Which Pistol to Choose
Okay, so you have my opinion on revolvers. Let’s move into the semi-automatic world and see what’s available. Since there are so many of these pistols on the market, it is impossible to cover all of them. I’m also going to put the 1911 in as a brand, which will cause purists to have a fit since it’s a type of pistol and not a brand, but I think you need to know about it, since it is a particularly popular type of gun.
What should I know, in general, about semi-automatic pistols? First off, they can be very finicky as to the type of ammunition you feed them. Some pistols like certain brands of ammo better than others. You should shoot at least 200 rounds of the ammunition you want to carry on the street through your pistol with good quality, i.e. factory, magazines. However, I recommend firing at least a hundred rounds of less expensive practice ammo through the gun first. I'm old school and think a gun needs a break in period to set itself into a groove.
Next, you need to know that semi-autos need additional training because their actions are complicated, or at least more complicated than a revolver and they may malfuntion. You need to be able to fix those problems, under stress, or your gun will be useless to you.
You also need to know, that despite what others may say, all firearms are a machines, and must recieve proper maintenance. I learned this because a supposedly "never fail" gun, failed. Luckily, it was at a range and not on the street. I didn't clean it after my last trip to the range and it gunked up on me. So, when I hear someone extolling a 50,000 round torture test that was performed on a particular brand as proof it will never fail, I know better than to listen to that hype. All that means is THAT pistol went 50,000 rounds before breaking, it doesn't mean yours will!
What caliber should I get? The three primary calibers for Law Enforcement and self defense are the 9mm (Sometimes called 9mm Luger, 9mm Parabellum, which is Latin meaning “For War” or it is designated 9x19 to differentiate from the Russian 9x18 pistol round), the .40 S&W (Smith and Wesson developed the round from the 10mm, which was too hot for pistols, or so the FBI found out), and the .45ACP (ACP stands for Automatic Colt Pistol). If you have trouble with these, you might consider the .380 caliber, which I think is underpowered, but can be used with the right ammo. There are also .25ACP and .22 caliber semi-automatics. They aren’t recommended, unless you just can’t stand the bigger calibers. The .25ACP is particularly notorious as pathetic round, but because there are a million cheap .25 caliber pistols on the market, they are included in this essay.
What are the pros and cons of each caliber? The US military adopted the .45ACP in 1911 along with their new Semi-Automatic 1911 Pistols manufactured by Colt. The bullet was developed specifically for this new gun by John Moses Browning and was used by the US military for over 70 years, and indeed, is still being used by some groups within the military. 2011 will mark a full century of use by both Law Enforcement and the Military. The .45ACP is a fat bullet and relatively expensive, but very common. Most guns that use this bullet are heavy and of “low capacity”, or only having a few bullets, although some gun manufacturers have hiher capacity than others, but a 9mm or a .40 pistol will still have more bullets if they are of comparable size. The .45 ACP is a very good round, all in all, which is why it’s been around for two World Wars, Korea, Vietnam, Granada, and even today in Afghanistan and Iraq by elite units. Do not confuse the .45 ACP with the much newer .45 GAP (Glock Automatic Pistol), which isn’t as popular and only works in Glock Pistols. The .45 ACP has been adapted to many different guns by different gun manufacturers, including Glock because of its popularity.
In the 1980s, to replace their worn out 1911 pistols, and to standardize with their NATO allies, the US Military switched to most popular semi-automatic pistol round in the world, the 9mm. The 9mm was developed by the Germans, I suppose for their Luger pistols, and was picked up by their allies and even their enemies, like the British during WWII. If you go to a foreign land (I mean outside of the US), the police and the military will likely use the 9mm, unless you’re in a former Combloc nation. That being said, the 9mm has a bad reputation amongst gun enthusiasts in the US as being underpowered, and indeed the US army was considering going back to a .45ACP pistol, but have suspended the program. Apparently the 9mm rounds aren’t as effective for military use as the .45ACP due to their smaller size. However, it must be pointed out that militaries are restricted in the type of ammo they can carry by the Geneva Convention articles. Civilians and police have access to more effective ammo than the military. If you buy a 9mm, you’ll need to buy some +P Hollowpoints for street carry to compensate for the small bullet.
