The biggest difference between the 9mm and .40 or .45 is the "permanent cavity" created by the round.
not at all correct.. perminant wound cavity is only one factor.. and its value is highly debated... the differences in kenetic energy delivered are substantial.. the difference in crush cavity is different.. etc..
that said.. all traditional military and police calibers are poor man stoppers..
people can argue 9mm vs .45 all day long.. (many do).. but at the end of the day.. when you look at the logs of trauma hospitals in cities known for violent crime.. and dig into the statsitics.. the truth is the vast majority of people that are shot with handguns in the US survive the encounter.. if you dont hit vitals.. you are likely not going to shut an assailant down.. depending on what vitals you hit (and a littany of other circumstances), how quickly that person shuts down varies greatly..
The 9mm shoots much "hotter" and being smaller leaves a smaller permanent cavity, which means it the wound can close and they won't bleed out. A .40 or .45 leaves a bigger wound that is harder to close, thus having more blood loss. It's the critical factor the FBI/CIA look at when evaluating weapon ballistics.
again, not really accurate.. a 147 gr 9mm is far less hot than a 125 gr .40 +p+ round.. a 115gr +p 9mm isnt as hot or as fast as a 125 gr .357 sig...
bleeding out is NOT something anyone considers in 2012 when looking at the capability of a pistol projectile... if you are waiting on the bad guy to bleed out.. you are going to be waiting a long time.. which is not something you want to be dealing with in a deadly force encounter.. Neither the FBI or the CIA consider blood loss a critical factor (again.. I am an FBI certified firearms instructor.. no where was this taught..).. shutting down the pumping station... yes... waiting for enough of the red gooey stuff to actually leave the body so that O2 isnt getting delivered and the brain turns off... not so much...
That being said, i don't care. As mdwest said, mastery of the weapon is critical. How you train will determine if you drop an intruder or not.
Not at all true.. where the shot lands, whether the shot hits deep enough to actually strike vitals (.32 and .380 arent your friend), and whether or not it delivers enough energy to actually disrupt the body will determine how quickly the bad guy goes bye bye..
you can be completely untrained.. but if you manage to put a 115 grain pill in the medula oblangota (im sure I just totally misspelled that).. you can 100% guarantee the bad guy is dropping on the spot.. you can also however be incredibly well trained.. put the same 115 grain pill into the head of a bad guy.. and then watch him shoot back at you for the next few seconds..
training helps you win gun fights... but it is no guarantee.. fights are dynamic.... there is a reason we have lost HUNDREDS of highly trained special operations people in Iraq and Afghanistan in CQB engagements over the past several years (KIA or severely WIA).. there is a reason we loose dozens of swat cops every year to lucky, untrained crack heads with $79 .22 cal ghetto gats.. training is part of the equation (a big part).. but it is not the sole, definitive answer..
I practice three shot groups, mozembique style...2 in the body, 1 in the head. If the two in the body doesn't stop them there is one more flying that will. You train to eliminate the threat, not injure the threat, which to means if it moves you shoot again.
nothing wrong with a mozembique drill.. but it is not the ultimate training answer.. again.. fights are dynamic.. people move.. there is cover, concealment, etc.. to factor in..
personally.. I train to shoot the center of the mass of the largest target presented.. if all I see is a leg.. Im shooting the middle of that..
regarding the eliminate the threat comment.. I agree somewhat.. but you need to be careful here.. sometimes it does not mean you shoot them again.. in a civilan setting this could equal jail time and law suits
Now, with all that taken into consideration, a shotgun is the best home defense weapon. Point in the general direction and pull the trigger. Aim isn't dead critical as it is with a pistol. There are some great self defense shotguns on the market.
strongly disagree here..
if all you have is a hammer... sooner or later everything begins to look like a nail..
there is no one perfect home defense weapon.. shotguns have advantages and disadvantages.. just like pistols and rifles do... what the right tool is, is dictated by the circumstances..
drawbacks of a shotgun include.. slow to reload.. recoil management.. over penetration.. lack of precision accuracy.. round selection (which can also be an advantage depending on the context)... weapon size.. weapon weight.. (among many others)..
One other thought, if you're not at home, is the wife or kids as good w/ your home defense weapon as you are? If not the pistol is again a bad choice. A shotgun will be easy for them to learn and have confidence in.
absolutely disagree.. most women.. and most children are very hard to train on shotguns... especially if you are talking about a shotgun that fits a medium or large framed man... length of pull, OAL of the weapon, recoil, etc.. are a challenge.. not to mention the "boom" intimidates many novice shooters..
