Is the 40 done?

Gun shows are like that. Next one you go to could have no .357 revolvers.
And Midway lists 84 different types of .40 S&W ammo. And 19 .357 SIG. Mind you, it was that rat offspring of unmarried parents .40 S&W that murdered my .41 AE. No ammo. No brass. No pistols. S'ok. It means the 500 BNIB IMI cases I have are worth a big pile of money. Or would be if there was any demand. snicker.
 
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*I see lots of .40cal when I goto my local indoor range.

*STI sells one of their race guns in .40 cal.

*I love my .40cal BHP. It's a great caliber in a great gun, and much better than Europellets (aka 9mm).
 
If I recall, that 1986 Miami shootout was ended by properly placed .38 Special rounds. Shot placement is more important than caliber, although the bigger the bullet, the better in my opinion.
 
Not as popular as a year or two ago but done? Heh, I don't think so.

Regardless of all the hoopla that 9mm is new and improved, it still isn't 40 or 357 Sig. 9mm doesn't pack the same punch as 40 or 357 but it is good enough and mags generally hold a couple more rounds. It's also easier to qualify with. I'll let the reader infer... ;)
 
Most Departments have switched to the 9mm... due to pressure from Administration / equal opportunity, etc. as the .40 was too hard for many to qualify with. I'll leave it at that.
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Is there any evidence of that, or is it just your opinion.? .40 fans would and do argue that it is as easy to shoot as 9MM.

I love my .40cal BHP. It's a great caliber in a great gun, and much better than Europellets (aka 9mm).
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Better in what way, ? there is no prefect round but as time and usage has shown 9MM is probably the most popular, most used, tried and tested handgun round in history. The .40 will not die it will be out there, like the .45 used mostly by civilians but not military or police.
 
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.40 suffers from the same malady the 10mm experienced. That is rejection in favor of a lesser caliber that is easier to shoot by law enforcement. When the FBI dumped the 10mm it suffered a serious lack of popularity for years, but today it is gaining in popularity rather quickly. I do not believe the .40 will suffer quite the loss of favor the 10mm did, but eventually folks will realize that just because the FBI or local LE went to 9mm does not mean the .40 is obsolete. Decisions made by administrations and politics will eventually get exposed for their lack of judgment regarding caliber choice. I, for one, enjoy my .40 guns and prefer the caliber over 9mm in many ways. That said, I am also quite satisfied with my P365 day to day.
 
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Let's try keep the stupid to a reasonable level in this thread.

I'm not asking for no stupid at all--I'm not an unreasonable person. Let's just try not to post things that set back an unsuspecting reader's intelligence by more than a few IQ points.
 
I can see that the 40 cal interest is dialed down from a few years ago, but it's my second favorite semi-auto caliber. My favorite is the 45acp and that's because I prefer the lightweight commander 1911 for my main carry and have for 30yrs, but I also like the Glock 22 in 40 cal as my second favorite gun of decent size and keep one as my main truck gun. It's always with me, and I have shot a lot of vermin, and dispatched several head of livestock with it over the years.

I much prefer the 40 cal to the 9mm, because, frankly, even with pretty good ammo it doesn't seem to kill as well for me, as the 40 cal does.
 
Agency use can be a big driver of success, both economically and inspirationally. However, losing it doesn't spell death. This round had it long enough to become ingrained in the culture. Even if every opinion molder declares it dead tomorrow, it will still hang on well beyond some of the other calibers discussed here.

That's okay. Look, I had mixed feelings when .40 S&W was in peak popularity. I eventually tried it in smaller compacts. The snappy recoil and lower capacity felt like too much of a trade-off. Then I finally got around to trying it in larger firearms that better accommodate those costs. I found it enjoyable and a worthwhile balance of features. In fact, it took over for .45 acp as my full-sized carry choice.

Unless something crazy happens, I don't see that changing.
 
A lot seem to be missing the point of a all round calibre, all calibres are a comprise 5.56 MM 7.62 MM 9 .40 ,45. weight recoil price training requirements etc. People can pick depending on what their pryority are when choosing a calibre and what they are using the firearm for. As time is showing .40 was a fad that is declining, it will continue to exist but its popularity (mostly in America) will continue to decline and 9MM will continue to increase as the best all round pistol calibre in the history of firearms. Not my opinion fact.
 
The 40 S&W is a good round. It out performs both 45 and 9mm. Just not enough better than 9mm to justify the added costs, recoil, and reduced capacity. I've had a few over the years but just liked the 10mm better so I never kept one long. In 2019 I can buy 10mm ammo for exactly the same price as 40 ($14/50) and cheaper than 45 ($16/50). 9mm ammo ($8/50) is almost 1/2 the cost.

If you were to research 100 LE shootings with each cartridge you'd have a few failures to stop the threat with all of them. But there wouldn't be any significant difference between any of the 4.

For those reasons LE is wisely I think, shifting towards 9mm weapons. But there are simply too many 40 pistols in circulation for the cartridge to die anytime soon. But in the near future I'd not be surprised to see no news ones offered by any of the manufacturers.
 
jmr40 said:
The 40 S&W is a good round. It out performs both 45 and 9mm. Just not enough better than 9mm to justify the added costs, recoil, and reduced capacity. I've had a few over the years but just liked the 10mm better so I never kept one long. In 2019 I can buy 10mm ammo for exactly the same price as 40 ($14/50) and cheaper than 45 ($16/50). 9mm ammo ($8/50) is almost 1/2 the cost.

If you were to research 100 LE shootings with each cartridge you'd have a few failures to stop the threat with all of them. But there wouldn't be any significant difference between any of the 4.

For those reasons LE is wisely I think, shifting towards 9mm weapons. But there are simply too many 40 pistols in circulation for the cartridge to die anytime soon. But in the near future I'd not be surprised to see no news ones offered by any of the manufacturers.
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I'll agree with the 40 S&W out performing 9mm but I think it's a bit of a stretch to say the 40 S&W out performs the 45 ACP. A 200 gr projectile in 45 ACP is going to be wider and faster than a 200 gr projectile in 40 S&W. 10mm out performing 45 ACP of course, but not 40 S&W.
 
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Just lock this thread. It went from .40 caliber discussion to armchair dumb now gravitating towards the beat to living death 9 vs 40 vs 45 ballistical arguing.
 
manta49 said:
and 9MM will continue to increase as the best all round pistol calibre in the history of firearms. Not my opinion fact.
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No ... your opinion. The observation that some other people share your opinion does not make it fact.
 
Creek Henry said:
I went to a gun show today and saw lots of 9s, 45s, 22, 380, 32s and even some 10s... I didn't see one pistol in 40. Is it baked at this point?
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I still see a lot of .40 S&W brass in the brass buckets at the range. A lot more than I see .38 Special or .357 Magnum, but nobody seems to be claiming that either of those is going to follow to dodo bird into extinction.
 
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