Fiocchi's Hyperformance 40-grain polymer tip leaves the muzzle at 1,750 fps with 272 ft-lbs of energy. The polymer tip gives the bullet a pointed nose and makes this a sporting load rather than plain practice ammunition. From a 25-yard zero it prints 0.3 inches low at 50 yards and 3.6 inches low at 100. The path stays flat enough that holdover only enters the picture past 50 yards, and a bullet this light moves the pistol very little.

In this group it is the middle load on every count. FN Herstal SS197SR 40-grain V-Max leaves the muzzle 12 fps slower, and Speer Gold Dot 40-grain JHP runs 50 fps faster. Recoil follows the same order: in the same pistol the Fiocchi produces about 2 percent more recoil energy than the SS197SR and about 5 percent less than the Gold Dot. Gaps this small are hard to feel from one magazine to the next, which makes the choice among the three more about bullet design than about the numbers.

Buy Hyperformance if you want a polymer-tipped load that splits the difference between the softest and the fastest of these three. If you want no lead in the bullet or the lightest recoil in the caliber, FN Herstal SS195LF lead-free produces about 48 percent less recoil energy in the same pistol, with a 27-grain bullet at 1,890 fps. For practice, Federal American Eagle 40-grain TMJ leaves the muzzle 95 fps slower than the Hyperformance, so it will feel a little softer than this load.