If you need your first shot to count more than anything, then why aren't you carrying a .357 magnum? These are FBI statistics. There is absolutely nothing more effective. Bullets CAN cause momentary or prolonged incapacitation without killing. So I purchased big bore gun :D and hope for rapid blood pressure drop which will cause unconsciousness, or that this bullet will go trought and break spine. 45 acp, with a father like the one we had, Of course, That’s a fair few parts an G34 barrel alone will run you around $150. I carry and would defend my life with 9mm round. http://www.ballisticsbytheinch.com/megraphs/9mm.html I’m just saying the these cartridges can’t physically knock someone down. And, we all know that the more damage done, to the body, the faster the blood loss. Currently you have JavaScript disabled. Hitting someone in the pinky finger with a .500 S&W Magnum is less effective than hitting the head with a 22 LR. , Anyway, you guys get what I mean… and if you think there’s any validity, cool. Both are valid points and very understandable reasons to prefer one over the other. The Sig won out, but caliber as yet to be released, as the Sig that won is both a 40 and a 9 mm. Lousy ass training and poor shooting skills of theor agents. And by fair ammo, I mean the same Jacketed hollow point bullets used by 95%+ of the people who carry concealed. It’s like if a 9mm Parabellum & a .45 ACP Sexed each other & has a baby. Its superiority is not overwhelming. I can’t imagine how a 1.13″ object going through a channel in the body that’s freshly ripped would feel! ALL pistol bullets (unless you have a fairly powerful magnum) stop people pretty poorly. Later on in life I started to practice shooting again and worked with many different calibers. Allow me to offer a suggestion (well not a suggestion as the FBI state's so)..the FBI did not drop the .40 cal due to the improvement in .9mm ammo. And yes, I know memes are meant to be funny - it’s just that, unfortunately, the rest of the world can occasionally get a little weary of US flag waving (not saying it’s your fault; besides, we’re expecting America’s return as the world’s ‘good guy’ after January. shoot what you carry. Increasing the lethality of them is moot since they were already the benchmark. This doesn't mean I don't own a 9mm. which should I use a 9 mm or a .45? If a 9mm fails, it won't perform anywhere close to an unexpanded .45 and will punch a tony hole. Tables of accumilated data without the underlying data available will not fly in ANY scientific circle. They needed a standard that could be applied to everyone - not what was best per person. https://www.usconcealedcarry.com/blog/the-statistically-perfect-gunfight/ Setting that aside though, lets use your suggestion of hanging things from a tree in your backyard. As you can see with .357 SIG, which has greater velocity and mass than .45 ACP, it still penetrates less. With a wider selection of officers being able to shoot handguns chambered in 9×19mm, many departments choose this caliber so they can standardize around a single firearm and loading, making logistics and supply easier. From the days of the trusty Colt M1911 to. I use my HK P30 in .40 as my EDC but it is merely there to allow me to fight back to my AR-15 or one of my other rifles. Hit enough of them, and their blood pressure will lower to the point of forcing unconsciousness. Out of two equally ‘energetic’ bullets, the heavier one carriea more momentum. The bag guy not stopping after 14 rounds of 45 ACP hollowpoints is only one proof of this. Privacy Policy and Consider this: Can you measure “Stopping Power” or “Knock Down Power”?”. However, if by “stop” you mean “Literally knock down”, then I have to disagree. Other than shots to the CNS, the most reliable means for affecting rapid incapacitation is by placing shots to large vital organs thus causing rapid blood loss. I would probably carry the gun inside the waist. If you don’t have a pistol yet and/or are trying to decide what caliber to carry, I would recommend firing them all and then deciding which you shoot the best and are most comfortable with. While the 147gr Federal HST expanded from 9mm (roughly .35cal) to on average 15mm or .61″, the .45 ACP expanded from (again, roughly) 11.5mm to 25mm (.45″ to 1″). ARX Reloads in 9mm, 380, 45-70 & 7.62 X 39 The 7.62 X 39 is one of the most common rifles available. The people who advocate for 9mm should realize that almighty Federal makes an HST for .380 as well. These people are likely NOT physically incapacitated by the bullet. Because when you are confronted in your living room, at a distance of 10-15 feet, you have to drop him before he can fire or you are going to get hit. That is kind of odd to me!! I do agree shoot with what you can handle and shoot more accurately. Even though this is supposed to be an excellent round, with great expansion in gelatin, this bullet had almost zero expansion. 