9 vs .38Spec?

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Seriously , I get the thinking that a 9 gives a larger capacity magazine and extra shells are easy to carry more of.
Just how does the stopping power of a 9mm stack up against the 38 Special?
I price on videos that The Cops shoot 3 to7 shots to down a bad guy(with 2 cops usually more shots!)
In the past,an Officer was taught to Double oratriple Tap with the .8 Special
The bad guys seemed to go down easier inn the .38 Special era...
The .38 Specfires a much heavier slug than a 9mm; Maybe THAT'S it???
I shoot revolvers in both .38 Spec and .357 Mag I couldn't afford to re-arm in what might be an inferior caliber.
Will someone please speak the truth about this caliber contriversity?
Thanks
Daver
 
The big heavy pumpkin rollers used in the .38 were it's biggest drawback. It was universally known in LE as a "widowmaker."

The light, fast bullets available now make it somewhat comparable to the 9MM.

Bad guys did go down a bit faster in the past, but I think that was because fewer of them were full of drugs.
 
Just how does the stopping power of a 9mm stack up against the 38 Special?
Click to expand...
Standard pressure 9mm is a little hotter than standard pressure .38SP and 9mm+P is a little hotter than .38SP+P. The practical difference is that you can find 9mm self-defense expanding ammo that passes the full battery of FBI testing while I'm not aware of any .38Special ammo that expands and can also pass the full FBI tests.

From a civilian self-defense standpoint, that might not be a practical difference. Then it comes down to deciding what type of firearm you want to shoot. While there are a few 9mm revolvers out there, .38SP autopistols are very rare. So if you want to shoot a semi-auto, you're pretty much stuck with 9mm. If you want to shoot a revolver, you can pick either caliber although the revolver selection is obviously better in .38SP.
 
Without venturing into the capacity differences and ease-of-reloading the firearm issues, I think all will agree a good bullet hitting an effective spot will do damage to a suspect whether it is fired from a .38 +P or a 9mm.

Stay safe!
 
I carry a 442-2,638-3 both are SPL +P,my thinking is at my age and 5 shot isn't enough, i'm in trouble if I had a 15 rounds clip of 9mm.
 
Slamfire said:
That is impossible.

I just think of it as poking holes in a living creature. If the holes are the same size, and go in the same location, and the bullets exit the same location, why should anyone think that one is better than the other?
Click to expand...
For one thing one of them might be going a lot faster than the other and have a more effective bullet construction, thus delivering more energy/damage to the target. If both are firing the same weight projectiles and same construction at the same speed, then there will be no difference. But there are a lot more "modern" 9mm loads and it's a lot easier to get them going fast in carry-size guns than .38 special. Revolvers have their own advantages and shortcomings and that's up to the owner to decide what's most important. But from a truly objective standpoint the 9mm is a superior cartridge. Far more efficient and of a more modern design.
 
Like the semi's there can be quite a velocity spread depending on loading and barrel length for the HP to expand. Picked up some 135gr +P Gold Dot (Was told that it is discontinued) considering the 130gr HST +P and Golden Saber 125gr +P for the 4". This won't be like that other thread where the JHP is overkill. ;)
 
A more appropriate consideration would be 9mm vs .357 due to the bullets being the same diameter and thus 9mm moon clipped can be shot out of a 357 revolver. But I digress, in modern bullet technology and all things being equal. It boils down to whatever you shoot best.
 
Slamfire said:
That is impossible.

I just think of it as poking holes in a living creature. If the holes are the same size, and go in the same location, and the bullets exit the same location, why should anyone think that one is better than the other?
Click to expand...

This is the correct answer. You poke holes until they bleed out.
Until you get into the rifle velocity rounds.
 
intriguing that this topic is opened, when I watched this video yesterday
 
Capacity and the platforms they are fired from are the biggest difference. The ballistics are pretty close. A 125 grain bullet doing 1,000 FPS from a 38 Special +P is going to do about the same damage as a 1,100 FPS 9mm. For the most part 9mm will always win when it comes to velocity with bullets in the 115 to 147 grain range.

Unlike other posters, I’d say bullet selection favors .38 Special. You can use any shape bullet you want and not worry about feeding problem. Try getting a 172 grain SWC in a 9mm case.
 
Labguy47 said:
A more appropriate consideration would be 9mm vs .357 due to the bullets being the same diameter and thus 9mm moon clipped can be shot out of a 357 revolver. But I digress, in modern bullet technology and all things being equal. It boils down to whatever you shoot best.
Click to expand...

Hmm... ya know that the .38 Spl uses the same diameter bullet as the .357 don't ya?
 
Keep hearing the old saw about how "superior" 9mm is to 38 Special. "Comparison tests", really?
Taking a bullet with a 158 to 180 grain weight, and reducing it to 124 grains, to "compare" it to
some other favored round is hardly leveling the playing field.

I don't see anybody putting a 158 grain bullet on a 9mm, in order to make it a "fair" comparison.
By this logic, you could put a 45 grain bullet on a 9mm cartridge, "compare" it to 22LR, and
plausibly argue that 22LR is then "superior" to 9mm.
 
Dibbs said:
Keep hearing the old saw about how "superior" 9mm is to 38 Special. "Comparison tests", really?
Taking a bullet with a 158 to 180 grain weight, and reducing it to 124 grains, to "compare" it to
some other favored round is hardly leveling the playing field.

I don't see anybody putting a 158 grain bullet on a 9mm, in order to make it a "fair" comparison.
By this logic, you could put a 45 grain bullet on a 9mm cartridge, "compare" it to 22LR, and
plausibly argue that 22LR is then "superior" to 9mm.
Click to expand...

The bullet I shoot most in 9mm weighs 150 gr. I could size it to .358 instead of .357 and shoot it in my .38 Spl
 
Granted, Texas10, but all those "comparison" videos start by taking the most reduced size of
a 38 Special, and comparing it to a hot 9mm load.

Would the hot 124 grain 9mm load do as well, against a 158 grain +P 38 Special round?
Not likely. They share a common diameter, and were created in the same year. But IMO,
that's where the similarity ends.

Don't get me wrong, I like 9mm, have a lot of them. And in their own arena they shine. But
38 Special has it's own place, too, and given fair and equal consideration, outshines 9mm in certain
functions.
 
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