.40 cal bastard child?

[hps]

Good lord the 40 isn't gettin any love!!! people everywhere just tryin to unload'em. Crazy!!

 

[TaunTaun]

Naw, I keep mine loaded.

 

[traderdan]

Most people have little real experience with their firearms,they do not have a place to shoot paper,and certainly not any place to shoot into things that would show the destructive capability of a round.The simply rely on the opinions of others. There is nothing wrong with .40 caliber.

 

[SmokinSigs357]

https://www.indianagunowners.com/fo...nterviews_tim_from_military_arms_channel.html

Follow this 'un...

 

[ghuns]

There is nothing wrong with .40 caliber that an extra .050 inch of diameter can't fix

FIFY

 

[traderdan]

Anybody on here ever examined the wound channel of a .40 Federal Hydra Shock on a medium sized animal? It is an effective round.

 

[Smokle]

love my 40. havnt had any issues from it

 

[bw210]

IMO most people can't shoot 40s&w because they fail to realize it is a high pressure round with significant recoil and mussel rise. For this reason, many people decide they don't like 40s&w cartridge after less than a few hundred rounds.

Myself, I jumped on the 40s&w band wagon shortly after it became a recognized and production cartridge. Be carrying it for about 15 years.

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

IMO most people can't shoot 40s&w because they fail to realize it is a high pressure round with significant recoil and mussel rise. For this reason, many people decide they don't like 40s&w cartridge after less than a few hundred rounds.

Myself, I jumped on the 40s&w band wagon shortly after it became a recognized and production cartridge. Be carrying it for about 15 years.

FYI, the 9x19 has a higher operating pressure than the .40...

So if the .40 is "high pressure", then what's the puny 9mm?

My first handgun was in .40. That was because I was ignorant at how effective premium SD rounds are in 9mm.

On calibrated ballistics gelatin testing, there's virtually no difference in penetration between 9x19, 10x22, or 11.42x23.

More noise, more recoil, nothing gained.

I'll stick with my puny 9x19.

-J-

 

[Mark-DuCo]

I love my .40, nothing wrong with the other calibers, but out of the ones I have shot and researched, I like .40 the best.

 

[other dave]

IMO most people can't shoot 40s&w because they fail to realize it is a high pressure round with significant recoil and muzzle [STRIKE]mussel[/STRIKE] rise. For this reason, many people decide they don't like 40s&w cartridge after less than a few hundred rounds.

Myself, I jumped on the 40s&w band wagon shortly after it became a recognized and production cartridge. Be carrying it for about 15 years.

FIFY

 

[BehindBlueI's]

The .40 is one of the calibers I trust, its just not my top choice. When I caliber consolidated, I would have phased out of it if it wasn't for my issued duty pistol being a .40. I can carry what I like off duty and during my normal plain clothes assignment, but must still remain proficient and qualify with my .40, as well as carry it during any uniformed assignments.

I don't feel undergunned with it, it just plays 2nd fiddle to the .45 in my rotation. I find that I shoot a .45 better than the same gun in .40. Maybe because the recoil is more "push" and less "flip", I dunno. I also prefer the .45's characteristics through intermediate barriers.

Now where I would change that is in a short barreled gun. The .45 is a low velocity round to begin with, and I'm not convinced that a 230gr gets enough velocity in a 3" barrel to be as effective as lighter rounds. Yes, I know you can carry 180gr, but then your sectional density is poorer than a .40 of the same weight, so all else being equal the .40 should penetrate better.

If I was going to carry a Shield, for example, I would give serious consideration to the .40. If I'm going to carry a full sized pistol, other than capacity, I don't see any reason to choose it over the .45.

 

[jwh20]

I love my .40, nothing wrong with the other calibers, but out of the ones I have shot and researched, I like .40 the best.

Same here! I have 3 guns in .40 S&W and wouldn't part with them! My appreciation recently has even improved. There has been an acute shortage of 9mm ammo for some time but I have not had any trouble finding .40 S&W FMJ and HP ammo.

 

[cbhausen]

FIFY

Or is that muscle rise?

 

[eldirector]

BehindBlueI's hit it.... The whole reason the .40 exists is for short-barrel handguns. It has similar muzzle energy in a 3" or shorter barrel to a .45 out of a longer barrel, with the added benefit of more rounds on hand.

The trade-off being the recoil and muzzle flash.

I tend to have shorter-barrel handguns, so have .40s. If I had more "full-sized" handguns, I'd likely choose .45. But that's just me.

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

...The whole reason the .40 exists is for short-barrel handguns...

You sure about that?

 

[Que]

The main reason I stick with the .40 is because a majority of people go with 9mm. I load ammunition and can find the components. I like the way the round shoots and have no issue with recoil. The capacity issue doesn't bother me either.

To each his own. At least I'm not carrying a 10mm.

 

[nighthawk80]

All I know is that when I switched from 9mm to 40cal, I can knock the steel plates over faster and harder. Plus I can carry more rounds than I did with the 45.

 

[traderdan]

You all are the experts,I am just a country boy that has put a lot of holes in a lot of things..And anybody that calls .40 SW "short and weak" is a little misinformed. I double tapped a pig a while ago with a Beretta 96G that had once been carried by an Indiana State trooper,then butchered the hog for the freezer. 40 works well!

 

[neeltburn]

I have 3 40s as well as 45s and a 9mm... I choose to edc the 40. Is there anything wrong with 45 or 9 absolutely not, practice with the 40 and it will be easy to shoot.