9mm or .40, that is the guestion

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chance1959

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Hello, I am new to semi auto's, have shot alot of revolvers, .38 and .357. I am going to buy a M & P this coming week and wanted some guidance from those of you with experience with this line of gun. Any advantage to the 9mm or the 40 cal other than the cost of ammo? Also, the range where I shoot has a M & P 9mm Special Ops with threaded barel for about $500.00, barely used, with 4 17 round mags, and holster. I don't need the threaded barel but felt like the price was good for the extras that come with the gun, anyone know this gun?
 
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If you live in a state that allows it, you can apply for a Federal license to buy a suppressor that fits on the threaded barrel. Otherwise, there is not much point to having the threaded barrel.

You didn't say your purpose for the gun. An M&P compact is considered better for carry, while the 5" Pro with FO sights is more suited to range use and competition. The is also a standard size Pro with night sights. Then of course there is the standard M&P without the night sights and factory trigger job.

If you intend to shoot competition, the requirements of the specific org and Division often favors one caliber over another because of power factor requirements.

If you are recoil sensitive, the 9mm is somewhat easier to control. However, as the skill level increases, the difference matters less.

As far as some definitive difference between 9mm and .40 S&W that always makes one better than the other, there isn't one. The 9mm is most often shot with 115 to 147 grain ammo. The .40 (10mm caliber) typically is shot with 155 to 180 grain ammo, and was designed to be shot in a 9mm pistol platform by the FBI and S&W.

Once you decide your purpose for the pistol, the choice may become clearer.
 
If you look at the cost of the two rounds in training / plinking configuration (IE: ball) the cost difference between the two is diminishing.

AMMOMAN.com lists:

Speer "Lawman" 40 S&W 165 GRAIN FMJ for $299- 1,000 rounds. ($14.95 / box)

Speer "Lawman" 9MM 147 GRAIN FMJ for $259- 1,000 rounds. ( $12.95 / box)

With the advent of the Speer Gold Dot 124 Grn +P 9mm and it's postive history in the field, alot of gun-wise uniformed people I know are going back to the 9mm from the .40.

I've seen what the 9mm Gold Dot will do as well as the the Remington-Peters 155 Grn. Fed-Spec .40 and I'd hate to be shot with either one...
 
Thanks for the great advice, both are great information for someone just getting interested in shooting. I plan to use this gun mostly for pleasure shooting and hopefully never for personal defense, however if needed it should be a very good pistol for that.
The compact model may be something I should look at. I am taking a concealed carry class next week and would need a gun that could be carried concealed. Thanks again for the good advice, both of you!
 
Personally, I favor the 40 caliber. Both the 9mm and the 40 are worthy calibers but I like the heavier bullet the 40 caliber provides. As noted previously, the price difference isn't much and during the post Obama ammo drought the 9mm was nearly impossible to find in my area. At one point a local range could only obtain range safe frangable in 9mm and that stuff is darned expensive for target shooting. That made me quite pleased with myself for choosing the 40 caliber.

As for the recoil, if you've shot 357 Magnums the 40 caliber is a powder puff in comparison. To be honest, I really don't notice much difference between the recoil of the 9mm and the 40, both are fairly easy shooting.
 
Bigger is always better when it comes to both bullets and guns.

That said I got rid of all my 40's and went just 9mm and 45 acp for autos. Works for me and mine. We may have different needs and applications, but bigger holes let more blood out faster.

Emory
 
If you reload, you can load softer feeling ammo for the .40, than you can for 9mm.

If you shoot USPSA, the .40 can be used in Production division, with minor loads, or, can be used for limited 10, or, limited divisions, with major loads.

Either can be used in IDPA for SSP, or, ESP divisions.

For self defense--.40.
 
9mm and 40 are similar in performance. While the 40 will rate "major" per USPSA it has not proven to be really any better than the 9mm. The performance of modern 9mm JHP ammunition is not what it was 20+ years ago and works well in the real world. Indiana State Police use it and have had great results in numerous shootings. I am mandated to use 9mm as far as on duty so I purchased a 9mm M&P for off duty and love it. I was so impressed that I sold my M&P 45 to buy a M&P compact 9mm for my daughter.
Whatever cal you choose they are great guns. Good luck
 
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If you get the 40 you can get the 9 barrel and some 9 mags. You can shoot 9 from your 40. It only goes one way though; you can't go the other way with the 9.
 
Great information, thank you all! I like the idea of being able to buy a 9mm barrel and mags and shoot both from the same gun! So .40 it is! I can't wait to get to the gun store on Monday!
 
Just a couple notes on 40 -> 9mm conversions.

