What "Barrier-Blind" Means, and How We Test the VX9
"Barrier-blind" is on a lot of ammo boxes now. Here's what it's supposed to mean, and what our VX9 actually did when we put it through the FBI's barrier test.
Most defensive hollow points are built to open fast in soft tissue, and they do that well. The trouble starts when something hard is in the way: a windshield, a car door, a wall. A standard hollow point can plug up, break apart, or shed most of its weight before it ever reaches what's behind the barrier. A barrier-blind round has to get through in one piece and still go deep enough to matter.
The VX9 is a 96-grain 9mm we machine from solid copper in Amarillo, Texas. There's no lead core and no jacket, so there's nothing to separate. It has a hollow point nose and slits cut down the side of the body, and those slits are what let one bullet do two jobs. In soft tissue the nose opens into petals that stay attached. Against a hard barrier the nose folds in and the bullet drives straight through, holding its shape and almost all of its weight.
The FBI protocol is the standard test for this. You shoot into calibrated ballistic gel, first bare, then behind heavy clothing, sheet steel, wallboard, plywood, and auto glass, and you measure three things every time: how deep it went, how wide it opened, and how much weight it kept.
Out of a Glock 17, the VX9 averaged about 16 inches of penetration, inside the FBI's 12 to 18 inch window, at roughly 1,270 fps. It kept 99.7% of its weight and expanded every single time.
Barrier by barrier:
Barrier | Penetration | Expansion |
Bare gel | 14.7" | 0.52" |
Heavy clothing | 13.25" | 0.53" |
Steel | 21.1" | 0.36" |
Wallboard | 14.7" | 0.36" |
Plywood | 17.25" | 0.35" |
Auto glass | 10.5" | 0.43" |
It opened up behind every barrier, steel and auto glass included. And 99.7% retained weight means the petals stayed on the bullet.
We built the VX9 for law enforcement, military, and everyday carry, where you don't get to pick what's between you and the threat. Our ammo is in service with law enforcement agencies and special forces units around the country.
If you're with an agency or buying for one, the full test data is available on request.
We've also run the VX9 side by side against Federal HST 124-grain. That data sheet is available on request too, wins and losses included.
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