Best hangun caliber?

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I have the following;

22lr
.38 spec
.357 mag
9mm
.40 cal
10mm
.44mag
45 acp

And *if* I had to one have one it would be the .357 mag.

You can shoot .38 spec, load those low and pink away for 2 cents a shot. Load it up with some H110 and 125gn JHP and do some serious business.

If I had to own only one gun, it would be my Ruger GP 100 6 inch. It would do almost anything I need to do.

Of course, I can own (and will always) own more than one so the Marlin 1894 gets used, the S&W 586 and others.

But bottom line, the .357 is the best handgun caliber IMO.

Take care, Bill
patriot.gif
 
So far it's my 5-shot .41 Mag. Taurus Titanium frame DA Revolver. It shoots a 210 grain bullet, with not-too-bad recoil, and acceptable accuracy. It's lightness for concealed carry is great.
 
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?

Yep, still is. I had 5 of 'em wish I had them back. I'm a 45acp and .40S&W fan but the .357 125JHP is still tops.
 
There is no doubt that the .357 loaded with 125 grain hollow points is about the most effective round. I do like the .357 magnum. I would not mind owning one and if I could own several guns in different calibers I would.

The thing I dislike the most about magnums is the muzzle flash in the dark. It can destroy briefly your night vision. Also, magnums are very loud but I don't seem to notice that much when I am shooting one. What if somebody broke into your house and you had to shoot in the dark?

When the Glock first came out I was one of the first to laugh at it. You know all of the stuff people used to say. A plastic gun? Well, today I think a Glock beats the old 1911 .45. And do not get me wrong-I love the 1911 .45. A Glock has exactly the same trigger squeeze all the time. And that trigger squeeze is about the same as shooting a SIG single action and is smoother as well. And Glocks have proven to be very durable, plastic or not.

You can shoot that same .45 round in a Glock .45. Or you can have the .40 caliber Model 22 Glock and shoot a round that is probably about as effective. Without excessive muzzle flash in the dark.

And the Glock is easy to disassemble for cleaning, easy to clean, and requires very little lubrication.

Even a Glock 17 9mm is good with the right ammo. And the ammo is somewhat cheaper. I think the military was silly however to go to the 9mm when the military must use full metal jacket. For the military only .40 and .45 really make sense for handguns.
 
I bought an L frame S&W for large bore target shooting at a club range as I couldn't afford a tuned .45, and so far the caliber has met all of my needs. Smaller frame models are better for carry.

Civilian use is different than military where reliability is a concern, as autos have been chosen by the military for better reliability in the field for a long time now. But, the military standardizes on training, cleaning supplies, ammo, magazines, etc., while nothing is standardized among civilians. The result is that at the range where I did the most shooting, autos ended up with far more problems than revolvers. Autos are more sensitive to ammo selection, how the weapon is held, magazines, to some degree cleaning, and seem to be more sensitive to manufacturing variation as an auto needs to do more things when ejecting and rechambering a round. Autos had classes of failure modes, and people seemed familiar with them as they happened a lot. I've seen the 'ultra reliable' Glocks jam because the person 'didn't hold the weapon correctly', much less due to poor ammo selection an dented magazines. Revolvers are much less tolerant of being dipped in mud and then thrown in the sand, but that wasn't a problem on the range. Revolvers have problems, I recall seeing a couple of Dan Wesson models malfunction, but most seem to be due to gross neglect, which includes a steady diet of over maximum handloads.
 
A revolver is hard to beat for reliablity. If I was rich enough I would probably own (in addition to rifles and shotguns) a .357, a 1911 .45, my .40 Glock, and that little German 9 mm that came out recently.

Even though I am getting to be a pretty old guy most of my handgun shooting has been semi-autos. I have probably shot thousands, maybe even tens of thousands of rounds of 9 mm. And a lot of .40, .45, some .357, .45 revolver, .22 in handguns, .25, .44 magnum, .38 Super, etc.

Revolvers are very dependable but I actually saw a revolver fail. A guy let me shoot his .45 revolver and then he started shooting it and the gun blew apart. He was using good quality ammo as far as I know and not overloading. Neither of us were injured. We could not even find some parts of the gun. The gun manufacturer replaced the guy's gun.

A gunsmith showed me a picture of a 1911 .45 (an expensive one) that had blown up on a guy. The guy was lucky. The manufacturer replaced that gun also.

The .357 magnum is a fine gun. It can shoot .38 Special and .357 magnum rounds. The most effective handgun round may well be the 125 grain JHP in .357. The .357 SIG magnum round in the Glock is great also. I have fired .44 magnums and even though they sound like cannons and there is a lot of muzzle flash it is possible to shoot accurately with them.

But the magnum is bad in the dark. Too much muzzle flash. Your night vision is affected. You can shoot .38 Special but what is the point? Might as well have a .40 or a .45. On the other hand if you may have to shoot some distance the .357 is better.

Overall I just think the .40 or the .45 is better. The 1911 .45 was great forever but I think there are guns (like the Glock) that are now capable of replacing it. What really counts is that .45 round anyway, right?
 
