.40S&W vs .45ACP

[Guest 2HOW]

[edit] Lead bullets and polygonal rifling

The manufacturer Glock advises against using lead bullets (meaning bullets not covered by a copper jacket) in their polygonally rifled barrels, which has led to a widespread belief that polygonal rifling is not compatible with lead bullets. Noted firearms expert and barrel maker, the late Gale McMillan, has also commented that lead bullets and polygonal rifling are not a good mix. However, since neither H&K nor Kahr recommend against lead bullets in their polygonal rifled barrels, it is probable that there is an additional factor involved in Glock's warning. One explanation is that Glock barrels have a fairly sharp transition between the chamber and the rifling, and this area is prone to lead buildup if lead bullets are used. This buildup may result in failures to fully return to battery, allowing the gun to fire with the case not fully supported by the chamber, leading to a potentially dangerous case failure. The other explanation is that Glock's barrels may be more prone than normal to leading, which is the buildup of lead in the bore that happens in nearly all firearms firing high velocity lead bullets. This lead buildup must be cleaned out regularly, or the barrel can become constricted and result in higher than normal pressures.This along with reloads that fail at the case , along with the unsupported chamber will cause a failure. The unsupported chamber actually helps the pistol feed, but causes other problems as well. So any pistol with an unsupported chamber and polygonal rifling are subject to fail. Glocks have gotten all the press about this but there have been several makes that have experienced this problem. And most people will say that its not the pistol, its the reload or the dirty gun. I had a G-22 for 17 years and had no trouble.so go figure.

[threeshot]

The .40 was designed to take the punch out of the 10mm, but still a compromise:)

And the .45 GAP was developed to create a .45 hole using the gun frame size of the 9mm or .40 caliber guns.

Interesting read:

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/petej/45gap.defend.htm

Main Page

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/petej/

Go to an indoor gun range and rent the Glock 30 (.45) and then rent the Glock 27 (.40). Shoot about 50 rounds per gun on the same day and I think you will discover the answer regarding recoil. The .40 snaps upward and the .45 will be more of a push.

[Guest jackdog]

Heres my 2 cents. Carry what is most comfortable to carry at all times.

Carry the caliber that you can be the most effective with. You can kill a bad guy just as well with a 32, 380 or whatever if you are proficient with shot placement.But if you cannot conceal it easily and carry it at all times it is useless. A gun in your house can't help you at a mall shooting. I carry one or two of the following at all times A.380 9mm or 40S&W.

[Guest bazookazilla]

You're going to hear a bunch on either side. Choose what handgun fits you best and one that you shoot best. A hit with a .40 is better than a miss with a .45 and vice versa.

Everyone raise your beers and say it with me

"HERE, HERE!!!!"

and then after that we drink, but of course we wouldn't do that because we are discussing and/or carrying firearms. It's really just an expression. But I agree.

[Guest Disney]

Another vote for the .45. Because G. Gordon Liddy says so!

[strickj]

i dont think its about the size of the gun(over 9mm anyway!)but the rounds carried in the gun.ie;gold dot jhp and not wwb jhp

me,i carry a 9mm. i would much dretter have 16 rounds in 9mm then 8 rounds in 45acp.

and yes "shot placement" is important but comon!will you really have time with everything going on to say to the bg"wait,dont move,let me get my sights on you chest

[Guest bkelm18]

i dont think its about the size of the gun(over 9mm anyway!)but the rounds carried in the gun.ie;gold dot jhp and not wwb jhp

me,i carry a 9mm. i would much dretter have 16 rounds in 9mm then 8 rounds in 45acp.

and yes "shot placement" is important but comon!will you really have time with everything going on to say to the bg"wait,dont move,let me get my sights on you chest

While I do agree with you that things are different during high stress situations, shot placement will make or break the situation. That's why you should practice constantly at the range and at home with snap caps, to the point where you don't have to think about getting the sights on the BG's chest, it just happens naturally. But, on the flip side, there's nothing wrong with having more pieces of lead to throw at them.

