9mm vs ? Caliber Wars

[owejia]

Having been in the cattle business the last 35+ years ocasionally you have humanely put down a disable animal. We're talking 1100-1300 lb cow. I've used 9mm,22lr,45acp and 38 spl. They all get the job done with one shot to the brain. All effective no difference. Shot placement is king.

[three5seven]

This article is bunk. Although I agree that the increase in technology has enabled the new 9MM rounds to do things never thought of 20 years ago, the reality is that these switches are all about LE agencies purchasing new handguns. (When in reality they don't wear out the ones they have, they're just "old"). I've read articles that purport LE as a whole qualified better with .357 steel revolvers fitted with FBI loads in the early 1980's than with hi-cap 9's and .40's. Go figure.    

[Patton]

Old timers that come around or are still at my department talk about having a 50yard qual with a 4" model 15. If we did 50yard quals we would have 10% of our existing workforce.
Those are not the first 9mm is taking over the world propaganda adds I have scene lately. TDPS went to 9mm from 357sig but it was also a completely different platform change. NCHP went to a 9mm only because of 357 sig problems in the M&P, they pretty much did an even swap because of the bad publicity S&W was getting. Indiana State Police just dumped their Glock 17's after many years to get the new Sigs in 45. There was at least one department listed in the 2014 Glock Annual that just went to G22 from 9mm. I have seen a few departments in TN switch to 45 or 357Sig from 40 in the last year but the two newest agencies in TN to get armed up have chosen Glocks in 40s&w.

[Hershmeister]

You guys gave me a great idea... I'm going to tell my wife that new researh is out and i need to buy a 357sig since its now the best - lol

[DaveTN]

I've read articles that purport LE as a whole qualified better with .357 steel revolvers fitted with FBI loads in the early 1980's than with hi-cap 9's and .40's. Go figure.

Why would that surprise anyone? 4/6” 686’s and Pythons against M&P’s and Glock; not much of a contest there.

[tnhawk]

A missed shot with 9mm equals a missed shot with a 45apc.  Practice is a larger factor than caliber for the average person.

[whitewolf001]

I'm fairly certain if I tag a normal person with a .22LR in the center of mass, they're NOT gonna ask for seconds. You know, considering they're not tweaked on something hence why I said "normal".

[JAB]

I'm fairly certain if I tag a normal person with a .22LR in the center of mass, they're NOT gonna ask for seconds. You know, considering they're not tweaked on something hence why I said "normal".

 

Heck, if you aim that .22LR at their center of mass then most 'normal' people are probably going to change their behavior pretty quickly.  The problem is, I would think that a large percentage of assailants who would go far enough that you would need to/could legally shoot them are not 'normal'.  My thinking would be that they were either chemically altered, mentally unbalanced, in a complete rage or a member of a subculture (i.e. gang) in which getting shot is much more a commonplace occurrence that it is to most 'normal' people.

 

I live and generally spend most of my time in low risk/low threat level areas.  To my knowledge I also don't have any true enemies.  The chances of me being attacked - while always a possibility - are pretty slim.  The flip side is that if I am attacked then the assailant likely won't be a 'normal' person.  Instead, the assailant will likely be a meth-head or a nut-job (or a meth-head nut-job) rather than simply the type of opportunistic criminal that might be a factor in a higher crime area.  That line of thinking leads me to believe that if I am threatened then it is not likely to be by the type of assailant that would probably turn and run at just the sight of a gun.  Even given that, my most often carried firearm is my j-frame stoked with .38 +P and I do carry a P3AT occasionally - when I need something really flat and easily concealable - but I expect to have to fire more than one shot to stop the threat.  Personally, I believe that a 9mm, .40 and .45 would all be about equally effective in such a situation.  I don't know that I would be comfortable carrying a .22 as a primary for those reasons (although a BUG is a different story.)  Just something I thought I'd throw out there.

Edited February 21, 2014 by JAB

[whitewolf001]

Heck, if you aim that .22LR at their center of mass then most 'normal' people are probably going to change their behavior pretty quickly.  The problem is, I would think that a large percentage of assailants who would go far enough that you would need to/could legally shoot them are not 'normal'.  My thinking would be that they were either chemically altered, mentally unbalanced, in a complete rage or a member of a subculture (i.e. gang) in which getting shot is much more a commonplace occurrence that it is to most 'normal' people.

