Power vs Accuracy: CA Limits

[safety-1st]

Semi-autos only

Trying to spark a topic here about accuracy over power due to our 10 round limit in CA. With our handicapped 10 round limit, does the theory of accuracy over power hold true?

If you only had one bullet to save your life would you rather have a .40 , .357sig, 45acp, or 10mm? Or the 9mm?

The one bullet to save your life question is not so far from 10 bullets. I have all my handguns in 9mm but starting to question my previous ideology of accuracy and staying on target over power. It's not that hard to be accurate with 40,357sig,45acp, 10mm. Wouldn't it be better to have the power in our case due to our limited round count?

Let me know your thoughts, thanks

:EDIT: Any reason or experience you have in NOT being accurate with high calibers?

[BarrettM99]

Power over accuracy is overrated. With the advancement of available ammo choices, this argument is a lot harder to make.

And accuracy is always important.

[ElDub1950]

If you can't hit the broad side of a Buick at 10 paces it doesn't matter if you have a .22 or a .50.

And if you Can hit that Buick, basically all the current ballistics tests show there's very little difference among the typical carry calibers. So choose what you can shoot well.

[Midtown]

I am going to go out on a limb here and say this exact topic has been discussed at length.

9mm is inexpensive to practice with, easy to find, has a good variety, and a large number of handguns that use it. Low recoil helps with follow up shots.

[Chapped Hide]

For me it's kind of a wash. I feel like I can dump 9 or 10 rounds in my 9's quicker and more accurately than I could the 7 or 8 that are in my .45's.

To the question of one bullet, .45 since that's the biggest I have and it would travel out of the Pro

[LowThudd]

I've always been of the opinion that the .45>9mm, magazine limits or not. There is plenty of data to support this time and time again. Real world usage and experiance from people like Bill Jordan and others. There is a big push recently to switch the military back to 45, or go with HP ammo.

But ultimately, the best gun to use is the one you feel most confident with, and can shoot most accurately.

[ap3572001]

Semi-autos only

Trying to spark a topic here about accuracy over power due to our 10 round limit in CA. With our handicapped 10 round limit, does the theory of accuracy over power hold true?

If you only had one bullet to save your life would you rather have a .40 , .357sig, 45acp, or 10mm? Or the 9mm?

The one bullet to save your life question is not so far from 10 bullets. I have all my handguns in 9mm but starting to question my previous ideology of accuracy and staying on target over power. It's not that hard to be accurate with 40,357sig,45acp, 10mm. Wouldn't it be better to have the power in our case due to our limited round count?

Let me know your thoughts, thanks

When I carry off duty , I always liked single stack, medium size 9mm handguns. I own S&W 3914 and Sig P225 they are both 8+1 , relatively easy to carry and I can shoot them really well.

Recently , I started using a GEN4 Glock 19 for off duty. Since I carry a 17 on duty , I decided to carry 19 off duty .

Its about Your ability with Your pistol . Not caliber or capacity.

I shoot at public ranges every weekend ........ People need more trigger time and QAULITY training .

[Calif Hunter]

To tell the truth, I don't even really notice a difference in recoil between my 1911s in .45 ACP and my 9mms. Maybe because I started shooting magnum handguns early. I don't have a "mini" .45, the smallest being a Commander, while I have an XD9 Subcompact. My son is 17 now, and he had some issues with his Kimber .45 initially. Now he finds he shoots it just as accurately as our CZ-75B, and sometimes more so. He has also started shooting a .44 mag quite a bit, though.

For me - if I knew I was going to get in a gunfight, I'd go with the .45 simply because bigger is better and I shoot them just as well. I do not have a problem with a 9mm with good ammo, though.

[Contrast]

10mm, because I hear that it's the only semi auto pistol round that can make Chuck Norris flinch.

In fact, I hear tell that Chuck Norris, while plinking cans, fired a hot 10mm cartridge and forever changed what was once known as the Saharan Rain Forrest.

[Wally2528]

Who knows which caliber stops an attacker better with a one shot to the head or spine, .22, .38 special, 9mm, 40 S&W or 45 ACP?

Placement is the part to work on as far as a self defense strategy goes....

[CK_32]

Obviously if proven to be exactly where you want it with one, bigger is better.


But the point why this is about as non fiction as Harry Potter is, the factor of only a few of us can bull a target at 20 yards and go shooting 4 times a week, we aren't stagnant on a calm, fun, time friendly paper shooting range. Bad guy will be moving and probably half killing you and the list of other variables that come into play in a real world application.

But if I had the choice of course I'd take a 44mag, 50 cal or 10mm... But reality sucks and isn't that simple.

Just be confidant in your gear. 9 isn't a auto kill, 44 mag isn't a auto kill. Nothing is absolute. Plan accordingly. If your views and ideals change stay with it. The will power behind the gun, means a lot more than the grain of the bullet going ahead of it.

[SonofWWIIDI]

If you can't put rounds on target, more power is useless.

As for caliber, I'll take whatever is handy at the moment. Right now, that's a 9mm with a scatter gun as backup.

[CandG]

If I can consistently keep my shots at center-mass at 10 yards with all of the above choices, I'm going to pick the cartridge with the most power, the 10mm.

I'd like to point out, though, that cartridge size by itself isn't the only deciding factor here. If a shooter firing a 9mm in a Glock 26 (polymer compact-sized pistol) can consistently hit center-mass, the same shooter will probably be just as accurate with a 10mm out of a full-size 1911. The felt recoil won't be that different, and the 1911 has a longer sight radius.

In summary, accuracy is FAR more important than power, but I want to use the most powerful cartridge out of the smallest pistol that I can still be accurate with. For me, that's a G29, for others that might be a 9mm 1911, and for others it might be a Ruger 22lr.

[k1dude]

In a free state, 9mm makes a lot of sense with modern SD ammo and standard mags.

Behind enemy lines here in Kalifornistan, big bores make more sense than 9mm because of our magazine limitations. If I'm going to be limited to 10 rounds, those rounds had better pack a wallop.

But all of this is meaningless if you can't hit anything with a larger bore handgun. If you can only hit what you're aiming at with a .380 or 9mm, then stick to .380 or 9mm.

[onelonehorseman]

This debate will never end because there is no single correct answer that applies to every person's situation. If we were talking only about CCW guns, my answer would likely be different than if we were talking specifically HD. In the end analysis, the best gun will be whatever you happen to have at the momment you actually need it.