammo. So be sure to get it from us with lightning fast shipping at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\">LuckyGunner.com<\/a>.<\/p> <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>For the last 100+ years, a great deal of the effort expended in ammo technology has gone toward trying to &#8230; <a class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.luckygunner.com\/lounge\/rifles-vs-pistols-the-basics-of-terminal-ballistics\/\">Continued<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":11579,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[358],"tags":[24,287,317],"class_list":["post-11578","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ammo","tag-ammo","tag-ballistic-gelatin","tag-ballistics"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Terminal Ballistics Basics: Rifles vs Pistols<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Why do rifles completely out-class pistols in terms of effectiveness? 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