Should people that say a 45 has more stop. power than a 9mm be shot with both at point blank range to decide?

Question

A 9mm has the same muzzle energy as a 45. Again, get shot with a 9 and tell me it was just a boo boo. What is a real gun? A .458 Winchester magnum? I know my facts people, more than all of you.

Answer 1

the 45acp

Answer 2

By the muzzle energy, yes, a 9x19mm has almost as much energy as a 45ACP. The 45ACP, when handloaded, can easily outdo the 9x19.

If you're looking for a good round that can be shot reliably in an automatic pistol, take a look at the .38 Super. It has more energy than either of them.

Also, another thing to remember, a .38, .357, or 9mm may or may not expand, a .45 will never shrink.

The problem with using a .458 is that it's far too long to feed in ANY automatic pistol, and if it could, can you imagine holding onto a four inch long grip? In a revolver, the cylinder would have to be huge to hold four of those. Oh, and with something that big, you're not going to get a second shot, and you're likely to flinch pretty bad, no matter who you are, on your first. If you're looking for an ultimate cartridge, there are more out there far more powerful. For something thats nearly the same size, take a look at the .500 Accurate Reloading. It's 150% as much power in a larger projectile than the .458. The .458 Lott is a redesign of the .458 Win Mag, and uses the same parent brass. If you're looking for the ultimate straightwalled case, then take a look at the .700 Hubel Express. It's a .50BMG case that's been opened up and belted, and will launch a 1000gr. at 2600fps using reasonably moderate loadings. That's over 15,000 ft/lbs of energy. And it's far more than anyone would ever need, or likely even want, in a handgun. The BFR in .45-70 Gov't with hunting loads is bad enough.

Answer 3

It is NOT my intention to put the venerable .45 acp round down. It is others who have elevated the good round to super legendary status: ...knocks a man over even if you only hit the tip of his finger... Come on guys, THAT was never true of the .45 nor of any other round. Of course, the .45 acp die-hards will accept no argument for other than their beloved .45s but what is the truth??? I will merely state some facts and point out the .45 acp's limitations:

Fact #1: The .45 acp is a good man stopper using early Nineteen-hundreds technology: Throw a fat bullet at your target and you are guaranteed to open up a big hole, period.

Fact #2: That was then; this is now: Velocity plus modern bullet design guarantees performance thus a bullet that mushrooms dumps more energy unto its target than one that merely punches a wide hole. Energy equals stopping power so the more energy you dump on your target the better chance you have of having a one-shot stop. So the better 9mm 115 grain to 127 grain hollow points are equal or superior stoppers to the old .45 acp.

Additionally, the .45 acp has never been very good against barriers like doors, car glass and sheet metal. The higher velocity rounds like your hyper speed nines, .357s, 10mms shine in these scenarios.

Fact #3: Like it or not, the hyper velocity rounds are here to stay and so rounds like the the .357 Sig & the 5.7mm are the wave of the future.

For the record, I do not dislike the .45 acp I just prefer the 10mm, .357 Magnum, .38 Super, 357 Sig and the faster nines.

Now let's sit back and count just how many 'thumbs-down' this reply will get. LOL!

Best.

H

Answer 4

A 9mm DOES NOT have the same muzzle energy as a .45ACP. The 9mm averages about 100 ft. lbs. below the .45ACP. The 9mm does it's job using velocity while the .45ACP does it's job using mass at slower velocity. They are both good rounds, which is why they are both still widely used the police, military, and the general public. Obviously a ball round .45ACP will be inferior to a jacketed hollowpoint 9mm (assuming no barriers are between you and the target) and vice versa.

Update: H........I like the .45ACP more as a recreational gun than I do any other centerfire. But for practical purposes I would prefer a high-speed hollowpoint. My only beef with 9mm pistols is that I like single stacked models and those are uncommon for a larger gun and expensive.

Answer 5

ummmm muzzle energy has very little to do with knock down power, yes the 9mm is a faster bullet, but the .45 is a bigger, heavier projectile. which is really the info you need for the knock down power, o and subsonic rounds hurt a lot more. its just common sense little hole vs. big hole, most .45 rounds have a lot more mushroom capabilities. Sure i take a few handgun rounds at point blank range if I'm wearing my Sappy plates

O and you state that A .458 Winchester magnum is a real gun,, hehehehehe IT'S A .45 hahaha you might have A.D.D.

Answer 6

Maybe you know your facts and may be you don't. From the way you write, it leaves room for quite a bit of doubt. Of course no one wants to get shot by either round but applying your argument, if no one wanted to get shot by a .22 would you conclude that it has the same knock down power as a .45 acp? You use a stupid emotional argument rather than facts. The intelligent way to approach the comparison is to use the ft. pounds of energy of both rounds to see which has the greatest kinetic energy. Have you done that? Go back, do your homework, get your facts and then present your argument based on fact not faulty conjecture and stupid supposition that unwillingness to be shot by either round proves that both are equal in stopping power.

As for knowing your facts better than ALL of us, you can't even say that without sounding like an idiot because you don't know ALL of us so you don't know what knowlege all of us have. There are some pretty sharp folks out here and I imagine there are several who could make you look pretty ignorant.

Answer 7

I'm not going to even bother going into detail in addressing your question, cause of your lame "I know all, and you don't" attitude.

Lets get something straight - you don't know it all. And I doubt you know a fraction of what most of the people here know.

Go back to playing HALO 2 or something..

PS. Foot-pounds of energy equals stopping power, and Ft.lb.E. depends on the load. A 9mm +P+ with 124gr JHP's will out-preform a 230gr FMJ .45 ball in terms of stopping power. Put a 9mm 115gr FMJ ball against a .45ACP +P 200gr JHP and it will out do a 9...whats your point?! You have to be able to hit your target first!

Answer 8

http://www.gunsandammomag.com/ballistics/9mm_luger_9x19mm.html

http://www.gunsandammomag.com/ballistics/9mm_luger_9x19mm.html

I do believe that the 9mm is an under rated round, but because the 9mm has a higher velocity than the .45ACP the .45 is a better stopper because it is slower....

Next time use some sources when trying to prove a point. You may be able to keep your foot outta your mouth in the future.

Answer 9

Its a proven fact, test done with ballistic gel show the .45ACP round has a lot more stopping power and energy than a 9mm. Now put down your little 9mm and get a real gun.

Answer 10

No, because it does'nt matter which one you shoot them with first they will be dead and they will not be able too answer your question anyway. Unless of course you shoot them in the knee.