9mm enough stopping power

[Big_John]

What do you guys think about 9mm(9x19) as a defense round? I have heard arguments that accuracy is more important than caliber and that 9mm does not pack enough punch. I currently have a glock 19 I use for carry. Is it enough?

 

[Joe Williams]

Plenty, if you use good hollowpoints and not FMJ.

Accuracy counts no matter your defensive caliber.

 

[Slab]

OMG it works!!!!

 

[dice dealer]

Hell a .25 has enuff stopping power if put in the right spot

 

[NateIU10]

Yup, I'd rather have the increased capacity and fast follow-up shots. With any modern JHP, you're not losing much anyway.

That's why I carry a G19 with a spare 17 round mag

 

[sloughfoot]

Yes, absolutely and without question. I personally am completely confident in the 9mm and the Glock delivery system (and other pistols in 9mm as well) Plenty accurate and plenty of power too. There is nobody on this earth that can withstand a flurry of 9mm's to the chest and face.

This is from an "old school" shooter who was taught 20 years ago that the 45ACP and 1911 were the pinnacle of defensive firearms.

I have long since learned differently.

Regards

 

[melensdad]

Most serious professionals will say that the 9mm Lugar (9x19) is the minimum round worthy of trust. I don't think very many will argue that you should go lower than the 9mm, but a few die hards will suggest that the 45acp is the ONLY round worthy of trust. Clearly many LEOs have settled on the 40s&w. Its somewhere between the 9mm and the 45acp, leaning pretty close to the 45acp in energy figures.

I carry either a 9mm or a 45. I don't feel undergunned or underpowered with the 9mm.

I gave up on the 380acp (9mm Kurtz) long ago. Recently sold my 380, doubt if I carried it more than 10 times in the several years I owned it. The diameter may be equal to the 9mm but the weight and the velocity combined yield very inconsistent results in expansion, especially when shot through heavy clothing. There have been advancements in 380 ammo, but at the same time the 9mm has also gotten better.

Feel secure with your 9mm and the Glock 19 is a good tool to carry. You are not underpowered, it is enough.

 

[Lars]

a .50 BMG to the arm is less likely to kill you than a 9mm in the chest.....

Caliber wars are idiotic. There I said it.

Buy a gun (Something that will go bang EVERY time you press the trigger)
get training (Recent, Relevant, Realistic)
Practice often

The hierarchy goes like this.....
Mindset -- Tactics -- Skills -- Equipment

 

[esrice]

You're good.

 

[Flintlock]

17 rounds of hollowpoint 9mm is enough to stop anyone I'll need to be stopping, in most cases. If I need more than 17 shots to stop something, I think I am effed as is. It all depends on shot placement. With 17 shots and the practice I have had with my M&P9, I'm pretty dang sure I will be hitting my mark.

 

[paddling_man]

You'll only **** the man off with a 9mm. He'll laugh as the 9mm bullets bounce off his chest or prick him like a pimple. Seriously...

I'll take the g19 off your hands and trade you an effective 12 gauge mossberg... no shells required. Simply the sound of racking the slide will make any maladjusted miscontent wet his pants and run screaming like a little girl, flapping his arms in the air like a loon about to take flight.

(The 9mm is fine. Just make sure you hit him.)

 

[Coach]

Most serious professionals will say that the 9mm Lugar (9x19) is the minimum round worthy of trust. I don't think very many will argue that you should go lower than the 9mm, but a few die hards will suggest that the 45acp is the ONLY round worthy of trust. Clearly many LEOs have settled on the 40s&w. Its somewhere between the 9mm and the 45acp, leaning pretty close to the 45acp in energy figures.

I carry either a 9mm or a 45. I don't feel undergunned or underpowered with the 9mm.

I gave up on the 380acp (9mm Kurtz) long ago. Recently sold my 380, doubt if I carried it more than 10 times in the several years I owned it. The diameter may be equal to the 9mm but the weight and the velocity combined yield very inconsistent results in expansion, especially when shot through heavy clothing. There have been advancements in 380 ammo, but at the same time the 9mm has also gotten better.

Feel secure with your 9mm and the Glock 19 is a good tool to carry. You are not underpowered, it is enough.

The .380 is fine if you are shooting at naked people. How often do you get to do that?

 

[melensdad]

The .380 is fine if you are shooting at naked people. How often do you get to do that?

Every other friday night is freak night, is that wrong?

 

[sjach virlym]

they have safety rounds now that are in the 9 that have the knockdown power of a 45 they are expensive about a dollar a round so i would target practice with them but they are so worth it...

 

[paddling_man]

 

[esrice]

they have safety rounds . . . . .have the knockdown power of a 45 . . . . . they are expensive about a dollar a round .

Do you have an example of a "safety round"?

And "knockdown power" is a myth. Handgun rounds, even most rifle rounds, can't/won't knockdown a human. The physics doesn't support it.

 

[Big_John]

Thanks for all the replies. I will be sticking with my 9.

 

[Bigum1969]

This chart shows why I like the 10mm round so much.

 

[Joe Williams]

Since when is the "average employed bullet weight" for a .38 Special 95 grains?

 

[melensdad]

And "knockdown power" is a myth. Handgun rounds, even most rifle rounds, can't/won't knockdown a human. The physics doesn't support it.

Well while on a technical basis I agree with you, on a more colloquial level the term "knockdown power" is often substituted for the more correct term "energy" which is a measurable factor based on velocity and weight.

And while bullet technology is getting better every year, even the best 380 can't match similar quality 9mm rounds. It all goes back to the physics. While the diameters are the same, the weight and the velocity are different, therefore the energy is different.