.40 S&W dead - yes or no

[taz7nads]

Was poking around a local gun shop, shooting the breeze with the old guy behind the counter. He tells me that .40 S&W is a dead caliber, but I can’t remember his justification for saying so. As far as I know, my Department (retired in 2012) and most others around here still carry the .40. Thoughts?

[leftysixty]

Not dead by a long shot!

[O'Dell]

I think the newer, improved 9mm ammo has generated the the idea that 40 S&W is dying. Personally, I prefer 45 ACP, but I doubt that 40 S&W will go away anytime soon.

[yqtszhj]

I heard from my LGS guy that the internet hoopla is the FBI has talked about going back to 9mm because agents shoot it better and the masses are following after that and dumping their .40 cal weapons. He had some nice metal frame used .40 cal Sig somethings sitting on his shelf for $400 and he said there was no interest because they were.40’s. He still carries his 40 cal Glock though. If they had been 9mm’s I would have bought one myself.

[kenemoore]

I think it is here to stay, but the market is shrinking, it will end up like .357 magnum, still sold, but not a major market share. I doubt many new .40 cal pistols are released in the future. In my neck of the woods, .40 cal pistols are cheap, not much market for them. I don't own any myself. I've shot a buddy's a few times, never thrilled me. Always been a .45 guy, but I have bought a few 9mm in the recent past. Cheaper ammo being the driver.
Local gun shops have pretty much stopped taking .40's in trade, because they can't get rid of them. If you are a .40 fan, then now is a good time to fill your safe.

I recall during the Sandy Hook fiasco, .40 was the only ammo on the shelf in many stores.

-Ken

[340pd]

A few years back then ATK came into our range with a few hundred pounds of ballistic gel and a lot of ammo to do a demonstration. The cliff notes were, they can produce almost any caliber that will penetrate and expand to a specification. They at that time told us they were capable of providing 9mm ammo that would equal the current 40 cal specifications and at a much reduced cost. The proved it with their gel tests. Since that time many agencies have been going back to the nine for its benefits of lower cost, shoot-ability, and increased capacity in a sidearm.
Interesting side note was their testing of 380 which also has come a long way in performance.

[berettabone]

I own one 9mm...………………………….the rest are .40 cal...……………….my personal preference for carry. I don't pay attention to any gel tests. Next time your attacked by a slab of gel, let me know. When I hear about the FBI doing this and LE doing that...……...half of them can't shoot period. They pull their firearm out once a year for qualifying, and put it back in the holster for another year. I respect the badge and the job, I've also seen their shooting skills. If you want to punch holes in paper, I'm sure that you can be a bit more accurate with 9mm. If you want to protect yourself, the bigger the better. Start at the beltline and work your way up. If you have to go down in caliber to be accurate, you can't shoot period. They just had something on the news the other day about 2 plain clothes sitting in a car, when a guy came up and started shooting. 9mm I believe. 25 shots in to the car. Both officers will survive and one even managed to get a shot/shots off. I'll stick with .40 or larger. Every one else can worry about being accurate on paper.

[wyntrout]

The one I wear the most is my P380... around the house and for max concealment, but my EDC and the one I want in most situations, is my P40 DLC/NS with the Kahr ported barrel and Remington Golden Sabers... 6+1+7. I love my P40... second one, too. I have a G23C-3, too, but more .45's... P45, G30S, and G21 SF. The P40 is just a tiny bit more comfortable to carry IWB for me.

[CPTKILLER]

The Gun Pundits also said that the 38 Super was dead too.

I love my 38 Super. It is alive & well too.

Regrding the 40 S&W, it is still a viable caliber.

[knkali]

The one I wear the most is my P380... around the house and for max concealment, but my EDC and the one I want in most situations, is my P40 DLC/NS with the Kahr ported barrel and Remington Golden Sabers... 6+1+7. I love my P40... second one, too. I have a G23C-3, too, but more .45's... P45, G30S, and G21 SF. The P40 is just a tiny bit more comfortable to carry IWB for me.

Loved my P40 too. Thing ate anything and ran great. Still breaking in my P45 but I have to admit that I like the recoil feel of the P45 much more than the P40. I don't think the .40 cal is dead though. I did have to port the P40 to tame the muzzle flip to my liking. Come to think about it, the P40 is one of the only guns I sort of regret selling.

[wyntrout]

That was my experience, too, but I got that Mag-na-ported from our Marketplace and upgraded to the DLC and a ported barrel... works for me. I love the P45, too.

9mm isn't my favorite, but the P9 is a backup, and I do have Wifey's G43 and a Lonewolf threaded 9mm conversion barrel for the G23C... very accurate. I have plenty of 9mm mags for that, too, not all Glock... even a 33-rd Korean mag that works. I have one for the G23C, too.