Most manufacturers use a smaller Outside Diameter barrel in their 9mm semi's. This means that doing this conversion will require using an aftermarket conversion barrel from Storm Lake and the like. If a drop in barrel isn't available, this can mean you'll have to "fit" that new barrel to the slide or have it done for yoou. Good news is that hand fitted barrel may prove a bit more accurate than a factory drop in barrel.

Second is that you'll be running a 9mm casing on a breech and extractor designed for the 40 caliber. Because of concerns that this may effect Reliability, I would strongly urge that you NOT carry with one of these conversions.

Other than that, for a high volume shooter it's a good way to save a bit on ammo costs now that 9mm can be found again. I've also seen many posts that indicate thatt despite the mismatch in diameter in regards to the extractor/breech, these conversion actually functions with pretty good reliability.
 
Sebago Son said:
If you look at the cost of the two rounds in training / plinking configuration (IE: ball) the cost difference between the two is diminishing.

AMMOMAN.com lists:

Speer "Lawman" 40 S&W 165 GRAIN FMJ for $299- 1,000 rounds. ($14.95 / box)

Speer "Lawman" 9MM 147 GRAIN FMJ for $259- 1,000 rounds. ( $12.95 / box)
Click to expand...

Not doubting you at all, but as a total noob facing the same choices I've priced 9MM and .40 at every gun shop I've been to as well as Walmart and Bass Pro and found that the cost difference is much wider at these locations, as much as $8~$10 per box of 100 with the .40 being more expensive. That's why I've been leaning more toward the 9MM. Cheaper to shoot and my thinking is the more I shoot the better at it I will become.

Advice?
 
RDY2GO! said:
...I've priced 9MM and .40 at every gun shop I've been to as well as Walmart and Bass Pro and found that the cost difference is much wider at these locations, as much as $8~$10 per box of 100 with the .40 being more expensive.
Click to expand...

I was thinking along these same lines when I bought an M&P9. At my local Walmart, 9mm FMJ range ammo is about $10 per 50, while .40 is around $15.
 
scooter123 said:
Just a couple notes on 40 -> 9mm conversions.

Most manufacturers use a smaller Outside Diameter barrel in their 9mm semi's. This means that doing this conversion will require using an aftermarket conversion barrel from Storm Lake and the like. If a drop in barrel isn't available, this can mean you'll have to "fit" that new barrel to the slide or have it done for yoou. Good news is that hand fitted barrel may prove a bit more accurate than a factory drop in barrel.

Second is that you'll be running a 9mm casing on a breech and extractor designed for the 40 caliber. Because of concerns that this may effect Reliability, I would strongly urge that you NOT carry with one of these conversions.

Other than that, for a high volume shooter it's a good way to save a bit on ammo costs now that 9mm can be found again. I've also seen many posts that indicate thatt despite the mismatch in diameter in regards to the extractor/breech, these conversion actually functions with pretty good reliability.
Click to expand...

Not to get too off topic, I used a S&W factory 9c barrel in my .40c with no problems. Using my digital calipers, the two barrels mic'd out to within a thousandth or two in all dimensions.

So far I have put about 1K through the 9 with no problems.

I agree with not carrying this conversion for defense, but it does allow slightly cheaper trigger time at a lower cost than buying a second compact.
 
Find a range that rents pistols and then decide which one feels most comfortable. 40 cal aprox 31 cents per bullet, 9 mm 26 cents per bullet.
 
I am partial to the 40 S&W round. But as a matter of protection, the person behind the trigger is most important link. A well placed .38 round is better than a miss with a more powerful round.

Make a choice best for you and practice, practice, practice. Good luck.
 
PD Sgt. said:
Not to get too off topic, I used a S&W factory 9c barrel in my .40c with no problems. Using my digital calipers, the two barrels mic'd out to within a thousandth or two in all dimensions.

So far I have put about 1K through the 9 with no problems.

I agree with not carrying this conversion for defense, but it does allow slightly cheaper trigger time at a lower cost than buying a second compact.
Click to expand...

First, I would think twice before carrying a conversion barrel for SD too, but I have a 40-9 conversion barrel for my Glock 27 that has 3000+ rounds through it. I have had zero FTF's with this setup. The biggest factor is using the 9mm mags. Would I carry my conversion, probably not. Is it as reliable as my other pistols. You bet. I took my Hi-Point C9 (gift) to the range and had at least 1 ftf per mag, yet I read on forums that people use these guns for SD. I'd take my conversion over that gun for SD any time.

Second, I read that the M&P 9mm barrel would fit in the M&P 40s&w slide, so I went to my local gun shop & had them take the barrel out of an M&P 9 Pro & install it in the M&P 40 Pro. It fit, but when he racked the slide the barrel would get stuck in the slide. We tried it several times, but it failed each time. Evidently the Pro Series does not allow for the barrel swap for some reason.

...unless the sales guy did something to make it stick because he didn't want me to know that I could get two guns out of one purchase.
 
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