 

I live and generally spend most of my time in low risk/low threat level areas.  To my knowledge I also don't have any true enemies.  The chances of me being attacked - while always a possibility - are pretty slim.  The flip side is that if I am attacked then the assailant likely won't be a 'normal' person.  Instead, the assailant will likely be a meth-head or a nut-job (or a meth-head nut-job) rather than simply the type of opportunistic criminal that might be a factor in a higher crime area - the type of assailant that would probably turn and run at just the sight of a gun.  Just something to think about.

Exactly, I also happen to carry 18 rounds of 9x19 124gr +P Speer Gold Dot with two spare mags, if the assailant can get passed that I am gonna run like this...

Edited February 21, 2014 by whitewolf001

[gregintenn]

Let someone shoot you once with each caliber, then you can see which one hurts the worst.

 

I'm going to forgo the test and say they are all deadly.

 

I'm like the sheriff when the lady at the dinner remarked about his sidearm. She looked at it and nervously asked "Are you expecting trouble?"

 

He replied "No ma'am. If I were expecting trouble, I would have brought my rifle."

[glowdotGlock]

I have carried all of them. I trust my life to 16 rounds of HST 124 grain 9mm.

[sigmtnman]

If 9mm is best then 10mm is bester?

[chances R]

I think the fact of the matter is, in general, most of use are unlikely to have to fire in self-defense.  As mentioned, if one has to present his firearm, hopefully the threat stops at that point.  94% of all handgun use is 21 ft or less.  Hits count, misses don't.  Caliber will be a minor factor IMO, if you hit the mark.

[RobertNashville]

I've never owned a 40S&W or a 9MM and have never seen a good reason to do so. Nothing specifically against them but I like a little punch in my SD pistols and I don't want to deal with a bunch of different calibers so, I only go 45ACP or 10MM.

[whitewolf001]

If 9mm is best then 10mm is bestest?

FTFY

[A.J. Holst]

If this was Spinal Tap, we'd be talking 11mm, because it's one louder...

[Jason in TN]

I have 9 45 and 10mm Cary 45 most of the time but truth is most hand gun rounds don't stop a threat instantly. Have a buddy that is a LEO who's partner shot a guy with a glock 22 40 cal not long ago. Hit the guy in the shoulder and in the head. The guy walked out of the hospital two hours later.

[Patton]

The first homicide I ever went to was a 22lr to the head, a week later I went to an accidental shooting with 44mag. The guy was able to tell me exactly how it happened and was as calm as could be, half his shoulder was missing.

[10-Ring]

Does having love for 9,.40, and .45 make me bi?

[tnhawk]

Does having love for 9,.40, and .45 make me bi?

Add a .380 and it makes me always armed.

[lshel]

I carry either the 45 ACP and 9mm and have several carry guns in both calibers.I also have a SW 40 Glock with extra barrel in 357 Sig. I like and shoot all of them. Reloading adds to the enjoyment.

[Moped]

.38 is what I carry the most. I have .22s, 9mm, .357 mag and .45CAP. The .22s are all a bit big to carry, so are the .357, 9mm and .45. As Goldilocks said, the little .38 Colt is just right, to carry. It conceals well, is comfortable to carry and is a proven bad guy stopper. Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk

[jon1977]

As I said I have carried them all. What I found over time was the importance of shot placement. I used to love my nuclear 10mm loads and I still do, but over time I have become quite a believer in the 9mm. I feel with proper shooting ability, 9mm and a higher capacity is the way to go.

[kwe45919]

12 rounds of 124gr 9mm GoldDot (short barrel) for my G26 with a 15 round back up mag and a KelTec P32 with 7 rounds of hot CorBon have served me quite well for almost 7 years now. I've shot through various barriers (wood, block, brick, sheetrock etc) and into many jugs and books and foods. Even played with ballistic gel a few times. I'm more than confident that I will and can defend my self with the accuracy and dependability of my guns and ammo.

 

Fact is, most of us can use any of the mentioned calibers in just about any gun and be efficient with a bit of practice but what we are comfortable with is key to using the equipment to its up most potential. 

[molonlabetn]

The development of .40 was purely administrative... after the Miami shooting the FBI didn't want to admit that an adequate cartridge or load was already available (9mm/.45acp/.357magnum), and had chosen to not to issue it, so they developed a problem to solve with the 10mm (which actually is a great cartridge)... but since qualification scores plummeted with full 10mm loads, they had to turn it into a relative powderpuff with no more power than existing autoloading pistol cartridges, and then stuffed it into 9mm handgun frames, reducing capacity. And so, we've ended up where they should have gone all along, a high-capacity 9mm handgun which is easy to control, cheap to shoot, and equally effective with proper bullets at the velocities 9mm was originally intended.