9mm vs 40

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I own a 9mm and 45acp. I love the cost of 9mm ammo vs 40. Performance is somewhat similar with a good 9mm round. I have no interest in the 40. It's either 9 or 45. Cutout the "middleman".

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I'm with coolluke01. The 40 is a fad. Admittedly a successful one for a while, but Kachok was right. Miami changed everything in a ridiculous way. The fact that the lawmen lost were FBI made it worse, somehow (I still haven't figured out why.) The difference in performance between the 9 and the 40 is insignificant enough that if the Miami incident wasn't arranged by arms and ammunition manufacturers' marketers, it sure could have been.

I don't currently own any 9mm guns, but I wouldn't hesitate to. If I were looking to choose between 9 and 40 I can't come up with a good enough reason to go with the 40. My current carry options are my 380 P3AT, and one of several .45 Autos. And on that note, allow me the levity to be a bit of a smartass:

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I own 9mm and .45ACP. I will never own a .40 because there is simply no reason for it to exist other than to sell more pistols.

The 40's I've shot recoil a lot more harshly than any .45ACP I've ever shot. Mainly because they normally are found in 9mm size light pistols. The muzzle flip and snap of a 40 is unpleasant to shoot, especially when compared to the 45ACP.
 
If there's no reason for the .40 other than gunmaker marketing, then we could say the same for about a couple dozen rifle calibers.

I'll just say it was a good thing for Allied soldiers and marines that Hitler's SS troops didn't have the .40S&W. I can't type this in German.
 
Alaska, they used a remarkably wise choice for that poster.

Shooting twice is for people who didn't buy Kimber.
 
My advice would be to buy a pistol in a .40 then buy an interchangeable barrel for said pistol and practice with each caliber.
Example: Glock 23s are .40s but they can be changed to , 9mm, or 357sig if you buy the extra barrels. The barrels range from $100-150. After you practice you can decide for yourself which caliber you like.

I prefer the .40 for self defense and the 9mm for practice.
 
NG VI said:
Shooting twice is for people who didn't buy Kimber.
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My USP Tactical .45 and I will take that challenge. (so the caliber war becomes a brand war...) However, if I had a Kimber riding on my hip I'd feel as secure as anything I've ever carried. They're one of the companies who made high end 1911s not only damned desireable, but realistically possible too. You'll not catch me sending an unkind word their way.

beatledog7, I didn't say it was a bad fad, just an unnecessary one for me. I'll agree that the difference between the 260 Rem and the 7mm-08 is pretty much lost on me. 308 and 300 Savage are the same way. With the 40S&W, to me, the minimal gain in energy doesn't come close to justifying the higher cost of ammo, the loss of a couple rounds in the magazine, and the noticeably increased flipand jump in the gun. The direct result of Miami, the preponderance of the 10mm is a different story. It's too bad the caliber never really caught on in a big way, that is a caliber I really like. The increased recoil there is something I'm okay with because the ballistics take an enormous leap.

And not to derail this, but Hitler could have developed the atomic bomb first and still would have ended up shooting his deranged brains out after losing the war. His paranoia did him in. Had someone killed him before he attacked Russia it might have made a difference for Germany, but for all the little twerp's initial successes, his sociopathic (maybe psychotic) tendencies did him in.
 
If shooting twice is silly you can call me plumb crazy, I am going to keep pumping lead untill my target goes limp and hits the ground weather I am using a 22LR or a 500 S&W magnum. The 45 is hella good but it aint no death ray.
 
Amateurs practice until they get it right. Professionals train until they can't get it wrong. I've owned, shot and carried everything. My buddies and I have this debate all the time. What shuts them up is when I take them out side and shoot targets side by side with 3 mags. Everything time I'm still shooting when they are out of ammo. My glock holds 20rds of 9mm a mag to their 8-10 45acp or 12-16 40cal. My 60rds are in two 2" groups dead center head and chest while their 30 or so rds are all over the place. Size of the bullet doesn't matter everybody dies the same way when shot in the face. IMO
 
I own several .45's, several 9mm's, and a few .40's just because I like to collect guns. I have carry guns in each of these calibers, and carry which ever depending on how I'm dressed. No matter what I'm carrying I don't leave the house feeling under gunned. With enough practice I'm proficient with all my carry guns. Anything 9mm or up is going to do it's job if you do yours and hit what you're a aiming at. Loaded with modern SD ammo you should be good to go. I find these caliber wars to be silly. That is unless you want to carry a .22 for SD. I want something big enough to end the threat right there. Not two or three hours later in an emergency room.
To the OP. Buy the best gun you can afford in a decent sized caliber, practice, feel confident your weapon can do it's job, and happy shooting.
 
...they used a remarkably wise choice for that poster.

Shooting twice is for people who didn't buy Kimber.
Click to expand...

Then why are all .45ACPs, including Kimbers, designed to carry more than one round?
And if the answer is that there might be more than one assailant, what are your chances of hitting, say, 7 or 8 of them, before they reach you?


With modern ammo, the difference between 9 and .40 is negligible.
Click to expand...

If true, why haven't the markets for them made the price disparity negligible?
 
Whichever you prefer is the one to go with. I just don't think that there'd be much difference in the effect of either in a critical situation.
 
This is wandering all over the place.

We've had 22 years to figure out whether the .40 S&W is better than the 9mm. And 108 years to definitively prove whether more rounds of 9mm beats fewer rounds of .45ACP.

If we don't know by now, we ain't never gonna know.
 
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