.40 S&W the bullet of the new millenium

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The guy who thout the .40 was a necked down 10mm and proprietary to Glock was probably thinking of the .45 GAP and the .45 ACP. The GAP is not "necked down", but it is shortened from ACP, and the terminology might have gotten confused slightly, along with the second number to the right of the decimal. ;)

Mike
 
Naw, I doubt anyone who had even heard of 400 Corbon could make that mistake- .40 as a "necked-down" 10mm and proprietary to Glock. Heck, the name of the cartridge is .40 Smith & Wesson. No matter how deficient the Austrians are in the aesthetics department, they're not daft in the marketing department. ;)


Mike
 
.40 is a compromise caliber. It offers neither the magazine capacity, continuity of fire, low recoil or speed of followup shots as the 9mm, nor the bullet mass or wound channel size of the .45.

While the .40 S&W case may be new, .40 caliber bullets at 975 FPS isn't new either. The 38-40 of the 1870s is ballistically identical so there is already a body of data on its ballistic capabilities. All that being said, just because a Maryland State Trooper can't hit anything with his 9mm isn't a reason to blame the cartridge. The reasons people survive gunshot wounds are because they weren't shot in the right place. More often than not, "the right place" won't be able to differentiate between a 9mm, a .40 or a .45.
 
Copied and Pasted this into my notes just the other day... I didn't write it but found it very amusing and noteworthy:

The .45ACP was invented to kill people
The 9mm was invented to kill people
The 10mm was invented to kill people
The .357 Magnum was invented to kill people
The .357Sig was invented to emulate the .357 Magnum ... which was invented to kill people (If it does or not is another arguement)
The .40S&W was invented for the FBI because some agents could not shoot the 10mm well enough to qualify
 
And another... again no idea who wrote it:

“A good archer is not known by his arrows but by his aim”

Waaaay to much energy is put into the 9mm/40/45 debate... go and shoot.

(btw I have guns in all three calibres... but the only reason I have a 40 is all the free brass I get from the Police dept...):evil:
 
Not going to join the overall debate, just going to tell you my own experience and feelings on the matter.

I have a long history with wheelguns and a strong preference for the .357 Magnum round. Tried various .44 Magnums, never could shoot 'em worth a damn and went back to .357 (and .38's for fun).

Got introduced to the Springfield "XD" line all at once with an XD-9, and XD-40, and an XD-45 (all in 4" service configuration).

Firing the XD-9 I was very accurate. Perceived recoil and noise level were very light. My only issue was it just felt like a pop-gun to me (being used to .357 loads).

Firing the XD-40 I was not nearly as accurate (initially) but my instinctive feeling was that it was ME, not the gun or round. Perceived recoil and noise level seemed a little high, much like a .357 load. Put simply, I took to this weapon and round like a duck takes to water.

Firing the XD-45 I was slightly more accurate than the 40, but not quite as accurate as the 9mm. Perceived recoil and noise level seemed (to my surprise) quite a bit lower than the XD-40. But somehow it felt, well, I guess "lethargic" would be the best word. I don't know if that makes any sense to anyone else but it's the best description I can come up with.

So I practice with, and soon will CCW the XD-40 not the 9mm or .45ACP. Why? I'm not sure I can quantify it, the .40 just struck a chord with me. A little practice led to decent mastery of the gun and the round and now I think I'd feel lost with something else. (I'm especially excited about getting an XD-40 compact now).

Disclaimer: Can't rightly comment on actual performance against a meat target though. Never shot anything but paper or plinkin' targets with any pistol and hope I never actually have to do so.
 
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.40 s&w, 10mm's red headed bastard stepchild.

The .40 s&w is basically the same as a 9mm +p in my opinion. I think at the rate things are going that 10mm auto will be the cartridge of the new millenium. Whats not to love, you basically have every service pistol cartridge and a couple of magnum revolvers' performance all in one cartridge depending on how you load it. Maybe the sleeping giant will finally rise up to claim its well deserved crown one day ;) .
 
Well of course shot placement is key. But say you have rock-steady aim for an area in the typical "center of mass" or even the head...and all of the sudden, the adversary's big meaty arm gets in the way as you squeeze off the shot. Will your cartridge penetrate reliably in the "right spot" after having to pass through the limb? This is why anything or anybody deserving one shot deserves more. Accuracy is all well and good if the weapon platform used is good. Yes, a circular argument, I know. But some people seem to think that people stay still to get shot at. Only targets do that...although cleverly simulated ones don't.
 
Well,

:D

I'll take the opposite road. In my opinion the .40S&W is what the 9mm and .45 ACP can't be separately. It's a terrific compromise between the two. It provides heavier weight bullet and more power than the 9mm and much more speed than the 45ACP yet still allows for good magazine capacity in todays autoloaders.

