.45-70 wrote

"I think that larger caliber bullets have more "knockdown" power than smaller and faster ones. At least that has been my own experience. As an analogy, what would you rather be hit by, a baseball going 90 m.p.h. or a bowling ball going 45 m.p.h.? I'll take my chances with the baseball."

Remember, kinetic Energy equals one half the mass multiplied by the velocity squared. A two pound baseball at 90 mph will have the same kinetic energy as an eight pound bowling ball at 45 mph. Furthermore, regarding bullet placement, while I would be severely injured by being hit in the foot with the 45 mph bowling ball, I think I would survive it. I am not nearly so confident about surviving being struck in the head by a 90 mph baseball.

Californiadoctor