I policed with a S/W 5906 9mm, and now the Glock 22 .40 cal. Though both are highly effective, I would take the .40 cal.
 
For those of us who have CCW permits it's the gun that doesn't get left home because it's tough to conceal or plan around. For carry in the woods again it's the one that is stout enough but not so cumbersome that you are not inclined to leave in the truck or at home. I like a full throttle loading of 10mm in a Glock 29 - just shy of a 41 mag.

I like my Berretta 32 acp Tomcat for front pocket carry. Yes it's a mouse gun but it doesn't get left home very often. Also the classic Seecamp in 32. I also like the Glock 26 9mm and the Glock 27 40 S&W. G-33 .357 sig is fine as well. There have been issues with some of the G-27's last few years. Hope they ironed out the bugs.

Don't like autos then how about a Ruger SP101 in .357 mag DOA
 
I started out with a used S/W 5904 and then I got me a SIG. They were both 9mm. I have no idea how many 9mm rounds I have fired in my life. Certainly thousands and maybe tens of thousands of rounds.

I really like the Glock. When it first came out I did not say stuff like that and I never would have dreamed that I would wind up really liking the Glock. I thought the Glock was a joke when it first came out. Now I think it is probably about the best handgun there is.

If there is any gun that can replace the 1911 .45 I think it is the Glock. Even 9mm Glocks can be effective with hydroshock rounds but the military has to use full jacket so I think the military should stick to .40 and .45 no matter what NATO may or may not be using.

A Glock in .40 is a pretty good compromise between firepower and capacity of rounds. And you can get a Glock in .45. Actually, two different .45s if you cound the GAP round. A Glock Model 22 holds as many rounds as my old SIG.

How a .40 round exactly compares with the legendary .45 round is something I don't know. I figure they come pretty close. Frankly, I would not mind owning a .45 Glock as well.
 
.40 cal and Glocks seem to be a favorite among many law enforcement agncies around here and they tend to do a fair amout of homework. .45 Glocks seem quite popular too (huge handgun). Still, I have a Sig 225, single stack, 9mm, and wouldn't trade it for anything.
 
I have to admit, I wasn't too impressed with the 'plastic gun' when it first came out, especially after carrying the S/W for so long. Now having carried one for the last 7 years, I would really have to be impressed by a new handgun to give it up. We shoot at an outdoor range on different terrains such as dirt, gravel and sand, many times from the ground in different positions. I give the Glock 22 credit - I have only seen one encounter where it malfunctioned and could not be readied again by the shooter.
 
Quote:

For those of us who have CCW permits it's the gun that doesn't get left home because it's tough to conceal or plan around.
[snip]

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Well said.

I've stopped counting the number of times I've had this conversation with someone and they will say something like "no caliber below [X] is fit for personal defense carry" or "I only carry a .45 with super duper elephant stopper rounds". I then ask what they are carrying *right now* and they mumble something about leaving it in the truck or they left it at home because they didn't expect to have trouble at [fill in the blank]or some such.

I carry a handgun specifically because I *don't* expect to need a gun. If the thing you didn't expect to occur happens, *any* gun beats a set of car keys or a freshly sharpened #2 pencil.

When you are lugging it around no gun is too small, when you need to shoot something bad, few guns can be described as too large. 99.9% of us will spend 99.9% of our time lugging, not shooting.

So the only "correct" answer is (at least) one of each; that way you can pick up the "best" one for that day's activities on your way out of the house.
banana.gif
 
One very good caliber is practice. It's one case where more is better. Also a good addition is coaching. It's the most difficult addition to practice because a real man does not need anyone to tell him how to drive, shoot or ...(fill in the blank). Going to a range and getting some coaching along with lots of practice can be a very deadly combination. Having someone stand by you and work with you on technique will be useful on that day when you have to pull your gun and use it. When that paper target turns into a live person you will need every bit of your skills. Any hand gun is not a stopper like a 12-gauge with buck shot. Once you have picked a hand gun with reasonable stopping power you must supplement that with technique, confidence and a clear head.
 
Drew, can you shoot something like that withoug flinching? I know I can't, tried a couple of handguns like that and it hurts to shoot them. Usually 3 or 4 rounds in the face with somthing like a 45ACP should be good enough. This is where practice comes in.
 
Always aim for the chest area.

Never the face. Its one of the first things you should learn if your going to shoot someone.

Or shoot someone in the leg, or hand.
nono.gif


Center mass is where you should always be aiming and practicing with.

Drew, your SW500 is really only good for starting fires with its muzzle blast!
grin.gif
(not really the best SD caliber)

Lonnie is right with too much there. Also when you shooting, you have to worry about what is behind your target and with calibers like the 500, you'll go through many walls and such. (i know you know this!
cheers.gif
)

A good hollow point that opens up and STAYS in the perp is the best choice.

(hitting him with the ammo helps a lot too)

Missing is bad...
shocked.gif


Take care, bill
patriot.gif


PS: Also, when I answer above the best caliber and I stated the .357, I should disclose that I carry everyday a .40 cal Glock. For a SD gun, the .40 and 45acp are really excellent calibers to use.
 
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