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new pocket pistol caliber question

Actually, a bowling ball dropped from orbit impacts with no more force ("power") than one dropped from say, 300 feet. Once an object reaches its terminal velocity due to gravity, additional height doesn't increase velocity.

Similarly, any bullet so powerful it blows a hole through the 'target' will cease imparting energy ("power") once it exits the target. That's not to say power isn't beneficial: additional power can provide more penetration which certainly helps if an adversary uses hard cover (vehicles, walls, etc.). Even if penetration is not achieved, a projectile with more energy can damage up to including killing an adversary wearing a protective vest through blunt force trauma.

I just wonder where the 'sweet spot' is on power vs portability/convenience. I think it's a matter of choice backed by personal preference presented as rationale. As rigorous studies have shown, there's a lot of hype that isn't supported by terminal ballistics. But if bullet diameter and power is the 'fix all', let's all carry .44 Magnums or a Linebaugh .500.

I mean, even being "realistic" in the area of EDC, there are 5-shot revolvers in .44 Special which are not significantly larger or heavier than many .38 Special revolvers designed for concealed carry.

A lot depends on the threat. I don't expect to be attacked by grizzly bears wearing protective vests on my property so I don't pack a bear gun. Of course, if I expected or assessed even a moderate risk of bear attack, I'd probably carry a rifle.

In the realm of terminal ballistics, the most powerful handgun is a poor substitute for most rifles. Studies of Old West shootings reveal that rifles/carbines were usually the weapons of choice brought to the fray when known it was for sure going to hit the fan.

Of course, just don't take an M1 Carbine (no knockdown power) or a Mini 14 (inaccurate).

;-)

But terminal velocity doesn't sound as cool as nuking it from orbit and yet it doesn't change my statement.
3 feet vs 300 feet is a pretty big energy difference.

Neutrinos travel close to the speed of light or so I'm told. Since they are extremely small they do not effect you. "Every second, trillions of neutrinos are passing through your body, since you’re also transparent to these guys. By my rough estimate about 100 trillion, to be more specific. That means over the course of your lifetime, about 10^23 neutrinos will stream through your body – that’s almost a trillion trillions"

They have mass but they are at the point where speed doesn't matter since they are so small they have no major effect.

There is a point where no matter how fast you push an object it will lose effectiveness. I've no idea since I'm no physicist. a needle traveling 1000 fps will do less damage than a Spike going 1000 fps.
This is why rifles cant really compare to most handguns but I'd guess that some of the more powerful handguns will transfer just as much if not more energy to a target at close range than some lower powered rifles.

If all the Energy passes though without an energy dump then there is only hydrostatic shock and wound cavity. Again I'm no trauma surgeon but to me it makes common sense that a pass through with the same Energy FP wont change much. Random Data: 223 has 1282 muzzle energy a 44 mag has 1214 muzzle energy. This varies a bit depending on who loads it and barrel length.

But I'm rambling, time for ramble #2
There is a fastest car and there is a truck with the most pulling power. So "My ultimate opinion" Depending on what you are able to accurately shoot/control there IS a best caliber for everything. Some may still do the job but there IS a best bullet to hunt elephants, the IS a best bullet to hunt prairie dogs and there is a best caliber to stop a threat. In shooting competitions some may vary a but, usually isn't there a caliber, bullet weight, barrel length, ect... that tend to dominate once its found out that it works more effectively?

Depending, you may alter this according to how many rounds you want to miss with or what weight you don't want to carry but there IS always something that will do a better job than something else depending on the circumstances and limitations you put on it. a 357 sig will penetrate barriers better than a 45 acp. Its a fact.
A 300 wm makes a better sniper cartridge at 1 mile than a 300 blackout. To end my second ramble, justify whatever you want as the best "for you" but that doesn't mean its the best.
 
Well...the "early" Mini-14's were often lacking in accuracy. But...

The latest Minis are more accurate.
The Mini has long suffered from a reputation among many users for poor accuracy. Theories abound as to why that is the case: My own is that the considerable mass of the operating slide impacts harshly against the gas block, which is bolted directly to the relatively thin barrel, not allowing the barrel to return to its precise point of rest between shots. But in 2005, Ruger retooled the Mini-14 production line and most shooters agree that, beginning with the 580-prefix series guns made since then, shooting 2" groups at 100 yds. is not out of the question. Again, it may come as a surprise to some, but not everyone needs a half-m.o.a.-capable rifle. Many tasks just don’t require that level of accuracy. In fact, most hunting and self-defense situations are in that category. Also, my experience is that accuracy and reliability in semi-automatic rifle actions is usually inversely proportional. So, anything that the Mini lacks in the way of accuracy is, practically speaking, likely more than made up for in reliability and cleanliness of operation and in lack of ammunition sensitivity.

