Wednesday, May 4, 2016

The Science is Settled in the 9mm vs. the Big Boys

Loads and Logic — Big Calibers Rule!

Interesting: "9mm or .40? It takes about 20 percent more practice to master the .40."

Hat tip to Mr. Charles for sending in the link.

So many other great points too numerous to list here.  Still love the 9mm for better follow up shots and more rounds. The FBI agree's and thinks the 40 is too hard on the service life of the pistol. The notion of the "one shot, one kill" by way of a bigger pistol round (battle rifles excluded, but the head is still a pain in the butt to hit) is still statistically pretty impossible.





15 comments:

Anonymous said...

The FBI agree's is bad English. It should be "The FBI agrees". I don't know why some people think every word that ends in "s" should end in "'s".

- Old Greybeard

T. Paine said...

My observations at the range lead me inextricably to the realization that very few people possess skill above that of turning money into noise. Matter not the caliber.

Anonymous said...

New surge in gun background checks reported by FBI (2,145,865 background checks in April)

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3427542/posts

http://q13fox.com/2016/05/04/new-surge-in-gun-background-checks-reported-by-fbi/

Anonymous said...

Hillary Clinton Plans Executive Action to Exceed Obama on Gun Control

Even before Donald Trump became the presumptive Republican nominee on Tuesday, Democrat presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton was looking toward the general election and planning to use executive action “go further than Obama” on gun control.

In fact, implementing more gun control is “at the top of her to-do list.”

http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2016/05/04/hillary-clinton-plans-executive-action-to-exceed-obama-on-gun-control/

DTG said...

"The FBI agree's is bad English." Actually, it is incorrect punctuation falsely making the verb 'agree' appear a possessive. ;-)

Not a grammar nazi...just having some fun.

Anonymous said...

I have shot only one burglar, using a 38 Special (hydroshocks) and got him with 3 out of 3 shots. Bastard survived so I plan on carrying a 45ACP from now on to make sure the gene pool is a little cleaner. Hips and heads is my new motto, NO OPEN CASKETS is a good plan. If the head becomes mush, the problem is gone.

skybill said...

Hi Sgt. Matt,
9mm, .40 sal., 10mm, .45ACP all I can say is "Picky, Picky, Picky!!" Hell give me a good old .22!!! I'm not proud or tired....
Got Gunz..........*OUTLAW!!!!,
Audentes...Fortuna...Juvat,
III%,
skybill-out
PS (*) Back when' I usedta' put a (???) or two with the (!!!) but now there's no doubt about it...We are all Outlaws now!!

Chiu ChunLing said...

Bigger is better.

But it's also bigger, and if you're choosing a handgun over a military pattern rifle, then you've already decided that bigger isn't better.

The FBI is overlooking the fact that bullets with more energy cause a lot more debilitating pain and are generally much more frightening even if a doctor looking at the wound later can't see that effect. Someone in a gunfight may not react to ordinary pain very much, but debilitating pain actually prevents parts of your nervous system from functioning correctly. And even if you don't consciously identify a pistol caliber, the part of your brain that gets scared does feel the difference.

All the same, a bigger round requires a bigger gun to effectively utilize and control the energy. I'm a fan of having a relatively medium version of the class of tool I'm using, and moving up a class rather than going for the heavy version if I need more power. Then again, I'm also open to going with whatever I've got.

Then again, I don't consider a pistol my last line of defense.

Anonymous said...

I like 9mm. I know some like others better.

Going forward from here, it may not be the caliber choice that's most important, but having enough of the caliber you've chosen.

Deep ammo shortages have followed the past two U.S. presidential elections. Supply's good right now. Have you stockpiled anticipating future needs, including simple ones like having enough for routine target practice or training a rising child or grandchild as a new shooter?

Anonymous said...

Always remember that a handgun, regardless of caliber, is something you use to fight your way to a rifle, carbine, or shotgun.

Dutchman6 said...

"Going forward from here, it may not be the caliber choice that's most important, but having enough of the caliber you've chosen."

EXACTLY!

Anonymous said...

9mm, .357, .40, .44, .45... The "best" caliber is the one you can shoot well. With a pistol, that means pointing instinctively and hitting your "target". In close quarters, a triple tap to the bridge of the nose with a .22 LR will stop anything on two legs. The real issue is being willing, without compunction, to kill another human being. Most people aren't. The point of your self defense training must be to overcome your natural hesitation to pull the trigger.

Bad Cyborg said...

I went to some classes with a guy who worked as a civilian cop on Ft Sam Houston and despised the 9mm. For one thing (his words, not mine) he said the lighter rounds of a 9mm will bounce off the steeply raked windshields of today's cars. For another, he had personally watched 9mm rounds bounce off a heavy leather duster type coat. He was studying to sit for the Texas Peace Officer's exam and he was adamant that he wanted a .40. I personally carry a .40 because of the greater energy the round carries versus the 9mm. I am a big guy and have NO problem controlling either my Jericho 40 or my Glock 22. At 7 yards I have no problem making drawing and firing 10 head shots inside of 6 seconds. They're not exactly a tight group but they're all inside the area of the silhouette's head. Despite that I still aim center of mass.

My wife is a lot smaller and she fires a Sig P232 in .380 auto. Not as much stopping power but it fits her hand better.

Note: The pistols are carrying away from the house. At home I have a 12 gau pump loaded with 00 buck and if I need real firepower, my FNAR in 7.62X51 will do the job.

Anonymous said...

The only caliber that matters is the one you have in your hands when you NEED it. The rest is semantics. It doesnt matter how much how big or how many. If you dont know how to use it and have the will to do what you need to, you might as well surrender or have a cave mans club. Dead is dead, there is no reset button and a dead victims corpse dont care what caliber either.

Sign me, Neal Jensen

T. Paine said...

Reading this post and particularly about FMJ vs 'expanding' rounds reminds me to stage up a bunch of V-MAX rounds for the zombies and use the FMJ stuff for plinking.