Twelve rounds of .40S&W or sixteen rounds of 9mm?

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FUD

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Let's say that you own two full-size pistols which are identical (size, make, functionality) in all aspects except for the caliber -- one is a .40S&W while the other is a 9mm. The .40S&W obviously has the edge is stopping power no matter which camp you belong to, while the 9mm can hold more rounds in the chamber (for the sake of arguement, let's say that your two guns are capable of holding twelve rounds of .40S&W and sixteen rounds of 9mm.

In a home defense situation, which would you grab? The more powerful .40S&W with less rounds or the less powerful 9mm with more rounds? Again, the two guns are identical in all aspects except for caliber.

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FUD
 
Home Defense the 12 rounds of 40 will be fine. I am comfortable with 7 rounds of .45. Now if I were using a pistol as a primary combat weapon I would take the 16 9mm. The 9mm offers more rounds to waste when moving from cover to cover. You can pop off more rounds in the perps general direction to keep their heads down while giving cover fire.
 
I guess I have to go with what I have as house guns. What are these? A Sig P226 and a Glock 19. I use the sig P226 because I always have and the Glock 19 due to it being the most size efficient service 9mm I know of. I have a Glock 23 with a Bar-sto barrel but prefer the handling qualities of the Glock 19. Why don't I use my Glock 27 for a house gun? I don't know as it is also a great pistol. Regards, Richard.
 
How many opponents do you intend on facing? How many do you think you're going to get before they either run or get you?

Take the stopper. Learn to shoot.

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Archie
 
40 S&W all the way. Archie hit the nail on the head..."Take the stopper. Learn to shoot."

FUD, make this topic really interesting and change 12 rnds of 40 to seven rnds of 45. Then the sparks will start flying (no I'm not a 45 guy, but I enjoy a lively debate as much as the next guy!).

[This message has been edited by Sub MOA (edited July 11, 2000).]
 
If your worried about the number of rounds and stopping power then why not a Carbon 15 and thirty rounds? Just make sure that you hang on to the rifle and get your hearing checked out the next day.
 
It really depends on the number of people you are dealing with. Like, if you are laying in baed, and you hear more than one voice, then grab the 9mm, because you have more than one person to stop. But, if it is one guy, alone, then the .40 ought to do it.
 
I gotta quote the Oregon State Police trooper with the Colt 1911 on his belt. I asked him about capacity and why he didn't use a Glock.

"The side arm is only for covering my ass until I can get to the rifle in the squad car."

For house defense, I stick the 1911 in the belt and grab the Rem. 870 . . . just to ensure that my ass is covered.
 
Fud,

For home defense, I'd opt for the .40 S&W due to increased stopping power. However, I would not feel "under armed" with the 9mm.

I do not expect to require more than six rounds in 99+ percent of home defense situations. Therefore, ALL handgunds have adequate capacity. As always, ACCURACY is the key.

Regards.
 
Hello, FUD. Either choice you offer is "good." Go with the one you shoot the best as both hold plenty of rounds. One of the gurus made a statement I tend to agree with on the topic of high capacity: "You'll run out of time before you run out of ammo." Assuming that you shoot the forty as well as the nine, my favorite all-around caliber, go with the forty. With many of its loads, I suspect it is more "effective" than the nine.

And on a related topic: Have you considered an S&W "Mountain Gun" in .45 Colt or .44 Mag for your alligator problem? Lightweight for an N-frame, stainless for your climate, and easy to carry. Handload it up with either hard cast SWCs or XTPs and I think it'll handle any alligator. Best.
 
I shot a perp 4 times with my .45 in a dream last night and he walked away and later stole the wheels off my Bronco - while I was reloading some hotter stuff.
This was outdoors and a P.I. came to investigate while detectives removed all my furniture.
If I only could have found my .338 it would have been a much shorter and less disjointed dream.
So in a dream world none work as advertised. :D

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"Keep shootin till they quit floppin"
The Wife 2/2000
 
Where capacity's concerned, you can always have more on tap by keeping a couple of spare mags handy, so I'd say go with the stopping power of the .40, and choose the hardest-hitting rounds you can handle.

My house gun is a 9mm, but with 124 grain +P Speer Gold Dots, I don't consider it underpowered. I have a pair of hi-cap mags giving me 30 rounds total on tap. If I can't neutralize the threat with that, I'm in deep doo-doo.
 
Shooters almost always will take a .40, 357 Sig, or .45 over a HiCap 9mm.

Those less proficient will opt for the "Spray and Pray" capibility of the HiCap 9mm.

[This message has been edited by CoastieN70 (edited July 11, 2000).]
 
Good topic. Another variable to consider is whether you are a LEO or civilian in selecting capacity size.

A LEO needs to defend him/herself as well as chase down or at least contain the criminal until backup arrives. A civilian just needs to defend him/herself. So, I would think higher capacity would be more of a concern for the LEO.

Realistically for civilian use, I would think one shot should end an encounter provided you don't try to corner the criminal. Predators look for easy prey just like the animals on wild kingdom. Plus I would think that accuracy would go down after the first shot due to the flash, noise etc. so why not make the first shot count.

So, for civilian use I would lean toward the largest caliber you can comfortably and accurately shoot. For LEO I would lean toward higher capacity in case you end up in an extended holdout/shoot out.

I've never been in a gunfight so I'm just guessing of course.


[This message has been edited by Mr. Pub (edited July 11, 2000).]
 
I'd prefer whichever weapon I could most effecively used. I've got away from the capacity/caliber wars. Give me a decent (9mm and up) reasonable capacity weapon that fits my hand well and I'm happy.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Stephen A. Camp: ... Have you considered an S&W "Mountain Gun" in .45 Colt or .44 Mag for your alligator problem? Lightweight for an N-frame, stainless for your climate, and easy to carry. Handload it up with either hard cast SWCs or XTPs and I think it'll handle any alligator ... [/quote]I've been thinking about the .45 Colt because, based on what I have read, it might be a better animal stopper than the .44 Mag -- however, I've looked through S&W's catalog going back a few years (1999, 1998 & 1997) and they don't seem to offer one in .45 Colt. Did it come out of the Performance Center?
 
There is no question in my mind that you are thinking about buying (or justifying the purchase of) a Walther P99 (or S&W SW99). The reason I know this is because that is the same question I asked myself before I bought mine (in 9mm, if you were curious), and because they are the only guns I know of which hold 12 rounds of .40 and 16 rounds of 9mm.

Anyway, I went with the 9mm because I prefered the added bonus of 4 extra rounds. Had the difference been 1 or 2 rounds, I would have gone with the .40 (I forewent 2 rounds and got the Glock 23 over the Glock 19, and I forewent 1 round and got the Sig 229 in .40 over the 228 or 229 in 9mm). I know, I should spend less money on hollowpoints in my clips and more money on range time, I know. Anyway, that was my thinking.

I also thought the 9mm would shoot a little softer, last longer, and that 9mm hi-caps were a little easier to find than .40 hi-caps. It's a great gun, by the way. One of my favorites.
 
Hello, FUD. I bought my .45 Colt S&W Mountain Gun a couple of years ago and it was a regular production item. Perhaps you can find one used, especially since the sell out to Klinton. Best and good luck.
 
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