Hornady Ammunition
Authorized Dealer • Family-Owned Since 1949
Hornady Manufacturing has been a family-owned Nebraska bullet maker since 1949 — founded by Joyce Hornady in Grand Island and still run by the Hornady family today, an unusual continuity in an industry dominated by conglomerates. Hornady's signature is bullet design: the XTP (Extreme Terminal Performance) hollow point that anchors the Custom line, the polymer-tipped FTX (Flex Tip eXpanding) bullet that powers Critical Defense carry ammunition, and the ELD-X, V-MAX, and GMX designs that win hunting and precision shooting contracts. Keep Shooting carries Hornady defensive handgun loads in .45 ACP +P and .357 Magnum.
About Hornady Ammunition
Hornady Manufacturing was founded in 1949 by Joyce Hornady in Grand Island, Nebraska and remains a family-owned business today — a rarity in an ammunition industry dominated by Vista Outdoor, Olin Winchester, and other multi-brand conglomerates. Hornady's reputation rests on bullet engineering: the XTP hollow point, the polymer-tipped FTX Flex Tip used in Critical Defense and LeverEvolution, the ELD-X long-range hunting bullet, and the V-MAX varmint round are all Hornady-original designs that compete head-to-head with Federal's Hydra-Shok and Speer Gold Dot at the premium end of the defensive and hunting markets.
Hornady Custom — XTP Hollow Point
The Hornady Custom line is built around the XTP (Extreme Terminal Performance) bullet — a swaged-lead hollow point with a thick copper jacket, controlled expansion serrations, and a deep cavity tuned for consistent mushrooming across the velocity range of a given cartridge. Unlike the Critical Defense line which is optimized for shorter-barreled carry pistols, Custom XTP is designed for full-size service handguns where the operator wants maximum terminal performance from a bonded-style hollow point. We carry the .45 ACP +P 230-grain XTP loading — the +P pressure spec drives the heavy-for-caliber 230-grain XTP bullet to velocities that ensure reliable expansion through intermediate barriers and heavy clothing while retaining the deep-penetration profile that .45 ACP shooters expect.
Critical Defense — FTX Flex Tip
Hornady Critical Defense is the company's purpose-built carry-pistol line and uses the patented FTX (Flex Tip eXpanding) bullet. The FTX places a soft polymer plug in the bullet's hollow cavity that prevents the cavity from packing with denim, leather, or clothing fibers during a barrier-clad shot — a common failure mode of conventional hollow points that was exposed in FBI gel-test protocols throughout the 2000s. The polymer plug compresses on impact and forces expansion from the inside out, delivering consistent mushrooming whether the bullet first encounters bare gel or the four-layer denim test barrier. Our Critical Defense .357 Magnum load is purpose-built for snub-nosed and short-barreled .357 revolvers where conventional magnum hollow points often over-penetrate or fail to expand reliably at the lower velocities those shorter barrels produce. Cross-shop the broader personal defense handgun ammo category for additional defensive loads from Federal Hydra-Shok, Corbon DPX, and Speer Gold Dot.
Why Hornady
Hornady is the bullet-design specialist of the American ammunition industry. The company's innovations — the polymer-tipped FTX (which also enables tubular-magazine lever-action ammunition under the LeverEvolution brand), the boat-tail ELD-X long-range hunting bullet, and the swaged XTP hollow point that has been the benchmark defensive handgun bullet for over three decades — have been licensed and copied more than any other American bullet line. For defensive handgun shooters, this means Hornady's ammunition combines bullet technology that bigger manufacturers respect with the consistency of a family-owned shop that hasn't been merged into a multi-brand portfolio. Browse our complete ammunition catalog to compare Hornady alongside Federal, Winchester, CCI, PMC, and Sellier & Bellot for both the practice range and the carry holster.
Frequently Asked Questions — Hornady
Yes, we maintain inventory of the most popular Hornady products. Each product listing shows real-time stock status. If an item is temporarily out of stock, you can sign up for back-in-stock notifications on the product page.
Yes! All orders over $49.95 qualify for free shipping, including Hornady products. Orders typically ship within 1–2 business days.
Keep Shooting offers hassle-free returns on Hornady products. If you're not completely satisfied, contact our customer service team for a return authorization. All products must be in original, unused condition.
Yes, Keep Shooting is an authorized Hornady dealer. All products are sourced directly and include full manufacturer warranty coverage.