Considering ditching my .40 in favor of several 9MMs

There are pros and cons for either way. It's cheaper and takes less time to find loads your guns like if they use the same cartridge. Buying ammo in bulk is the least expensive way other than reloading. You may not want to buy or store several case of ammo for different guns.

Since I re-load,I like having one cartridge for multiple guns. I can work up a load or two and test it in a half dozen guns at one time in a shorter period of time.

If you can sell the .40 without taking too much of a bath, that's what I'd do unless you don't think you can replace the current guns accuracy with another one.
 
Lets see I stock in hand gun calibers currently
22
38
357
40
45

Notice no 9mm its for a reason its not about number of calibers.



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If your 40 works for you keep it. It is silly to sell a gun that works for you.
There is more economy in keeping a known asset while expanding to other possible assets. What happens if you sell your gun and then find you don't like or shoot well with its replacements?
 
I would keep it during the height of the last scare it seemed like the only ammo in stock at stores was mostly 40 it kept me shooting when I couldn't find ammo for other calibers or the right components to reload..
 
I am amazed at the amount of .40 cal love I'm seeing in this thread. That's not how the usual gunboard "9 or .40?" conversation goes.
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True. There is about as much of a consensus on this thread as I've ever seen on a "this vs that" forum thread.
 
Thanks everyone.

My .40 is a Sig P226 which I purposefully kept ambiguous to avoid discussing the brand and make of the gun.

I've decided to keep it but pick up a 9MM barrel for it sometime in the future.

My biggest concern is cost of ammo at this point and since I buy in bulk. I'll probably just end up shooting my new 9MM's more for awhile anyway. So the .40 gets to stay.
 
I am amazed at the amount of .40 cal love I'm seeing in this thread. That's not how the usual gunboard "9 or .40?" conversation goes.
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I would never trade or sell my Beretta 96 Inox. It feels better in my hand than any gun I have, and it is a sweet shooting .40.
 
Me too. Keep the one that works. You will just lose money trading it towards something else. If you buy a 9mm to carry, great. If ammo is ever hard to find again, you will be glad you have a 40.
 
I hate 40s! Have only owned 1 but got rid of it...But if I were in your situation I'd keep the 40 and just get another in 9mm. Having 2 different calibers makes sense in a pinch. Just like the last ammo scare......no 9mm or 45 to be had.....but there was always 40 on the shelf.

oh yeah, and those Sigs are pretty darn nice!
 
I too am surprised at the general consensus on this thread.

I personally have no love for the .40S&W. My duty weapon is a Glock 22 Gen4 and I cannot wait to turn it back in when I buy a 17 and qualify with it.

In my opinion .40S&W is far too overpressured to be no ballistically better than it is. In my experience it is "snappier" than 9mm and .45ACP and offers nothing over 9mm or .45ACP in return for that "snappiness." Pardon my made up words but I think you get the idea.

If I were you I would ditch the .40S&W and get a nice full size 9mm for the night stand and a good compact or sub-compact 9mm for carry.
 
The Glock 22 and 23 do not handle the recoil of .40 S&W terribly well.

The SIG-Sauer P226 and P229 handle .40 S&W very, very well.
 
I think it depends alot on the delivery system! I didn't care for the Glock 22 or 27 but I have a 35 and I really find ok to shoot. I also have several M&P40's and same thing with them. I carry Kahr CM40. I'm not knocking 9MM at all
I have a nice selection just my personal preference at this time!
 
If you can accurately and effectively shoot a .40 handgun, why downgrade?

Increased weight and increased diameter is more power. I love the .40,
 
FBI is liking 9mm again because the women agents have trouble racking the slide on a 40 pistol.

I have no such trouble and I shoot 40 S&W very accurately.

I'm staying with 40 S&W.

 
One can enjoy both worlds (maybe three worlds). For example: buy a S&W M&P40 (in .40 s&w caliber of course), buy a conversion barrel for it, say from Storm Lake, in 357 Sig and use the same mags to fire the 357 Sig round. Buy a conversion barrel in 9mm, buy (or not) 9mm magazines and you are good to go with a 9mm gun now.
You maintain one platform, train and practice with the same gun and use the same holsters. Very impressive advantage in my opinion.
Same can be done with Glock 22/23 and I believe with some Sig models, not to mention the "transformer" p320. :)
 
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.40 isn't bad in a full size gun and 9mm is more suitable for compact firearms.
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I like finding happy balances between power and recoil on a given platform. I realized that my previous disdain for .40 S&W was completely a product of my using it in tiny guns. Now with experience using it in larger guns with better recoil mitigation, I've gained an appreciation for what really is a great round. Being able to pair size and caliber is another good argument for diversification.
 
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