.40 S&W or 9mm...?

W

wilkup

New member
Alright I'm NOT trying to start a caliber war. Please know that up front? I currently run Federal HST +P 147gr rounds through my guns. I like and have preferred 9mm, but I'm wondering if I can get some insightful advice...

I'm curious to know what people think of stepping up to the .40S&W to get a bigger bullet and increased velocity in the trade off as well. I would be getting the 155gr bullets. So I'm not increasing what I'm currently shooting that much I don't think, but figured I would just throw this out there to try and learn something from all you out here.

Thanks for the advice and help in advance =)
 
I shoot mainly .40S&W but I see no reason to switch to .40 if you are already invested in and proficient with 9mm.

Although of similar weight you are dealing with different sectional densities. If you compare bullets in the two calibers with near the same sectional density (e.g., 147 gr in 9mm and 180 gr in .40) you will have about the same velocities as well (about 950 fps in this example).

If you compare velocities of the 155 gr .40 to the 115 gr 9mm you will have similar velocities. If you use premium hollowpoints like Gold Dots then I don't think caliber has as much importance to terminal performance. If you plan to use FMJ then I think the blunt flat nose and wider .40 has a signficant improvement over the pointy and more narrow 9mm.

Of course there is nothing wrong with just trying out another cartridge for fun, or if money is not an issue to refit with new guns! But if the budget is limited then stick with what you are experienced with and make sure to use premium bullets in the 9mm.
 
Have both, I prefer my .40s for everyday carry. 9mm is my range gun it's a stainless Baby Eagle will take 18 rounds to fill her up. My carry's by the way are a P-40 Kel-Tec used for back and forth to work, and a CW 40 for casual or dress up. ;)
 
Not enough difference to switch. The only reason I can see
it being worthwhile is if you just want a new gun. Which is a good enough reason.
 
Not worth the change unless you really want a 40. Put down the ballistics charts and go practice.
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+1 to that.

Not a big enough difference to go out and change your gameplan. Stick with getting your 9mm's to go where you want them at the range.
 
The 9mm is a little cheaper to shoot at the range. I think the .40SW round is OK and is a nice middle ground between the 9mm and the .45ACP.

I think your decision should factor what you want to use the gun for? If it is going to be a SD/HD weapon, why not go up to the .45ACP? I'm a little bias as I prefer the .45ACP over everything else. You have to decide what is comfortable for you and consider such things as recoil and gun size. I don't know for sure but would bet you have a lot more options with the .45 than the .40.

I recently acquired a .40SW Kimber Stainless Pro Carry which is identical to my .45ACP Kimber Stainless Pro Carry. Both guns are easy to shoot and feel great in my grasp. So the point made here is finding the right gun that is comfortable to shoot. I happen to be 6'2" and 230 lbs. I can handle recoil and my hands are not gigantic but large enough to comfortably hold the guns. You have to take that into consideration when deciding what gun to buy.
 
I wouldn't be swapping out anything I currently have. I would be using this gun for SD though and figured with the higher velocities available with the .40S&W, especially when I go with the 155gr bullet coupled with the larger diameter... it might work better for what I plan on carrying it for vs. the 9mm 147gr +P HST round I pack currently.

I'm not worried about putting in the time to learn how to shoot a gun... I actually enjoy shooting and will use any excuse I can to head to the range and contribute some lead donations.

One bullet I'm looking at is the BuffaloBore .40S&W 155gr +P round. It claims 1300fps and 582 ft. lbs. of muzzle energy. I know that's about the same as a 9mm 115gr round would be getting, but like the higher density bullet. I highly doubt I would ever shoot the 180gr bullets... maybe if I were out in the woods I would carry them with FN bullets, but that's the only reason I can think of to carry a large bullet like that. Who knows though... I used to think I wouldn't ever carry or be interested in the .40S&W, but here I am curious about it suddenly.
 
One more thing... as far as ammo cost goes, I have the option to reload so it won't be too expensive. Thanks for your thoughts so far though.
 
You're just wanting more power with similar bullets?

An automatic with a two inch barrel has an effective one inch barrel.

A revolver with a two inch barrel has a two inch barrel.
 
