Well the new rimfire cartridge is here and it is a smoking hot round: Â the .17 Winchester Super Magnum. Â The new rimfire promises “pinpoint accuracy” and the “downrange performance of a centerfire cartridge.”
Ok, let’s cut to the chase: Â the new Winchester cartridge is pushing a 20 grain bullet at 3,000 fps. Â That is an amazing feat for a rimfire. Â Energy measures right at 400 ft-lbs (399.6 if my math is correct.) Â A 25 grain bullet screams along at 2,600 fps for 375 ft-lbs of energy.
With a focus on accuracy, Winchester Ammunition announced the introduction of the new Varmint X cartridge line. Â The new ammo will be offered in four different calibers for a total of five loads. Â See below for the exact details on each load.
The number of varmint hunters has rapidly increased in the recent past. Â According to Winchester, this segment of the market has doubled in the past decade. Â Understandably, ammo companies are moving to meet the specific needs of these hunters.
The Critical Defense .32 H&R Magnum is another self defense load announced by Hornady at the 2012 NASGW show last week. Â Designed for any revolver chambered for the .32 H&R Magnum, the ammunition performs equally as well in .327 Federal Magnum revolvers also.
This load uses an 80 grain FTX bullet.  The FTX bullet is a polymer tipped hollowpoint that has proven to be very successful in both self defense and hunting applications.  A friend who uses the Hornady Leverevolution .30-30 ammo with an FTX bullet tells me the wound channel they create is unbelievable.  These rounds use the same bullet technology.
Velocity is listed as 1150 fps at the muzzle. Â I did not see what kind of barrel was used, but I suspect it was a 4″ test barrel based on other Hornady tests. Â So, if you have a shorter barrel gun, expect less velocity. Â At 1150 fps, the bullet generates 235 ft-lbs of energy.
For 2013, Hornady is introducing a reduced recoil .38 Special load in the Critical Defense line of ammunition. Â The Critical Defense Lite is a light weight .38 load loaded to standard pressures specifically designed to minimize abuse to the shooters of small, light revolvers.
Seemingly everyone carries a snub nose revolver in their pocket. Â I’ve got a J-frame Smith & Wesson in mine as I write this. Â They are easy to carry and have numerous advantages when compared to other guns and style of carry. Â But, small revolvers carry at least one significant disadvantage: Â recoil. Â That’s where the Critical Defense Lite comes into play.
Ammo for the .32 NAA has been very limited, with very few companies loading for the niche cartridge. However, Hornady is expanding their Critical Defense line of ammunition to include a .32 NAA load.
The new .32 NAA ammo will feature the Hornady FTX bullet, which is a hollowpoint tipped with a polymer insert. The polymer helps to prevent hard materials from clogging up the hollowpoint cavity, and also helps the bullet expand when encountering flesh. The FTX design has proved to be both effective and popular.