What makes everything in the .40 Caliber range so polarizing?

[Mike SC Hunter]

After the 9mm fiasco in Florida the 40 reined supreme for over 25 years. Then the the weenie people couldn't handle it so the 9mm rose to the top. As the LE's dumped it for wanting a 9mm the size of a bar of soap that holds 26 rds of ammo. Be a lemming. Follow the crowd. I don't.

 

[brucev]

My brother carried one as a deputy sheriff. Never heard him opine that it was anything but very effective. When he could get me cheap ammo, I had a Glock 22 that was the bomb for anything and everything. Now it's many years down the road. He is deceased. I am no longer a member of the gun of the month club. I'm down to just the basics. Have my .38/.357 revolvers ... a RIA .45 ACP and a Sig 226 9mm. If ammo were again available and affordable, I'd like a .40 S&W. Right now, just finding ammo for what I have is a problem. Will say, shot a whole lot of ammo using harrow blades for targets. Never saw a blade crack/break shooting it with common handgun calibers. Did put about 3K rounds of .40 S&W 180 gr. FMJ's into a nice harrow blade. That is the only one I ever saw just plain crack in half. Shooting distance varied from 7-10-15-25 yds. That G-22 gobbled up anything and everything I ever loaded into the magazine and all of the rounds regardless of manufacturer functioned perfectly with POA=POI. Sincerely. bruce.

 

[Mike0251]

Love all the calibers out there especially anything that starts with a 4. Here's a few in that arena. The first two are .40 S&W, the others speak for themselves. No hate or discontent here and I reload for all of them too.

 

[Miami_JBT]

Guess if we had today's "weenie people" back in WWII the 45acp would just be a foot note in history now.

We did have weenie people back then. We went from .45 Colt to .38 Colt if you recall

We then went to .45 ACP because of perceived issues with. 38 Colt and drugged up Moro Tribesmen.

From there, starting right after WWII, we looked at going to a 9mm. That's what birthed the Colt Commander and the S&W Model 39. The only reason why we didn't was money. We had tons of 1911s and .45 ACP sitting in inventory after WWII.

 

[Miami_JBT]

I forgot to add that not only do I like the 41 Magnum and my model 58 but I like all the 40 cal rounds . 38-40 was my first single action love , although it says 38-40 it uses a .401" bullet ... should be called 40-40 !
Like the 10mm Auto and even the 40 S&W .

1911's should be 45 acp ... JMB designed it that way ...
Gary

JMB also designed thr 9.8mm Colt, a .40 Caliber Cartridge.

 

[giants1]

Is it true that for Glocks, .40 S&W wears out the frame, credible armorer reports of blowing up, and bend the locking block pins prematurely?

 

[Mike SC Hunter]

Is it true that for Glocks, .40 S&W wears out the frame, credible armorer reports of blowing up, and bend the locking block pins prematurely?

As creditable as something you might read on a bathroom wall............

 

[RoyM52]

Today I realized something of a strange phenomenon in the firearms community, everything in the .40 Caliber range being a love it or hate it affair.

I'm not just talking about approximate .40cal projectiles like .40 S&W or 10mm Auto either, but literally everything between .40 and .50cal.
.38-40, .40 S&W, 10mm Auto, .41 Magnum, .410 Bore, .44-40, .44 Special/Magnum, .444 Marlin .45 Colt, .45 ACP, .454 Casull, .45-70 Govt, .458 SOCOM, .460 S&W Magnum, etc, you name it.

People either love them or hate them all in equal portions in a way that seems out of proportion compared to other cartridges in the .20 Caliber or .30 Caliber range which seem to receive a lot more approval from folks in general.

After reading this entire thread for the last few days, it seems to have shone this to be a false premise. {on this forum}

People here discuss this as if it is true, but then go on to say it doesn't apply to them. I draw the conclusion that the premise is false and that the 40 and above are not polarizing any different than those below 40. {I supose I should add YMMV}

 

[xtrtsqrt11]

My opinion for what it's worth ($.02 at best), is that a pistol is a pistol and they all require shot placement first if they are of a recognized duty level type power.

The only advantage 9mm really has is cheaper price for practice ammo.

I never had a .40 until about 2 months into this pandemic I noticed that there were boxes of .40 still on the shelves and not much else. I got a cheap Walther P99 and then a NOS 4013TSW so that I could use that ammo when it's available. Now I have more choices of handguns in different calibers so that I can take advantage of whatever might be on the shelves or online.

 

[RobertJ.]

I think that most guys who say they dislike the .40 S&W couldn't come up with a logical reason why.

I was one of them for years, until I bought one!

 

[DUSTYDOGDAN]

I was never a fan back when the 40 came out.

