No love for .40 S&W...?

I got my first .40 several years ago. It's an XD-40 Sub Compact. Nice small carry gun that is very reliable. I almost sold it a couple of times since it was my only .40 and I like common calibers.

I also like bigger bores in mouse gun sizes and recently purchased a Kahr MK40.
The MK40 is all steel and about the size of a PPK. It's slightly thicker but not as tall as the PPK. Small enough to be hidden almost anywhere with no problem. It's fairly heavy but it's a little jewel.

The MK40 actually makes the XD-40 SC look big! Now I have two .40's so the XD is no longer an orphan...
 
What I'd like to know is do you like .40 S&W? And specifically why or why not?
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I don't own a 40, but I've shot some. Seems like a decent cartridge to me. But I've had 45acp and 9mm long before the 40 was born. I've never seen the need for the "in-between" caliber in my personal line-up. If I was a young guy starting out, the 40 would be an attractive caliber.
 
It's quite popular in my neck of the woods, and is my personal favorite service cartridge.

I've reviewed all the evidence from all the usual sources and I believe .40 is more effective than 9x19 - marginally, but still so. I prefer it to .45 because it's chambered in guns that are chambered for 9x19 and usually has substantially more capacity than the .45.

I buy it completely as the "middle ground" between 9 and .45. That middle ground happens to work for me, and it's okay that it doesn't for others. :)

I do prefer 9 in a subcompact or microcompact gun where recoil starts getting noticeable. And I prefer the .45 in a 1911 because that just feels right.
 
Interesting posts. Everthing I could add has already been covered.

I shoot and load 38, 357, 9mm and 45acp so I really have no need for a 40 cal. and have found the 9mm to be the most inexpensive to practice with which gives it the edge.

I think all are adequate for self defense so the choice comes down to the individual. Which do you shoot the best with?
 
I bought and shot a 40 for the first time (two months ago) and I felt that this caliber can bust bone. I also have a 9mm that I like a lot. In comparison I like the power of the 40 but still feel that the 9mm are a very capable caliber.

In short I like 'em both.
 
New ? Maybe you should look up the 38-40 as a revolver load .It's actually a 40-40 !
The 40S&W is now over 20 years old and has become a standard police round for many PDs.
I'll bet in the real world you wouldn't see any significant difference between it and the 45acp. 'Chucks , people etc they're about the same.
 
I had a Glock in .40S&W a few years back. I never did warm up to it. It's recoil did not agree with me and follow up shots were iffy, at best. I just figured it wasn't for me, sold the Glock and moved on. My target looked like I used a scatter gun when I shot.

A few years ago, after a few years of not caring about the .40S&W round, I got to shoot a CZ75 in the .40S&W caliber. I was duly impressed! It was accurate, easy on the recoil (must be steel vs plastic AND a better grip angle than the glock) and I shot it better than my BHPs. I had to have one and went out and bought one. I loved it because it's more than a 9mm and carries more than the .45ACP 1911, which I love. I loved the CZ40 so much I went out and bought a .40S&W BHP which has been my second favorite to shoot after the CZ in .40S&W. Of course, the 1911 in .45ACP is still my favorite of any gun to shoot but these .40s have moved to a close second.
 
From a young guy's perspective

I'm 23-years-old. The .40S&W and I are about the same age. For me the .40S&W round has always been there. I never knew the pistol world before it existed. I can't speak for everyone in my age group, but I don't have a bias toward it as that "new, short & wimpy cartridge."
 
I prefer the .40

I chose the .40 when I first got 'into' firearms in about 1992.
I wanted a Beretta Centurion.

Decided to get an FFL at the time :D and first went to the local FFL / Dealer supplier in the area and they didn't have one, so I picked up a 9mm Helwan Brigadier and a Davis Derringer Long Bore in the same caliber.

Had to go to a 'storefront' shop for my Centurion. THREE of us were looking at the same gun at the counter when I told the guy I wanted a NIB .40 version and paid cash for it. NICE!

As for a .45, I still don't have a 1911 OR a .45. I figure I would get a double-stack chambered for .45 SUPER if I ever get one. ;)
Eventually, I ended up with 3 Beretta .40's. I am happy 'bout that.

HELWAN:
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DERRINGERS: 9mm; .32 H&R Magnum ( still unfired! ); .38 SPL.
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BERETTAS: 96; 96 CENTURION; 8040F Mini-Cougar.
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I just like the .40. Might get more...:)
 
I agree with Joneeman, in fact I am his age as well. The .40 was my first pistol and I happen to love the round. However, if you don't like it then that's your choice as well. YMMV
 
i didnt buy a 40 because it seems to be what everybody has either that or a 9mm, ammo is always in shorter supply and a bit pricier both due to this popularity. I also reload so its high chamber pressure did not appeal to me as everybody i know whos had kaboom had one in a 40 at some time or another. I still think its a good load but just doesnt suit my purposes for now.
 
manta49 said:
If someone wants a larger caliber than the 9mm then their is the .45 a double stack .45 will hold the same number of rounds as the .40.
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Yeah, if you have gorilla hands to hold a grip the size of a paving brick:eek:
 
I like the 40 but also like 9mm and 45acp. I have owned several light weight (plastic) and prefer a 9mm in the light weight guns. For me the 40 is a great woods gun with 180 gr solids, it has good penetration and enough weight to break bones. The 40 also works best (for me) in guns over 30oz.

