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Choices Between Accuracy , Power And Capacity

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Choices Between Accuracy , Power And Capacity

Old 10-19-2019, 06:24 AM
  #1  
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Default Choices Between Accuracy , Power And Capacity

Choices Between Accuracy , Power And Capacity
I was recently in a discussion with a neighbor, his concern was in his selecting the best choice in his concealed carry handgun.
he just got his fla concealed carry license.
he owns a 9mm glock and a 4" S&W 357 mag revolver
the glock holds marginally less than three times the cartridge capacity,
17, cartridges vs 6 in the revolver,
the glock is thinner and easier to conceal in an inside the belt holster
the revolver has only 6 shots before it needs a reload ,
its a bit more bulky, and weights more,
but its significantly more powerful,
357 ammo
http://www.doubletapammo.net/index.php?route=product/product&path=126_140&product_id=338
9mm ammo
http://www.doubletapammo.net/index.php?route=product/product&path=126_133&product_id=556
and hes consistently a better and more consistent shot using the revolver

I pointed out he might and in fact probably would go his whole life without having to use either handgun,
in a life and death confrontation,
but if he did dependability and consistent accuracy would be critical
only hits count! and statistically,from what Ive read for decades,
most gunfights are at less than 20 feet and over in less than five shots.
but if you are not comfortable carrying a pistol its likely to be left home ,
on that one unlikely day you desperately need it.
youll, most likely have no control over whats going down,
the range you need to shoot at,or circumstances,
but Id darn sure want a handgun I could hit accurately with at 25 yards
the vast majority of people will select the glock in this choice,
due to easier concealment and higher cartridge capacity and at less than 20 ft ranges ,
well precise accuracy is not as important,
but the marginally increased reliability advantage with the revolver,
and a significant power advantage should not be ignored...
again his choice, and his preference, neither is wrong
here.

this reminds me of a story Jack once told me about two cops he worked with,
I think this was in the 1980s when most cops transitioned,
to semi autos (I think it was a S&W 39) but older cops were allowed to retain traditional revolvers if they chose to,
the two were in a car watching a bar, in a bad section of town, waiting on backup,
the alarm had gone off, at about the time the bar normally closed, at about 3 am,
the first cops on the location were told to wait for back-up before entering the bar, to check it out.
the older cop in his 50s carried a 357 mag revolver, the younger cop carried a 9mm semi auto.
as they waited a guy came out , spotted the cop car
,and immediately started shooting at the cops, who bailed out and got behind the cruiser,
the younger cop returned fire over the trunk and was down to his last of three magazines in a couple minutes
when the older cop fired twice dropping the offender who was behind a car at about 50 yards
at the following investigation the question came up ... how could the younger cop get off over 20 shots and the older cop only fire twice?
the older cops answer, I only fired once I saw a target,
shooting holes in the car the suspect was behind seemed pointless
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Last edited by hardcastonly; 10-23-2019 at 01:13 PM.
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Old 10-20-2019, 01:40 AM
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The incident you sited sounds to me more like experience vs. inexperience rather than gun versus gun. Having said that, for me the ability to hit what you are shooting at trumps everything else. There are too many studies that show that handgun cartridge power rating is not as important as putting rounds on target.
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Old 10-20-2019, 01:53 AM
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I agree with Wingbone.

Both are great guns. Id carry which ever I was more comfortable with.
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Old 10-20-2019, 03:34 PM
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It’s been well documented for decades that the average shooter is able to manage better duty/combat/rapid fire accuracy with a low recoiling pistol than with a double action revolver. Equally, forensic testing has shown statistically there is no difference in man-stopping capability between 9mm and 357mag, such the additional powder and recoil of service/duty revolvers is only affecting the shooter, not the assailant on the business end.

Fewer and fewer old hold-outs are out there any longer, so we see less and less of these silly articles extolling the imagined superiority of revolvers for LEO and .mil applications. Even as a lover of all things wheelgun, I’ll be glad when the last of these are published.

