Anyone else think: "I should have got a 9 mm instead?"

I bought a Shield in .40 and I shot it fine, wasn't too snappy for me. I was comfortable with it and I preferred the short magazines with the NDZ performance pinky tab. I was confident carrying 7 rounds on my person and 12 more in 2 magazines in my backpack. One of the drivers for the .40 was also the fact that there were no 9mm Shields to be found and I was impatient. This worked for me.

BUT,

It was the only thing I had in .40S&W. In the mean time I picked up a S&W model 60 no dash and I already had a Highway Patrolman and a Marlin 1894C with .38 Special stocked up.

SO,

I decided to reduce by a caliber and I gave the Shield 40 to my brother, whose duty gun is 40. I now carry the J Frame and I am comfortable/confident carrying 5 rounds on my person and 18 more in my backpack, again this works for me.

Any new guns will be:

22LR, 9mm, .38/.357, .30-30, .30-06, or 12 gauge
 
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I have a few 9mm pistols, and have never been tempted to try a .40. A 1911 in .45, sure, just because I'd like to have one. I will never be in a firefight, have to shoot through armor, or try to shoot through cover.

In the extremely unlikely event I ever have another intruder in my home, a 9mm or .38 will more than suffice. In the even more unlikely event I ever need a gun on the street, a .22 or .32 will meet my needs.

Is there a gun I am ever likely to want that is available only in .40? I have never heard of such a thing.
 
The given for me is 51 years with a 1911 .45 as my carry / service / goto firearm.

I was looking for something lighter (arthritis has set in) a couple of years ago. Went to the range and shot the various 40s they had for rental, and did not find a one that I was even close to comfortable with. Then tried several 9s. The 9 worked better for me. Pity was you could not find ammo, so I put off any purchase until things got a little better.

I chose the Shield 9, and after severe growing pains, it now runs like a clock.
 
bushmaster1313 said:
I do not like dwelling on mistakes of the past. However, when I shoot my full size .40 S&W pistol, and especially when I compare the price of .40 S&W to 9 mm ammo, I think that as a shooter it would have made more sense to get the 9 mm.

I fully understand that a police officer or soldier might want the extra oomph of the .40 S&W. But as a range toy, it would seem that the 9 mm is superior in many ways -- i.e., recoil, noise, price.

I wonder what influenced me to get the .40 S&W?

ADDED NOTE: This is not about the relative superiority of 9 mm and .40 S&W. Rather, I am wondering if anyone else has had a similar regret and if they have an explanation for why they got the .40
Click to expand...

Many LE agencies are leaving the .40 S&W for the 9 mm. Look for bunches of LE trade in .40 S&W pistols to come on the market soon.
 
Donn said:
I know the name's a pox for many, but James Yeager is right with regards to high pressure rounds, (40 S&W, 357 Sig), in a 9mm poly platform. At some point, the gun will break, even the almighty Glock. That swayed me to the 9mm. Other opinions vary, and I'm certain many will, as this subject is a minefield.
Click to expand...

The 40 is no higher pressure than the 9mm, they are both rated at 35,000 psi by SAAMI. The 9mm +P is rated at 38,500 psi. The 357 Sig is rated at 40,000 psi.
 
Smoke said:
everyone has said there isn't much difference performance wise between the two and I can fire the 9mm more accurately even in a lighter gun.
Click to expand...

When the 40 is loaded to it's full potential, it runs close to 600 fpe, which is a lot more than the 9. However, most commercial 40 ammo is loaded way down from that level, for some of the reasons illustrated.

Full power 40 ammo is available:
https://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_list&c=25
 
I have a Ruger SR40 and is one the smoothest pistols I've ever had the pleasure of shooting. All pistols and their different calibers are like snowflakes, I think they're all special in their own way...
 
I guess I'll have to be the lone crazy that prefers 40SW to 9mm. The arguments for using a lighter, smaller, bullet just don't work for me. I've got six 40's, as opposed to five 9mm's. There is not that much difference in price, & I feel I get a lot more "bang for the buck". People talk about how much better 9mm has become as a defensive round; I don't think development has stopped on the 40SW, though.