For some reason the 40 also seems to shoot a little tighter groups off of sand bags than 9mms do. Most of the 9mms (I have shot) run in the 3" + at 25 yd and the 40s will usually shoot around 2" or less ( with ammo they like). :)
 
I'm neither a fan nor a detractor of the 40 S&W, but there's no denying how popular it's become. When I go to the range the majority of handguns I see and spent cases on the ground are 40's which is kinda surprising to be honest.
 
I spend lots of time on a gun range. I pick up lots of range brass and sort it out into jugs. In the case of 40 S&W that ends up being 5 gallon buckets.
At our range we have by far more 40 S&W shot than any other Centerfire Cartridge. By Far!

I have owned several 40's over the years. A S&W 4046 DAO was my first. Followed by a Glock 23, and an EAA Witness copy of a CZ75. I currently own an XDm 40 in the 4.5" Model, and a S&W 4" 610, and a S&W 2.5" 310 Night Guard. Both 10mm Smith & Wesson Revolvers have shot lots of 40 S&W ammo.

I am a real Colt 1911 Fan. I like my Custom 1911 in 45acp, and shoot it quite a bit. With that said, if I thought I might end up in a gun fight, and a handgun was all I had. I would take the Springfield XDm 40. Why? It works, it holds lots of ammo, it hits plenty hard enough, and it is easy to shoot well. The grip is not overly large, the controls are well laid out, It simply works well as a fighting handgun.

Now if one were to go to a Hi Cap 45acp you have a grip like a Brick. I have owned 2 Glock 21's. I did not like either of them for that reason.

The 40 S&W is the largest most powerful standard handgun cartridge that comes in a shootable Hi Capacity Handgun.

The cartridge is configured for optimum feeding reliability.
The cartridge was designed to deliver the most stopping power at a recoil level tolerable my most shooters.
The cartridge was designed to work in a 9mm Double Stack size handgun platform, which was felt to be as large as comfortable to shoot by most shooters.

My first experiance with a 9mm was as a new Patrol Officer in 1974. It was a Browning HP. It shot terrible, and would not feed anything that even remotely had a hollowpoint. That one gun sowered me on the 9mm for years. I traded it for a 4" Model 28 Highway Patrolman. It was very accurate, and fired every pull of the trigger. I had confidence in the S&W Revolver.
I have owned a second 9mm over the years, an SP101 Ruger. It would shoot any 9mm ammo with no feeding issues.

The 9mm has came a long way since 1974, but why bother when you have a reliable Hi Capacity handgun that is the same size and shoots much bigger rounds.

Did I mention Brass for reloading the 40 S&W is Dirt Cheap or Free for the taking??? That makes shooting it much cheaper. Also if I am shooting somewhere I have to leave my brass lay, with 5 gallon buckets of 40 S&W I do not care. Not so with my 38 and 45acp brass.

The 40 S&W is here to stay for a very long time.

Bob
 
No love here for the 40. It is way over rated IMHO. Too much recoil not enough on the other end. Don't get me wrong I am not wanting to be shot with one but I would take several other rounds before the 40.
 
Just a couple little factoid.

The .40 round is now used by over 70% of American law enforcement agencies, mostly because computer aided design has afforded ammunition manufacturers refinements to bullet ogive shape, jacket serrations, jacket material and even weight distribution to create a round which offers significantly better stopping power than standard pressure 9X19 (which, coincidentally, is the same pressure as the .40, roughly 33,000psi) and often equaling that of the .45ACP in its better iterations. One does lose a few rounds compared to the 9mm, usually 2-4 per equal length magazine. On the other hand, the .40 user usually gains that same amount over someone toting a .45, which was the original point of the exercise: to provide a true “stopper” with a higher round count than the proven .45 ACP.
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A review of Evan Marshall’s “Stopping Power” provides the following stats for "one shot" stops:

9mmX19, 115 grain Federal 9BP, 1150 fps/33,000 psi: 81%
9mmX19, 127 grain +P+ Winchester Ranger SXT RA9TA, 1250 fps/42,000 psi: 91% (+P+ ammo is generally law enforcement only)
.40 S&W, 165 grain Remington Golden Saber, 1050 fps/33,000 psi: 94%
.45 ACP, 230 grain Federal Hydra-Shok, 830 fps/21,000 psi: 94%
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http://www.chuckhawks.com/40SW_praise.htm
 
I happen to love shooting .40, one of my favorites is my HK USP 40. I can shoot all day long. The argument over recoil is overplayed IMO .
 
My first .40 was a S & W Sigma. It was ok but I was not enthralled with the long trigger pull so I did not shoot it very much. Then, about 2 years ago, I picked up a new-to-me XDm in .40 and it was like the difference between night and day. I thoroughly enjoyed shooting it and, since I have other calibers as well, it is not a question of which is better. I just like that caliber and reload for it as I do all my others.
 
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