But in 2008 or 2009 I found a 4006 LE trade in at Cabelas gun library and I fell in love with it. Then I started collecting S&W 2ND & 3RD Gens and have found locally a lot of very clean Like new in the box 40's and have bought everyone that came around. It seems like people bought 40's back in the early-mid 1990's just because it was the new hot thing but they never really went out and shot them. I have bought a CS40, 410, 410S, 4046, and a 4013 single stack.. and Cabelas had some of the M&P LE trade in in 40 the other day and it looks as if it was never issued and I like it a lot. I just wish I would have been buying more ammo for them over the years.

 

[Univibe]

For personal defense, .45 ACP and .40 S&W should never have been born. 9mm is all anybody needs.

 

[Mike SC Hunter]

For personal defense, .45 ACP and .40 S&W should never have been born. 9mm is all anybody needs.

Opinions are like exhaust pipes........We all got one. And yours effects no one but you.

 

[boatbum101]

Traditionally handgun calibers renowned for fight stoppers & / or efficent killers of game have been large bore . Exception being the 357 mag which relies on velocity / expansion , which IMHO is best left for smaller game & felonious bipeds .

 

[double-dipper]

I don't believe they are "polarizing" at all!!!! Who said they were?? I think you're stirring the pot Mr. 40 Smollett Wesson.

 

[yeti]

Ahhhh yes the 40S&W hate/curiosity threads. I will play along.

I know 40S&W isn't for everyone.
Shooting some factory loads (WWB165 immediately comes to mind) out of a light compact or a sub-compact platform can be...well...kind of harsh.
There are plenty of other good loads available thankfully and in a full size platform most of these are quite pleasant to shoot.
I shoot more 40S&W than anything and really like the balance of power & capacity. I was initially forced into adopting 40 short & weak for competition, but really have become a huge fan after many years of loading & shooting it.
The 40 has immense versatility (esp. if you roll your own) and can send 135gr or 140's slow or with impressive speed.
Push a 200gr like 45Auto or send 180's & 165's hot. 9mm cannot offer the bullet weights that 40 can. Load it up or load it down using a wide variety of powders.... all with more capacity than 45 & more punch than 9. 40S&W has versatility!

I always hear the comment that bullet design improvement has made 9mm more viable for SD. Yes, I think this is true.
Haven't the same improvements bolstered 40S&W's and 45Auto's terminal effectiveness as well?
I believe the answer is also, yes. Some folks don't like change. There are still plenty of choices.

 

[Erocksmash]

I myself have never really cared for 9mm, I've always had them, but I've always loved the .40s&w, bought and sold so many of them, 4 shorty 40s and a myriad of other manufacturers...

I was down to zero .40s then I got another barrel for my 4014/1013 conversion, after 1 mag of .40 is had to put .40s back in the stable so I got 3 more lol...

Love it or hate it, its just another caliber

 

[Benton Quest]

Is it true that for Glocks, .40 S&W wears out the frame, credible armorer reports of blowing up, and bend the locking block pins prematurely?

I didn't ever write this on a bathroom wall, but yes, Glocks in the 40 platform do have quicker parts wear...pin breakage and locking block breakage being top of the lost that I have personally seen. That said, it's not an overnight thing.

Handgun effectiveness boils down to one thing. Shot placement. Period. That said, a 9mm steered where it is supposed to go, works. A larger caliber that misses the sweet spot won't. Period.

For most shooters...Most that is, they steer a 9mm better than something that offers more flash and sizzle. Just facts. It's that simple.

I've carried 9mm, .40 and from time to time, .45...and never felt unarmed. However, I would never knowingly take any of them to a gunfight as handguns are nothing more than weapons of convenience.

And to blame the FBI for l this based on the black swan event that was April 11, 1986 is patently unfair. While there was much to be learned from that event, those boys played the hand that they were dealt.

In that instance, Jerry Dove sent a 9mm Silvertip into that dirt bag that killed him...but no one told the bad guy. It sometimes takes a bit too long to bleed out. If Dove had hit him with a 40, I can't really say 1 mm would have changed the outcome.

You pay your money and you take your chances.

Sent from my SM-A025V using Tapatalk

 

[LVSteve]

40 S&W is a particular case with several things that set people off. Here's a few:

1) It's snappy in many guns.

2) It's loud at the range. (Yes, that's a problem for some shooters)

3) The case support issue alienated the reloader community, despite the fact the problem was with Glock.

4) Some developed an irrational fear of the caliber in any gun because of the case support issue.

5) More irrational fears: some felt it threatened their favorite caliber, be it 9mm or 45 ACP.

6) It's not 10mm.

As for the other "4" calibers, many feel that 45ACP is "too much" and it's "too old". Maybe it's the association with the 1911, a big heavy gun with the hammer cocked when you see one. Yeah, I know.

 

[Univibe]

There are a lot more 1911s in .45 than .40, and of course everyone knows the 1911 is the best auto pistol ever invented.

1911s and .40 have had problems. Slide goes too fast, leading to extraction issues. Both Colt and Kimber dropped them from their lines a long time ago. Much better luck in plastic guns.