Why is the .40 caliber losing popularity?

Joined
Jun 13, 2012
Messages
3,430
Likes
3,316
Location
Blackstone Valley
Feedback: 0 / 0 / 0
A few years ago .40 was the big thing. Everyone wanted it. Now it seems it’s losing its popularity to the point of people hating it. The reason I ask is now you see some going up for sale in the used gun market. Seems like it might be a viable thing to purchase. So why all the hate? Is the .40 caliber becoming obsolete?
 
I have a G23 and a 33 with a 40 barrel.
Snappy caliber, easy to reload. Never understood the hate. One of the big things was the government ordering them in mass, over the 9mm. But since then, the 9mm has developed ballastically and with between 2 and 4 more rounds per mag.
 
A few years ago .40 was the big thing. ...

[rofl]

Heh. It gained popularity because the FBI was using it. They started to use it because they liked 10mm after the Miami shoot-out fiasco, but 10mm was too much for agents. So they issued the 10mm-lite(.40S&W). So a bunch of LEAs followed suit. And everyone thought it must be more effective than 9mm because it has more kick. And the .45 ACP crowd was happy because it started with a 4.

Then, the FBI decided to go back to 9mm because agents were not qualifying well with 40S&W. Their accuracy and follow up shots were better with 9mm, and their ballistics testing lab determined that 9mm with modern JHP was just as lethal as 40S&W, especially because shot placement was easier with 9mm. Then, everybody followed the FBI again.
 
When the FBI dumped .40 S&W so did a lot of police departments. Until someone comes up with a better .40 to compete with modern 9mm cartridges there's not really a reason for it to exist anymore except for maybe highway patrol officers that need to shoot through safety glass in window shields. It it has going for it is slightly better penetration at the expense of capacity and recoil.
 
A few years ago .40 was the big thing. Everyone wanted it. Now it seems it’s losing its popularity to the point of people hating it. The reason I ask is now you see some going up for sale in the used gun market. Seems like it might be a viable thing to purchase. So why all the hate? Is the .40 caliber becoming obsolete?
Im not even sure 40 was ever a thing, other than all the cheap police trade ins years ago. Like my SW 4013
 
Because it's f***ing fotay [rofl]

what-9mm-looks-like-next-to-40-9mm-40-s-w-26126875.png


9mm-45-acp-10mm-7-62-40-s-w-15761099.png



how-females-get-their-bras-off-i-how-40-cal-23029006.png
 
[rofl]

Heh. It gained popularity because the FBI was using it. They started to use it because they liked 10mm after the Miami shoot-out fiasco, but 10mm was too much for agents. So they issued the 10mm-lite(.40S&W). So a bunch of LEAs followed suit. And everyone thought it must be more effective than 9mm because it has more kick. And the .45 ACP crowd was happy because it started with a 4.

Then, the FBI decided to go back to 9mm because agents were not qualifying well with 40S&W. Their accuracy and follow up shots were better with 9mm, and their ballistics testing lab determined that 9mm with modern JHP was just as lethal as 40S&W, especially because shot placement was easier with 9mm. Then, everybody followed the FBI again.

I think most people referred to it as "Short and Weak".

I am still a fan of 10mm and will be keeping my .40 and 10mm platforms.
Especially since I reload both.
 
Last edited:
the Fotay with the cast 180 gr. TC bullet to me is every bit as classic as the 230 gr. lead RN 45 ACP

plus the brass is so cheap and plentiful I can just leave it

I will always be a fan
 
Im not even sure 40 was ever a thing, other than all the cheap police trade ins years ago. Like my SW 4013
It was a thing when the FBI adopted it over 9mm and before the development of computer designed hollowpoints. Older 9mm wasn't much different than .38 special.
 
Fourtay was created to upset those 9mm shooters that say it's as powerful as any cartridge that starts with a 4 in the front..
When in reality, it's really because they can't handle the massive, wrist twisting, bone breaking recoil![rofl2]
9mm=pfff, girly round.
40 S&W=wow, that's manly.
45 acp=godlike power!

I like that you can buy a fourtay handgun so cheap!
If all I had was one of my fourty's, I would be a happy camper!
 
Last edited:
Fourtay was created to upset those 9mm shooters that say it's as powerful as any cartridge that starts with a 4 in the front..
When in reality it's really because they can't handle the massive, wrist twisting, bone breaking recoil![rofl2]
9mm=pfff, girly round.
40 S&W=wow that's manly.
45 acp=godlike power!

I like that you can buy a fourtay handgun so cheap!
If all I had was one of my fourty's, I would be a happy camper!

Now we are getting some truth. Back in the day( January) you could buy any .40 and a case of ammo for equal or less than the same gun in 9.
 
actually, .40 is for the firearms connoisseur. Not everyone can handle the sharper kick, only to be rewarded by more force hitting the desired target. 9mm is for the plebian masses; soft hands, limp wrists, etc who begin to think they are Wyatt Earp with an autoloader. Whether it's drilling holes in paper, dinging steel targets, or punching a hole in the chest of a blm/antifa protestor, .40 will always be the superior choice.
 
357 Sig is a better stopper than 40, yet that never really became main stream. And now I think it's pretty much dead on arrival. I have some 135gr "fortaaaay" that has similar performance to the 357 SIg. I don't even own a" fortaaay" anymore.
 
357 Sig is a better stopper than 40, yet that never really became main stream. And now I think it's pretty much dead on arrival. I have some 135gr "fortaaaay" that has similar performance to the 357 SIg. I don't even own a" fortaaay" anymore.

.357sig is awesome too! That’s why fortay lovers have it made. Conversion barrels with out even changing magazines.
 
*sigh* shoot what you want to, what you can afford, and shoot often to maintain your skillset.

Diversify! More calibers, more fun! The past few months I’ve wished I had a .40... and a .45 and a .357, and well, you get the point. 9mm was cheap, but popularity got the best of it during this shortage.
Carry what feels good, what you can afford, and what you can shoot well because (yes, I’m going to post it again) aside from having a collection for fun, the handgun caliber debate is silly. Like .40? Glocks are your thing? Do it! Have a hard on for 100 plus year old designs? .45 baby! Like a cartridge designed for black powder? .38 is your friend. Strapped for cash and just want a caliber that’ll get the job done? Go with the flow and grab a 9mm... then watch it fly off the shelves because everyone else is going with the flow and now you have .40 envy:rolleyes:

I watch it every time I post it and apparently until you reach 2,200 fps, you’re just poking holes.

View: https://youtu.be/T6kUvi72s0Y
 
Back
Top Bottom