The .40 S&W is the new darling of police and self-defense gurus. The FBI in the 1980s opted for a 10mm gun, but the round is hot and tended to punch holes in people and the bullets continued on their merry way hitting whatever, or whomever was behind the perp. Not good. The 10mm also broke a lot of guns. I think Glock was the first to build a pistol capable of handling the 10mm, but it's been awhile and I may not be remembering correctly. From the 10mm came the the .40S&W (.40 inches = 10mm), a cut down 10mm round. The guns that shoot it are high capacity, and the round has a good reputation for being a man-stopper. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this caliber at all, if you carry hollow points.
The .25 caliber pistol is not a favorite of mine. It is popular because they are small and cheap. Because its small it can be stuck in your back pocket or carreied easily in an ankle holster. Some people use them as backup guns, which I suppose is better than nothing. If you want a .25, then stick with the better manufacturers and avoid the $50 junk guns.
Slightly better is the .22 semi-auto pistol. I use a .22 for target practice and I would carry a small one for back up. As with all small caliber guns, your accuracy better be very good, because shot placement is critical.
The .380 is the smallest caliber I personally would consider for primary carry. Some claim that it is better than a .38 special out of a 2" barrel. I don't know if that's true or not, to be honest. But with the right ammunition, it becomes viable.
So Which brands of ammo do I recommend?
.22 Long Rifle – The same as in a revolver, the CCI "Stinger" 32-gr. or Remington "Yellow Jacket" 33-gr. Hollow points
.25ACP First, I would recommend the Hornady 35-gr. XTP-HP round. But if it causes your pistol to jam, try using a 50 grain FMJ round from Federal, Remington, or Winchester.
.380 Any of the manufactures I listed before make decent ammo in this caliber. The Remington 88 Jacketed Hollow Point is known to be very reliable, but the Cor-Bon and Hydro-Shok rounds are more effective, but reliability beats effectiveness if you have to choose between the two.
9mm - In the +P 9mm loads, I like the Remington 115gr +P JHP because it feeds without any issues (its loaded in my 9mm now). The Cor-Bon 155gr +P JHP is considered by many to be THE 9mm pistol round. You’ll have to see what you like and what your gun will shoot reliably.
For standard pressure 9mm(not +P), I would use Federal 115gr JHP, Federal 124gr Hydro-Shok, or the Winchester Silver Tip 115gr JHP. If your gun won’t digest these bullets, you’ll have to go to FMJ ammo, also known as “ball” ammo. Again, you accuracy will have to very good for straight 9mm ball ammo, or you might experience the same problem the U.S. Military has been experiencing.
.40S&W - Statistically, the 135gr bullets seem to work very well. Try the Cor-Bon 135gr JHP or the Winchester Silvertip 155gr JHP. When last I looked, I couldn’t find any +P ammunition in this caliber. Someone probably makes it, but it really isn’t necessary. If you go with a bullet heavier than 155gr, your felt recoil be greater.
.45ACP - This is the only caliber I've discussed of which I would carry FMJ, or ball ammo, if nothing else was available and feel okay about it. The .45ACP is a very good round, and was designed to deal with tribes in the Phillipines who tended not to be stopped by the smaller .38 pistols being used at the time. That being said, I do prefer hollow points and I also know that no pistol caliber will ever be a 100% effective. What I have loaded in my .45 pistol right now, however is Federal 185gr JHP. The Federal 230gr Hydra-Shock is good, too. There is a lot of good ammunition out there besides what I mentioned here. As long as it feeds reliably, any good quality ammunition should be okay. That said, +P ammo for this caliber can be a bear when it comes to recoil, and I would stay away from any specialty loads, like Glaser Safety Slugs and such, until you become an accomplished shooter and know what to expect of those types of rounds.
Have you told us about every caliber that's available to carry? Oh Heavens, no. Not by a longshot. What I've done is addressed the most common calibers, and thus usually the cheapest and easiest to find.
Why did you start with the caliber first and not the pistol brands? Because I wanted you to know what pistols to look for, you see. Many pistol manufacturers like Glock, have pistols in several different calibers. I'm not trying to sell you a pistol, so I don't have any stake in what you buy. The guy at the gunshop who's been sitting on a Glock 10mm for four years because nobody wants it, may try to talk you into the "Greatest Man-Stopper ever", when really the 10mm is expensive and not at all popular or really effective as a self defense round (although small, the 10mm fan base a solid one).
In my next post, I will cover the brands of Semi-Automatics that are considered first class pistols.
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