It is very hard to say what a bullet will do. While I was in Iraq, as a contractor, I saw the medic bring in a solider who had been shot in the neck with a .223 round by a shooter from a rooftop. Somehow, the bullet tumbled and passed through his body, breaking his pelvis and exiting out his buttock. Poor guy had lost a lot of blood and was in terrible shape. The medics were all amazed by the bullet's path. That is the danger of a small, fast moving round. They seem to be much less predictable than a slow, heavy bullet.
The 5.7x28mm round was designed to travel very fast and penetrate light armor. I think both scenarios you mention could easily happen. If the bullet strikes a bone, it will likely tumble. If it just hits flesh, you could be looking at an over penetration problem. Standard self-defense hollow points are engineered to be predictable.
Another important consideration is that you can't legally by full power 5.7x28mm, which the pistol is designed to fire. You have to buy lower power "sporting" rounds. I don't know that your ballistics will be much better than a 9mm with the sporting rounds but I havn't seen the specs on those bullets.
Search found 2 matches
- Thu Dec 03, 2009 4:48 pm
- Forum: General Gun, Shooting & Equipment Discussion
- Topic: FNH Five-seveN
- Replies: 31
- Views: 5645
- Thu Dec 03, 2009 1:58 pm
- Forum: General Gun, Shooting & Equipment Discussion
- Topic: FNH Five-seveN
- Replies: 31
- Views: 5645
Re: FNH Five-seveN
I am really interested in the Five-seveN as an addition to my collection, but I see it as a specialty tool. The gun is a bit on the large size for CC, but it certainly could be done. It is a high capacity, reliable, accurate carry piece that has some body armor piercing capability when loaded with the correct ammo.
When it first came out, I read that it was designed as a military side arm for applications where a carbine might not be available due to size constraints such as pilots and medics who have limited space. They can, in theory, carry a high capacity side arm with a couple of spare mags and have 60 rounds on their person without taking up a lot of space/weight. If they crash and come under fire, they would have a weapon that could help them hold off a ground attack until rescue arrives. I see how it could be valuable in this kind of a application. FN was really looking for military sales with this pistol design.
For standard self-defense or even police work, I agree with the guys who say that their are likely better tools for the job. There are a lot of top notch, high capacity pistols in calibers that are probably better for up close, personal defense. If I am not crouched behind a rock holding off insurgents while praying for air support, I would probably pack a .45. That being said, I find the Five-seveN a really interesting piece and would like to add one to my collection.
When it first came out, I read that it was designed as a military side arm for applications where a carbine might not be available due to size constraints such as pilots and medics who have limited space. They can, in theory, carry a high capacity side arm with a couple of spare mags and have 60 rounds on their person without taking up a lot of space/weight. If they crash and come under fire, they would have a weapon that could help them hold off a ground attack until rescue arrives. I see how it could be valuable in this kind of a application. FN was really looking for military sales with this pistol design.
For standard self-defense or even police work, I agree with the guys who say that their are likely better tools for the job. There are a lot of top notch, high capacity pistols in calibers that are probably better for up close, personal defense. If I am not crouched behind a rock holding off insurgents while praying for air support, I would probably pack a .45. That being said, I find the Five-seveN a really interesting piece and would like to add one to my collection.