9mm, .40, or .45 from 3.25"....and why?

[thinkingman]

You need a few, not just one: 

plinking/casual target shooting - .22 Auto Got it-Ruger MKIII
Personal defense – 9mm or .40 cal Got it, XD40 Service
night-stand   -  12 gauge with #4 buckshot Got it, 870 Police Mag
backpacking/back-country fishing sidearm - .357 mag Got it, Ruger Security Six
Hunting sidearm - .357 or .44 mag with a 4” barrel (so it’s legal to shoot BG) Got it, see above

Looking for something smaller and lighter to take up less space.
Yes, It would be double stack 10-11rnds.

Pretty much set on a .45 in a compact frame. Just needed to hear the idea from a few others.
Thanks fellas!

This thread is getting pointlesss.......just get an XD Compact, then....you're not goint to save much weight or bulk over your existing XD, but I understand the urge to buy more!

[Bscman]

You're last post is a long way from your original question IMO.  The more you write, the less I understand what you're really trying to accomplish.  The first thing I thought when I read your original post was, there's no such gun that fits your criteria, whatever you choose would be a compromise.  I figured maybe you could only afford one gun.  OK.  Then I find out you already have all these other guns.  What the hell???
......

Oh, and BTW, double stack .45's are generally not smaller and lighter.....

When did I ask opinions on which gun to choose?
I wasn't looking for opinions on what make/model of firearm, or which gun would best suit my needs. Nor did I really need a list of all the "must have" firearms for an arsenal.
My question, from the top, is what caliber would you choose between 9mm, .40, and .45 coming out of a 3.25" barrel if all other charateristics (width, weight, etc.) were equal.

I have the pistol in question chosen, simply can't decide which caliber would be best...

...and to satisfy your curiousity, it was chosen because it is smaller than the XD I own by a fairly considerable amount and is stainless so I don't need to worry as much about rust. It has a higher capacity than my ruger .357 and is also lighter. A 22lr doesn't do much in terms of defense, and a shotgun gets awefully heavy on the trail. It also has TFO sights.

Anyhoo, thanks for the ideas all. It's all been sorted out. 

[jeff100]

My question, from the top, is what caliber would you choose between 9mm, .40, and .45 coming out of a 3.25" barrel if all other charateristics (width, weight, etc.) were equal.

If you can double tap your aim point under stress in any light including the absence of light, it really doesn't matter that much which of these three calibers you choose.  I carry a .40 auto most of the time, but any of these would work for me, any time with a gun that fits my hand, which lucky for me, most do.

If you can't hit what you aim at...when hitting what you aim at counts, none of these calibers will work.

Happy trails.

Jeff