The 1980s is when the revolution in the handgun world occurred. It started with the old timers and their four-inch K frame revolvers in 357 and 38 Special, moved towards, and gotten fully involved with the 9mm cartridge, and then closed out the decade with this universal love and admiration for the 40 Smith.
The 40 was the king of the pit for years afterwards. It is the handgun and cartridge that can scratch the capacity itch and still be considered a large bore. It was viewed as natural for police adoption, it was the universal favorite for every wise policeman and agent, and stayed that way, really until recently.
Its followers believed all the hype, that this selection was the best option in all hand gunning worlds, and that those that actually knew what they were talking about all carried one. If a man carried a 9mm, which I did- he was looked down upon by the legions of 40 disciples.
Those fellows could preach the 40-caliber gospel too. Its patrons believed in it, and defended it as the ultimate to anyone that would listen, to the point that in least my circle those still carrying the 9mm would be sought out. I was amazed how many times the words “stopping power” and “Miami” could be used in a single, impassioned rant.
Miami was certainly a milestone, it was a bad day, and a heck of a hard fight. Having had to examine it several times in training venues in different stratospheres, the messaging varying depending upon the prejudices of the instructor. Larger caliber (40SW, 10mm, 45 ACP) offerings legitimized, penetration idolized as the holy grail of pistol effectiveness, ad infinitum. We are a passionate bunch, we pistol men, and what happened in Miami in 86 really caused us to examine those passions and change the way that we thought about service arms.
The 10mm Auto was the child of Miami, but it was too big, too hard, too Republican, and it did not carry enough rounds in the guns to make the juice worth the squeeze. Hey, let’s shorten it, make it about 90% as much, pack a bunch of rounds into a 9mm frame, and it’ll just be the best, right? Dang right.
Honestly, I never bought into it. I went through a 40 phase with the rest of the world, but it didn’t last long. It came back when I picked up a Glock 22 as a service weapon as a special deputy, and I did shoot that pistol a great deal in 2013-14, during the ammo/ gun grabbing scare of those years. The only thing that could be found to practice with was 40S&W and 38 Super Automatic, and everything else was gone. Because 40 was there, and nothing else was, it led me to believe that the round was dead.
Dead it was, but there was not a funeral until 2019 when the FBI turned its affection to the old 9mm. These days, a fellow can find a 40-caliber pistol in exactly the same size, brand, condition, whatever, for just about half as much as the exact same model in 9mm. I’ve picked up a few, for nearly nothing.
My opinion is, that while the 40 never deserved its superman reputation that it cultivated from 1990-2019; it does have a useful service life if a fellow considers it within its strengths and manages around its limitations. It is still effective, although surely, I would make some changes.
The first is to drop the 180-grain bullet. It is too heavy, too slow, and operates at too high pressure. Recoil in practice arms is plainly uncomfortable, and when that bullet arrives at its target at 45 ACP speeds, it does not pack the payload of a 45. The heavy bullet is a compromise, left over from some notion that it is still a 10mm light, but it doesn’t get near there, either. Expansion is not there, recoil is terrible, and it is the least effective option when one considers its potential as a fighting round. The fact that it remains the most primary option is the fault of the ammunition companies, and reason that it is dead, or near death.
Recoil is a thing in the lightweight plastic guns, and trying to make it a super charged uber 9 made it hard to handle. The pressures should be moderated. Even with the lighter loads, if loaded too fast, it becomes obnoxious.
Even though I do not recommend it, I happen to know that a higher pressure 40 cartridge will function in 10mm autos. I have done it, sparingly, do not advise it- but they do run. This by itself says something about the 40, and maybe even the 10- but a moderated cartridge, like the 40, should not run with the longer parent case pressure wise.
If the higher pressure loads and the 180 grain cartridge generate the faults, within this comparison there is some usefulness. The cartridge fails in comparison to the 45- tries to compete close enough to the 10, and it is not suited for this purpose and does not compete or emulate.
The 40 becomes more viable if it is not thought of as a 45 or 10mm light. It does show more promise if the comparison is as a more capable option than the 9mm, and in some modifications, on par with the old timers’ 357 Magnum. Light bullet instead of heavy bullet. Trade a little weight for speed, etc.
Within the lighter bullet options, a 9mm in a 115 or 124 grain 9mm, rolling at about 1100-1180 fps. This gives us a basis for improvement, improvement upon that 9mm standard.
A moderated charge in a 40 caliber, in a 135-155 bullet at 1100-1180 fps gives a fellow an improvement over the 9mm service round in expansion, equal penetration, greater surface area, similar handling characteristics, comparable and reasonable recoil impulse, and still scratches the itch for those that are high-capacity fans. This is improvement without cost. Win, win, win.
I’ve loaded some 135 grain Nosler hollow points over a moderate charge of Hodgdon Universal, and it will get me right there, and is both pleasant to shoot and balls accurate. I call this the “Murphy load”, borrowing from the principle in Murphy’s laws of combat; “If it is stupid, but it works, it is not stupid.” I think if this load came back to our shelves the 40 would experience a renaissance.
Likewise the 140 grain Barnes at about 1200, the Colt/ Double Tap load of 155grains at 1050, which are both pussycats in the hand. And, for our trouble, both these loads and the Murphy load improve upon terminal ballistics of the 9mm. They all would have gotten the two more inches of penetration that was needed in Miami.
The ammunition companies stayed with the heavy bullets, and in doing so they killed it, the shooting public or the FBI did not. So, what the 40 needs is a change of attitude, and a change of mission. It does better as an improvement of the established 9mm, and fares more poorly than a light 10 or 45.
Within this improvement, comes an interesting take on sub caliber practice, like many do with close to identifiable sized guns in smaller calibers, namely 22 LR. Literally every 40 caliber pistol that I own and run, (Beretta 90-two, Smith 4006, Glock 22, Glock 23) I also own an identical pistol in 9mm (Beretta 92FS, Smith 5906, Glock 17, Glock 19). Certainly, we have a new twist on this sub caliber practice option.
Certainly, a viable practice in my opinion, is to practice with a Glock 17, but carry a Glock 22 for real world use, if the guns are identical- which they are- and they shoot the same, absent recoil impulse. Within the notion of recoil impulse, if the carry gun is used for a real-world defensive purpose, with the adrenaline manifest in such a confrontation, I doubt he’ll be able to remember that one was more kicky than the other. Since I am not sure if this has been suggested, or not- I am certain that someone will take offense, but I think that this will really work.
On both levels of my humble home, the go to, real world defensive piece is a pair of forty Smiths, loaded with lighter defensive ammunition. For this purpose, I do consider it superior to the 9mm parabellum.
I really am hopeful that it makes a comeback, and not because I like it, which I do not. Not really. I do like it only in accurate guns that shoot to the sights, and within that notion I like any cartridge that does so.
The 40 is not dead, but it is certainly languishing. If ammo companies saw the light, it could make a fairly robust comeback, at least enough of one for a pistol man to take advantage of the stellar deals that can be had on those pistols.