I believe the bigger the better BUT

[deadon]

I went from 22 Pistol to a 38 special to a 357 mag to a 44 mag. THEN Arther got me and I am now using a 1911 45 for protection. I may ,very soon, have to go to a smaller cal. I just bought my wife a Walther 9 mil. because I heard With the Hydra shock bullet, it has the knock down power of a 45 using FMJ bullets. At this time even My Caspian 1911 45 HURTS. I also understand the bullet placement is everthing. Please tell me if a 9 mil will get the job done and which bullet to use. I guess I am asking , what cal is best for a woman because I think I can still handle one of their pistols . Thanks, Rusty

[Rifleman]

Rusty a 9mm with good ammo will never be a 45, and the 45 FMJ ammo is not the ideal for defense. But there are a bunch of dead soldiers long forgotten about around the world who are believers in the effectiveness of the 45 ACP FMJ. All that being said a 9mm with great ammo, is a good choice. Personally I carry a bunch of different stuff from time to time with the smallest being a 38 spl , then a 40, then a 45, and sometimes just for fun a 44 mag. But my day in day out carry piece is a 40 Glock. Not a great deal of difference in recoil between the 40 and the 9mm but there is some. At your station in life with Arthur nothing wrong with choosing the 9mm with Hydros. Matter of fact if you like the Walther get another and that way you and the wife can have magazine interchangeability in the very off chance you guys team up in a firefight with the local bad guys. My wife and I have matching 40's and it works out very well.

[jims]

I prefer the .40 over the 9mm but that said if your wife already has a 9mm then you will both be able to share ammo etc. and that can be an advantage and the 9s are generally more reasonable in price.

[whyohe]

I beleave a 9MM will be plenty if you have good ammo in it. the thing i worry about for protection is pass threw. if you are in a fight you have to worry about who and what is behind your foe. A 9 mm may still pass threw but alot of energy may be lost. i cannot say for sure cause i luckily havent been in a situation like that. I have a Tarus in S&W 40. and i do worry about pass threw. just another thing to consider IMO.

[wilmsmeyer]

Pass through would be an issue with any potent pistol round and with defense type ammo, the 9mm is no more likely to do so than say...a .357 or 38+p. Same caliber...about same speeds... about same weight bullet.

Bigger can be better if you may only need 10 shots or less....like a store merchants behind the counter gun. What could be better then a 44 auto mag loaded with fragile 180's....?

If you ever have to go mobile and be on the run if times got wacky, a reliable 9mm with a belt full of clips would be great. In this situation,,,,things have gotten REAL bad....and issues such of pass throughs may be the least of your worries and you might be trying to line up 2 bad guys and hoping for a pass through to save rounds

[j1r11]

Jan 22, 2011 5:48:50 GMT -5 deadon said:

I went from 22 Pistol to a 38 special to a 357 mag to a 44 mag. THEN Arther got me and I am now using a 1911 45 for protection. I may ,very soon, have to go to a smaller cal. I just bought my wife a Walther 9 mil. because I heard With the Hydra shock bullet, it has the knock down power of a 45 using FMJ bullets. At this time even My Caspian 1911 45 HURTS. I also understand the bullet placement is everthing. Please tell me if a 9 mil will get the job done and which bullet to use. I guess I am asking , what cal is best for a woman because I think I can still handle one of their pistols . Thanks, Rusty

If you are using a .45 with ball ammo for self defense you are doing it wrong. That should be target or MAYBE something big like bear. A 9mm will do the job, and it carries 2 times as much in the mag as your .45. I use a glock 19 9mm with Rem. golden sabers 124gr. My woods/ nightstand gun is a .45 loaded with 230gr. Rem golden sabers.

[tcmech]

I believe that platform is as important an aspect as caliber here.

I carry a glock 36 which has less recoil (in my opinion) than either my taurus 85 ultralight or my wifes taurus pt709.

