Is the 40 S&W dieing?

[Scott in NCal]

I fear the death of the 40 S&W is near. Soon it will be an embarassment to own one. As a free service to all those that are worried about this I am willing to take all those soon to be dead 40's and all the ammunition anyone has, that mere possession of may lead to shame. I am espically willing to accept a Browning Hi Power in 40 S&W. Seriously, that trade in ammount is about what I would expect at the local gun store.

 

[TTSH]

I fear the death of the 40 S&W is near. Soon it will be an embarrassment to own one. As a free service to all those that are worried about this I am willing to take all those soon to be dead 40's and all the ammunition anyone has, that mere possession of may lead to shame. I am especially willing to accept a Browning Hi-Power in 40 S&W.

What a great service!

Funny you should mention the Browning Hi-Power in .40 S&W. Browning Hi-Powers are very hard to come by here in Massachusetts because they are not on our infamous "lists" (meaning dealers can't generally transfer or sell them). But recently I saw a nice used Browning Hi-Power in .40 S&W for sale locally (F-T-F) at a pretty reasonable price.

I didn't notice that it was a .40 right away and I was ready to jump (already busting open my piggy bank) when the good wife pointed out that it was a .40.

It took me 4 full days of hemming and hawing until I finally decided that after waiting so long, I shouldn't have to settle for a Hi-Power in .40. I wanted the original (9mm) as John Moses Browning had intended.

But it didn't really matter. Unbeknownst to me, the damn thing had sold after 2 or 3 days anyway. God had already made my decision for me.

 

[Wee Hooker]

Working in a gun shop, I do see the decline in the shininess of the 40 to most shooters. Of course, it's popularity was always greatest with young, forum/press schooled newbie buyers anyway. When those shooters come back for their second gun, it's usually either for a 9mm or 45ACP ( and often with the 40 in tow for trade.) That said, I was never a fan myself until I got a super deal on a tweaked 5" M&P Pro in 40. My intent was to convert it to 9mm but decided to try loading for the 40 first (since all those newbie shooters leave their brass ankle deep at the range anyway . Long story short, this old dog learned to load the 40 for range use so it behaves more like a light 45 acp load. I've warmed up to it enough now that I have recently added a Sig 1911 in 40 to the fold. Not because it's better than the 45, just because it's an interesting experiment....

 

[fallhunter]

You always take a kick in the pants on trade-ins. Price has seem to come down just a little bit on new ones, and the store needs to make a bit of money on the one they take in, but they can't be too high, or it would be too close to new prices.

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[rwsmith]

If HE was selling the .40...

If HE was selling the .40 it would be a hot item, rare even. I think the .40 has lost and gained some adherents, but there are plenty of .40 owners around and think that something between a 9mm and 10mm is the right thing to have.

 

[SOS24]

I think the 40 is definitely decreasing in popularity, but I don't see it necessarily dying. Arguments against the 40 are:
- too snappy, making more difficult to accurately shoot and get back on target
- no significant ballistic advantage over the 9mm due to ammo improvements.
- The FBI going back to the 9mm proves the 40 isn't worth it

I personally like the 40, but as long as the above arguments are out there, the 40 will continue to decline in popularity.

 

[sigp220.45]

The poor .40 - when the .45 ACP was the top dog it was the .40 Short and Weak, now that the 9mm has risen it has "snappy recoil" and is unmanageable.

I never thought it was weak, or snappy.

I worked a half dozen police shootings with it, and it impressed me. In one shooting the bullet went through a windshield, took a chunk out of the steering wheel, and powered on to make the guy in the driver's seat not just merely dead, but most sincerely dead. That round wasn't weak, and the cop who launched it never noticed the "snappy" recoil.

I like the .40 and it is still the most common LE round out there. It will be around for a long time.

 

[rwsmith]

I do have one obervation....

.....the when I shop used guns on gunbroker and a gun comes in choice of 9mm or .40, there are tons of .40s available and not nearly as many 9mm.

 

[cas0586]

The poor .40 - when the .45 ACP was the top dog it was the .40 Short and Weak, now that the 9mm has risen it has "snappy recoil" and is unmanageable.

I never thought it was weak, or snappy.

^This.

I am a new M&P40 full size owner and I have absolutely no complaints about it.

 

[federali]

Tail Wags Dog

The search for a more effective LE handgun began all over again following the infamous FBI Miami shootout of 1986. Generally, people tend to listen when the FBI has something to say about handguns. They went with the "10mm-Lite" while S&W secretly had the .40 S&W on the drawing boards.

But, there's more to stopping bad guys than bullet effectiveness. Somehow, recoil recovery, effective follow-up shots and ease of hitting what you're aiming at got lost in the shuffle at a time when police departments were scrapping minimum height requirements as discriminatory and more women were joining the ranks.

With the 40 in use for about 25 years, it has proven to be no more effective than the 9mm so the FBI returned to the 9mm. You can expect many more agencies to do the same as their existing handguns become due for replacement. This does not mean that the .40 is not a good round. I think its popularity will slide a bit but ammo should always remain available.

 

[QED]

These currently popular notions of 9mm being terminally equivalent to .40 S&W are amusing; however, that's just about as true as a RNL being terminally equivalent to a WC, assuming both penetrate equally. Not quite.
Yeah, I know, placement, placement, placement is what counts and shoot until the threat is "neutralized," and then 9mm will be just fine.

 

[Quanah]

The FBI's periodic deification of one or another pistol cartridge carries about as much credibility as their recent announcement that Hillary committed no criminal acts for which she could be prosecuted.

 

[Arik]

These currently popular notions of 9mm being terminally equivalent to .40 S&W are amusing; .

So you've seen first hand results? Did studies? Collected data? Please enlighten us

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[QED]

So you've seen first hand results? Did studies? Collected data? Please enlighten us

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I don't have the ability to enlighten everyone about anything;however, terminal superiority potential of .40 cal vs. 9mm is a matter of basic terminal ballistics/applied physics. Just like, as I pointed out, WC is terminally superior to a RNL, assuming same penetration. It's very simple and virtually self-evident, really. If you can factually show that my statement is erroneous, that would be marvelous.

 

[Arik]

I don't have the ability to enlighten everyone about anything;however, terminal superiority potential of .40 cal vs. 9mm is a matter of basic terminal ballistics/applied physics. Just like, as I pointed out, WC is terminally superior to a RNL, assuming same penetration. It's very simple and virtually self-evident, really.

Virtually but not in reality. While it's a good round you can't take out the human factor. Just as many people have died or not died with the 40 as with the 9.

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[QED]

Virtually but not in reality. While it's a good round you can't take out the human factor. Just as many people have died or not died with the 40 as with the 9.

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Obviously not in your reality. Definition of virtually: for the most part, almost wholly, just about. (From Mr. Webster).

If your measure of terminal effectiveness is by death count -- we have vastly different definitions of terminal effectiveness.

 

[okiegtrider]

I guess somebody out there still wants .40's, just today in the classifieds here one posted for sale sold in about a half hour.

Of course it did have a nice 9mm conversion to go with it.

 

[QED]

Sure, those that appreciate superior terminal performance of .40 cal vs. 9mm, and can shoot either reasonably well don't have a good reason to drop .40 cal. and settle for 9mm.

 

[kd4gij]

I don't think the round is dying. but anyone on the receiving end usually die pretty quickly.

 

[686-380]

I sure hope so. There's several I have my eye on. If "They don't move", maybe the shops will come down on their prices.

One particular ammo I use creates some of the biggest wound channels with that particular round.

I'm no expert but I know what I like and can shoot well enough.