Anyone else not not like the 40S&W?

[paddling_man]

From the old CALIBERS website:

http://www.greent.com/40Page/ammo/10/10mm.htm

Thanks!! So, if I'm reading this right, all of the Federal's and the American Eagle are 10 Lite.

You should be looking for what? In excess of 1,100 FPS and 550 ft/lbs.?

Thanks for any feedback!

 

[Panthera Tigris]

If you're ever in a situation where you actually need all of those rounds, you're in deep sh**, and you probably aren't going to survive it. The average self defense shooting is 3 or 4 rounds.
I would still recommend carrying what you're comfortable with, but I wouldn't rely on thinking I'm going to be just fine in a situation where I need 17+ rounds to get out alive.

 

[Srigs]

9 and 40 are my calibers. I do like them both and my next handgun will be a 40!

 

[CajunBass]

For what it's worth, I've never had much interest in it. I can't really tell you why, it just never caught my fancy.

 

[bluto]

I've been warming up to the .40 S&W over the past year mainly because of my Sig P226 platform. My glock 22 is just unpleasant to shoot after 50 rounds because of the grip, balance and the way it transmits the recoil impulse to my hand. The Sig not only seems mild, but naturally resets itself for followup shots. I think that's a key factor in how someone judges the .40: what gun they shoot it out of.

What I'm coming to realize is that, for me, the .40's snappy recoil, when funneled into a great grip makes my Sig .40 probably the fastest recovering pistol that I have. It just naturally resets for me. And it's as accurate and consistant as my .45's, but feels "quicker". Seems like an outstanding combat round. Power, capacity, accuracy, and "speed". I've shot CZ's and would expect the same feel in that platform. So, because it has different and distinct recoil characteristics that can, by some, be effectively expolited, I won't consign it to the "solution looking for a problem" catagory. The more I shoot it, the more it makes sense as an excellent alternative to the .45 and 9mm.

 

[boomstik45]

Nothing really wrong with the .40. Somebody definitely likes it. My department is transitioning to it. I still carry a .45 off duty. Or a 9. Hopefully soon a .357sig. But the .40 is kinda caught in the middle of a lot of things. .45 shooters will say it's smaller and therefore inferior. 9 shooters will say it's not gonna do anything a 9 won't/can't do. If you like it, shoot it. Don't listen to anybody else.

 

[md7]

i shoot a .40 because i like that it has more capacity than a .45, and is a bit more powerful than a 9. i also shoot pretty well with it. that is the reason my main defensive handguns are .40. i am not one of those folks that are die hard about any caliber though. 9mm's and .45's have been around for a long time, and if they were ineffective as defensive calibers, then nobody would be talking about them and debating their effectiveness over (insert your choice of caliber here)_________. they would have been phased out sometime in the their one hundred year history. every caliber has its strengths and weaknesses. there is not and will probably not ever be a "one hitter quitter" wonder caliber that guarantees one shot stops every time or your money back guarantee in a pistol. but, we do have some pretty good calibers to pick from that will all do the job if the shooter does his/her part. that brings us to shot placement, and accuracy varies from caliber to caliber depending on how the individual shooter takes to it. kind of a circular reasoning to it don't you think? with all that said, i am not the kind that endorses one cartridge over another. get what works for you, practice with it, and be confident that a gaping wound to a vital organ will stop an attacker. for me, the .40 is my go to caliber.

 

[MrTwigg]

After seeing Jack19's ballistics gel pic I feel a lot better about my choice of caliber for defense.

 

[raz-0]

I used to be a 9mm fan because it was cheap. Then I was a .45ACP fan because it was mellow to shoot. Now iu like the .40. Not that I dislike 9 and 45, but my shooting has developed, and .40 is the best fit.


9mm recoil isn't bad, but it has a lot fo muzzle flip. It cyclles the slide fast though, which is good for quick follow up shots. It also shoots pretty flat making 30-50 yard shots simpler (i.e. for USPSA, you aim at the a-zone like usual and don't have to think much about it). If you reload, the cartride is a PITA. The case taper, bullet profile, and general small size of the components makes it annoying to reload, not to mention you can get military crimped brass mixed in to your pile of brass. On the upside components are cheaper.

.45 is easy to reload. Low pressure and long lifetime of components make it simple. The only real downsides are cost of components, military crimps, and having to watch out for double charges. BUt mostly you can work up a full zorch load or a light without much worry and load it fast. The recoil is mellow. However, it torques more, it takes a while to cycle the slide, and it is more work to put it on target in the 30-50yd range.


For my uses the .40 is a good compromize. Bullet weight can vary from being near the heavy end of 9mm to the mid-range of .45. The cartridge has much less taper, and the components are a bit larger, so laoding is easy. You won't find surprise military crimps in your mixed headstamp brass. Loaded to minor power factor it is VERY mellow. Even loaded light, it cycles the slide qucikly. Even with heavy bullets it is less torquey than a 230gr 45. Even with heavy bullets, it tends to shoot flatter than .45 making 30-50 yd targets a bit simpler.

It's agood fit for my shooting, and given the dimensions, I'd probabl carry it in a self-defense pistol if I lived in a CCW state just for consistency with what I'm used to shooting.

 

[Warren]

I didn't have any interest in the .40 either until I fired a bunch out of a PX4. That was a lot of fun. It was accurate and recoil was less than the .45s I've shot.

The range I rented it at allows rapid fire and I was able to keep a 10 rnd string in the 10-8 rings even though I did not much enjoy the sights that were on the thing.

I am seriously thinking of buying one.

 

[StrikeEagle]

What's to dislike? They all do just about the same thing.

Every time I see that graphic I look at it and am kinda amazed by how dinky the 9mm looks compared to the .40 and the .45