Handgun question

Ok I’ve been debating with a few people aside from ammo cost. What’s some pros and cons on 9mm vs 40?

Unless your hand-loading hotter loads for the 9mm, the 40 will give you a little better penetration and larger expansion in the bullets. Not a huge difference.

Not to mention that 9mm ammo is reall hard to find – at least in my area. I can buy .40 and .45 off the shelf but have not seen 9mm for several weeks now. I know this should be a short term issue but….

I agree that .40 will provide a little better punch

A lot of PD’s are changing from the 40’s to the 9’s due to costs of the ammo. They usually by huge amounts so that is also contributing to the lack of supply.

the 40 will do the job quicker than the 9 and more complete than the 9.

With the great ammo today, I don’t personally feel there is hardly any difference in the two calibers. Obviously the 40 gives you a bit more “power”. How much???

Look at the Springfield XD 40 with a 4 inch barrel. Love this gun. I like my PX4 Storm in 9MM, but the XD is heads above anything else I’ve shot in this price range. If I could have found an M&P in 9mm, I probably would have bought that at the time, but they were/are scarce. Well at a reasonable price anyway.

I would not let ammo influence your purchase. This will pass. I don’t think prices will be the same, but it will be available soon. I see 9MM and 40S&W at lots of places. It’s just the FMJ(cheaper) stuff doesn’t stay on the shelves long. The reality is how much will you shoot a year?

When shooting a 9mm, your 2nd 3rd 4th…etc shots will be quicker and more accurate due to less recoil which means more lead on target. Ammo is less expensive and you usually get more rounds in your gun. Plus new 9mm loads are penetrating deeper than the 40. There is a reason why law enforcement are switching to the 9mm

From a retired LEO. Studies showed that the 40 has better knock down power. With the 9mm being smaller and faster, it was more of a paper punch. The bullet did not have time to expand.

First figure out which gun your gonna get, then go find a range that rents guns and shoot it in both 9 and 40, you may not like the recoil of a light gun and a 40 load.

You should find a weapon and load that you are comfortable shooting, if it’s a plinking gun, maybe not so important, but a gun for self defense should be shot often, very often in my opinion, and a gun your not comfortable with is not the gun to do this with imho

al

I would echo Al’s comments. The difference between the 9 and .40 is out weighed by the cost of ammo (more practice time) lighter to carry and ability to accurately place follow up shots.

Knock Down Power Chart<<

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From a retired LEO. Studies showed that the 40 has better knock down power. With the 9mm being smaller and faster, it was more of a paper punch. The bullet did not have time to expand.

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You can talk about “knock-down power” until you’re blue in the face, but the simple fact of it is that bad guys don’t like to leak. No one does.

If I’m a bad guy doing bad stuff and I suddenly hear a bang and realize I have a few more internal access points than I did when I woke up this morning, I’m going to seriously reconsider my career path. It doesn’t matter how big those holes are, I’m not going to be happy.

As for 9mm not having time to expand, JHPs are your friend. If you’re on the happy end of the weapon and not the angry end, that is.

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I personally would stick with the one you bought last night

It shoots real nice. i have been breakingit in for you all morning. Darn Mice!

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I’m happy with my choice I made!! I just wonder why its not preferred by so many people.

…and your choice was a .40?

I prefer the 9 mm. I buy the hollow point expanders for self defense clip. Shoot the regular bullets for target. Buy from Cabela’s online and have had no problem getting ammo.
My 2 cents worth…

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I prefer the 9 mm. I buy the hollow point expanders for self defense clip. Shoot the regular bullets for target. Buy from Cabela’s online and have had no problem getting ammo.
My 2 cents worth…

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Ammo is scarce around the cities both 9mm and .40. Cabelas won’t let you backorder online. I’ve been at the Rogers store on and off over the past two months. Empty shelves and the same at Fleet in Brooklyn Park. I need to buy both but can’t find anything.

On the original question, the advice to go shoot both is very solid. I’ve always looked at the caliber debates this way. Often the larger caliber is better for the purpose at hand. However does it matter if you are less accurate with the larger one? Simply if you can’t hit the target does it matter if you have the bigger caliber.

I have a HK .40 for self defense and I bought a FN FNS 9mm for fun to save a few bucks.

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I personally would stick with the one you bought last night

It shoots real nice. i have been breakingit in for you all morning. Darn Mice!

I always get a kick out of this one

.380

I went with the 40 after comparing the velocity to bullet weight in both calibers. I like that I had a heavier grain bullet traveling at higher speeds than that of the 9mm, but yet it was a lighter grain bullet than the 45 but faster so to me I figured it was the best bullet weight to velocity ratio. Bottom line decent bullet weight at good speeds Imo.

.357 Magnum is where it’s at.

So, what make/model did you get?

Al W Runnin
I’d like to see one more illustration on that cartoon “12ga buckshot”

Ruger Sr 40 I don’t know much about the model but seems pretty well made and the price point wasn’t bad.

had the same question as you about a month ago. made the exact same decision as you did with the ruger. although I havent shot it much yet I like it so far.

The Ruger SR series is a rock star. As for as .40 vs 9mm the ammount of felt recoil vs the ballistic differances I will choose 9mm any day of the week. That question has been asked 10 million times in the gun world and you get 10 million different reason to why one chooses one over the other. I will take people shooting and they will shoot a .40 and a 9mm and they will choose the 9mm 9/10 times.

With the advancements in bullet technology the 9mm has come a long way. This is the reason many Police Departments are going back to the 9mm. I made the switch from a 40 to a 9 and I am very happy I did. Shoot both calibers and get whatever one you shoot better with. For me I just shoot better with a 9 and a 45, for others they shoot better with a 40. With the right ammo the 9mm is very effective.

Pat, in response to your statement about whether you can afford to be less accurate if you’re shooting a larger/more powerful caliber. I always refer to an article I read in one of the popular gun/shooting magazines 20+ years ago about picking a caliber to use for self defense. The author stated “the world’s closest miss with a .44 Magnum doesn’t do as much damage as a direct hit with a .22”. Truer words were never spoken!!! I use a 9mm, recoil is easy to handle and quicker to get back on sight picture. I reload my own ammo, the choices in ammo today make the 9mm a very good choice. My recommendation is go to a range, rent one of each of the calibers you’re interested in and put 20-30 rounds through each.