When .357 Sig is so much better why carry 9mm?

[cmj8591]

It's about time we had a thread about the best handgun caliber. I wish I could find one about the lock.

 

[Arm]

Well, I'm not in killing someone, only to stop the threat......seen enough of that killing in VN, 9mm is very capable of doing just that...stop the threat, remove yourself from the situation....call the police. Sig .357 is a good round but overkill. If I need to permanently end the threat....well, I'll aim to do that.

 

[jupiter1]

The 45acp is an extension of the 45 government [ aka 45 colt]
Guns for the cav. [aka horse mounted ]
The way to stop a cav charge is to hit the HORSE. [horse falls,causing all sorts of problems]
The effects on a person were secondary.[If it works on a 800lb horse a 200 lb man is easy.

I've read that a few times but have not seen any Army documents stating their reasons for choosing .45 caliber arms back in those days. I just figured .45 caliber bore size was a hold over from the Walker Colt and the Dragoons. Adequate penetration is the main requirement for large animals and a heavy .38 bullet driven at a decent velocity should do about the same.

The "rest of the world does not use 9mm "handguns" for primary SD.
The other countries use sub guns

I don't know about SD carry in the rest of the world but I do know their militaries and their police issue handguns and those are almost universally chambered for 9MM.

 

[cmj8591]

Well, I'm not in killing someone, only to stop the threat......seen enough of that killing in VN, 9mm is very capable of doing just that...stop the threat, remove yourself from the situation....call the police. Sig .357 is a good round but overkill. If I need to permanently end the threat....well, I'll aim to do that.

So, you just want to shoot the bad guy a little bit?

 

[Kurusu]

I carry a full size Sig P320 .357 and can rapid fire and put all shots at 21ft about a softball size group so that is not a problem. However, the loud deafening noise it would make yes that would be pretty awful on my hearing

And if you can do the same, or better, with a 9mm. The outcome on the receiving end will be the same.

 

[otis24]

I was deeply committed to 9mm and .45, years before there even was .40S&W or .357Sig.......... Guns, magazines, holsters, ammo. So I chose to pass on these young upstart calibers.

9mm,.45 , 357 ,.38sp,.380 and .22lr were enough calibers.... with track records..............................


Then 10/12 years ago I had the chance to get used but anib Sig 229 with both .40 and .357 sig barrels and 4 mags and night sights for about $500. Bought a couple (3or4) more mags and put my only.40/.357 gun in the safe. (with 50 rds of .40 and .357sig)

In 2013 after Sandyhook ....... the shelves were bare of 9mm,.45 and .40..... but .357 sig was still there....... IIRC I bought 2 50rd boxes ($60) a week for about 7-9 weeks. Picked up a few hundred rounds of .40 as it began to reappear.

Today the whole package represents my last ditch emergency stash.


Never hurts to have options and back ups to your back up plan!!!!!!!!

The current ammo crisis, as bad as it is, gives a great learning experience regarding ammo availability and our carry choices. I have a dandy little Winchester Model 70 Carbine chambered in .223. Ammo availability for .223 in my area is zilch. Meanwhile, .243 is plentiful in comparison. Seriously considering getting rid of the .223 and getting a .243. I'm not one to hoard ammo, so having something more readily available is a better option. As far as handgun ammo, not much available in general in smaller calibers (.380, 9mm, .38 Special). Now I am curious about .357 Sig availability. Hmmm????