Why the lack of love for the .40?

[lesterg3]

Everyone has an opinion, and each should be respected for their opinions.

I am 59, and partially paralyzed and absolutely love my 40.

I don't feel any snap or excess recoil, and find it a great shooter, and very accurate, but that is just me.

Each person needs to find the firearms that they feel the most comfortable with, if you are not comfortable with it then you will lack confidence in it, and thusly will never be happy.

So I have the following that I am very happy and comfortable with:
.357 mag revolver
38 special revolver
9 mm pistol
40 cal pistol

and, I am looking forward to the time when I can afford to buy a 1911 .45, and a 44 mag revolver.

To each their own, and God bless.

 

[10-Ring]

I owned several platforms in 40 & have shot 1000's of rounds through those & others. I just couldn't warm up to it -- I much preferred shooting my 9's & 45's

 

[SsevenN]

I own four 9mm(Steyr M9-A1, CZ 2075 RAMI, Kahr CW9, CZ 75 SP-01), one .40S&W(H&K USP), one 10mm(Tanfoglio Witness Match), and one 5.7(Erm, FN 57 ).

To me it's all about your personal prefrence.

(IMHO)Any defensive situation is going to be very fast and fluid, no static paper punching involved. I figure, if I'm ever shooting to save my life, chances are I'm going to be moving and shooting at the same time, as fast a possible.

I have tested my ability to maintain accuracy while moving and rapidly shooting, off handed, left handed, two handed, from the hip, laying down, behind cover, etc etc. (excluding my 5.7, not what I would consider a defensive pistol.)

In the end, the targets with the most center of mass shots are my 9mms.

That, at least for me, was the deciding factor. I figure if I need to score hits, fast, I should use the platform that encourages those kind of results.

 

[Historian]

I own only one handgun..an S&W .40 M&P. No displeasure here. Sure it snaps on recoil but, if I am holding it correctly, the barrel comes right back down to the target for the second shot. I really don't have anything to compare it against since I have fire a 9mm and a .45 only a few times. But it is plenty of gun for me...for target shooting and HD.
IMHO.

Historian

 

[Erik]

No love? Where? State-side, at least, it is very popular, and seemingly more so each year.

 

[gmh1013]

I like 9mm SIG's cause of the 15 round clips. I can shoot heavy 158
Subsonics if I want.
I like .38 revolvers for a CWP gun.
Love .357 Colt King Cobra's for H/D
Really LOVE .45 Colts and SIG's
But the .40 never did it for me, I just dont see much place for it IMHO

 

[TexasRedneck]

Spent part of the afternoon at the range "shootin' in" mah "new" Randall. Yeah - found one NIB that had NEVER been fired. It was purty finicky the first hunnert rounds, but got pretty good on the second hunnert.

Guy I bought it from was proud it'd never been fired. Ah was tempted ta ask him if he wanted his wife ta be a virgin on their 25th anniversary, too.

 

[mesinge2]

I have come to the same general conclusions as above. I have some pistols and revolvers in both 9mm and .45 ACP, but I generally carry either my Beretta 92 9mm or my .44Mag Revolver. I have nothing really against the .40; I just don't need one.

 

[BADUNAME4]

The only way someone will get my .40's is from my cold dead hands.

 

[TexasRedneck]

Oh, they kin have any one of mah 40's....after ah've emptied the other 4 at 'em....an' the 6 45's....the 357's...etc.

 

[AKElroy]

1. Funky snappy recoil.
2. Way more expensive than 9mm
3. Loss of capacity--generally gives up 4 shots to a 9mm in the same sized magazine.
4. Strange recoil leads to poor follow up shots----the .45 is way easier to shoot.

Really did not expect to see this much conversation about recoil when I started this thread. I suspect the notion that .45's gently push while .40's snap has more to do wth the plastic guns the .40's are generally loaded for. I have never found the recoil of my .40's to be any more punishing than my .45, but it is a 40 + oz series 80. Recoil is simple physics; action = identical opposite reaction. You can't have energy figures similar to a .45 w/out recoil similar to a .45's in a gun of similar weight. Second, .40's typically lose 1 to 2 rounds capacity to a 9 of similar size, not 4. What is radically limited is the capacity of a typical .45 to a .40 or 9 of similar size.

 

[TexasRedneck]

I've been kinda puzzled by the recoil comments mahself. Ya are likely headed down the right trail with the plastic gun thoughts - while being lighter is fine, the loss of weight also increases the perceived recoil. I've got 4 or 5 .40's, and the only one I didn't care for was the Glock - which has since left the corral. Even that wasn't so much recoil as it was that it just never felt "right" in my mitts. Always felt like I was spoonin' my sister when I shot it....

 

[drtee]

40 love and recoil

Recoil is a terribly subjective issue. Some folks are not bothered by the recoil of the most powerful of guns. Weight of the piece is extremely important. The heavier the gun, less felt recoil and the lighter weight of another gun equals more felt recoil. There are very few that want to carry around three, four or five pounds on their hip, or shoulder; or ankle for that matter. Some people are just more sensitive to recoil than others. Therefore: subjectivity enters the equation.

Since the subject about recoil on these pages is not quantifiable here, we have to accept that some will be ok with a given level of recoil and others will not be happy with the same level. There are charts that can be found as to measured actual recoil. Sorry I don't recall where any of the charts are located. I'm sure some who read this will have that information.

I advise all my students to acquire THE gun they are happy with and learn to shoot it to the best of their ability. Other guns can be added later.

I can't say I love any gun but the .40 S&W caliber is one of my favorites.

Just some thoughts from someone trying to learn from those more knowledgeable than myself.

I'm done now.

 

[AKElroy]

Spent part of the afternoon at the range "shootin' in" mah "new" Randall. Yeah - found one NIB that had NEVER been fired. It was purty finicky the first hunnert rounds, but got pretty good on the second hunnert.

If that Randall is a lefty, then I am seriously jealous.

 

[AKElroy]

In the end, the targets with the most center of mass shots are my 9mms.

I shoot one ragged hole @ 50 yds w/ my scoped .22 22/45. Doesn't mean I rely on it for defense. I too shoot my 92 9mm better than my .40's; although both shoot center mass, the .40 is clearly more effective. I doubt I will be measuring groups in the center mass of an actual perp should it ever come to the gravest extreme. Bragging groups are irrelevant for an HD weapon. Softball or even larger size groups are more than sufficient @ 7 yrds.; once that basic hurdle is cleared, then load effectiveness and reliability are the only relevant questions left. And for the record, hasn't the .40 all but dominated competition shooting? The accuracy potential is clearly there.