caliber choices

[Smoke]

The last gun I bought my first criteria was it had to be on my employer's approved list.

Then it had to meet the criteria for Colorado Springs.

Security can only carry semiautomatics in 9mm or .40S&W in Colorado Springs. I have no idea why and don't care but that was my last consideration

 

[Brian Parrish]

With Training

IIRC, contemporary accounts indicated the .45 revolvers were not all that effective against the Moros either. But the troops FELT more secure with the larger caliber.
The only man-carried weapons that got fairly good results were rifles, and shotguns loaded with buckshot loads.

It was found that with sufficient training they could shoot it out of the revolvers but it took too much training. That influenced Browning's design parameters. By lowering the bore axis closer to the finger, and by making a short single action trigger reach almost anyone could shoot it well enough with far less training. That is still true.

 

[Sgt. Buzzard]

I agree 100% with BB57. It's been 50 years since I went on the job and had to carry an issued weapon, no choice there. But off duty and retired, fit is king. Absolutely no doubt platform first for me.

I can't instinctively point a double stack Glock. But a G42 (380) I can hit center mass (paper plates) all day long at any reasonable SD distance, at speed by pointing my arm. Same thing with any J frame, providing it has the two finger synthetic grips. Those two are my SD, EDC weapons. Anything else is a range toy. The Sig 365XL also points for me but I don't want to carry that much weight anymore. So it's a truck and bedside weapon.

 

[SGT ROCK 11B]

I agree 100% with BB57. It's been 50 years since I went on the job and had to carry an issued weapon, no choice there. But off duty and retired, fit is king. Absolutely no doubt platform first for me.

50 years ago an off-duty cop was expected to make arrests. Sometime maybe 25 years ago when cell phones became popular, cops were told to be a good witness.

When we had to carry revolvers the savvy gunfighters, once they retired carried 1911s, 45 Automatics.

On my most recent LEOSA Qualification I asked the Rangemaster what is most popular with the retirees. Glock 19 (9mm) was #1 with S&W J-Frame snubbies a close #2.

 

[SGT ROCK 11B]

When people pick a handgun to carry do you most often choose the platform ....ie 1911 and then pick the caliber around that or do pick the caliber first and then see what firearms it is offered in?

I thought this might be a fun topic...hope you agree?

It is an interesting topic.

In my youth I like the 45 ACP. Today a 9mm is "good to go".

A DA/SA revolver is always a great choice. Now with pistols you have three basic platforms. So everyone should have something that works for them.

 

[Magnum_PI]

I'd say a bit of both.

I like revolvers. Especially small ones. JFrames and the like for size and ease of carry.

I like 357 and 38. Anything bigger just seems silly for me and my day to day life. Anything larger, and it's less likely to be carried.

 

[BAM-BAM]

Ammo's come a long way since I started carrying in 1978.

Auto's are 9mm,.45 and once in a while a.380 PPK

Revolver's; +P .38 HPs in EDC urban settings, 158gr .357 soft points when out in Penn's Woods.

Guns; I'm mired in the late 20th Century. Smith Revolvers, 3rd Gen S&W, Beretta 92s and Sig P-series 220s and 245 autos.

10 years experimenting with different guns until settling on those listed above. Calibers were pretty much set from the beginning.

 

[old tanker]

For me it has to fit. It has to be comfortable and instinctive. Maybe because choices were slimmer sixty years ago, I chose a Colt Government Model. Maybe it ruined me for everything else, but there is nothing I shoot better. There are other guns I shoot about as well, BUT I have to think about it.

As a consequence, the default was .45 ACP. .38 Super was pretty moribund until it became the rage in IPSC race guns. I did buy the first Delta Elite I saw and like 10mm. A 1911 in 9mm still strikes me like buying Corvette with a stovebolt six and Powerglide.

So despite an assortment of guns and calibers to pick from, it's this Combat Commander that gives me the most comfort.

 

[chief38]

There is no "perfect" do-all caliber for everybody or every situation. It all depends on the gun you are able to carry. While most will not dispute the effectiveness of a 45acp, the guns that shoot them are usually a bit large, heavy and bulky and would preclude most of us from carrying one concealed for long periods of time, year round. Small calibers like 22, 25acp, 32acp, 380acp are a bit weak and while there are excellent guns that shoot them (like a Ruger LCP Max) one has to be comfortable carrying a small caliber pistol. I'm not.

So....... the best bang for the size, or size and weight ratio to effectiveness and capacity brings us to the ubiquitous 9mm. 9mm pistols are now micro in size, light weight, carry 11+ rounds on board with a flush magazine and can be controlled by almost anyone. They are quick to reload and have much better manageable recoil than most J Frames. They are affordable as is the ammo for them. 9mm ammo choices are plentiful and it can be gotten anywhere. Given the right ammo choice, the 9mm is quite effective for SD. While the vulnerable 38 special used to be king of the hill, it is now waning due to the wheel guns having limited capacity on board, slow reloading, more bulk, weight and width. Today, the top end 9mm ammo beats the 38 spl's and ammo manufacturer's no longer spend a lot of time and effort improving the 38 special like they do for 9mm ammo. So that would be my summation as to what caliber Id choose for SD, EDC, CCW.