OC-moto450r
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If you have time to load your rifle the jury will most likely believe that you had time to retreat. Pulling a loaded handgun on the bad guy is going to much quicker than trying to load your rifle while being threaten with great bodily harm. (carrying a loaded, (chambered) long gun in your car is illegal in NV)
I say, carry the largest caliber you can safely and accurately handle.
People do say this often, but I don't think it is necessarily a true statement...
As others have said and this study points out, bigger doesn't really mean much with hand guns. In fact the 9mm, according to this study, it the worst even falling below the .22 in regards to incapacitating from one shot to the torso or head.
In fact the wee little .22 even appears to best the mighty .45 in a few areas, according to this particular study.
Obviously the .22 has huge drawbacks when it comes to shooting through barriers or if you don't hit the torso or head for some reason, so I am not advocating it over the .45... Just saying that carrying the largest possible calibre isn't necessarily for everyone and even the lil old .22 can stop an average BG in Nevada is you know how to shoot.
No matter which gun you choose, pick one that is reliable and train with it until you can get fast accurate hits. Nothing beyond that really matters!
All you needed to read of that article was the last two sentences. /thread
What the "study" doesn't tell us is that in scenario #1, the bad guy was hyped up on herion...
Frankly, the entire idea of "knock down power" or "stopping power", is just such an over-used cliche that has been so misrepresented and perverted over the years, that it's almost laughable when somebody brings it up. And it seems like some "new and improved" article comes out about once a year that, if you read between the lines, supports the notion that it isn't, nor will it ever be, an exact science.
Handgun cartridges simply aren't very powerful, regardless of what caliber you choose. Clearly you need a cartridge that has enough power to reliably penetrate deep enough into an attacker so it can disrupt vital organs and/or the CNS, and we generally get consistent and reliable penetration in handgun calibers from 9X19mm on up. On the other hand, when you go smaller than the 9X19, power drops off DRAMATICALLY as the smaller cartridges develop much less pressure and adequate penetration becomes much less consistent.
With the above as a known, if we stick with more powerful loadings such as 9X19mm, .38spl +P, .357 SIG, .357 Mag., .40S&W, and .45ACP, the concept of "best" as it relates to "knock down power" is barely (if at all) quantifiable. Shot placement is King, penetration is Queen, and everything else is just icing on the cake.
Shot placement is 90% of the equation, and sufficient penetration is 9.5%. The other 0.5% is made up of the 0.10" difference in diameter between the 9mm and .45ACP bullets and the minor differences between one type of premium defense hollow point over the other, in addition to the debatable relevance either of them would have on the outcome of a given defensive shooting encounter anyway. On top of that, we can wrap the whole package up in a heavy layer of luck and take into consideration the possible psychological/physiological state of our adversary, and we can see that the marginal differences from one higher-powered cartridge to the next is of very little significance in the overall scheme of things.
I think a MUCH more relevant discussion to have is shootability of the various more-powerful cartridges, ie: recoil management - how quickly are you able to deliver combat-accurate hits with a given handgun using a specific cartridge. If, for example, you are 1.5 times more efficient with a 9X19mm as you are with the .45ACP from the same handgun platform, then the 9X19mm is the better choice. The same consideration can be made when comparing revolvers to semi-autos, low-capacity semi-autos to high-capacity semi autos, and so on and so forth. Placing a higher number of more accurate hits on the target will nearly always end the hostilities quicker than placing a lower number of less accurate hits on the target, once we get into 9X19mm caliber (or larger) handguns.
I believe that this response is appropriate & sums up a lot of issues,
"People say, this is everything. Velocity is everything. Caliber is everything. Placement is everything. Permanent cavity is everything. Temporary cavity is everything. Look, nothing is everything, but everything is something." - Massad Ayoob
I agree with Mas. So many people seem to be "married" to their favorite caliber and will go to such great lengths to make themselves look like a fool defending their decision and criticizing the decisions everyone else has made. Everything; shot placement, penetration, caliber, type of projectile, etc, makes up a part of the whole. Trying to select guns, gear, and ammo that provide you with incremental improvements over other options is the name of the game. If there was such a thing as a "magic bullet" from a "magic caliber", we would all be using it.
Thank you very much sir. I truly appreciate your taking *MY* (Mr. Ayoobs') POV as intended, just another opinion.
In all actuality, it is really a personal decision with what *Oneself* must be Confident, Comfortable & Competent to make, hopefully after doing the proper *Homework*, Training & of course Practice, PRACTICE,,,PRACTICE !!!
To make my observation a little more personal, I'll tell ya' a decision which I came to thru trial & error.
When i purchased my 1st firearm, I compared the multitude of options out there & finally bought the Ruger SP101 - 3" - 357 Magnum.
So, after setting up a TP Range in my field behind my house, i went to blasting away, & REALLY Lovin' IT.
That is until one day I was just finishing up & thot, " What the hay, let's see what this Wheel Gun REALLY ***SOUNDS*** like !!!"
WARNING; DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME, THESE STUNTS ARE PERFORMED BY TRAINED PROFESSIONALS !!!:banghead:
Being a numbskull ,,,at the time,,, I proceeded to empty all the chambers, WITHOUT HEARING PROTECTION,:shocker:.
Now I have bragging rights to the fact that a 357 Mag is REALLY REALLY LOUD :exclaim: & I SUSTAINED 50% Hearing loss in my left ear.
To say the least, I've come to the conclusion that IF I EVER Need to discharge my Firearm in my Home, Vehicle or Where ever, I'm keeping it loaded with 38 spl. HP FJM & 38 spl. Hornaday CD loads.
I don't desire to experience that type of *IDIOCY* again,,,,,EVER !!!!
p.s., This is just *our* little secret, I know you won't tell another soul,,,,, RRIIIGHT !!! peace !
My first EDC gun was a S&W 19 "K-Comp" from the Performance Center. After one particularly stupid experiment, I learned that hard way how much louder a ported firearm is over even a regular .357 Magnum revolver. Even figuring for auditory exclusion, I will never choose to carry a ported firearm again. I'd rather deal with the muzzle snap between shots.