9mm, .40, .45?

[Blitzkrieg]

Worse ways to go, bro

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Big frame Glocks fit me perfectly as well

 

[simon99]

I would carry what I have trained with....9mm sidearm, 5.56 for CQB or egress, and 7.62 for long range engagements.

 

[YoungBlood]

I would carry what I have trained with....QUOTE]

This is the most realistic to me, what you have trained with and what you have the most of...shot placement is key on any caliber IMHO

 

[AMProducts]

9MM will be widely available, that in itself is an advantage. .22LR will run out, as will .40 S&W and .45 ACP for those who do not reload. 9MM will be carried by the military and that will be the source of ammunition should SHTF. I myself am looking at a 9MM carbine, Thureon Defense GA 9MM Thureon Defense | The Shield of Liberty, JRC Home Page, HiPoint Welcome to Hi-Point Firearms! or Beretta CX Storm Deprecated Browser Error are all good choices depending on your pocket book.

Just thought I would warn you, the JRC is a pile of crap... great idea, poor execution. I was moonlighting as a gunsmith for a few local shops when these things first came out, they have a tendency to break bolt handles, are a nightmare to take apart and service, and generally do not work as well as they should.

The thureon looks good, never seen one, seems pretty spendy for what you get. The highpoint while it is notable for it's rather questionable build quality, has a very good track record.

Bigger is always better. That being said ,if I were to start over from scratch I would invest heavily in 9mm. Why? how bullets work is they make a hole and let blood etc out. 9mm does that. 9mm weighs less than 40S@W and 45acp so pound for pound there is more shots per pound. The old fashioned run what you brung as previously mentioned is what will be. I think we put too much into shtf rather than just being prepared and stocked up for possible disruptions like in the years before we became mindless mass consumers .

9mm gets a bad rap, as being small and underpowered, however with current bullet technology, I think 9mm is just as effective as any of the larger calibers, better barrel steels, better bullet designs and manufacturing technologies, as well as better powders have created loads that are higher velocity, with a very mild pressure curve, and punch just as hard as the bigger calibers with slower moving bullets.

Oh great, another one of those 9mm or .40 or .45 and .223/5.56 or 7.62×39 or 308/7.62×51 threads.

Well for starters my current handgun is a Glock 21 (.45 acp) and my current rifle is an AKM with 7.62x39.

I always find that these threads always turn into a "why that caliber sucks more than this one" thread. It really depends on the personal preference of the shooter.

I have nothing against the 9mm or the .40 S&W but I enjoy shooting the .45 and the Glock 21 fits my hands like a glove.

I also have nothing against the 5.56 or the 7.62x51 but for my needs I have discovered that the AK in 7.62x39 fits what I need.

I think that bigger is better is an incorrect argument because a .50 Desert Eagle isn't exactly easy to carry or shoot, is it? I've shot and held one. It isn't!

For concealed purposes I would use my snub nosed .357 over my Glock 21 any day. For open carry I'd use the Glock 21.

For shooting past 300m/yards but within 800m/yards I'd never use the 7.62x39 but the 5.56.

For my current purposes I'd use the 7.62x39 and the .45 ACP.

If I find that I need a different caliber or rifle, to fit what I need, then my firearms and caliber will change to suit those needs.

Really all calibers are useful. Even a .22. Personal preference and comfort of use with the firearm is going to be far more important than caliber size in the end.

If an individual uses a firearm in a small caliber that they can shoot confidently with then they have better odds of shooting accurately and hitting the target.

A miss with a .50 DE is still a miss. A hit with a .22 Mosquito is still a hit.

I don't know about any of you but I'd rather not get shot by anything. Even a .22.

To each his own.

Dark

I would carry what I have trained with....QUOTE]

This is the most realistic to me, what you have trained with and what you have the most of...shot placement is key on any caliber IMHO

The best calibers are the ones you like. I've got my opinions, and basically the primary concerns I have are rounds per pound and kinetic energy and bullet construction. I've gone with .223 and 9mm generally because they offer a lower cost/rd than say .308, and .45 ACP, and also have a lower weight than 7.62x39 and higher capacity than .40.

Generally speaking when it comes to ammo you can choose:

1) Performance
2) Price
3) Weight

Pick two, for me it's performance and weight.

 

[SoberPoster]

Anyone consider the PLR-16; a .223 pistol just short of a carbine? Takes AR mags and that 223/556 beats any pistol in SHTF... also almost as maneuverable as a pistol and can have 30 shots.

 

[Modeler]

Anyone consider the PLR-16; a .223 pistol just short of a carbine? Takes AR mags and that 223/556 beats any pistol in SHTF... also almost as maneuverable as a pistol and can have 30 shots.

Kinda hard to find aren't they?

 

[The Heretic]

Advantages?

