Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Why No Love For The S&W .40?

Each person tolerate recoil quite differently for a variety of reasons.

This can be due to physical size, overcoming preconceived ideas about recoil, previous injuries, as well as advancing age and arthritis.

For some people, the .40 does have more recoil than they want to deal with, especially as the handgun gets smaller and lighter, thus magnifying the felt recoil to the shooter.

Same thing with the .45 ACP.

A 185 grain lead semi wadcutter Bullseye load that has a velocity of 725 FPS kicks substantially less than a 250 grain hard cast flat point being driven at 925 FPS, that is used for hunting and large animal defense.

Using the USPSA power factor formula (just as a generic measurement), the 185 grain load has a PF of 134.
The 250 grain flat point has a PF of 231.

That is a substantial difference.

You can choose loads to meet your needs, and there are a variety out there, and some have quite a bit more recoil than others.

I produce a .40 S&W polymer coated 170 grain SWC load that has an average velocity of 1175 FPS. It requires that the user have a fresh, properly working (not worn out) recoil spring. Personally I run a bit heavier than stock.

It was developed for deep penetration, and you can tell a difference between shooting this load and your typical range/paper punching, Walmart ammo, in terms of recoil.

I wanted a load that would be appropriate for carrying in the mountains where there were large bears, then go to town and not have to switch guns. This gun/load combo met those needs.