Truth be said, these days I shoot more 45acp than anything, & seem to be moving in that direction, as 45's seem to be all I look at anymore.
 
I carry either a .40 S&W or a .45 ACP every day (both in Glock platforms). The .40 is snappier, but not difficult to qualify with at all. But, we are switching to the 9mm for many reasons:

1. The newest 9mm bullets perform as well as .40 and .45 (and outperform .45 in barrier tests)
2. Less wear and tear on the firearm
3. Better qualification scores
4. More ammo in the same size frame
5. With fixed ammo budgets you get to train more

I've seen a lot of people who were killed with firearms. In my opinion that I've come to over the years, a handgun is a compromise at best. Just make sure you are proficient with whatever you opt to carry...your life (and possibly mine) is worth the training effort.
 
As posted above, if you own a pistol that can do the barrel swap you are golden. Interesting setup is a G23 in 40 S&W, 9mm conversion, 357 sig conversion and a 22lr upper. Got all the bases covered.

Anybody run one of these combinations?
 
Since this is NOT a caliber war I'll just go ahead and say it; I prefer the .38 special - .357 combo for everything I'll ever need.

Sure semi-autos are fine, and I have the obligatory 9 or two. But I never fell for the marketing hype put out on the .40.
 
M3Stuart said:
Since this is NOT a caliber war I'll just go ahead and say it; I prefer the .38 special - .357 combo for everything I'll ever need.

Sure semi-autos are fine, and I have the obligatory 9 or two. But I never fell for the marketing hype put out on the .40.
Click to expand...

I really like the .45 Colt myself...hard to argue with a 255 grain chunk of lead at 950 fps.
 
You only own one full size auto? Just go buy a 9mm. Taurus 92s, Sigmas, Turkish TP9s and CZ75 clonez....all are fairly inexpensive. CDNN had a sale on the Tauri.
 
I too gave in the the siren song of the 40. Better ballistics then a 45 or a 9, higher capacity than a 45, and mild recoil. Terrific right. I bought a Ruger. A really great gun. Now the recoil was a bit sharp not bad just more than I expected. I reload so ammo was not a problem as I already cast the correct bullet. Capacity of 11 very good. Gun weight excellent. After a couple years the recoil got to be more than I wanted for range use (we couldn't CC then) so I decided to trade. I traded for a really nice Colt 1991. Ahhhh back to that old out of date 1911 style with the slow moving heavy bullet. Did I mention I had sold a 1911 to get the Ruger?

I did without a 40 till 3 years ago. I found a Beretta Centurion in 40 and tried again. Really smooth recoil. That was a soft shooting 40. Accurate also. It lasted about a year. Then I got to thinking I had a Kimber 45 by then plus a Beretta M9. Decided I didn't need two different large Beretta's. Sold the Centurion and I'll just keep my M9 and Kimber 45.

The things we do on the spur of the moment. Ain't it a gas. :cool::D
 
cmort666 said:
Actually, I wish I'd gotten a .40 S&W instead of a 9x19mm, but for different reason.

After having a Glock 22 for years, I had the choice of buying a Glock 19 or a Glock 23. I found the sharpness of the recoil of the Glock 22 objectionable enough to choose the Glock 19.

That was before I became aware of the existence of 9x19mm conversion barrels for .40 S&W Glocks. Now I wish I'd bought a Glock 23 and a 9x19mm barrel and had the best of both worlds.
Click to expand...

I had a setup like this. G23 with a Lonewolf 9mm barrel. You should use separate 9 and 40 magazines dedicated to their specific cal.. (During the '94 ban we used to stuff 12 rds. of 9mm in 10 rd G23 mags and it worked fine in a G19) I kept the G23 sitting next to the bed for about 6mos. with the 40 barrel in it. I pulled the mag one day and it was the 9mm mag stuffed with 9mm. If you try this combo I suggest replacing the 9mm mags with colored baseplates. .40 is too much for my arthritic hands. I once owned a KAHR MK40. Yikes!!
 
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