Yes, but it's more than that...
I like the higher velocity with increased ME, but I'm also interested in the larger diameter the .40S&W possesses over the 9mm. It's going to leave a bigger hole in the event I ever had to shoot in my defense or someone I love.
If it's not that much of a difference than I'm totally fine with adding to my collection of 9mm and not trying the .40S&W out, but after having been pretty close-minded about this caliber I figured I would give it an honest shot and see if it had anything to offer me my current preferred SD round.
 
A 9mm bullet may expand to .40 caliber size, but a .40 will never shrink to a 9mm. Food for thought. I shoot and reload for both, but prefer the .40 for defense.
 
Well, if you are going to add to your collection whether it is 9mm or .40, then why not try out the .40. :) It is my favorite cartridge for all around use. I shoot 9mm, .40, and .45acp but use the .40 for most home and carry SD. It just seems to have the best balance (for me) of pistol platform size, mag capacity, velocity, and bullet diameter/weight.

In these days of shortages it may help to have another caliber from which to chose. It uses the same small pistol primers, and can use the same powders as 9mm so you would really just need to add a die set and stocks of .40 bullets and cases. I use Unique and AA#5 in both calibers.
 
A 10mm bullet (.40) has an advantage of over 10% in diameter. This seems to be a noticeably positive improvement. However, this is not the critical comparison. When you compare the 1mm increase to the overall dimensions of the average target (in this case a human attacker) you see how miniscule the difference really is. You don't sacrifice any performance by going to the larger round, but considering that you are already using a top-tier 9mm load, you probably won't see any real-world difference in terminal performance or on-target effectiveness.

Even if there is no real functional advantage in the loads you are deciding between, though, it is helpful to have confidence (appropriate, realistic confidence) in your tools. One way is to let the data comfort you. Another way is to get the gun you want and already feel more comfortable with. Since there is probably no real difference in the effectiveness of these loads, either solution should work equally well in this case. If you have the means to drastically increase your ammunition expenses, and you are able to shoot the .40 as well as the 9mm, go for it.

The fact that you are shooting 147 gr loads suggests that you might just be the heavy bullet type. You know, the kind that says the 155 gr. .40 sounds like a reasonable upgrade today, and 18 months from now you're posting pics of you're new .50 GI.:D If that is the case, (and, again, you can afford the increase in ammo costs) certainly get the .40. Because, at 147 gr., you have hit the service ceiling of 9mm defensive loads.

P.S. I agree that a new gun is a good enough excuse on it's own!
 
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considering that you are already using a top-tier 9mm load, you probably won't see any real-world difference in terminal performance or on-target effectiveness.
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Thanks Dave85. That's the main thing I was trying to figure out. I'm honestly completely content with what I have right now, but wanted to give this other caliber an honest shot. If there's going to be no real noticeable differences between the two I'm going to stick with the 9mm :D and have no reason to learn how to shoot or load another caliber.

I appreciate people understanding my question and not getting sidetracked with which is "better"

Thanks.
 
I have several pistols in 9mm, .40 and .45. I literally took my S&W 910 five minutes ago after getting home. I don't have any real preference when it comes to calibers to carry. I shoot all of them equally well and can usually make the bullets go where I want them to go:cool: I say carry what you are comfortable with and shoot the best.


Also, I have really grown to like the 147gr weight in my 9mm pistols. I carry the non +P HST's in my Keltec PF-9.
 
If you add a .40 to your collection then you will have more options, for both concealed carry and range trips :D.

They are both great self-defense rounds, but if you have the money, then why not add a new gun to the collection ;).
 
I've never found any difference in shooting things like feral dogs between 40 and 45acp. Both are better than the 9mm. However the newer 9mm especially +P and +P+ brings it up quite a bit.
 
Not worth the change unless you really want a 40.
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It is if you use the right ammo. Bigger/heavier is better IF you can get the velocity to push it. IMO, 147 is a little heavy for 9mm and 155 is a little light for .40 S&W.

If you go to 165 or 180 in the .40 S&W, now you're talking some serious ballistic differences. Choose your ammo carefully and match it to the barrel length of your gun.

Also, it matters which you shoot best. That's the one you should carry.
 
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