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Old 10-21-2019, 12:36 AM
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^^^ What he said. In my career, I started with a 9mm, switched to a 45, then to a 40S&W. After a shooting incident, I switched back to a 45. And after a subsequent active shooter training, I switched back to a full size 9mm. These were all duty pistols but I've carried almost all of them CCW as well. I can shoot all of them well but I just perform on the next tactical level with a full size 9 or 40.
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Old 10-21-2019, 05:21 AM
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Choices Between Accuracy , Power And Capacity:

#! Accuracy - Especially the 1st shot!
#2 Power - Get enough!
#3 Capacity - Best to make 1st shot count (i.e. Leaves you more capacity if needed)


Do this same list yourself and see where your priorities are.
Will also help dictate how you practice and train.
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Old 10-22-2019, 08:01 AM
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To me, it is all about options. The chance of getting a 9mm (125 grn,) through a car door is minimal. A 357 (158 grn) penetrates better. Even a windshield can be iffy with a 9 para or 38 special.

I can hit a man-sized (half silhouette) at a hundred yards with a .357, about an eight inch drop. The .357 has nearly double the energy at a hundred yards.
You have to decide if the other options outweigh the magazine capacity of the 9mm.

Back in the day, I did what we called no BS tests on a lot of equipment. We didn't really trust what the manufacturer claimed and what actually happened.
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Old 10-22-2019, 11:29 AM
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personally I think questions like this are impossible to answer,m as there are SO many things that can alter outcomes in shootings and situations
then add in WHAT type of ammo is being used, the experience of the shooter, and I don't mean in how accurate they can hit paper
its a whole new ball game when things are shooting AT you, and NOT all folks handle things the same way , or as they BELIEVE they will when it happens
some 9 mm loads are pretty darn good these days, as are some 357 loads for sure
the questions comes down to any time HOW well can the shooter handle the better loads
you can use your example of the younger cop and the older cop all you like(not bash o hate intended here)
but there is a good chance that younger guy shooting all them rounds kept that bad guy in PLACE and allowed the older one to make just ONE shot
it actually IMO<means NOTHING as to what gun or shooter was better, both did different things in this example, be it on purpose or by just how the cards fell!
at 7 yards and under MOST all guns shoot pretty darn good groups even with most shooters, its CLOSE range and not as critical to smaller movements! that add up as distance happens, and makes smaller things larger!

SO< when you look at things with an open mind, there are many answers that can support either one

However, in today's modern world, all the video of so many shootings, both my law enforcement and civilians and military, and just being honest here!

I would have to say, most shoot outs revolve around a LOT of ammo being spent and few hits in most cases, SO< might be better off having more ammo than less?
NO one knows how they will react under fire till it happens and even then, there is NO way to know if it will be the SAME reaction the next time and so on!

just like hunting, shots HAVE to be in a vital to kill, and well, lets face it larger bullets seem to have more knock down
so when your looking at 9 mm -357, the bullet sizes are not much different, than say jump up to a .45

almost every caliber has been know to kill a human,
accuracy yes important, but so can cover fire, so can fast re loads, then add in control of the gun, how well can you shoot it, in weak hand if needed, or from odd angles and positions!
just a zillion variables in possible WHAT IFS
that there is NO answer
best advice is, shoot what ever gun you like, learn to handle it well in all types of positions and know how it works , problems can happen on ANY gun, semi auto, full auto or revolver or even single shots, just as a bad primer can happen, or??
again, just SO many things

I suggest just being more aware of your surroundings and hope you never need to find out WHAT gun will work better !
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Old 10-22-2019, 05:15 PM
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Originally Posted by MudderChuck
The chance of getting a 9mm (125 grn,) through a car door is minimal.
This hasn’t been my experience in shooting car doors in penetration tests with 9mm rounds.
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Old 10-22-2019, 07:47 PM
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Originally Posted by Nomercy448


This hasn’t been my experience in shooting car doors in penetration tests with 9mm rounds.
I haven't shot at any really new cars, the metal seems to be getting thinner and thinner. But when we did our test getting a 9mm through a car door was iffy, seemed more luck than reliable. The converse was true for the .357. Windows up or windows down made a big difference with the 9 not so much with the magnum. The best by far was a shotgun slug.
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