I posted this in another thread, but thought some might be interested in it here as well. I reference the 547 a lot, but I'd also like to see the 940 return just as much, I mean maybe anything in a 9mm revolver and here's some reasons why:
I keep trying to champion the cause of the return of the 547 (or even the 940) in the hopes that maybe someday S&W will....at least think about it.
Awhile back, I got to thinking about some comments I've seen on other threads about 9mm in revolvers, so I thought I'd put a little comparison together that is generic, and based on what I own, not necassarily what's out there for a more specific bullet type or availability comparison. I am a bit limited on ammunition availability, so I have added here a brief snapshot (literally) of .38/.357/9mm comparison. I own a L-Frame (619), so had to use seven round speedloaders, which will influence the width, but not length shown in the photos. I've included simple ballistics that, for instance, would be applicable here in Germany for hunting. However, here they use Joule and not energy per foot pounds, so I entered what we good Americans are used to. FYI, in order for a handgun to be used for hunting purposes, it must be able to produce 300 joule at the muzzle, which is about 220 foot pounds. Note: you cannot hunt with handguns in Germany, they can only be used for "finishing shots" (dispatching wounded animals). I had to used something as a comparison, so chose these ballistic figures, obviously one could get a lot more detailed, particularly handloaders. I'm also going to post this on a few other threads for reference, just for interest sake.
Like they say, a picture is worth a thousand words. Note the "power to size ration" between .38 special +P and the Federal 9x19 124 grain. A speed loader with 9x19 (in any flavor), is very easily carried, even in a pocket as the dimension is nearly equal all the way around. To me, this sells 9x19 as a revolver caliber in a lot of ways. For those that say you can get +P+ .38s to match 9x19 performance, what you can't replicate is the ammunition availability and compact size. The only problem with this is that 547 HKS speedloaders are not that easy to find; I was able to get about seven of them on ebay a few years ago.
And of course, I would be remiss if I didn't post a photo of my 547, which I own but cannot take possession of for a few weeks until the nightmarish paperwork clears (it's quite the process over here). Get them while you can!!!
