Best hangun caliber?

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Mystic

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I personally fel that either .40 or .45 is the best hangun caliber. Of course, it depends on what you want. A small concealed hangun in .38 or 9 mm can be very good. But for a fullsized handgun I like the .40 and the .45.

I don't like magnums all that much. Too much noise and muzzle flash. Bad in the dark.

I used to think the 1911 .45 was about the best gun ever and it is certainly a great gun. But a .40 or .45 Glock seems better to me today.

In the USA in the Old West the .45 caliber was quite popular. Then the military went to lesser caliber guns with considerable lack of success until they went to the 1911 .45. After many years of success with it the military again went to a lesser caliber gun (9 mm) and now again it seems the military is going to either the .40 or the .45.
 
Depends. For someone who reloads, 10mm is IMO the very best caliber. You can pack it for 400 ft. lbs or 800 ft. lbs if you want. Can be used for hunting, personal defense, or as a back woods bear protector.
 
It depends on what you are comfortable with when it comes to recoil and grip. I've heard more than one gun writer say that you should first make sure the gun fits your hands. Kinda rings true with me, I have small hands for a guy so a 9mm or 40cal fit my hands fine but, .45 are just way too big. My scores are better with the two smaller calibers but, scores dip a bit with a .45.

On the other hand a .357 fits my hands great and I have the power level I want to poke holes in the boogie man. So for me its a .357 magnum revolver. Trying to find a police agency around here that will allow me to carry a .357 if I get back in that line of work. So many have gone to one type of gun for all their officers ( Does not make sense to me).

Got the knock down and down range power that I like when I was a deputy. Deputies usually have to shot from longer distances than city police do, so if you pull into a driveway and start getting shot at, at least I had the power downrange from a magnum. No way would I rely on a semi auto to protect me at 100 plus yards, if I was forced to carry a semi auto it would have to be in .357 SIG or 10mm either of those would get the job done just like the magnum.
 
I am a fan of the 10mm also, as Drew pointed out there are more options with the caliber if you reload.However, I wouldnt rely on it as a back up in bear country,I guess it would be better than a rock though..
 
You can load 10mm safely to factory 44 mag power. It's a great bear country weapon, especially with a high capacity magazine. 10 or more shots of big caliber revolver power.

Black/brown bear, such as in the lower 48 (CO for example). In Alaska, or even perhaps Montana or Idaho, well yea, if there is a real threat of very large bears like Grizzly, then you want the BEEF!
 
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If I could only have one Handgun, it would be the .357 magnum. The number of models, ammo selection, versitality, accuracy and knockdown power are all plus's. Its the Best all around handgun in my opinion.
 
I'm going to put a vote in here for the good old fashioned .22 LR Rimfire. It is one of the most versatile rounds in existance. You can hunt small critters with it, you can plick all day with it and not cost a small fortune in ammunition. The guns chambered for it can be you very basic six shooters, to the very high quality and precision semi auto models out there.

And, if you have the Ruger Super Single Six (I have the stainless model with 5 1/2" barrel), you can convert to the .22 Magnum rimfire, and have one heck of a hunting handgun that is compact, yet efficient.

Are there more powerful...of course. Are there calibers with a few more different styles of bullet options..sure. But when it comes to versatility, the .22 is very hard to beat.
smile.gif
 
.22 is a good candidate, and for large bore I like the .357mag. In one cylinder I can load primer fired wax bullets, .38 special wadcutter target loads, warm .38 special loads, 125gr JHP .357 mag (still a standard of comparison for stopping power after all of these years), and heavy loads for metal targets. J frame 'scandium' revolvers are very light, but for general shooting an L frame fits my hand well.
 
I think 9mm Luger is the best of the smaller handgun cartridges. It unfortunately has a reputation for being weak, which is simply not true.

I'm not a 9mm fan but I wouldn't like to get hit by one. The bad rap mainly comes from NATO ball ammo. Bad guys high on Khot seem to slip away or keep coming. But I've known some to slip away after a 5.56 hit. If you use a good hollow point or re-load and hit the right spot bad guy will go down. Weak no, using the right loads.
 
NO NO NO.....

John Limbaugh mad the .500 Limbaugh Magnum which shot a 450+ grain bullet out at 1600 FPS but he thought it was a bit sluggish. So he created the .450 LM and at 2200 FPS with 400 grain bullets felt it was missing some of the umpf of the .500 so he thoght to himself .475 LM was the answer.

Something about a 450+ grain bullet at over 1800 FPS out of a 8 3/8" revolver was magical. Count energy however you want, Muzzle Energy, Momentum, or Taylor Knock Out Scale. It is impressive on ALL accounts.

Ok he sold most in 4" models to Bear guides as a back up. Only thing close in that would get a Grizzly's attention. Heck even Boar goes cleanly....

Just ask yourself under his design philosophy of the tensile strength of the gun will outlast the man's ability to stand behind it, are you man enough to shoot this thing?????

Converted Ruger single acion Super Blackhawks to 5 shot version I think it was.
 
Well, obviously there are the subjective issues like comfort, controllability, concealment etc. but as far as a handgun caliber for stopping power against human targets, I haven't been keeping up on modern developments, but has anything yet come along to supercede the FBI ballistic research that showed the .357 Magnum specifically a 125-grain JHP outperforming EVERY other handgun caliber for one-shot stopping power against a human target? (with the exception of non-practical handguns like a Contender or whatnot).

The next best thing actually seems to be the 10mm.


Max
 
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