I have three 9mm autos of my own which all have less recoil than the guns listed above. The one which seems to have the least amount of recoil is also the least accurate of the three. The gun is a ruger p-89, not the most ergonomic or expensive, but it's built like a russian tank, and as reliable as a hammer. As far as recoil goes it really is hard to beat an all metal handgun.

I'm not really sure what you are trying to accomplish but if you are looking for a self defense gun with minimal recoil to use for target shooting a big bore revolver such as a 44 mag loaded with light 44 special ammo could be a good gun that would do double duty when loaded with 44 mag ammo for those trips to the woods. A 45lc could be worked the same way if you wished to reload for it yourself. There are other options that I would look for provided the discretionary funding from my chief financial officer (wife) such as a s&w 45acp revolver.

[deadon]

I have a custom Caspian 1911 45 acp that shoots much better than me these days. It fits my hand,feels like it is apart of me and I love it. I wonder if lighter bullets would be the answer?

[tcmech]

I went back to the beginning of the thread and I have to say that I think a 9mm is perfectly adequate for self defense. A 9mm is not a 45 and never will be but I really don't think it is as much of a disadvantage as a lot of people seem to think. With all of that being said, I carry a 45.

I am not sure what you are trying to accomplish though, are you looking for a comfortable gun to go to the range with, or are you worried about your carry gun's recoil.

I have never had to use the handguns I have carried for self defense and with any luck I will finish out my life that way. I have to think though that it would be much more like hunting than target shooting where I don't notice the recoil or noise than the target range where I get a full dose of both.

In any case you know where I live and if you would like to try out a few options that I have to see what may work best for you let me know.

[deadon]

Mar 20, 2011 17:13:26 GMT -5 tcmech said:

I went back to the beginning of the thread and I have to say that I think a 9mm is perfectly adequate for self defense. A 9mm is not a 45 and never will be but I really don't think it is as much of a disadvantage as a lot of people seem to think. With all of that being said, I carry a 45.

I am not sure what you are trying to accomplish though, are you looking for a comfortable gun to go to the range with, or are you worried about your carry gun's recoil.

I have never had to use the handguns I have carried for self defense and with any luck I will finish out my life that way. I have to think though that it would be much more like hunting than target shooting where I don't notice the recoil or noise than the target range where I get a full dose of both.

In any case you know where I live and if you would like to try out a few options that I have to see what may work best for you let me know.

Thanks Buddy I may take you up on that I still have those bullets you gave me, didn't try them because I took the pacnor path. Thanks to all, Rusty

[spaniel]

I own pistols from .38 Special to 41 Magnum. For self defense, I find the 40SW to be the best balance of all factors. There are occasions I carry 38 or 9mm for concealment reasons, but if SHTF I want the 40.

[mdgroundhogger]

I would have to agree that the small difference in recoil makes the 40 a better choice for self defense. But, if you are more worried about recoil or something else than stick with the 9mm. Like stated earlier you would have a good reason to stock up on ammo between you and your wife. I've got a friend who told me that "the 9mm is for those who squat to pee!". I'm still getting one because of the ease of shooting and availability of ammo. Plus, unless the perp is a total drugged out of their mind angel dust freak, I doubt being hit with two or three premium 9mm pills center mass will leave any less of an impression than say a 45 for that matter. Dead is dead right. My dresser gun is a 1911 but like I said before a well placed shot is just as important as power. A 9 or 40 will allow you to practice correctly and therefore be more effective when something may happen. Just my 2c.

[Jed]

Rusty,

I like the 9mm. It is cheap, easy to shoot, easy on the recoil, and guns that are chambered for it have a high capacity.

Since we are civilians, we are not limited to FMJ for self-defense and personal protection. After doing a lot of research, I think the best 9mm hollowpoints are probably equal to the best .45 hollowpoints. REMEMBER: only HITS count in a gunfight! I'd rather have a caliber I can hit with than a caliber some other person says does the "most" damage or is "best" for self defense.

