Power of the 25 ACP: The Thin Line of Inadequacy

By Terril Hebert

USA -(Ammoland.com)- What pocket 380 pistols are today, pocket 25 ACP handguns were to yesteryear—once the mainstay of many a self-defense regimen. Today we associate the “quarter bore” with cheap, throwaway pistols and a complete lack of power to do anything, even injure. For a long time, I have wanted to see tangible evidence for that reputation what I received were hand-me-down stories and cliched one liners.

Why should I care about the performance of a round few people use anymore? Well, the 25 is still more common than you might think. Millions of little pistols come chambered for the puny round and a few are still being made today. Collecting vintage 25s and treating the gamut of pistols still in circulation as range jokers is fine, but there are a few legitimate reasons to know how the 25 would stack up if you had to use it.

Like myself, you might think the 25 to be a legitimate deep cover pistol. For others, the reasons are less about interest and more about circumstances that chose the 25 for you.

A Bit on the Cartridge

Concealed carry handguns are a fad that never fades. In the late 1890s, tiny 22 and 32 caliber revolvers were popular items for personal defense. But in that time, automatic pistols came out and people soon wanted a pocket version to carry.

Fast firing, fast loading, you get the picture. But pocket pistols were a long way off, often pairing a tiny cartridge to an oversized pistol.

John Browning had recently developed his slide operated pistols and was quick to adapt a pocket version for his new tailor-made cartridge, the 25 ACP in his Browning M1905 pistol. The cartridge was reliable with its semi-rimmed case for sure extraction and a centerfire case to up it over the rimfire 22s that were so popular.

By today’s standards, a fifty-grain bullet traveling at only 750 feet per second isn’t much, but it was more substantial than many of Browning’s pocket pistol competitors at the time. The Browning spawned many imitators and the round was a big hit with the civilian market. 25s were even issued to various militaries in minor capacities.

A good 25 ACP pistol was easy to hide, easy to fire, and very affordable, which eventually made the type targeted by the 1968 Gun Control Act. This banned the import of many pistols and started the 25s decline in popularity.

The increased reliability of 22 LR ammunition did the quarter-bore no favors. Today only a few companies make 25 ACP handguns, but there is still quite a variety of ammunition available. With a good sampling of that variety, I packed up my LWS Seecamp and a 10 percent calibrated ballistic block from Clear Ballistics, and got to work.

On The Range

Though I am suspect of those who claim the 25 or the 22 LR is a favorite of assassins or have killed more people than any other round, I know any firearm can kill and the 25 has saved many a life while taking many another. I am also suspect of those who claim their uncle’s cab driver was shot in the head with a 25 only to wake up bleeding an hour later.

To know the round’s true potential in any repeatable, legally testable way, it boils down FBI protocol. That protocol is between 12-18 inches of penetration of a 10 percent ordinance block and four layers of denim.

Finding full metal jacket 25 ACP is easy enough at your local outdoor store, but finding good hollow points is a challenge. I ultimately ended up with Remington UMC and Fiocchi’s 50 grain FMJ loading and the 35 grain XTP hollow-point offerings from Hornady and Fiocchi. Speer Gold Dot 35 grain hollow-points round out the test.

I started by shooting all the ammunition through my Caldwell Chronograph to find out how much velocity each load was imparting. More velocity—or bullet speed—should in theory lead to more impact on target.

Load: 

• Remington 50 grain FMJ
• Fiocchi 50 grain FMJ
• Fiocchi 35 grain XTP
• Hornady Custom 35 grain XTP
• Speer Gold Dot 35 grain HP

Velocity:

• 856
• 718
• 1029
• 911
• 947

*Average of three shots. Velocities denoted in feet per second.

European made ammunition has a reputation for being loaded hot. This is true comparing Hornady’s offering with Fiocchi, but the same firm’s ball ammunition is significantly behind plain store-bought Remington 50 grainers, my favorite load.

With some data, I was expecting the full metal jacket rounds to do well, perhaps even the Fiocchi 35s with speed that I couldn’t believe out of a two-inch barreled Seecamp pistol. I set up my gel block and stuffed one end with four layers of denim—I wasn’t much into blue jeans anyway. I fired a total of six rounds into the block from two feet away to avoid a less-than-ideal hit.

Not close enough, I can tell you. The Remington round , though it landed squarely jettisoned from the block at the seven inch mark doing little damage. Speer’s bullet tumbled end over end toward the end of its travel, stretching the cavity as it came to rest 10 3/8 inches in the block.

Surprisingly, the hot Fiocchi XTP performed the least climactically with a relatively narrow path to its short 9 ½ inch stop. It, along with the Hornady round tumbled and landed base first, but the Hornady managed ten inches. There was no expansion of the hollow-points.

With the Remington round lost, I fired two Fiocchi FMJ rounds into the block. I expected a little more than the eleven inches of penetration I got, but I was amazed by the stretch cavities these plain bullets gave, indicating upset and tumbling. The stretch cavities for both rounds were a solid inch in diameter and extending three inches in the block, a few inches upon entry.

Still A Place for the 25?

Twelve inches of penetration is what I needed, minimally, for the cartridge to be acceptable for self-defense. Where does this number come from when many of us are not twelve inches thick from chest to back? This takes into account side shots, the presence of bone, and other gremlins have to get through to reach vital organs. It is an approximation. An approximation the 25 ACP has—at this time—failed to meet, barely.

Proper shot placement will make up for relatively poor ballistics, but it is worth noting some of the downsides of the 25. A similar test using common brand 22 LR ammunition in the same sized handgun gave me similar results, with more than a few brands including CCI Stingers, exceeding the requirement. The 22 LR, both in ammunition and firearms, is far more available now and it appears to have an edge in power too.

I would be confident that the Remington 50 grain load would achieve the requirement, but when you are relying on one of several remaining loads to get performance, you really are in a bad way. This lack of performance is the sacrifice made for tiny, low-recoiling pistols and can be overcome with practice.

11 inches of penetration may not be enough to deliver a stopping chest wound to a determined attacker, if you must fire your gun in self-defense. Head and neck shooting until the threat is over with plain ball ammunition is a safe bet. Practicing for such an event is important but 25 ACP is comparatively more expensive than other centerfire ammunition.

Ultimately, I left the range thinking the little 25 deserved better loadings. There are still some good reasons to choose a 25. The size of the pistol is one of them, being infinitively more packable than any small 380 we have today. Though 22 LR has come a long way, the 25 is still packed into an equally small package and remains far more reliable thanks to its centerfire construction. It is made for tiny pistols. The 22 LR isn’t.

As we leave it, the 25 is a victim of disinterested marketing. Speer Gold Dots and FTXs are great, but they are simply not appropriate in the small-caliber rounds. However, these rounds are loaded warmly and one has to wonder what a full metal jacket loading at those speeds could really do? Until that magic loading comes, this quarter-bore fan will be on standby.

About Terril Hebert:

Terril Hebert is a firearm writer native to south Louisiana. Under his motto—Guns, Never Politics—he tackles firearm and reloading topics both in print and on his Mark3smle YouTube channel, where he got his start. He has a soft spot for ballistics testing, pocket pistols, and French rifles. When he is not burning ammo, he is indulging his unhealthy wildlife photography obsession or working on his latest novel. Scourge of God was published in 2017.”

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