.357 vs 9mm

**rspowers** · December 10th, 2007, 02:10 PM

I see your point about going through the guy. I wonder if anyone has really tried to compare this stuff.

**LittleRedToyota** · December 10th, 2007, 02:17 PM

Originally Posted by rspowers

I wonder if anyone has really tried to compare this stuff.

many, many people have. and many, many internet debates have been spawned by those attempts.

imho, they all lead to the same two conclusions:

1. shot placement is the key.

2. you will wish you had a rifle.

since it is quite impractical to carry a rifle around all the time, based on #1, i have chosen to carry 9mm because i can get quicker more accurate follow-up shots with it than with other calibers (in large part because the ammo is cheaper, so i can practice more).

the "stopping power" debate can be an interesting intellectual exercise, but, imho, it is ultimately an exercise in futility.

**Log9mm** · December 10th, 2007, 02:59 PM

Originally Posted by Log9mm

Yea but all that extra power just equates to the bullet moving faster, seeing as they are for all intents and purposes the same sized bullet. If 9mm has sufficient penetration to incapacitate, then the same bullet moving faster could border on over penetration. Do not get me wrong I think the .357 round is a great self defence round, but to say it has more stopping power because it travels a greater distance after it goes through you does not add up in my opinion. Also you must take note of what Cheeseybacon said. Percieved recoil is not to be confused with power. If that were the case my 442 (airweight snub chambered in .38 special) would be the most powerfull gun in my collection. And that is not the case.

Honestly RS just read this. It is a great article and I'm confident you will understand what we are saying after you read it.

http://www.firearmstactical.com/pdf/fbi-hwfe.pdf

**Log9mm** · December 10th, 2007, 03:00 PM

Originally Posted by LittleRedToyota

many, many people have. and many, many internet debates have been spawned by those attempts.

imho, they all lead to the same two conclusions:

1. shot placement is the key.

2. you will wish you had a rifle.

since it is quite impractical to carry a rifle around all the time, based on #1, i have chosen to carry 9mm because i can get quicker more accurate follow-up shots with it than with other calibers (in large part because the ammo is cheaper, so i can practice more).

the "stopping power" debate can be an interesting intellectual exercise, but, imho, it is ultimately an exercise in futility.

I could not agree with you more.

**DaveM55** · December 10th, 2007, 07:16 PM

From the latest SIG SAUER Academy Tactical Times email.

Power

We often get asked what the best cartridge for an individual might be since we offer a variety of calibers in several different frame sizes. The immediate one liner is to shoot the biggest cartridge that you can regularly put on the target. In reality, the answer must stem from what the user intends to accomplish. Some of the questions that need to be addressed may involve accuracy, penetration, size, weight, distance, cost, etc. Every cartridge that we chamber a pistol for, from .22 to .45ACP has place that it is best suited when all of the facts are considered. Since the objective of shooting is hitting the target, that brings us full circle to shoot a cartridge that has sufficient power to achieve the desired terminal result that we can confidently place on the target with consistency.

Simple Is Good

Adam Painchaud is a Senior Instructor of the SIG SAUER Academy.

**greener** · December 11th, 2007, 11:05 PM

For these never-ending discussions, I like the Sig answer. If I had my druthers, I'd go with .45 (bigger hole on target theory). Since this is a discussion of .357 versus 9mm, I'd go with .357 (more energy), but I have no problems with carrying my 9mm. In a calm, no stress situation, I can put the rounds on target with any of them. In a more stressful situation, I'd want the one I shoot the most, which is one of the reasons I rotate guns on my range trips.

**CrazyWhiteGuy** · December 12th, 2007, 05:04 AM

Originally Posted by rspowers

I dont know about the rest of you but when I fire my .357 4' revolver with a .357 magnum round, my hand hurts because the bullet is so powerful. I could not imagine firing that round from the snub nose. My semi 9mm is a sub compact and I can fire it all day, my hand wont even get sore. from that, i can say that the .357 seems a lot more powerful.

my advice, pick up a 9mm, fire it. then pick up a .357 and fire it. there is a huge difference. they both can kill though, as can a .22.

I have to agree with you on the power of the .357 and the hand hurting part. I have a S&W .357 model 60 chiefs special with a 2 1/8" barrel and it kicks like a mule and I can honestly say that I would be able to put 4 rounds center mass with my 9mm before I would be able to aquire the target again and fire another round with the .357.

Also, would anyone honestly want to even fire a .357 without any hearing protection???

**MarcS** · December 12th, 2007, 10:42 AM

Originally Posted by Log9mm

Honestly RS just read this. It is a great article and I'm confident you will understand what we are saying after you read it.

http://www.firearmstactical.com/pdf/fbi-hwfe.pdf

People who take the time to read this article are known for never having caliber wars. Educate yourself.

**DaveM55** · December 12th, 2007, 11:11 AM

Originally Posted by rspowers

I dont know about the rest of you but when I fire my .357 4' revolver with a .357 magnum round, my hand hurts because the bullet is so powerful. I could not imagine firing that round from the snub nose. My semi 9mm is a sub compact and I can fire it all day, my hand wont even get sore. from that, i can say that the .357 seems a lot more powerful.

my advice, pick up a 9mm, fire it. then pick up a .357 and fire it. there is a huge difference. they both can kill though, as can a .22.

I have a old Ruger Security Six snub nose 2.5in that shoots 357 magnum and my hands don't hurt after 100 rounds. And I have had arthritis in my hands for 25 years. It's the gun I paid the least for out of my collection, but one of my top favorites to shoot.

**CrazyWhiteGuy** · December 12th, 2007, 12:50 PM

Originally Posted by MarcS

People who take the time to read this article are known for never having caliber wars. Educate yourself.

Very informative, but it leads me to another question. "When an officer shoots a subject, it is done with the explicit intention of immediately incapacitating that subject". Of course, when protecting ourselves the same is expected, stop the attacker as soon as possible. So the question is this, if an officer is forced to shoot at a suspect and misses or has a through shot and injures/kills a bystander, what happens to that officer? On the other hand, what would happen to an ordinary citizen in the same scenario?