You really have to test those "Asian" mags for function and reliability... bought 20 each 9mm and .40 for resale once, I had to take a razor knife to the retention notch... not pronounced enough... mag would fall out after each shot! All three that I tested, 9mm, had that problem. The .40's were okay.

[boscobarbell]

My old agency (ICE) is transitioning away from .40 now. It's not that there's anything wrong with .40, just that 9mm technology has enabled that round to sneak up on its bigger brother a bit, while still allowing less experienced shooters to get back on target faster and with more accuracy.

Most of my pistols for home defense/range work are in .40, and my pistol/carbine duo (Glock 27 and KT Sub2000) is in .40. I love the round, find it fun to shoot, and am confident that it will do the job if need be. In my experience, finding a deal in them at the LGS or on gunbroker is pretty easy.

p.s. That being said, I'm not a caliber snob, and will usually reach for the gun that fits my wardrobe the best on any given day, and in the summer that is often my Kimber Solo (9mm) or one of my micros in .380. I think I've convinced myself, after a lot of research, that any round that will hit the FBI penetration range with even the smallest amount of expansion will do the trick...even more so if you can put multiple rounds in center mass/cranium, at which point the differences amongst the calibers shrink down to the infinitesimal.

[AJBert]

I recall during the Sandy Hook fiasco, .40 was the only ammo on the shelf in many stores.

-Ken

That right there is the BEST endorsement for the .40 S&W. I recall before that happened that all the preppers said the best calibers to own when the SHTF is 9mm and .223/5.56 because there was so much available. They were the first rounds to disappear off the shelves followed by .22.

Another round that was still on the shelves was the .41 mag. Couldn't find .38 special, .357 mag nor .44 mag. To me that proved that having the most popular calibers was not necessarily a good thing.

Oh, I don't own a 9mm. I don't want one nor need one. I'm more than happy with my K40 and the slightly bigger hole it punches. I REALLY like the .45acp's I have but they are full size 1911's. Not too great for concealed carry. I got my wife a metal framed sub-compact .380 that is a great shooter for concealed carry and she loves it.

Wait, I guess we do have a 9mm after all!

[berettabone]

My old agency (ICE) is transitioning away from .40 now. It's not that there's anything wrong with .40, just that 9mm technology has enabled that round to sneak up on its bigger brother a bit, while still allowing less experienced shooters to get back on target faster and with more accuracy.

Most of my pistols for home defense/range work are in .40, and my pistol/carbine duo (Glock 27 and KT Sub2000) is in .40. I love the round, find it fun to shoot, and am confident that it will do the job if need be. In my experience, finding a deal in them at the LGS or on gunbroker is pretty easy.

p.s. That being said, I'm not a caliber snob, and will usually reach for the gun that fits my wardrobe the best on any given day, and in the summer that is often my Kimber Solo (9mm) or one of my micros in .380. I think I've convinced myself, after a lot of research, that any round that will hit the FBI penetration range with even the smallest amount of expansion will do the trick...even more so if you can put multiple rounds in center mass/cranium, at which point the differences amongst the calibers shrink down to the infinitesimal.

If I wanted to put multiple shots to the cranium, I'd carry a .22. If I wanted to be super accurate, I'd carry a .22. If I wanted to punch holes in paper for accuracy, I'd carry/shoot a .22. At 5 cents a round, you can shoot at a lot of bulls eyes. At my age, I want them to stop immediately. I realize that there is never a guarantee, but I believe that the larger the caliber, the larger the hole, increases your odds of immediate stoppage. If you can't hit center mass with .40 cal., I wouldn't be so sure that they could do it with 9mm either. I am a caliber snob when it comes to defensive shooting.

[Barth]

IMHO 40 S&W is not going anywhere.
Don't know the numbers, but I'm thinking LE these days is something like 40% 40 S&W, 40% 9mm and the remaining 20% 45ACP/357 Sig.
Seems like many LE only shoot often enough to qualify.
So 9mm becomes very appealing.
Particularly with lower cost and potentially less wear and tear on the gun.
Also newbies with little shooting experience buy a 40, particularly in a compact carry gun,
don't shoot it well and dump it.
Hence the used gun case full of 40 S&W.

In my hands, with my guns, I actually shoot 40 better than 9.
And 45 better than 40 (depending on the gun).
45 is a favorite, but I don't like the reduced capacity in a compact carry gun.
Home Defense, where size doesn't matter, USP 45 ACP.
Concealed carry, on a belt, it's 357 Sig or 40 S&W.
Pocket Carry: Micro 9mm.
BUG: 38 Special/.380 ACP

Full Disclosure:
As previously stated,
during the last two ammo shortages, of LE Service Calibers,
only 40 S&W JHP/FMJ was available on the shelf.