Sure. But the question is, is it worth the disadvantages; carrying around the weight of a long gun chambered for a less effective cartridge when you could be carrying one chambered for a rifle cartridge.

To me, it isn't worth it in most cases.

Something like the 5.7x28 might be nice, especially for some people who need lighter smaller weapon loads, and/or a weapon with light recoil. That is what it was designed for.

But for me, a self-defense pistol is a last resort. Something that in a SHTF situation I would always have on me, something that I would use to fight my way to my rifle, or use in CQB if my rifle ran out of ammo or was otherwise disabled.

I want a rifle with a rifle cartridge. My first choice would be 7.62x39 because I prefer the Kalashnikov platform over the AR, and 7.62x39 is more popular in an AK. Second would be 5.56x45, last would be 7.62x51 as in most cases I don't think I need a full power rifle.

 

[RBid]

In most real examples of SHTF, long guns are reserved for static location defense. Concealed handguns will always be the way to go for carried arms.

Sent from my ME302C using Tapatalk 4

 

[erudne]

The Kel-tec SU-16 and SU-16 pistol actually meet the criteria mentioned above
plus the kel-tec swallows steel cased ammo

 

[erudne]

The Kel-tec SU-16 and SU-16 pistol actually meet the criteria mentioned above
plus the kel-tec swallows steel cased ammo

 

[OregonGamecock]

If we are talking world end, defend yourself then I would want a M4 and a 9mm. The 223 and 9mm rounds are the most plentiful and can be found throughout the US. The 9 doesn't gave the knock down like the others but for sidearm it is enough. The M4/.223 is great for close quarters to mid range (300m) targets which is what you would/do face.

The large caliber rounds are cool to have but if you are talking survival/apocalypse then you want easy to find ammunition and weapons that you can bust up then easily replace but have ammo for.

 

[XSubSailor]

Shoot what you shoot best...you can't miss fast enough to win a gunfight.

And for those that think that "9mm will be plentiful," well, I guess you haven't been ammo shopping in the past 18 mos. Personally, I reload, and have enough components to stay fat in whatever caliber I choose.

 

[Boats]

There's an old saying

That saying is also pretty bubble gumming stupid.

There are literally dozens of scenarios where a handgun is the primary arm and a long gun is irrelevant primarily due to need for concealment, remarkably tight quarters, subsonic close quarters suppressed fire, etc.

 

[Snowy Rivers]

OK
From a purely tactical point of view.

A high cap 9 or 40 and 357 sig is a good one too.

An AR-15 with a 10" or 6-1/2" barrel, collapsible stock.

This little beast can be carried easily under a coat on a sling setup, and deliver one HELLUVA LOT OF fire.

This is of course a worst case SHTF scenario.

I personally have an SBR papered AR and it sits happy in the safe for this very reason.

I had an identical one that was a fully papered Select fire with the 6-1/2" barrel,
but some fellow with a lot of $$$ CAME ALONG and waned a ton of $$$$$ in my face about 5 years ago.

An AR built on a polymer lower with the short barrel and a poly retractable stock can be built very light, easy to carry and very effective.

Snowy

 

[SCannon]

You can shoot .40 through a 10mm in a G20 without changing anything. Stockpile the 10mm, when you run out pick up .40 and when you can't find .40 change barrels to a 9mm. Three calibers in one gun.

 

[erudne]

There is no One Size Fits All solution.
A 22LR has advantages, so does a 762
Life is an on going dynamic process. Do what you can, with what you have, where your at.

 

[clambo]

Heres my take on it. In an ideal situaton we would all be able to stay in our homes indefinitely and resupply from our 3000 sq. ft. basement rec rooms ala Bert Gummer (screen version). In the real world we may be limited to what we can stuff in a rucksack. Id probably be okay with 2 boxes of pistol ammo (your choice) and the rest in .22LR. You can get a LOT of .22s in a ruck compared to anything else. I dont see myself needing a handgun all that much so 100 rds should be plenty. As for 9mm, .40 , .45 debate, that then becomes a moot point. In todays world its a moot point anyway from the stopping power perspective. Onle last thing, dont expect that just because the military stocks 9mm and the feds stock. 40 that they are gonna make a schduled stop on your AO and pass it out. They dont want you to have it NOW. Its a fallacy to think they will help arm you in the future.

 

[Snowy Rivers]

Yeah, the Govmnt is going to Efff you every time they can for sure.

And if the going gets real tough, the army is going to land something nasty down your smoke stack and, POOOOOOF, moot point anyway.

 

[chemist]

Suppressed .45ACP carbine:

Even with +P loading, a 230 gr. slug out of a 16" barrel is still subsonic - barely. At least on a warm day! That Osprey can is the best (but not the only) reason that I can think of to choose .45 over the other options. I can load it down and it's whisper-quiet, but a FMJ still has decent penetration. Or I can reach out past 100 yards (limited by my eyesight) with a full powder charge.