https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2016/3/22/five-reasons-to-reconsider-the-ruger-mini-14/
I found that I couldn't shoot the newer one any better than the older one. But maybe I'm just not good enough to really tell. I shot two minis and an AR all about the same. There was one old mini that I truly could tell was more accurate and the only difference from any other was an add on flash hider.... I have no idea how it was better
 
Like size, muzzle energy does matter. However, high velocity rifle projectiles as a general rule cause more tissue damage than larger but slower rounds:

Cavitation - A "permanent" cavity is caused by the path (track) of the bullet itself with crushing of tissue, whereas a "temporary" cavity is formed by radial stretching around the bullet track from continued acceleration of the medium (air or tissue) in the wake of the bullet, causing the wound cavity to be stretched outward. For projectiles traveling at low velocity the permanent and temporary cavities are nearly the same, but at high velocity and with bullet yaw the temporary cavity becomes larger (Maiden, 2009).

Bullet velocity and mass will affect the nature of wounding. Velocity is classified as low (<1000 fps), medium (1000 to 2000 fps), and high (>2000 fps). (Wilson, 1977) An M-16 rifle (.223 cal) is designed to produce larger wounds with high velocity, lower mass bullets that tumble, cavitate, and release energy quickly upon striking the target. A hunting rifle (.308 cal or greater) would have a larger mass bullet to penetrate a greater depth to kill a large game animal at a longer distance.

https://library.med.utah.edu/WebPath/TUTORIAL/GUNS/GUNBLST.html
 
I found that I couldn't shoot the newer one any better than the older one. But maybe I'm just not good enough to really tell. I shot two minis and an AR all about the same. There was one old mini that I truly could tell was more accurate and the only difference from any other was an add on flash hider.... I have no idea how it was better
Edit: actually... I'm pretty sure that old one had a smaller aperture sight on it as well. That's probably the big difference
 
Tying all this back to the OP's question about "better" pocket autos...it got me thinking and motivated me to revisit reviews of some of the new 'wonder bullets' out there such as Lehigh's EXTREME PENETRATOR (EP) and EXTREME DEFENSE (ED) rounds (apologies if any of that smacks of a porn flick and 'Little Blue Pill' treatment, respectively).

As several review videos demonstrate, the EP is just that and seems to fall in the "over penetration" category, at least in 9mm. .380 was hardly less penetrating.


The ED seems to offer some balance.


I guess my take away is that "enhanced ammo" seems more viable than a ".32 Auto MAG". It really seems to me that we're seeing close to the limits of what can be pulled from the current caliber offerings especially with the ammo available. Other than "smart ammo" that morphs to alter penetration vs. expansion on the basis of the target's properties, I don't know if there's much more to be done.
 
I like the earlier post about the 22 tcm. someone needs to machine a barrel for 22 tcm and put it in an lcpII, or maybe a sig p238?

Edit: Actually got to thinking about it, and I doubt it would do very well in such a short barrel. What about necking down a 9mm case to accept a 32 caliber bullet?
 
Well...don't keep us in suspense any longer: just what IS the "best caliber to stop a threat"-?

Based on current information either the 357 magnum or this.
easy_buster_cropped.jpg


If you totally rely on stats then you may want to arm yourself with the 22lr. I hear its the most deadly round created.

Also it would depend if you can effectively control either. I've moved to the 357 Sig for EDC off work and the 9mm at work. The largest rifle I have is 308 so I cant hunt elephants effectively (imho). Once Sig makes a 10mm in an easier to carry format Ill move to the 10 mm. Im not effective in using a 44 mag in a fast situation but if you are then use the 44 mag. The best gun is the most powerful one you can use. Id buy my mother a 22 since she has issues with the tendons in her hands. If I were Hulk Hogan Id probably carry the 460 sw unfortunately its to large for me.
 
If you neck a 9 x 19 mm down to take a .32 bullet, you're probably going to be duplicating the performance of the .30 Luger (AKA: 7.65 x 21 mm Parabellum). The .30 Luger case is a couple millimeters longer, but it's 9.9 mm wide at the base of the case just forward of the rim. Just like the famous 9mm Parabellum.

It's not a bad round. A 90 grain bullet moving at 1200 f.p.s. from a full sized pistol.
But, you could load a 90-grain bullet (maybe made of non-lead alloys) into a regular 9 x 19 case and give it a larger gunpowder charge than you could use with a 115 or 125 gr. slug in front of that powder.



Perhaps it's not possible to have good velocity and energy in a necked-down pistol caliber that is short enough to fit in, and feed through, a pocket pistol.

The Japanese had a "baby Nambu" pistol before WWII, and it fired a 7mm diameter, 56 gr. bullet through a 3.5" barrel and a measly 800 f.p.s. Not much stopping power there. That's like a .25 acp.

http://www.yankeegunnuts.com/2010/09/28/bottlenecked-handgun-cartridges/
 
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