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9mm 40cal or 45cal

11K views 105 replies 54 participants last post by  TN_Thunder 
#1 ·
Im shopping around for my first handgun and im torn between these three caliber guns. I plan on carrying this gun with me so i want it to be fairly easy to carry. I have shot all three of these calibers before and didnt have a problem with any of them. Im swayed more torwards a 40 but looking for other suggestions.
 
#12 ·
how many rounds do you need:confused:
i have all 45's[1911,kimber custom carry,star pd,and para warthog my buddy has an xd40 kinda big so is the sw 40.[i guess unless you get compact] my para holds 10+1 and is much smaller than xd40 and 1911

all around 26oz the lil ones,all carry great with my crossbreed,ammo not to much,i buy from nanchez .
i dont carry colt anymore gave to my sons girlfriend for home protection
what ever you get ,go for whats comfortable on you,and carry 2 clips.and get used to counting rounds [ practice never emptying gun on first clip]
 
#19 ·
I agree with this statement. (I have both a Glock Model 20 & 21)

Can ever beat a .45 Remember, the .45 was specifically designed for one purpose...................
 
#21 ·
A 9mm is a great gun to carry when you don't want to carry a gun. Sorry... just doesn't have the knockdown power which is why you need more rounds.

I have both a .40 (Glock 23) and a .45 (Kimber UCII), I carry the .45 most of the time. Both are great rounds, both are fairly inexpensive to shoot, both will get the job done. I like the 10mm cartridge but the is bullet is fast which presents a problem on energy transfer since it will just pop holes at close range. A good portion of LE agencies have gone back to the .45 away from the 10mm in handguns for that reason. Shoot a meth head with a 10, and you have a druggie with a hole. Shoot him with a .45, and he's down. Shoot him with a 9, and you just pissed him off.

If you find yourself in a place where you need more than a couple of rounds, you are in a gun fight and someplace you shouldn't be to begin with.

Also check out several and see which one fits your hand. A .45 with single stacked mags generally fits smaller hands better than a .40 with double stacked.
 
#22 ·
The best thing to do is shoot a myriad of guns and see which fits you the best.

Which one are you most effective with?

Personally I would stay away from 9mm, .40, 10mm or .45 would be the best bet.

No matter how big the gun or how many rounds it is capable of, if you cant hit your target, you are dead.
 
#23 ·
about three days ago I listened to a conversation between several cops. Thought it was interesting.

* There were three Deputy Sheriffs and a couple local cops in the discussion. Two of the cops were from the county east of me, and their job was to breakup bar room brawls as well as being known as a "road deputy." Of course they all had their stories, but one got me. This guy and his partner were sent to a large bar that was in a full tilt brawl. A guy comes at him with somekind of pistol, and he shoots the guy in the head with his 9mm Baretta. The bullet hits just above the right eye, and dosn't penetrate the skull, but travels around the outside of the skull. Then exits just above the ear.

* one of the others was an IPD cop in downtwn Indy. He said he was taught the double and triple tap method from day one. He gets a call for an assist out in Haughville, and gets there intime for shots to be comming from every direction while trying to serve a warrant. Two guys are on the ground next to their car, and can't get to the shotgun or AR15 when he gets there. He's carrying a Glock 23, and grabs a shotgun on the way out of the car. The guys shooting at them from abandoned buildings. He tosses the shotgun to the guys pinned down, and shoots a guy with a 40 caliber glock. But he says he can't get a good second shot. So the guy keeps shooting at them. By now we have two others cars on the scene, and they now discover that they are catching rounds from three buildings. One of the detectives that came in after him has a Kimber 45, and hits one of the guys in his right hand as he's running out of a room to another. The hit was so hard that it actually put the guy down flat on his back. Later he found out that he hit the guy right next to his pinkie finger in the extreme lower part of his hand. The guy hit with the forty was found the next day in an alley almost a mile away dead.

* shortly after the bar room brawl the deputys switched over to Glock 23's, and basicly found they had the same problem getting a good second or third rapid fire shot. One started carring a Kimber for a backup gun (the 3" barrel version), and they later were given permission to switch over to 45's (one was a S&W and don't remember what the other was). Interestingly, the other deputy carried a 44 special pug as a backup gun!

the one thing I already knew about the differences between the rounds was that the 9mm won't work 65% of the time. But on the otherhand never thought about the rapid second and third shot thing. I also knew the 45 would work everytime with on single hit.
gary
 
#26 ·
Im shopping around for my first handgun and im torn between these three caliber guns. I plan on carrying this gun with me so i want it to be fairly easy to carry. I have shot all three of these calibers before and didnt have a problem with any of them. Im swayed more torwards a 40 but looking for other suggestions.

Any of them is sufficient with practice, it is all about placement of your shot, but if i had to chose it would be the 40, good stopping power and there are many models in conceal carry that have suff carrying capacity. If your learning fresh and have a good instructor and your actually going to practice you cant beat the 40 all around.
 
#29 ·
I have always been a line your sights type person. Do-dads are cool, and the little red dot center mass is intimidating no doubt. But I would hope you guys have a lithium battery in those gadgets, or check the batteries every once in a while.
 
#39 ·
Glad you said "knockdown power is fictional" because the proper terminology is stopping power when it comes to rifle or pistol rounds.

Hell you don't need a gun to knock someone down buy a 32 ounce Louisville slugger and save on reloading cost. :-D
 
#34 ·
I'd consider doing a .40 S&W that can be barrel-swapped for a .357 Sig round if I were you... That's pretty much my philosophy around here.
 
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