Has Smith & Wesson abandoned the .40 S&W cartridge?

[Echo40]

Despite its decline in popularity since 2016 I thought that they would continue to stand by it since it's their cartridge and all, but their last few pistols haven't been chambered in .40 S&W, so now it's starting to seem liks they've abandoned it.

First there was the Shield EZ, then the Shield PLUS, and now the new CSX pistol, none of which has been chambered in .40 S&W. At first I wrote it off to the fact that the EZ is aimed more at shooters with less grip strength, so the heavier recoil spring that the .40 requires doesn't really work well there, the the Shield PLUS because it would probably only hold a couple rounds more than the standard Shield, but the CSX seems like it would make a lot of sense chambered in .40 S&W, and I would be interested in a CSX40.

It might be too early to call at this point, but the way things are going, I may have to alter my signature to be less sarcastic.

 

[Bullet Bob]

I don't think S&W abandoned the .40, shooters did, except for a few dedicated fans. You can't make a living building something that people don't buy.

 

[peterGun]

Other than discontinuing the .40SC I don't see abandonment, the fact that the Shield40 and .40C are still stocked must mean there's still a market.


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[Mustang93]

I've shot a lot of 9mm (years of IDPA) and only a little 40. I won an FNX40 as a door prize at a match years ago. I just started handloading for it and it seems very versatile. It uses 14 round mags and is about the same size as my 1st gen M+P 9. I guess can't see a down side to it compared to 9mm except ammo cost. Concerning the CSX, I have one and could see where a CSX 40 would be a challenge (recoil) for many occasional shooters. I have a CS-45 which puts recoil in perspective for me.

 

[benf1]

Looks to me like the 40SW M&PS are still selling too, my son recently got one of the FS in 5". Of course, I've been reading about the death of 40SW since I picked up a Beretta 96A1 some nine years ago.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

Yesterday Was looking at ammo.
This store had no 22, 38 Special, 44, etc.
But they a bunch of 40!
The boxes of 40 exceeded the total of all other handgun ammo.
The WOW look at that -
6-8 Boxes of 38 Super.
Everything priced Sky High.

 

[waffles]

.40 got a bit of life breathed back into it when people were buying absolutely everything. Of the guns listed, I agree that the EZ concept doesn't really lend itself to .40, and I don't think the CSX is going to sell well enough to keep the 9mm in production long, let alone support sales of a less popular cartridge. The plus would be the most likely to get a .40 option, but I'm wondering if the super tight double stacking is just going to be too much of a pain with the slightly larger .40 round to the point of not being possible without dimensional changes that defeat the purpose (also applies to the CSX).

On the upside, there is absolutely tons of .40 on store shelves again, and for the first time in my life I'm shooting lots of it. Runs great in my Glock 20 and substantially easier on the wallet than the 10mm I've burned up.

 

[roscoepc]

This sounds similar to the Sig Saur Site: They show No listings for anything chambered in .357 Sig....

 

[sigp220.45]

I really like the CSX. If there was any inkling they'd come out in .40 I would wait since I love the cartridge. But, I fear that day is not coming.

 

[Univibe]

Glock seems to be doing the opposite. Not only did they give G22 and G23 the gen 5 upgrades, they re-designed them with wider, heavier slides. This reduced perceived recoil and muzzle flip substantially. When I shoot G22.5 with 180s, it's barely more than G17.5 with +P 9MM loads. So there was a big commitment to .40 from Glock.

 

[BigBoy99]

When the .40S&W was introduced, I figured I don't need a new caliber. I've been shooting the .45ACP all these years and it doesn't show any signs of "falling out of favor." I've never owned a handgun in .40S&W and am glad I never jumped on that bandwagon.

 

[Jimmy4570]

.38-40 ballistics in a self loading platform! Wheeeeeeee!!! But seriously, the FBI's push to have a reduced/weakened 10mm cartridge for the new breed of non-shooting special agents somebody at S&W said "Hey, we can just chop the Norma cartridge to make something they can handle. How can we fit it into a 9mm frame?" Paul Liebenberg, working for S&W at the time, said he could figure it out, and he did. The 4006. Great piece of engineering and construction on Liebenberg's part but to what end? The .40 S&W doesn't do its job appreciably better than either the 9mm or 45acp. It provides snappier recoil than the cartridges on either side of it and falls way short of its flatter shooting, longer reaching Norma father. And all to satisfy some perceived need to accommodate limp wristed new breed "special" agents who in fact aren't very interested in shooting anything at all. Never been a fan.

 

[ACEd]

Personally I like the 40 - for me my 4006TSW and 4046 and P226 (40) shoot better than my 5946TSW - but maybe its the ammo or just the 5946TSW I was shooting at the time.

As to ammo availability, the 40 was readily available and cheaper than 9mm in beginning of current spike but that was just because everyone wanted 9mm. One big store I was at in early 2020 had nothing but 40 on shelves. Now the 40 is scarce around here and significantly more expensive than 9mm.

 

[rosewood]

Being a 40 fan and having owned a Taurus PT140 as well as currently own a Shield in 40, I can tell you, the 40 isn't fun to shoot in small compact guns. I like it much better in full size guns like the SD, 4006, etc. For small compact carry guns, I have migrated to the 9mm for recoil reasons.

Rosewood

 

[robrossk]

While the 40 S&W may not be the most favorite platform right now, I doubt S&W has abandoned it. And I seriously doubt there are only "a few dedicated fans" (earlier post). And I could argue that the M&P 40 is the most versatile M&P handgun out there right now. I can shoot 40 S&W, 357 sig, and 9mm from one gun (changing barrel and magazines of course). How many guns do you have that can do that. For those of you considering exiting the platform, I will gladly buy every round of ammo you may have!

 

[Kid Shileen]

There are a lot of pistols out there in this chamber. Not the flavor of the month but it won't disappear.

 

[Mike SC Hunter]

We can still buy ammo for 30/40 Krag/32-20 Win/ 38-40 44/40 and 30-30 Win..........Which are all over 100 years old....Don't get yourself into a tizzy about the 40. It ain't going anywhere.

 

[Richard Simmons]

S&W? When's the last time any manufacturer offered any new firearm in .40 S&W?

 

[ericrlarson]

I carried a .40 on duty for most of my career, up until 2005. I shot one in USPSA Limited class for so long (150,000 rounds easily) that the caliber just lost all appeal to me. Maybe I just got bored with it. I think it would be unwise for S&W to discontinue the round though.


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[quikdraw67]

Being a 40 fan and having owned a Taurus PT140 as well as currently own a Shield in 40, I can tell you, the 40 isn't fun to shoot in small compact guns. I like it much better in full size guns like the SD, 4006, etc. For small compact carry guns, I have migrated to the 9mm for recoil reasons.

Rosewood

My 4013TSW disagrees with your statement.

I shoot better with it than my 4043.