An Alternate Look at Handgun Stopping Power

Buckeye Firearms Association ^ | 8 July,2011 | Greg Ellifritz

[Cuttnhorse]

Thanks for the info...I have a Sig P229 in .40 Short & Weak, which I use for carry and love the gun. I bought a drop-in 357Sig barrel for it and what a fun round. Neat thing is, as you mention, uses the same mags.

Stay safe

[Titan Magroyne]

GREAT thread! As useful for commentary from FReepers as for the OP, thanks.

And yeah, the diff between phys stops and psych ones skews ballistics results, but makes for a great discussion of AARs. That can lead to further debate regarding the matter of trial (civil or criminal) after a self-defense shooting:

A perhaps “scary-looking” gun, or using an uncommon or “killer” ammo, or a reputation as a trained survivalist (”He’s just spoiling for a fight”),

VERSUS

...perception of the closest gun with common loads, wielded by a person in an immediate struggle for survival that he did not initiate - against the babydaddy with a heart of gold who loved his momma and was just about to turn his life around.

Sure, we’ve all read the Better-to-be-tried-by-twelve mantra. But police, prosecutor and juror prejudices all matter in the aftermath.

I’ve a friend who owns a Mossberg 500, quite common and in itself a fine HDW. It happens to be the Rolling Thunder model, the *appearance* of which is intimidating. All that hardware attached to the shotgun does nothing to improve function (allowing perhaps for slightly reduced muzzle flip or nightflash), but he has concerns about an overzealous prosecutor frightening a jury of blue-hairs with the thing, after a righteous shoot.

Yet the same thing that scares little old ladies may also be the deciding factor in a bad guy’s withdrawal before a fatal shot from the defender.

Me, I run a “deadly-ammo” (yeah, I know...) risk with one particular PDW I could be forced to pull, but no way I’m eschewing its use if needed. Potentially, I face calling a ballistics expert to testify on my behalf. In my home jurisdiction, that’s likely of no concern. Elsewhere? Maybe.

[MikeSteelBe]

The upside to the .40 design is that it fits into most of the already existing 9mm handgun platforms. Browning beefed up the Hi-Power in the .40, and I believe Taurus did as well on their PT-92 Beretta clone platform. The 10mm is longer, and has to use .45 ACP frames.

The .40 is definitely a step up from the 9mm. My logic for choosing the 9mm is cost, which allows for more practicing headshots due to the increase use of vests by “bad guys”. The next handgun I purchase is going to be a dedicated concealed carry weapon, and I am still considering a .357 Sig or .400 Cor-Bon.

I prefer the velocity/energy over the heavy/slow philosophy, but it requires more careful bullet selection to transfer the all of the energy to the target.