Love my 40's

[Dub]

On Tom Gresham's Guntalk the other day, well I have heard him say this several diff times, that a 45 ACP 40, 10mm, 9mm and 380 all have the same, I'm paraphrasing here, "kill ratio". There is not one that kills any better than the other in a self defense situation. All pistol cartridges are underpowered. I will try to find out where the stats are that he speaks of.

I‘ve heard him make the statement that you can’t miss fast enough…..meaning that you need to be able to put hits on target with a gun you can control vs missing with a gun you can’t control very well.

In the gun chambering context he has stated to use what you can control and to get actual training & practice.

Training being an oft recommended subject from him.

Training & practice vs. caliber debate.

 

[Nimrod71]

I am a 40 S. W. fan and I like shooting them. Hitting the target is the most important thing in a fire fight. If you can't hit the target your self defense weapon is of little use. A lot of people have gotten conceal carry over come their abilities to handle a hand gun. I have been shooting handguns for 60 years, I started with my Dad's 38, and there are still some that I can handle very well. I advise anyone wanting a personal defense handgun to find someone that will teach them how to handle and shoot before they go out and buy a gun they know little about and can't hold to shoot.

Back to the 40 S.W. to me it is and ideal round when someone needs a lot of rounds in a single handgun.

As for the 40 whole on the steel target a black powder rifle can do some amazing things. I have shot 50 cal. for years and one day I bought a 32 cal. to hunt squirrels and rabbits. On two squirrel hunting trips I killed a deer on each trip, I know the 32 cal. is not listed to deer hunt but I couldn't help it. Both times I was sitting under white oaks and both deer walked up within 10 yds. of where I was sitting. I even had on my orange vest and cap, and yes I did tag them. They eat a lot better than the squirrels.

 

[Para Bellum]

On Tom Gresham's Guntalk the other day, well I have heard him say this several diff times, that a 45 ACP 40, 10mm, 9mm and 380 all have the same, I'm paraphrasing here, "kill ratio". There is not one that kills any better than the other in a self defense situation. All pistol cartridges are underpowered. I will try to find out where the stats are that he speaks of.

Well placed shot theory. Gresham is old school. Any military man will tell you a well placed .22 LR will kill anything on this planet. And true with the luxury of a rest, time and no consequence. If a brown bear is charging me, I want my 10mm. If a thug is charging me, I want my 9mm. Stopping power is your friend in heated self defense situations.

 

[Mark R]

You should try it in the shield.

Thats what is tucked in my waistband now . I still got some 155 gr but if the shelves stay empty my stash is 180 gr . it jumps a bit with them 180s

 

[Nimrod71]

I believe in carrying enough gun. I like 40's either 40 S. & W. or 10 mm. I will say a 40 mm handgun is a little to much for me.

 

[Dub]

I believe in carrying enough gun. I like 40's either 40 S. & W. or 10 mm. I will say a 40 mm handgun is a little to much for me.

Much of the 10mm factory ammo seems to be on par with .40S&W.....especially the target ball.

So, I suppose I'm a de facto 40s&w shooter.

 

[Nimrod71]

Ya, you have to reload 10 mm to get anything near its potential. You can load the 10 up to a real Hammer. I like shooting 40's and they will take most anything.

 

[GunnSmokeer]

Firearms instructor / trainer and writer Greg Ellafitz recently released a study involving 1700 different handgun shooting incidents analyzed, and he found that the caliber that had the best one shot stop record was the 40 Smith & Wesson.

However, I have doubts about the validity of this study because the 380 came in a *very close second place* and the .44 magnum was at the bottom of the list-- the least able to drop bad guys!

 

[Dub]

Firearms instructor / trainer and writer Greg Ellafitz recently released a study involving 1700 different handgun shooting incidents analyzed, and he found that the caliber that had the best one shot stop record was the 40 Smith & Wesson.

However, I have doubts about the validity of this study because the 380 came in a *very close second place* and the .44 magnum was at the bottom of the list-- the least able to drop bad guys!

Lot's of stats chopped up in that study.

Further chopping of ball vs hollow points would have been interesting to see.

 

[Darkhorse]

Personally I like the 180 grain bullet in my M&P Compact. I bought a couple of boxes of 165 grain HP's the day I bought the pistol. Granted, it was a hot humid day and my hands were sweaty but I also know what is pleasant to shoot and what is not. This combo was not pleasant to shoot. Or accurate. Every shot the gun wanted to twist out of my hands and go flying off somewhere.
To make matters worse the bullets impacted way to low.
Next I tried some 180 grain bullets. Much less felt recoil to me. The 165 grainers were just too wild for me to control while the 180's were contollable with less pain. I have found this in other weapons also sometimes a little heavier projectile going slightly slower, will deliver more consistent performance.
A big plus was suddenly my POI was right in the bull. It seems the M&P is factory regulated with 180 grain bullets.