.40 S&W Prediction

I predict that opinionated blowhards will continue using the same arguments about the same calibers for many years to come.
 
I think the .40 will still remain popular for years. Let's not get ahead of ourselves, the VAST majority of LE organizations in the USA still use the .40, I think it's a little premature for these predictions to mean anything.
 
The .40 absolutely put more wear and stress on guns, there is a reason that most guns nowadays are built around the .40 then adopted for 9mm, the 229 was one of the first that comes to mind. It's pretty simple, higher pressure rounds put more stress on a gun, hands down. Just like revolvers shooting heavy loads will have to be rebuilt sooner than one shooting light .38 loads, auto's shooting hotter loads will experience the same thing.
 
maybe if you're using 9mm recoil springs in 40sw pistols, yeah you might tear the pistol up sooner.
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Which has been known to happen.

CZ used the same recoil spring in their .40 version of the CZ-100, as in the 9mm. Which caused some issues (as if that gun needed any more "issues".) IIRC, of course. It's been a while since I traded mine off -- someone else's problem now.
 
As the original poster, I think it might be time for me to jump in here.

Never said the .40 was going away; only said its popularity will wane perhaps
in the NEXT DECADE. And the world will again debate the 9 mm vs. the .45 ACP. And it's a prediction, a thought, an idea of what I see and read.

The .40 folks are sure touchy. Touchy, touchy, touchy. :)

Now back to all the vituperation. ;)
 
more and more people are discovering that shot placement is king, and bullet size does not compensate for poor shot placement.

that said, the .40S&W isn't going anywhere. it is the balance or compromise that many have sought between the 9mm and .45acp.
 
Don't the 40 and 9mm operate at the same pressure?

9mm & 40 S&W 35,000, almost identical!

10mm 37,500

.357 Sig 40,000

All this according to Speer #14. But this raises the question, how much higher then is +p or +p+ 9mm than 40S&W??
 
9mm +P is a SAAMI rating and is 38.5K.

There is no SAAMI standard listed for 9mm +P+ or any 40 S&W +P. Max on any 40 S&W is 35K.
 
As a point of order, I still don't have anyone providing links to this retreat to 9mm as a wide-spread LEO phenomenon.

Now, civilians, I would go there. Mainly because people say (as others have on this thread) "modern bullet technology makes 9mm a far more viable and lethal choice then it has been in the past".

What the new female shooter, the cop just trying to get by, the prepper who is not into guns and wants to be a minimalist about firearms hears is....."9mm is just as good"...... and then they go out and buy a bunch of cheap 115gr FMJ, the very round that gave 9mm the lackluster reputation it had in first place.

Don't get me wrong; I have a few 9mm pistols, but I am far more fussy about what I stuff in them than just about anything I shoot. But the core constituency of the resurgent 9mm is about inexperience and cheap ammo.

If that shoe doesn't fit, then don't wear it. But that's just my opinion, based on what I have seen, heard, and read in the last couple of years.
 
Max on any 40 S&W is 35K.
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That's because the 40sw is always ++P++ hand grenade pressure. No wonder why 40sw blows up all the time. It's like always firing +P+ 45acp, and then reloading the casings to +P+ loads again.

Both the 40sw and 45acp have similar case wall/web thickness. The 40sw should be at most a 25,000psi cartridge.

9mm casings are very stout and have longer case webs with thicker case walls. 35,000psi is nothing.

40sw is a straight up proof load. Here you have a cartridge that has the practically the same integrity as the 45acp cartridge, yet operates at between 30,000-34,000psi, while the 45acp +P+ typically operates at around 25,000psi.

How safe is it to continuously fire +P+ 45acp through your pistol? About as safe as firing "normal" 40sw loads. Take that however you want.

Though I think 40sw is here to stay, I think it is an unsafe cartridge that needs to be downloaded.
 
If we ever get a President that knows something about guns, he or she will command every sidearm in USA federal hands to be a Glock 19 except for highly specialized uses.

Then that will shut down all the gun forums in existence.

With our budget problems, they are not going to redo the armed forces to 40 and redo the logistic chain for minimal gain.
 
40s&w is here to stay, and has earned a great reputation among a lot of groups who depend on a sidearm for protection in hazardous work environments.
 
I think that .40 S&W will stick around however I think it will lose traction in law enforcement after awhile. The FBI is a leader when it comes to law enforcement trends and they do put their guns through a lot of testing before general issue.

I think the .40 S&W will stick around and become more of a gaming caliber than a defensive caliber. This is not to say it is a bad gun for defensive use, but that it will lose popularity if 9mm becomes more widely issued again.
 
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