CCW Caliber Question

[dmarbell]

Most of the discussions about caliber for concealed carry seem to debate the 9mm vs .45/.40, with opinions about the .38's and .357's thrown in. I've resigned myself to two carry guns. One for pocket-type concealment, and one larger gun.

If I decide on a revolver for the bigger gun, what's wrong with a .44 magnum with .44 Specials? I have a Ruger Super Blackhawk now, and I could shoot the .44's in both guns.

How do the .44 Special ballistics stack up to the .40 and .45?

Also, if over penetration is a problem with 9mm, could you not get a lighter powder charge? And if you did, would you basically have a .38 or .38+P or
.38 Special load, with a slightly larger bullet than the 9mm?

Danny

 

[RustyShackelford]

.44spl/.38spl/.357magnum/9mm

Depending on your needs for CC(concealed carry) I'd say you could use a factory .44spl load like the Magsafe or Glaser Silver if you want to carry a .44magnum revolver. 180-200gr JHPs would be good too for the .44spl but unless you live and/or work in a remote area I'd avoid .44magnum rounds for CC/defense.

The .38spl/9mm/.357magnum are great for urban areas or regular CC carry with the right loads. Today major factories like Federal, Remington, Speer, Federal, etc sell improved centerfire handgun rounds meant for CC/home protection. CCI/Speer sells a 135gr Gold Dot JHP for snub .357magnums and .38spl. The Corbon DPX series and the standard 110gr +P+ JHP loads in .38spl work well too, . For the 9mm I'd go with the W-W Ranger SXT 127 +P+ 9mm JHP or the 124gr bonded JHP from Remington(Golden Saber) or Speer Gold Dot. The Gold Dot 124gr(bonded) JHP 9mm is standard issue to the sworn officers of the NYPD.

Always carry factory loaded rounds for defense/CC and check your carry loads often, .

Rusty

 

[knoxx45]

44 Spl...

nothing. Infact, with the right ammo, it is a great SD round. With 44Mags, not so much. Big tim over penetration, and solw follow-up shots are not the best qualities for a SD round.

 

[XDKingslayer]

Can you shoot a small .44 accurately? That's the biggest question when it comes to carrying one for CCW. I'm a firm believer to carry the biggest caliber you can shoot accurately in a package you can conceal easily.

 

[MCgunner]

.44s are fatter than a similar size .38 for carry, but if that doesn't bother you, go for it.

 

[atlctyslkr]

Unless you think your DA will have a fit for using magnum rounds go for it. Whatever works for you.

 

[ccw007]

One problem you may find with CCWing a 44 Mag frame is the weight of the revolver would get old after a while IMO, not to mention it is going to be bulky and hard to conceal except in the winter months. Even the small 44 mag frames are heavy and bulk for the most part.

 

[Jack19]

Frankly, commonly carried handgun calibers are all about the same.

Carry what makes you happy. And by "Happy," I mean the caliber that gives you confidence in your ability to hit at what you aim.

Sure, lots of threads argue the 9mm/.40/.45/whatever caliber as being the best. The truth is that handgun rounds in those calibers all do pretty much the same thing.

It's up to you. What caliber are you comfortable shooting. A .22 or a full house .44 Magnum? Ignore advice that tells you to carry X brand ammunition in Z caliber. Shoot your weapon of choice and decide what works for you. If you can hit with it, you're good to go.

 

[dean790]

In my opinion, a S&W 38 special is the best overall CCW

It will never jam

There is no clip to insert

You never have to chamber a round

Keep it loaded....pull the trigger....and it fires.

It's simplicity makes it the best for split second defense.

 

[Sir Aardvark]

You're gonna have a hard time finding something lightweight and concealable in .44.

I myself have a S&W 629 TrailBoss 3" bbl .44mag that while relatively small, is still bulky and heavy.

S&W's 329 Scandium/Titanium .44spl/.44mag might be lightweight but it is also very thick (and really expensive, too!) - not a good trait in something that is supposed to be concealed.

How much does your Ruger Blackhawk weigh? (the lightest Blackhawk weighs 44 oz, the heaviest, 55oz). Are you going to be comfortable carrying 3+ pounds of gun, ammo, and holster on your hip all day? You'll find that you're going to need suspenders to support everything.

Also, single-action revolvers would not be my first choice for a concealed carry handgun.

