The Best Handgun Cartridge For You?

Based on my current concealed carry of the last several years the 9X19mm but before that the 45ACP.

Riomouse911 said:

Does it shoot a 40 grain bullet or a 180 grain bullet? Ive never owned or shot a .38-40.

Stay safe.

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LOL! 40 caliber 180 grain bullet... Guess i jumbled it together!

38-40 is a joy to shoot. Deep bang lets you know its a big cartridge but its a creampuff to actually shoot at whimpy factory levels.

One handgun cartridge - with no substitutions, such as "it can also shoot .40S&W" - for all my handgun needs? For defense in the home, on the street, at work, in the woods, and whilst travelling to restrictive states?

And we can assume that no new guns will magically come into existence that are more compact than currently available (no single stack sub compact 10mm for example), and the cartridge (e.g. .357 Sig) will not become more popular or cheaper simply because that would be convenient?

I'd go .40S&W. A 135gr JHP at over 1300fps is still pretty serious stuff. And even at 1050-1100fps a 180gr FMJ will suffice for a woods load.

If I was restricted to one handgun cartridge it sure wouldn't be the 38 Special. That would be one of the last choices I would make for the fact that it's a relatively weak round and usually chambered in guns that hold only five or six rounds. I do like 38 Special but with only one gun I'd go with 357 magnum and either upload it or download it depending on need.

That is if I didn't choose an automatic which I probably would. I'm probably not going to hunt with it and I don't see any need for big game protection. I've lived with bears and moose my whole life and never had an issue. I'm far more concerned with using a handgun for self defense so I'd likely go with a 9mm.

IF I had to live with one and only one, it would probably have to be either 10mm or .38 Super. Some of the odd duck heavy auto cartridges would do also such as .41ae and some of the long 9s, but I'm limiting my reach to relatively common cartridges.

I would love to choose the .38 special, potentially loaded WAY beyond max in .357 chambered arms, but it just doesn't fare well in high capacity automatics. I'd sooner choose .357 or .41 mag and just download in wheelguns. 9mm simply doesn't have enough punch to be considered for game hunting or black bear defense (although I did use it successfully in the latter case, I would have preferred my .41 or .357 wheelgun).

If you took hunting/bears off the table, it would be 9mm all day long.

buck460XVR said:

Seems to be the most prevalent argument for .41 mag, is where it falls between the .357 and .44. Maybe if in the real world we were actually restricted to having "just one caliber", it would ring truer. I personally see no huge advantage of the .41 over the .357 as compared to what it lacks compared to the .44. While MHO is that the .44 is a better deer cartridge than .357, I have taken more deer with my .357 revolvers than with the .44s. What is also important to me, is how much more enjoyable my .357s are at the range when I want to shoot all day. This is what would make the choice difficult. But since I do not have to make that choice.......I don't.

This is no way means I have any problems with a .41. Just don't need a "in-between" caliber.

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You're right. You can always load a big cartridge down, but there's a limit to how much you can load a little cartridge up. That's why I love the .45 -- you can load it from "Ruger only" to "cowboy action."

[QUOTE="WisBorn,

So if you needed to live with one cartridge what would it be. (Thank God we don't, what fun would that be)

Please explain why you feel that your choice is the perfect handgun cartridge.[/QUOTE]

Funny you should ask. Lately, I’ve been convincing myself that, as a hand loader, the best handgun cartridge for me is the great 44 Special - IF there was a good selection of handguns chambered for it, which there isn’t.
I mean, a 44 Special can be made to do anything a 45 ACP will do as a self or home protection gun - except maybe hold as many rounds. Or, it would make a fun, “just bumming around in the hills” gun, or (again with the “right loads”) it could be used for hunting all but the largest North American big game. The problem is, like the great (IMO) 41 Mag, there just isn’t a great selection of guns chambered for the 44 Special. No matter, I think I’m going to treat myself to one of those stainless Ruger Bisley 44 Specials for Christmas.

WisBorn said:

Now the big question what barrel length and finish?

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4.6" and stainless.

30 years ago when I started with one handgun? .357 magnum.

Now? Impossible for me to make a choice.

One cartridge… I’d be happy with either 9mm or .45ACP. Both have their merits in both carry and recreational shooting, and both have a zillion different pistols and variations for them.

if I was saddled with a revolver, it would be the .41, hands down.