The XD is a good example to use. The XD-40 is a 12+1 autoloader that has better ergonomics, is easier to conceal and weighs less than the XD-45ACP but yet provides more power and shoots larger, heavier bullets and weighs no more than the XD-9.

People are constantly arguing 45ACP vs 9mm. Well, to get the advantages of both, you have to buy both guns but, even so, you still can only shoot one at a time so, you're stuck with a 9mm or a 45 ACP. With the 40S&W you have a great compromise between the good points of each of them, in one gun.

As anyone that reads here on THR knows, I am Browning/FN die hard. The BHP in 9mm is one of my favorite, if not my all time favorite handgun so, I am not a 9mm basher. I also think the 1911 is the 45ACP's wet dream. But, if I had to pick one gun to defend myself with, it would be a 13-14 round 40S&W shooter.

So there. :p
 
I am all for the .40 round. 10grains of blue dot behind a 150gr jacketed hollow point = 1285fps. IMHO that is way more potent then most 9 or 45 rounds. Thats close to .357 mag levels. Everyone who says .40 is inaccurate or a bad comprimise obvioulsy doesn't own one. Considering 100rds of .40 is $17 at walmart, I think thats proof enough of its popularity. The .45 and 9mm were designed over 100yrs ago. If they had the powder/techology we have now, back then... I doubt they would've concluded the same final results. I see .40 as a "what we have learned in the past 100 yrs" round. Best of both worlds.
 
maybe the same people that say the .40cal isn't accurate are the same folks that don't shoot them. i know i have come along way in my handgun shooting abilities and i am very pleased with the accuracy i get out of my .40 handguns.
 
With the 40S&W you have a great compromise between the good points of each of them, in one gun.
Click to expand...

Hybrid cars are a "compromise". They have neither the environmentally friendly characteristics of an purely electric automobile nor the power of a straight gas powered vehicle.

Sometimes compromises offer something good. Usually not.

BTW, the hybrid automobiles are not even close to delivering on promised fuel economy. They actually do worse on the highway than many straight gas-powered compacts.
 
.40 is a great round!

I guess you have to shoot the .40 to understand. It does require practice. Compared to the .45 it is harder too learn to shoot accurately It is a faster caliber then the .45 and has some kick butt self defense choices in cartridges as the .45 does. You have to really be picky about the self defense ammo in a 9mm. To me the 9mm is a dying round. Finally shot one at the range last week. Although I am not bashing the 9mm, it did not have the punch of a .40 or .45 Now I no why I am strictly .40 and .45 person! I am getting 100 rounds of winchester FMJ for 17.78 at Wal-mart. So price is good also. The .40 is very popular with LE and the .45 with special ops, swat teams etc. The 9mm has lost most of its popularity with U.S. LE. Honestly I can see why. If you have a better man-stopper at your disposal why not use it? I have 15 round mags on my 24/7 .40's with one in the chamber. Even my .45's are the Springfield XD with 13 in the mag one in the chamber. This makes for fun target practice and peace of mind if you need them for self-defense.

The Best to all!
 
For USPSA and IDPA there is the 9mm.
In Non PF Divisions, the 9mm is dirt cheap to use.

For SD and CCW there is the 10mm.

For handgun hunting(deer,hog), there is the 10mm.

10mm practice(ball) is only $12 to $19 a box(depending on maker).

The price of Quality 10mm JHP's is no more than the cost of .45ACP's.
But to be honest.
Cost is NOT an issue, when talking about the lives of my family, and my life.


I really do not care, what the Police carry. I only care about, what works for me.

I tried the .40 once, by owning a G23 and a P229. I did not like the round, and will not own anything with .40S&W on it in the future.
 
Wasn't it concluded that a full power 10mm was overkill for stopping people? Hence the .40, a 10mm with less powder behind it. When I load up range rounds for my .40, I put even less powder behind it. So why would I need a 10mm? If someone wants to deer hunt with thier glock?
 
Wasn't it concluded that a full power 10mm was overkill for stopping people? Hence the .40, a 10mm with less powder behind it. When I load up range rounds for my .40, I put even less powder behind it. So why would I need a 10mm? If someone wants to deer hunt with thier glock?
Click to expand...
I don't think you can say "concluded" by any means. I like overkill, but I think what you are referring to is that some are of the position that since 10mm and .40sw share a few of the same bullets, that there is a velocity threshold at which the bullets start working, and additional velocity does not add anything significant. I don't necessarily agree with that, but I'd just assume have a .40sw as a 10mm in lower weight bullets. I see the advantage of the 200 gr DT stuff in 10mm. Some of that is penetrating as deep and expanding as wide as .45acp. If it were a little cheaper and/or alot more available, I'd look hard at 10mm.
 
I was told they wanted a lower power 10mm because of penetration/liability issues.
 
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