Home | Ezine | Forums | Links | Contact
NitroExpress.com: Is the 40 S&W DEAD???

View recent messages : 24 hours | 48 hours | 7 days | 14 days | 30 days | 60 days | More Smilies


*** Enjoy NitroExpress.com? Participate and join in. ***

Shooting & Reloading - Mausers, Big Bores and others >> Handguns

Grenadier
.375 member


Reged: 20/02/08
Posts: 570
Loc: North of the Columbia, USA
Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD???
      04/11/17 05:40 AM

Quote:

40 S&W dead, not hardly. http://knowledgeglue.com/what-are-the-most-popular-calibers-in-the-us/


DD, that data is from " Lucky Gunner’s 2013 ammunition sales". It's already four years old!

Regardless, the majority of .40 users are law enforcement and related personnel. US law enforcement follows on the heels of the FBI in nearly everything. When the FBI went to .40s most law enforcement personnel followed. Now that the FBI is going back to 9mm, you will begin to see the bulk of law enforcement return to 9mm. It's just a matter of time and it will leave the .40 an esoteric round.

The main reason the US military went to 9mm in the 1980s was because of various NATO Standardization Agreements (STANAG). It was long overdue compliance to a longstanding agreement but also a concession to get NATO to adopt and standardize the 5.56mm. It had nothing to do with ballistic tests, field experience, or cost. Yes, those were looked at but they had no impact in making the switch. The switch did coincide with a dynamic push to "feminize" the ranks and we wondered if the timing was more than a coincidence, but that was purely speculation. Units using .45s were against turning them in but had to comply with the DoD directive, plain and simple.

US Special Operations forces, of various flavors, are often allowed to use non-standard weapons and equipment. Because of that, many low profile units in the military never transitioned, or never fully transitioned, to 9mm from .45 ACP. A few handguns firing different calibers were used for specialized applications, but none of the SPECOPS units switched to .40 when it came along. If the .40 had offered any real advantage over .45 ACP then it would have been adopted. That didn't happen, and for good reason. In military FMJ loadings, the smaller frontal area of the 9mm helps make it a better penetrator than the .45 but the larger frontal area of the .45 helps make it a better incapacitator than the 9mm. Interestingly, the .45 has been seeing increasing use in the military. Far more .45 ACP pistols are in US Army and USMC inventories today than in the 1990's and the trend continues.

Civilian loads can be tailored for more or less penetration and more or less expansion. But if you are looking to make a small hole for a long way then you will never be able to make a hole from a .45 bullet as small as you can make it with a 9mm bullet. Conversely, if you are looking to make a big hole for a limited depth, like the thickness of the human body, you will never get a 9mm bullet to expand to greater diameter than you can make a .45 caliber bullet expand.

So, I can understand how the FBI can subject different calibers to various tests that weigh barrier penetration against the ability to inflict debilitating wounds and end up determining a 9mm is their best all around, best compromise, round. I wonder, though, what percentage of FBI, police, and civilian defense shootings are against people behind barriers. My gut feeling is that the overwhelming majority of those shootings are made in face-to-face encounters against exposed assailants.

Just look at the ammunition your local PD carries - BIG hollow-points designed for expansion, not barrier penetration. They want to make as big a hole as possible in a human body.



That's telling and that's why I carry a .45.

Post Extras Print Post   Remind Me!     Notify Moderator


Entire topic
Subject Posted by Posted on
* Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Ripp 01/11/17 12:35 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Rule303   25/11/17 05:13 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? NitroXAdministrator   26/11/17 11:01 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? DarylS   27/11/17 04:07 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? NitroXAdministrator   27/11/17 02:05 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Ripp   28/11/17 02:55 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Homer   30/11/17 07:56 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Homer   27/11/17 09:51 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Ripp   26/11/17 09:51 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Rule303   27/11/17 01:53 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? NitroXAdministrator   01/11/17 02:24 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? lancaster   01/11/17 03:08 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Ripp   01/11/17 04:28 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Rell   01/11/17 06:25 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Ripp   02/11/17 12:36 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? DoubleD   02/11/17 12:39 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Grenadier   04/11/17 05:40 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? lancaster   04/11/17 06:37 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Grenadier   04/11/17 07:58 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Maxim   02/11/17 06:26 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Ripp   02/11/17 10:42 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Rule303   02/11/17 08:44 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? SharpsNitro   03/11/17 12:17 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Rell   04/11/17 04:57 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Rule303   04/11/17 09:22 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Postman   04/11/17 10:28 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Ash   07/11/17 01:38 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Ripp   07/11/17 02:51 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? NitroXAdministrator   07/11/17 08:35 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? ducmarc   08/11/17 11:16 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Ripp   08/11/17 12:36 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Ripp   08/11/17 01:00 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Homer   08/11/17 06:55 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Ripp   09/11/17 12:46 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? ducmarc   09/11/17 01:17 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Rule303   09/11/17 09:07 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Ripp   10/11/17 01:01 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? NitroXAdministrator   14/11/17 06:53 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Rule303   22/11/17 07:22 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? NitroXAdministrator   22/11/17 11:26 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Rule303   24/11/17 06:34 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? NitroXAdministrator   24/11/17 07:51 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? NitroXAdministrator   24/11/17 08:04 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Homer   25/11/17 08:22 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? DarylS   25/11/17 08:33 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Rell   23/11/17 12:01 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Ripp   15/11/17 02:24 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? lancaster   22/11/17 07:38 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Homer   22/11/17 08:42 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? DarylS   22/11/17 10:18 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Homer   23/11/17 09:38 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? DarylS   23/11/17 10:08 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Homer   24/11/17 02:59 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? ducmarc   10/11/17 11:53 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? ducmarc   10/11/17 12:26 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Homer   13/11/17 06:44 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? DarylS   09/11/17 03:57 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? ducmarc   08/11/17 11:20 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? Rell   02/11/17 10:41 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? DarylS   01/11/17 11:20 AM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? NitroXAdministrator   01/11/17 07:02 PM
. * * Re: Is the 40 S&W DEAD??? DarylS   01/11/17 03:26 AM

Extra information
0 registered and 20 anonymous users are browsing this forum.

Moderator:  NitroX 



Forum Permissions
      You cannot start new topics
      You cannot reply to topics
      HTML is disabled
      UBBCode is enabled

Rating:
Thread views: 15683

Rate this thread

Jump to

Contact Us NitroExpress.com

Powered by UBB.threads™ 6.5.5


Home | Ezine | Forums | Links | Contact


Copyright 2003 to 2011 - all rights reserved