.38 Spl. Does it all; target, plinking, small game, self defense. Accurate, easily hand loaded, recent advances in bullet performance makes it a legitimate SD round.

I just ran across this. Jerry makes a VERY convincing case for 357 Magnum. What a cool guy.

Smaug said:

I just ran across this. Jerry makes a VERY convincing case for 357 Magnum. What a cool guy.

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.357 mag made a lot of sense when I lived nearly rural decades ago. I wish I could say that it still applied to me today.

Being that I'm suburban/urban by reason of ongoing urban sprawl, 9mm makes more sense these days. If I didn't pocket carry, I could conceivably go 9mm from here on out. Besides the pocket carry cartridges I prefer, I'm a rimfire addict as well, so . . .

Riomouse911 said:

Does it shoot a 40 grain bullet or a 180 grain bullet? Ive never owned or shot a .38-40.

Stay safe.

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Yeah, it's a 180g, and actually a .40 not a .38.

Ballistics about the same as a .40 S&W. I had an original Winchester '73 in that caliber, with that heavy rifle you could barely feel them going off with light loads of Trailboss.

Yup. I find myself “changing my original answer” after looking back on all the range trips I’ve made over the last couple years.

My original answer woulda been ‘357, pure and simple’ as a do-it-all (revolver guy!) kinda round. To reload either hot or mild, depending on taste. But looking back, I shoot far, far more straight 38sp than any other; I’ve been slow to begin the whole reloading thang. Whether cowboy-action level, or Buffalo Bore, shootin’ 38s out of a 357 is sure to keep me above ground, regardless of pressure levels. Call me a little safety-conscious; as I git older, I try to git a bit smarterer…!

I have other cartridges, but I can do everything I need to do with a 9mm and a 10mm pistol and if you don't count large predator defense, I don't need the 10mm. The others are just for nostalgia.

Hmm. A 9mm may expand, but, a .45 NEVER shrinks! .45 Colt. Why? I have three of 'em. My handle may be a clue.

45acp. In my glock 30s, 10 round mags are more than enough. 45acp, 45auto +P, 45super can be shot all in one gun. They can be loaded into moon clips for fast reloads in some revolvers. Easy to handload. Useful against large/dangerous game, IMO, because projectile weight is all that matters for large animals. Hunting, Predator defense and Human defense all covered. Not the most capacity, but humans are the least of my worry. Perfect and powerful sidearm for a rifle or shotgun for human conflicts.
Widest range of projectile weights. Solid copper fluted projectiles perform best because the flutes are large enough to perform noticeably on terminal ballistics. IMHO, JHP are not needed for .45acp with modern monolithic rounds. Easy to designate your loaded power level on brass stamps(45auto, +P, 45super) so there is no mistake on what you are using.
Excellent performance in short barrels. 45super in short barrels just about equals the hottest 10mm in longer barrels, but can be handloaded to 460r levels. Im not a big fan of 460r, I prefer to handload 45super to hotter levels than factory (28,000psi), still not maxing out case life with 30 to 35k psi loads. I think +P 255 hardcast doing 900 to 1000 FPS is more than enough for Grizzly and Moose.
God's caliber.
My second choice is 38 special, for conceal-ability. 357mag for lever rifles.

45acp is my preferred self protection / home protection round. Followed by 9mm for pocketability, Followed by .380 for even smaller pocketability. I have never been able to justify more powerful cartridges than 45 acp for protection from 2 legged animals although I do own 44mag's and 50ae's.

I always thought the 50GI was an intriguing cartridge because of my "the bigger the hole the better" belief.

I did not watch that youtube video but just from the picture in the original post I have to say that the guy that declares the .38 Special the perfect cartridge. Period. is very young.
Let him shoot another 100,000 rounds and own another 100 guns ( if he has that much experience at all ) and he might see things differently - or even see the light.

WisBorn said:

Maybe you should watch a few of his videos before you make judgment.

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I don't think so. I meet arrogance with arrogance. If somebody thinks that he is the ultimate judge and jury on a universally best cartridge or handgun - a task that is impossible because there are too many applications to consider - then I can judge him also ... and you are not on the jury .