M
McX
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I have a SA.45LC revolver and I was thinking the other day of maybe trading it in for a .22 LR/Mag SA. I'm a fair shot with the .45 but I'd be more accurate with the .22.I loved the .380 that I used to own (and carry). It was a Grendel P12, and was a very reliable little gun. I trusted it with my life when I carried it as a primary defense gun, but to be honest, most of the time it was a BUG to my Colt Delta Elite 10mm...
The fact is--all posturing and "studies" aside--that ANY round can be effective for self-defense, if used appropriately and effectively.
If you are armed with a .45acp loaded with +P high-tech, massively expanding hollowpoints but you don't hit near anything vital, an attacking BG can take a whole standard-issue 1911 magazine worth of hits and still keep coming at you. But if you shoot him in the heart or the temple with a single round of high-velocity .22LR, he will stop pretty quickly.
What I'm getting at, is that it's ALL about shot placement.
Any argument for ANY specific caliber, bullet weight, powder charge, muzzle velocity, depth of penetration or hydrostatic shock analysis is nothing more than an excuse for sloppy shooting.
i've been scrounging around the net; and here's what i've found so far; the .380 is called a "marginal" self defense round. and the firearm sizes don't seem to get large unless you go up into the $500 plus range. stock rounds are available, but they seem to need, and push "pumping it up" with hotloads, or hollowpoints. the capacity seems to be around 7. Maybe I should consider looking into a compact .40 cal, so i could retain stopping power? Opinions welcome on what I have found. I'd like to see a pic of a .380 cartridge "standing next to" a .40 cartridge, if anyone can come up with one. i'd rather discuss options here, in the forum, before I go out shopping.
Sorry for the quality, took it on my cell phonei've been scrounging around the net; and here's what i've found so far; the .380 is called a "marginal" self defense round. and the firearm sizes don't seem to get large unless you go up into the $500 plus range. stock rounds are available, but they seem to need, and push "pumping it up" with hotloads, or hollowpoints. the capacity seems to be around 7. Maybe I should consider looking into a compact .40 cal, so i could retain stopping power? Opinions welcome on what I have found. I'd like to see a pic of a .380 cartridge "standing next to" a .40 cartridge, if anyone can come up with one. i'd rather discuss options here, in the forum, before I go out shopping.
Back in the early days, before effective medical treatment for gunshots, being penetrated by any type of bullet was pretty much a death sentence. Anyone shot by anything in any major part of the body could look forward to long periods of agony at the minimum. This is not counting infection, fever, and the possibility of bleeding to death.
Getting shot = agonizing slow death.
It didn't really matter WHAT you got shot with, the general idea was to avoid it....or die. Therefore, small calibers were just as an effective deterrent as large ones.
Modern medicine has advanced since that time. Getting shot is no longer a probable death sentence.
There are two types of criminals (for this particular example). #1: Those who desire to commit their crimes without injury. #2: Those who just don't care.
Now that modern medicine can probably save a person who isn't immediately killed or suffering from major organ damage, the .380 is still effective for those who wish to commit their crimes without injury....
...but do you trust it to STOP the ones who don't care?
I'm not sure about you, but when I want a criminal to stop trying to assault me, I want him to stop NOW. While I can probably deter a criminal wishing to rob me with any type of round, how do I deter a criminal who is loaded up on PCP and has the desire to end my life at any cost?
With asnap or twofrom a .380?
It all depends on what you trust your life with. Personally, I'm not gamblingwith what might work. I'm going with something I believe will work.....
.....on any type of criminal.
I believe that it has been reported on these forums that more people are killed annually by small cal. (.22) than any other cal. round.
What Superlite27 said.SNIP Shooting someone with a small caliber and having them die lateris of no use to me. I don't want them to die at anytime. I want them to stop......now.
thanks for the pics guys, they help alot. damn that .380 shell looks alot like a .32. kinda like a baby .40. i just hate to sell the little guy out short, but i'm leaning toward a compact .40. i want a whack, a guarenteed whack, not just a thump. I hear the .22 mag. is a nasty little critter, and invite comments as such, as we discuss further here.
but taskforce, the .22 mag. would have to be "multishot' to be effective? what does this do to the rule of '2 to the chest'? they got .22 mag autos out? i saw a pic of i think one on the forum here somewhere.