130 gr VS 230 gr HPs at 1000 fps. Every time. So I'm an operating room nurse in a level 1 trauma center. Sorry for the mix-up and thanks for pointing it out. That’s the LAST thing I want to do. I've taken black bear with both the 44 mag. .45 ACP and 10mm, both being slower heavier bullets than .357 SIG have greater penetration. I have both, I have practiced more with the 45 ACP. But if both of these two are more than your are able to shoot comfortably, consider the 380. Terminal performance of modern defensive rounds is relatively similar in ballistics gel. Currently i own no 45,s. For once, conventional wisdom isn’t completely wrong. Note a cow hip bone shoot with a .22 is not the same as a .45 shot . Because even a .380 round nose bullet coming out of a 2.5-inch barrel will go through a metal door at less than 10 yards.  When choosing between the two, also consider which gun feels better in your hand. Why not buy a double stack 1911, like my ParaOrdnance p14-45? Yes the 9mm is marginal, but so are the 40 and the 45. This can be accomplished two ways. However, It requires proper shot placement to incapacitate ANY bad guy. Do you really think that tiny little size difference will matter that much? Or does it take a .500 Smith? Somethig to the discuters, even for an author. I could not agree with you more on every level. So how about  larger sample size? every round has a probability of causing a stop and this probability is proportional to the energy it carries, that nobody has been able to mathematically quantify it does not mean it does not exist. Still, if someone breaks in the house I keep a .45 S&W revolver next to the bed. This all great if the human is a gel pack but there are things called bones . If you don't currently write articles professionally, you should consider doing so. I’ll stick with my slower freight train that will knock a person flat down, even on a sloppy hit, lol. This begs the question: is bigger necessarily better? So the discussion comes back to… if the goal is to stop the adversary from being an adversary then you (assuming you aren’t provided the weapon by an organization required to arm a lot of people) need to find out what weapon and caliber works best for you. It’s Newton’s third law. I pulled some relevant data and compressed it to a single table: So if you compare the actual 9mm vs 40 S&W vs 45 ACP “stopping power” (incapacitation) numbers, it boils down to a measly 4%. Many independent studies have been done about actual combat shooting accuracy. Statistically this is a dead heat and well within any reasonable margin of error; but remember, the 9mm and .45 ACP wound channels are essentially the same in size, so what is the difference? If I am going mowing in bear country, my 1911A1 and eight FMJS are with me in case God forbid a bear attack.s. One of the most attractive things about choosing a 9mm for home defense is having more rounds at your disposable. have the .45 pistol/carbine combo, luv 'em. Also, for you suppressor enthusiasts out there, the .45 ACP is an inherently subsonic bullet. What is much more important is training and practice. Lend-lease conditions were allegedly exorbitant but the US manufacturing base was undeniably a godsend), plus some of the other margins you refer to were, frankly, too close to argue, so I won’t even try. Studies done on combat troops show similar hit ratios to these LEO stats. In this study, .44 Magnum failed to penetrate 13% of the time tied with 9mm and .40 S&W (and within the margin of error of .45 ACP). It’s good advice and have fun digging. There is no way the “energy” itself from a pistol bullet will have any impact on an adversary as far as “knocking the person down.” Pistol bullets don’t have even remotely enough energy to do that. I can attest that being next to someone shooting a .45acp, .40 s&w, and .357 is a far different experience than being next to someone shooting a 9mm. To assuage my lingering guilt, I rationalized I could duplicate my departed 10mm if I loaded my Glock with.45 ACP+P ammunition. The .45 ACP, .40 S&W or 9mm are the most commonly argued for calibers. Here are some of its best features: While slightly impractical, the .45 ACP also has the coolness factor on its side.