With all due respect to Mr Moderator and the group, we have all heard and some of us have personally seen due to our occupation (even some at MCG!) the anecdotal lack of performance of almost any handgun caliber. Everyone gets lucky sometimes. But given the same shot placement, I believe deep down whether we all will admit or not, when the chips are down, we want the most kinetic energy possible to be dumped into the target. The only point that I am trying to make is that we should shoot the largest caliber we can shoot quickly, accurately, and consistently. Any bullet in any caliber can fail, but it seems to me that we should give ourselves the best % chance of success. For some shooters that may be a .38spec or 9mm, for others a .45 or 10mm. I am just concerned that the message to new shooters that all calibers are equal and if you shoot the 9mm just fine, than that is all you need. JMHO
You neglect the needs of proper concealment to meet the letter of the law and the needs of the armed citizen. A subcompact 9 happens to be the smallest, lightest service caliber pistol available. The .357 mag in a 2" is little more powerful than the 410 ft lbs I get from a P11 using +P. It fits in a large pocket and weighs 14 ounces unloaded, which means I will have it with me when the SHTF. My 35 ounce K frame sized .357 mag and my P90 will be at home in the safe in all likelihood.
Just a bit of hyperbole on my part. My point is, all things being equal, a bigger bullet makes a bigger hole which increases your chances of doing greater damage which increases your chances of winning. I don't understand how this can be argued against.
Okay, I'll attempt to go over it again. That .45 caliber pill is .451" in diameter. A 9mm is .355" in diameter. That means that the radius of the .45 is but 0.048" larger than the 9mm. So, if your bullet placement is .048" away from the heart further than your 9mm can reach, your .45 will knick the flesh of the heart????
IOW, if you believe that energy means nothing, only the diameter of the bullet, you are allowed .048" or approximately 5/100 inch more error in your aim.
No, bullet diameter means diddly squat.
I do happen to believe energy is important, at the risk of starting another terminal ballistics argument. The old adage of 1000 ft lbs on target minimum for deer hunting is a good rule of thumb. Humans aren't a heck of a lot easier to kill than a deer, both thin skinned. That should give you a good idea of the lack of horsepower of most handgun loads in self defense scenarios, the .45 included. Even .44 mags don't break that 1000 ft lbs by much AT THE MUZZLE! Yes, bullet placement is the most important thing without a doubt. Heck, it's important in deer hunting, just that the deer ain't shootin' back! You can blood trail a deer if you have to. In a fight, you wanna stop the guy ASAP. That's real hard to do with a handgun of any caliber, but most of the major calibers from .38 up have pretty close to the same punch. One ain't a whole lot more effective than another. So, puttin' 'em where they'll count becomes all important and it don't matter what you think does the killin', energy or diameter or momentum, or whatever. In the end, weak as handgun calibers are, it all comes down to shot placement. You do, however, need a major caliber, .38 or larger. Messing around with mouse calibers that make less than 100 ft lbs is not wise. Even if you're a momentum guy, you can see my point here.