How many believe Caliber Wars Are Overblown

[444]

I believe you are correct in your second statement. Put a larger hole in the heart and the person dies faster. How fast either shot "puts them down" is up to that individual person.

"there have been people shot with .22’s in a non-lethal area who have gone into shock & died."
The definition of shock is hypoxia at the celular level. If they are hypoxic, it is secondary to the gunshot wound meaning that the wound was not, "non-lethal".

 

[Coronach]

No, Intune, you're correct. The wee lil .22 has killed a lot of people. Wounded a lot more, too. And if you could magically turn all of the people shot-but-wounded with a .22 into people who were shot with a .454 Casull in the same location, a truckload more of them would be dead.

However, the key factor in that argument is not the change in caliber, but the liberal use of magic.

Mike

 

[WAPS]

I agree that the debate over caliber is overblown, and here is why. What is the intended purpose of the projectile? To cause tissue damage / disruption. For this purpose, YES bigger is better!

However, of what benefit is a bigger projectile if the shooter cannot control the weapon and misses a vital area? The answer NONE!

A well placed 9mm to the RIGHT lung will be almost if not as effective as a 45acp. Therefore the key element here is as has been stated repeatedly.....
shot placement and controlibility.

Be Safe

Williams Associates Protective Services, LLC
www.wa-protective.com

 

[AndABeer]

If you are only considering human assailants, yeah, they are overblown. If you live in a rural or semi-rural area then I think one must consider defense senarios involving other species of predators and "gun up".

 

[pax]

It all boils down to Accuracy, Power, and Speed.

Accuracy -- If you miss, it doesn't count.

Power -- a BB gun isn't going to do as much good as a Howitzer. Bigger is generally better if your goal is to stop someone. Oh, and BTW, the lowly .22 has killed plenty of people, but it isn't good at stopping them right this very minute -- which is the name of the game in defensive shooting.

Speed -- Doesn't matter how accurately or with what power you can deliver that bullet, if you give the other guy time to kill you first.

All that said, given certain parameters, the caliber wars are really overdone. A 9mm JHP and a .45 are not going to give radically different results, if delivered with equal speed and accuracy.

pax

We hear of an unfortunate woman who, during an nighttime asthma attack, confused the small handgun she kept under her pillow with an asthma inhaler and proceeded to relieve her symptoms. It was not a fatal mistake, partly because she used a .25 ACP, which everyone knows is not sufficient to clear sinuses. -- Jeff Cooper