And one more thing, a Springfield XD45 carries more than twice as many rounds as does a single-action revolver and is about 500 times faster to reload - the point I'm trying to make is that unless you're hiking in the woods with your trusty .44mag loaded for bear, then there are probably better choices for a concealed carry handgun than the Ruger that you mentioned.

 

[Hook686]

It is all relative. The .44 magnum, and the .44 Special, are not necessarily over penetration. It depends upon the ammo, such as Speer .44 magnum 200 grain Short Barrel Gold Dot HP rounds, or Buffalo Bore 185 grain Heavy .44 Special. My 6-1/2" S&W 629 pushes the Speer bullet about 1250 fps, for about 690 ft-lbs of muzzle energy. The Buffalo Bore 185 grain Heavy .44 Special (it seems now Buffalo Bore uses 180 grain JHP bullets) do about 1200 fps out of the same revolver. This is about 590 ft-lbs of muzzle energy.

http://www.buffaloBore.com/ammunition/default.htm#44spl

Both of these top the three service rounds, of .45 acp, 9mm, .40 S&W, but not by much. So over penetration I doubt is much greater than the typical three service calibers, with +P loads.

 

[ranger53]

I have a friend of mine that is an ER physician. He told me that a 38 spec. can really inflict a heck of a wound!
tommy

 

[MachIVshooter]

The problem with .44 caliber guns for CC is not the round, it's the gun. They are invariably larger than any 5 or 6 shot .38/.357. Additionally, the .44 mag is not a good choice for a variety of reasons, and the .44 spl. doesn't really offer an edge over .357 mag.

 

[dmarbell]

9mm and over-penetration

I did some research on the Federal web site. I realize these numbers are manufacturers propoganda, but they are the best I have.

Federal makes 40 S&W and 9mm in 135 grain bullets, Hydra-Shok JHP. The 40 has more velocity and energy throughout the range reported (muzzle, 25 yards-100 yards). The 40 has about 27% more (leading edge) area than the 9 (area=pi x r^2). Unless the area of the bullets, 0.126 square inches for the 40 vs. 0.099 for the 9, make that big a difference, the 40 in this bullet should penetrate deeper than the 9. The smaller 9, in 124 grain, carries more velocity and slightly less energy than the 40 in 180 grain.

The heaviest 9mm, in 147 grains, is right in line with the 40 in 180 grains. I think I read that 40 in 165 to 185 grains was a popular police load. The heavy 9mm seems to yield the same results.

So why not shoot the smaller 9mm with less recoil? Is the over-penetration issue a myth that started some time ago with older ammo?

Danny

 

[MachIVshooter]

So why not shoot the smaller 9mm with less recoil? Is the over-penetration issue a myth that started some time ago with older ammo?

Over-penetration is a myth, period, when conventional handgun cartridges are the subject matter. Minimum acceptable penetration is considered to be 12" by many experts. I tend to agree. Over-penetration comes into play when one considers such cartridges as the .44 mag, .454 Casull, .50 AE, etc. that not only have double, triple or more energy of, say, a .45 ACP, but are also using heavily constructed bullets designed to penetrate large game animals. These rounds will go through a normal sized human being and maintain enough energy on the backside to still be lethal.

Those super-fast flyweight rounds have a difficult time getting even this amount. I have played with 9mm, .357, .40, 10mm and .45 with every bullet weight I could find, and the medium to heavy for caliber always performed more reliably than the lightweights. For .40 S&W, I would not go below 155 gr.

For the common defensive handgun rounds, I use/recommend the folowing bullet weights for JHP/SJHP/JHC/EFMJ/etc.:

.380: 90, 95, 102

9x19, .38 Super, .357 Sig : 124, 125, 147

.38 Spl.: 125, 158

.357 Mag.: 158, 180

.40 S&W: 155, 165, 180

10mm Auto: 180, 190, 200

.44 Spl.: 180, 200, 210

.45 ACP.: 200, 230

 

[beaucoup ammo]

124 Gr. Federal Hydra Shok 9mm are great. Gets my vote at least. As for a larger caliber, I faced the same question and went with a S&W Model 60 offering either .357 or .38 / .38+P. Beautiful "Concealment" gun and plenty of power. Purchased the later only a few weeks ago and really enjoy it.

Concealment is the operative word. To that end, I've found the KAHR P9 and aforementioned Model 60 to be perfect for me.

As others here have so aptly pointed out..anything you are comfortable with is the one for you.