9mm vs .40 vs .45 for Cops

[CSI]

I know this is a dead horse, but I am taking a different approach with this thread.

First and foremost, there is no such thing as a "magic bullet." Shot placement, not caliber, is the single greatest component in stopping a threat. There are only 2 vitals that are a guaranteed 1 shot stop: severe the spinal cord, kill the brain. Heart shots do NOT equal kill shots. They may bleed out and die from heart shots, but it's not always guaranteed.

When comparing the 3 rounds, make sure to compare apples to apples. The military has to use ball ammo (round nose) because of the Geneva Convention and rules of war. In that scenario, the .45 leaves the biggest hole.

In law enforcement or defensive shooting, jacketed hollow points (JHP) are an entirely different beast vs ball ammo. There are way too many variables to factor to come up with a "winner" between the 9mm, .40 and .45 rounds. Some examples:

1. Are you shooting through glass?
2. Are you shooting through a car door?
3. Are you shooting through a wall?
4. Is it summer time or winter time? In the winter, people have more clothes on and thus more layers the round has to penetrate. You'd be surprised what multiple layers of fibers will do to a bullet.
5. Are you being shot at? If so, do they have a rifle?
6. Are you a great shot to begin with on a stationary target where there is no stress, no movement and it is not firing back? You know if you hit the bullseye or if you always hit low, left, completely miss etc. Firing under duress makes you worse than you are normally.
7. What's the distance between you and the target?

Some of these favor the .45 while others favor the 9mm for being more beneficial. A good compromise between the two will always be the .40, so keep that in mind. There is a reason 70% of LEOs use a .40 as their duty caliber.

You will read "fishing stories" where Joe used his trusty 1911 .45ACP and single handedly stopped 20 terrorists while being hit three times but never gave up the fight. People will jump on this idea and declare that the .45 MUST be the superior round because Joe and his red cape are proof of it.

Ask those same people which round killed has killed more people in the last 100 years (the answer is the 9mm).

Ironically, more people have been killed with a .22 than anything else!

The point is, with the technology that goes into developing modern JHP ammunition, there is no magic bullet. You have to find something that is comfortable for YOU to shoot and that allows YOU to hit the target. If you are comfortable with a .45, great! If you prefer a 9mm, awesome! If you like compromise and want to shoot .40, go for it!

Just don't ask "what should I get for a gun" because the only person that can realistically answer that question is YOU.

One more thing, when you go to the range and practice, make sure that you also put your pistol in your weak hand and shoot 1 handed shots. You never know when you are going to get hit in your strong hand and one hand-weak hand shots are all you are left with. If you are one of those big grip gun users (ie GLOCK 21) good luck with that...

Note: if people want me to elaborate more on the "JHP variables" and how they effect the different rounds, I will.

[digitalexplr]

Check out the tests posted here:

LE - Wound Ballistics

[cwsims84]

..... 357 SIG.... Glock 32, just got one for $450

[danp]

My dept. carries all three (we carry our own guns) everyone carries Winchester Ranger SXT for ammo.

Personally, I carry a .45acp 'cause it makes the biggest hole and I shoot it most accurately.

[SRD]

Honestly if i were a cop i think i would want to carry a xd45 tac.

[CSI]

"Personally, I carry a .45acp 'cause it makes the biggest hole..."

Was wondering when someone was going to say that, lol!

Your .45ACP generally has a velocity in the ball park of 700-850fps, with some of the higher $ ammo reaching out to 900fps.

If a .45's velocity does not break the 800fps barrier, it simply doesn't have the necessary velocity in order to expand to its fullest potential. In that scenario, a good .40 JHP actually expands MORE than the .45, and you'd be surprised how many times a .45 does NOT fully expand.

Again, refer to the variables listed in the first post.

[rm_fritz]

why do i carry a 45?









because they don't make a 46......

[mbpe912]

Originally Posted by CSI

"Personally, I carry a .45acp 'cause it makes the biggest hole..."

Was wondering when someone was going to say that, lol!

Your .45ACP generally has a velocity in the ball park of 700-850fps, with some of the higher $ ammo reaching out to 900fps.

If a .45's velocity does not break the 800fps barrier, it simply doesn't have the necessary velocity in order to expand to its fullest potential. In that scenario, a good .40 JHP actually expands MORE than the .45, and you'd be surprised how many times a .45 does NOT fully expand.

Again, refer to the variables listed in the first post.

LoL have you looked at the test done my the FBI? The .45ACP expands very well!

[SD Monkey]

The gov used to issue Glock 9mm but now issues H&K .40 cal, I wonder why that is? The gov used to issue Speer Gold Dot in 9mm but now uses 135 grain Hydra Shock .40 cal ammo, Hmmm what's the reason for this? The gov must have a pretty good reason to make these changes.

[cwsims84]

Originally Posted by SD Monkey

The gov used to issue Glock 9mm but now issues H&K .40 cal, I wonder why that is? The gov used to issue Speer Gold Dot in 9mm but now uses 135 grain Hydra Shock .40 cal ammo, Hmmm what's the reason for this? The gov must have a pretty good reason to make these changes.

I've been a proud employee of the govt by means of the Army for the last 6yrs and I can tell you that the govt buys cheap crap that never works quite right and almost always needs some "tweaking".... Just because the Govt buys it doesnt mean its the best.