If I were you, I'd stick with the .45.  Great stopping power and you can count on it knocking someone down the first time.  The .45 is a little slow, but well worth it.  I have personally seen a 9mm bounce off of a windshield, but that was in a controlled environment too.  I also just love the feel of a .45 when you pull the trigger.

 

Bush

 

I remember a story about ten or fifteen years ago, of a man with ten 9mm rounds in him and still motoring, he was big 300 lbs, and did bleed out, but you wouldn't get that with a 45. Never take a handgun to a gun fight that doesn't have a 4 in it.

 

The 9mm right now is giving the troops hell because it is not stopping enemy troops even when hit several times.  Nay say the naysayers thats because they are using ball ammo but the .45 was in the same role that the 9mm is now it it was called the man stopper and the 45 was using ball rounds.  Imagine what hollow points (HP) do sure the 9mm HP expand and 45 do too but the 9mm has over 2mm of catching up to when the 45 is just starting.  As for accuracy I have a 92FS VERTEC and a kimber custom II. Both can shoot around 2" at 25 yards on my good days.  Then only "advantage" the 9mm has is you can carry a lot of it but you may need a lot of it!  Just ask the troops in iraq.

the 45 is nice but some of us can't handle the recoil of it because of physical problems. i have three pistols. a 22, 9mm (both semi) and a 357 mag (revolver). for me i may be able to go one notch up from the 9mm in the recoil range. i have shot all three of them and i like the 357 mag and the 9mm. yes the 9mm is a fast gun with very little stoping power, unless you use hollows, but i still can handle it. i have also shot a 44 mag. (revolver) and could handle it and liked it. but as i said before when it comes to the semi's i can't handle much more then a 9mm.

I'm not sure but I believe all this is why they came up with the 40SW, it is kind of the perfect in between, it has a lot more s--t and the recoil isn't much more than the 9mm.

The 96fs I had wasn't much different in the recoil from the 92.

 

The choice boils down to "With what weapon can you consistently place all of your shots into the chest area while under pressure?" Bear in mind that some states cite "Imminent threat" distances for self-defense, which usually translate to 7-10 feet.

I am a long-time lover of the .45 and use it as first choice but  realize that other calibers also work. Remember that any caliber needs a little help from you to place it where it will do the most good. There is no such thing as a handgun caliber that will knock a man to the ground under its own force. Remember high school physics: For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Firing such a round should knock the person firing it down too. The "one shot knock-down" is a product of massive disruption of the nervous system which causes immediate collapse. The trick is to place the round where it will do the most good.

Best choice? Choose what you can shoot accurately then choose the cartridge configuration that works with absolute reliability in the weapon. A .22 that hits dead center mass is more effective than a .44 Magnum that misses. Many autos don't like certain hollow points or cartridge lengths. Typical handgun velocity often is too low to make hollow points work properly. Heavy clothing can cause some to collapse at the nose creating an essentially round-nose design anyway. Gold Dots and Federal's Hydro-Shocks seem to have an excellent reputation (Hydro-Shocks are my own choice in my .45s and function reliably but a friend's .45 won't feed them) but may not be reliable or accurate in your weapon. Make absolutely certain that your gun functions with the chosen load first time, every time and then practice, practice, practice.......

----- Original Message -----

From: THE GUN ROOM

To: THE GUN ROOM

Sent: Friday, January 16, 2004 11:10 PM

Subject: Re: .45 ACP or 9mm Parabellum

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New Message on THE GUN ROOM

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From: I_BentMyWookie
Message 5 in Discussion

The 9mm right now is giving the troops hell because it is not stopping enemy troops even when hit several times.  Nay say the naysayers thats because they are using ball ammo but the .45 was in the same role that the 9mm is now it it was called the man stopper and the 45 was using ball rounds.  Imagine what hollow points (HP) do sure the 9mm HP expand and 45 do too but the 9mm has over 2mm of catching up to when the 45 is just starting.  As for accuracy I have a 92FS VERTEC and a kimber custom II. Both can shoot around 2" at 25 yards on my good days.  Then only "advantage" the 9mm has is you can carry a lot of it but you may need a lot of it!  Just ask the troops in iraq.

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h the army (.45 in panama, 9mm in desert storm) I would definately choose the .45.  Knock down power and shock effect.  I agree with all those that say it was a mistake to follow NATO into the 9mm world.  The M-3a1 grease gun was great at night up close, and for keeping people off your tank.  With the .45 you knew that one hit took the bad guy out of the fight.  We had a saying that 'If you died from a 9mm, you were just having a bad day.'  A friend of mine was hit in the foot with a .45 (bullet broke the lace of his boot and exited out the instep), and almost died of shock.  My Hi-point 9mm kicks more than my M-1911a1 or my Ruger P90 (both in .45).  I reload my own .45 and buy my 9mm.  Set the rounds side by side and ask, 'If your life depeneded on it, which would rather the bad guy was shot with?'

 

Big Jim