Here is a great article on the subject:

www.hipowersandhandguns.com/9mm%20vs%2045.htm

Enjoy!

BTW, I used to use .38 specials in a Taurus Model 66 for home defense. Soft-shooting, easy to hold, and powerful. I got a 9mm for CCW.

[tcmech]

Mar 25, 2011 9:31:01 GMT -5 Jed said:

Rusty,

I like the 9mm. It is cheap, easy to shoot, easy on the recoil, and guns that are chambered for it have a high capacity.

Since we are civilians, we are not limited to FMJ for self-defense and personal protection. After doing a lot of research, I think the best 9mm hollow points are probably equal to the best .45 hollow points. REMEMBER: only HITS count in a gunfight! I'd rather have a caliber I can hit with than a caliber some other person says does the "most" damage or is "best" for self defense.

Here is a great article on the subject:

www.hipowersandhandguns.com/9mm%20vs%2045.htm

Enjoy!

BTW, I used to use .38 specials in a Taurus Model 66 for home defense. Soft-shooting, easy to hold, and powerful. I got a 9mm for CCW.

I am not sure how Rusty rolls but I have gotten to the point where I don't bother to conceal a handgun. Here where we live in Virginia it is not against the law to openly carry (without a permit) a handgun. We still have to live with the federal laws (post offices, gun free zones, etc) as everyone else.

I know that some fire arms experts believe that a 9mm with the higher capacity and the ability to get more rounds on target quicker and more accurately (for the average shooter) than the 45 as an advantage.

I personally carry both the 9mm and the 45 acp (not at the same time) and I don't have any problem using either.

[chuck41]

If I am concerned about being outgunned I am going to take my mini-14 and a shotgun. A 9mm is hard to beat as a CCW weapon. No it ain't a Uzi, but it is enough to deter most BGs and at the kind of range where it is legal to defend yourself it is effective. I would rather have a 9mm that I am convinced I can hit with than a 44Mag with which I would have doubts in a stressful situation. Tis better to squat to pee accurately than to randomly spray the walls.

[thelefthand]

Nothing wrong with a good 9mm loaded with good ammo in the hands of a good shooter. In the hands of a bad shooter, nothing is adequate. Lots of good suggestions here. If you get a 9mm, make sure it has some heaft to it and it fits you well. That will eat up a lot of the recoil. An ultralight compact little 9mm can beat you up as bad as a 45.

One recommendation that I would give is to use reloads at the range. Load your own, and load them weak. Throw in a good Wilson recoil spring, and that 45 will kick about the same as a 9mm. When you are at the range, you are practicing your fundamentals so that they become a reflex. This is not dependent on what kind of ammo you shoot. You can practice with weak little plinkers, and then carry 230gr +P if you want, and you'll be fine. Its up to you.

Just my 2 bits,
Mark

[deadon]

Thanks again for all the advice. I, like some here do not worry or even want to conceal my weapon. I stay in some rough parts of town when on the road. I have to take a bunch of stuff in my room each night so i need to stay in the older motels where I can park in front of my room and I want EVERYONE to see I am carrying. I think I will check with my gunsmith about the lighter recoil spring and the lighter ammo for the 1911. Still might buy a 9 MM someday. Thanks again to all, Rusty

[dans]

deadon, I am in the same situation. I can't grip a handgun and hold it against recoil like I used to. I bought a Glock 22 in 40 S&W. I can change the barrel and mag an it will shoot 9mm also. Cheaper to practice with and when the 40 becomes too strong the next choice. You can also get 22 LR kits to convert to that caliber.

[thelefthand]

To clarify, you want a heavier recoil spring, not a lighter one.

[deadon]

Jun 9, 2011 19:51:41 GMT -5 thelefthand said:

To clarify, you want a heavier recoil spring, not a lighter one.

Thank you Sir, Rusty