[Guest 2HOW]

i dont think its about the size of the gun(over 9mm anyway!)but the rounds carried in the gun.ie;gold dot jhp and not wwb jhp

me,i carry a 9mm. i would much dretter have 16 rounds in 9mm then 8 rounds in 45acp.

and yes "shot placement" is important but comon!will you really have time with everything going on to say to the bg"wait,dont move,let me get my sights on you chest

A very high percentage of shootouts occur between 7 and 20 ft, and they happen fast. Percentages say you wont have a chance to aim. We need to be proficient in point shooting and techniques such as the "zipper" and shooting from the 1/2 hip.

[SHbicycle]

You will not find a better gun out of the box than a Glock 21. My wife loves hers and if it came down to only 1 pistol in the house it would be that one.

[Guest Boomhower]

That's why you should practice constantly at the range and at home with snap caps, to the point where you don't have to think about getting the sights on the BG's chest, it just happens naturally.

Oh, so your talking about sightless shooting.

[FlyboyLDB]

I own everything from a .380 to .45 . I carry my 9mm and .40 cal the most. There is something in my mentality that says I need more than 8 shots - which most .45 are. Load the 40 up with some good quality defense ammo and don't look back. The difference between th 40 & 45 is not that much. There was a site that had ballastic reviews. They shot various calibers through this transparent gel and measured the differences. There was not that much difference in the penetration or the diameter or damage wound between the 40 & 45. Maybe try and google - it has been a few months since I viewed this.

[Guest E L Mclemore]

I have own several 45's and only carry a Springfield XD40. The .40 round itself has a flatter trajectory and maintains accuracy at greater distances.

[DWARREN123]

I like the 40 S&W because it is a compromise. It is the only centerfire handgun round I use. The best of both worlds, size and speed.

The 40 is put down, in my opinion, because it came after the 10mm not before. If it had came before and people had used it I feel it would be reguarded the same as the 38spl to 357mag but since it came after everyone calls it a weakened round.

[cadillacdude1975]

shoot a glock 33 with 124g speer jhps if you want to feel recoil. i saw the .40 is far easier to shoot. i was at the range several months ago and a couple of off duty LEOs were there shooting and one of them asked about my 33. he asked how it felt, recoil, accuracy blah blah. i laid it on the table with a full mag and said see for yourself. he handed me his service weapon (22) with a full mag and let me have a go at it.

it shot so much smoother than i was used too, mind you all i had been shooting was the 357 sig and the 45. both of those rounds have a small kick to say the least.

[Guest MidTNShooter]

As far as caliber in my book, I prefer the .40. As for the hole any makes will bring someone down. I shoot a Steyr M40 A1, because it's grip is more ergonomically satisfying than the Glock. Plus it doesn't jam like some of fellow shooters (haha). My other is a Para-Ordnance P16 (also a .40). The rounds are cheaper than 45's and like some say, makes a bigger hole than the 9. IMO, that is.

MTS

[molonlabetn]

shoot a glock 33 with 124g speer jhps if you want to feel recoil.

Are you sure you're not talking about 125gr...? Speer does not offer factory loaded 124gr Gold-Dot bullets in their .357sig cartridges.

The only company I am aware of offering 124gr JHPs in their loaded ammo is Hornady, and they are loaded pretty weak. Besides that, 124gr JHPs are generally meant for use in 9mms, which would mean that they are not ideal for the higher velocities of the .357sig, in terms of terminal performance... (I doubt that's a huge problem, really though).

The hottest .357sig load I've felt thus-far was the Double-Tap 125gr load (1450fps), with the S&B 140gr load (1350fps) a close second.

[Guest Liberty Seeker]

I first want to thank all of you who read and decided to offer your input to my query. I think I have decided the .40 is better than the .45, but I'm going to the range and shoot both anyway. Hell, that sounds like more fun too. I'll let you know where we end up regardless. It may have to take a back seat to the testing of the SU-16 that should be here soon, but I'll let you know how that goes as well.