40 cal hype is over??

[Alchase]

I have seen a few articles lately that are really bashing the 40 cal pistol.  Was it just a fad that has come and gone, or is still a great round?  What are your thoughts?  I personally love my ruger sr40c and it shoots really well and has very manageable recoil.  Also...I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of any 9mm, 40 or 45 so that is kind of a mute point in my mind. 

The round has not changed it is still 40 cal, so it must be writers who are the fad, LOL.

History, remember when most of them said the 9mm was not a sufficient handgun round.
Or when 10mm was their pinnacle, now out of favor.
I quit reading most handgun magazines because of this type of article. They seem to try and create controversy where none should exist.
I love the new technology stuff, their opinion pieces are as bad as the Seattle Times, LOL.

[jbauch357]

40sw was created in the 80's purely because FBI couldn't qualify with the 10mm pistols they were issued when 9mm designs of that era proved to be insufficient for hostile/hardened engagements.  They needed to come up with something better than the 9mm offerings at the time but not as powerful as 10mm that had too much recoil for FBI desk jockies to become proficient with.  Now we're at the point where 9mm design/power has improved considerably and 10mm is growing in popularity/availability, there is no reason to shoot .40 when hot 9mm almost matches it and proper 10mm demolishes it. 

FWIW I'm a 9mm and 10mm slut, both are great rounds and different enough to have major benefits over one another depending on circumstance - 40sw is the middle ground that doesn't really excel in any department.

[jay.sharkbait]

I think if people spent more  time shooting and studying anatomy this topic wouldn't come up all the time.

[headshot5]

I think if people spent more  time shooting and studying anatomy this topic wouldn't come up all the time.

 

[Alchase]

Now we're at the point where 9mm design/power has improved considerably and 10mm is growing in popularity/availability, there is no reason to shoot .40 when hot 9mm almost matches it and proper 10mm demolishes it.

So because you like 9mm and 10mm, there is no need fro a 40?

Your argument is flawed logic, why would you compare a "hot 9mm" to a standard 40?
Compare "hot 9mm" to a "hot 40", same bullets, then have this conversation again.

You do realize that the same improvements to the 9mm also pertain to the .40 don't you?
Or do you actually believe bullet development and powder improvements only pertain to the 9mm?

I have had 9mm, 10mm, .41, .45s, .38s, and current flavor is .40.
I like the balance of power above a 9mm, without the felt recoil and cost of bullets for the 10mm.
And I love the 10mm as well.

That does not mean I won't change again, all are viable calibers.

Their will always be a need for the .40 as long as people wish to buy it, not when some random persons opinion says it is no longer needed.

That is the cool part about having your own individual "choices", LOL

[jbauch357]

Fair points and it's obviously not as black and white as my late night posting made it sound, should have said "for me there is no reason..."

I tried and tried to like .40 but just never really got sold on it.  The recoil, noise and cost are greater than 9mm but you're still not getting magnum caliber performance.  So you can't put rounds on soft targets as fast/constant, but also can't use the round for applications where magnum performance is required like in the woods.  All of my .40 pistols are now running 9mm barrels/mags/springs or have been sold off if not convertible.

As far as performance improvements go, if I understand correctly most .40 pistols are built on 9mm platform, so they've got thinner chamber walls and can't push performance/ballistics limits like 9mm can, or was that just back in the old days when GLOCK kabooms were so common?

In the end if you like it keep shooting it and do whatever makes you happy, for me it's a middling cartridge that doesn't really have any good use.

[KFhunter]

I'm never going to advocate for less carry options 

[Mongo Hunter]

I don't think it will ever be "over". its still a viable cartridge that ALOT of people really like.

When it was made it bridged that gap between 9mm and .45, now with ammunition getting better and better the gap is pretty much non existent. So yes in a way the sweeping love of the .40 is over. but I don't think it will ever be gone.

10mm is still around, .357 sig is still around. neither of those got near as popular as the .40

Personally I'm a 9mm guy these days. the guns are small, light and 9mm is cheap to shoot. not to mention there is such a wide range of ammo choices from mild to "super go fast" (I like the HST +P myself) that almost any shooter can use them.

[KFhunter]

my next deep conceal carry will be a 9mm

[jackelope]

I'm not educated much in this department, but if you have to buy special, hi-po, hot rod rounds in 9mm to come close to matching the .40, doesn't the benefit of the hot rod 9mm rounds go out the window?? Or are the higher performance, harder hitting 9mm rounds still cheaper, more available and lower recoiling than the standard .40's??
Educate me...

[Mongo Hunter]

I'm not educated much in this department, but if you have to buy special, hi-po, hot rod rounds in 9mm to come close to matching the .40, doesn't the benefit of the hot rod 9mm rounds go out the window?? Or are the higher performance, harder hitting 9mm rounds still cheaper, more available and lower recoiling than the standard .40's??
Educate me...

Short answer is yes. 9mm +P still tends to have less recoil than a .40 S&W. the other benefit is higher mag capacity and yes the ammo is still cheaper.

[KFhunter]

yes, if you practice with that expensive stuff. 

[jbauch357]

I'm not educated much in this department, but if you have to buy special, hi-po, hot rod rounds in 9mm to come close to matching the .40, doesn't the benefit of the hot rod 9mm rounds go out the window?? Or are the higher performance, harder hitting 9mm rounds still cheaper, more available and lower recoiling than the standard .40's??
Educate me...

Short answer is yes. 9mm +P still tends to have less recoil than a .40 S&W. the other benefit is higher mag capacity and yes the ammo is still cheaper.

Yup, depending on which rounds you're shooting 9mm 124gr +p is going to have about 90% of the energy of 165gr .40s&W...  but you get more capacity, less recoil and it is cheaper to shoot.

If you're a reloader you can pretty cheaply practice with the more powerful stuff.  My 9mm practice loads are 115gr @ 1,250 fps - and they cost me under $0.11/rd.

[Cylvertip]

I see 40 for what it is,  a de-nutted 10mm.  I am a 9mm guy, but my next pistol will be a Glock 40, which is the 10mm factory long slide. There is just not enough differentiation between the 9 and 40 for me to want to go that route.  Underwood  10MM  Xtreme Penetrator +p  through a 6" barrel will be a different story.   

[KFhunter]

I hope you don't carry that thing for personal defense in crowded areas, it'll pass through your bad guy and 4 more people behind them.