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

I’ve had 3 .40’s, shot several others, currently down to one, a Springfield Armory P-9 (CZ-75 clone, Tanfoglio-made parts, finished/built by SA back before you could get real CZ’s in the US. I’ve shot IDPA and Steel Challenge with it but not much now. Extended shooting with anything larger than 9mm is rough on the arthritis in my thumb joint.

Like so many things, the .40 is a compromise and probably not a bad one. I’ll hang on to the one I’ve got. I’d get another if I came across the right one at the right price at the right time, but I’m not going looking for one.

Did one of his meat targets refuse to stop attacking?

The HK USP pistols in 40 were really good, i think they were actually designed around the cartridge.

He explains what I'm referring to in the video. You have to watch it.

40 good

9mm not terrible

Arguments saying 9 is as good as 40, fruitless BS.

Some folks act like OP is looking to obtain his first & last pistol...ever.

Glad we can still afford, & chose to have either,... or both.

But don't dally.

If I was in the market for a cheap .40, that’s for sure a source.

Wonder if they’re replacing .40’s with .40’s or going 9mm like the military.

DF

To me the 9mm is a compromise.

I love my bargain cheap like new glock and m&p 40cal pistols. Why not? They fire 40 just fine and the Federal and Blaser 180gr FMJ are wonderful choices for my rural area. If I decide the 40 isn't my game then it's no big deal to convert them to 9mm and I've done so with one glock.

Glock22
Glock23
Shield 40

These were very cheap and they function fine. What's not to like.

Well, I look at it a bit differently. To me, the .40 is the compromise.

It’s not a .45, not a 9. High performance 9mm ammo ups the ante for the nine, giving the .40 a run. Neither the 9 nor the .40 are a .45, but a big gun may not be as handy. A smaller gun on your person beats the bigger gun at home or in the truck.

DF

No love for the .40 S&W? Brother you ain’t lookin in the right places? I have 3, love them all. Trust my life to them every day. Occasionally I’ll carry one of my 10mm’s or the one 9mm I own, but my .40’s get 99.9% of the carrying, and the love. Do I care that new pistols aren’t being chambered for it? Nope. Do I care others aren’t fans of it? Again nope. Will I write paragraph after paragraph explaining why I like it best, or sit around hoping it will gain more public favor? Stand by…NOPE. 😎

Doc_Holidude

No love or hate for the S&W 40, I have a S&W MP 40 with a 357 Sig barrel, an EAA Witness in 40 S&W with a 357 Sig barrel, a Glock 22. They all go bang and shoot well, the M&P seems to be more accurate and easier to shoot. Wait 20 or 25 years and it'll be popular again. I do carry a 1911 10mm in a chest holder when I go riding my s x s or 4 wheeler as there have been Bear and Mountain Lions seen within a few hundred yards from my house, some very large wild hogs have been taken here also. At one time I had a 40 Hi Power with a 357 Sig barrel also.

Steve.............

Does he get to the point before I fall asleep?

I’m considering a Gen 3 or 4 Glock 23 as a pistol to carry in the woods and hiking. It is no .44 Mag, but a hard cast .40 cal 200 gr bullet at 1,000 fps is pretty capable against critters small and a good bit bigger not to mention two-legged threats. In that role, the 13+1 capacity, subsonic velocity, and 23 oz empty weight are pretty appealing to me.

Expat

With various types of modern ammo one can tailor the ammo to the perceived threat ie Glaser Safety slugs versus HP versus Hardcast etc. I decided to switch our primary carry guns to 9mm because of its international popularity but not least of which its popularity here in the US. As far as my “heavy carry” I switched to 10mm and thus far over the years have shot hundreds or thousands of rounds through my Glock 20 with precisely ZERO malfunctions or FTF/FTE. I figure I have most bases covered this way. 😉

For the record, I don't hate the 40. I'm indifferent about it. I've shot some 40 S&W pistols that I liked a lot, but not enough to stop relying on my 9's and 45's. If I'm buying anything of .401 diameter, it's in a longer case. Even that is mostly out of curiosity.

I do though hate that government agencies spend too much of our money on hardware solutions to software problems, and this has been one shining example IMO. If the move to the 40 doesn't prove that out on its face, the move back to the 9mm certainly does.

Skip right to the meat target experiment, if you like.

It's pretty clear that, under certain rare circumstances, the degree of destructive penetration one gets from a 180 grain JHP .40 caliber bullet (from a .40 S&W handgun) is superior to any 9mm parabellum round from a similar handgun. This could result, in the case of a 9mm, in a failure to reach the heart, and the ability of an attacker to therefore continue in the fight against you.

It's a trade off, but you have to give the .40 S&W its props in those areas (rare though they may be) where it's actually the hands down favorite. I speak of penetrating the arm, ribs, lungs, and heart, after full expansion, from a lateral hit.

Paul to the rescue.

LOL

STRSWilson: Who knows what the mental midgets at the ammunition manufacturing plants will do in the future?
After seeing what bizarre things they have done (and NOT done!) over the last few decades NOTHING would surprise me!
Unlike most here I have actually seen the results of "bad guys" getting shot with the 40 S&W cartridge - and believe me YOU do NOT want to get shot center mass with a 40 S&W bullet.
I own several pistols in 40 S&W caliber and have used/carried them professionally and personally for 30 years now.
I am NOT saying the 40 S&W is THE best pistol cartridge ever invented - but I am saying it does everything I need/needed done in a service and personal protection round.
Long live the 40 S&W.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Go figure 40 sucks but 10mm is great. I own an SR40 and a PX4 in 40. I shoot the crap out of them. During the ammo shortage I could always find 40.

I kind of like the .40. Hi-Power, Beretta 96, Sig-Sauer Match. 170 gr hard cast truncated cone at 1200 fps has equaled dead mule deer at 25 to 75 yards.
Hi-Power is cool. Beretta to add oomph to my service carry experience. Sig is very accurate. Crimson trace on all.

You know what shoots .40 S&W really well for me? My Glock 20 with a .40 S&W conversion barrel installed. Tames it right down.