My 30 Carbine Blackhawk Revolver loaded with Sierra 110 grain hollow points is my favorite survival pistol load.

It is a shoot all day round. There is a lot of muzzle flash in the 7 1/2" barrel but not that much kick due to the light round.

I can use the cases from my 30 caliber M1 carbine factory loads just fine and then I can trim the cases to 1.285 inches using a taper-crimp die and reload them with the Sierra 110 for my Blackhawk pistol. The 2 are a great survival duo for my environment which only requires accurate shooting up to about 100 yards.

It might not be the hardest hitting round but the best pistol caliber can be looked at several ways. I think one that makes a good light rifle round and also makes a good pistol round in this case one that can be shot by almost anyone would rate the 30 carbine one of the best in my book.

I like the fact that I can reload it very cheaply which means I can afford to practice with it. I did not see anyone mention the 30 carbine so I had to put my 2 cents in.

Also for reloading the 30 carbine I recommend Hodgdon’s H110 powder. I have never shot at a person but I have killed a lot of woodchucks at my uncles ranch near Garden City Texas with this round. Iron sights at 50 meters and you can shoot it all day without that much fatigue. I think if I had to shoot it in combat a person would be a lot easier to hit than a woodchuck.

I've fired several sidearms in various cal. including 9mm, .380, .38 sp, .357, 10mm, .40, .44 mag, and .45.
My first was a SA Gov't M1911 from 1942. (See avatar) So far, I've stuck with 1911's in .45 as my favorite. I did just get an XD in .45 for a Holiday treat, so we'll see how I like that.

For my money... stick with .45. It worked for our fathers, and their fathers, etcetera...

For all around use, I'd say the .357sig, which is actually a 9mm-Magnum. It's more or less a 10mm Lapua/Bren cartridge that's been necked down and shortened slightly to accept the 9mm bullet (.356, not .357 ) The improved velocity - about 25% or so - makes for an expanding bullet extravaganza, and you can get loads with the Hornady 147grain boat-tailed hollow-point for increased range up to maybe 125 meters (for people.)

Still, if your really pressed, you want the actual 10mm for some serious knock-down power. Remember, if you're not constrained to Full-Metal-Jacketed bullets, the newer expanding hollow-points yield better penetration than the .45 while still providing a large wound cavity.

The smaller diameter casing of the 10mm and .357sig also allows you to load more ammo, 15-17 rounds in the better makes. Sig now has the 250 model in .357sig; Tangfolio makes a good 10mm with 15 rounds, and there's always the Glock.

Having read some of the other posts, I would also recommend the .357 magnum for concealed carry revolvers. You may be lucky to get one hit out of five in a real situation. You want to make sure it counts, and penetration, again is a key issue. Lots of people have access to cheap Cordura vests these days. You may also need to penetrate through cover material like chairs and drywall.

As for a shotgun, well that wasn't the question, but I wouldn't want to confront a modern equipped enemy with anything less than these three rounds: .357sig; .357mag; or 10mm (oops, I guess i meant Norma/Bren- research) Anything less and you run the risk of coming up short in a bad situation. No matter what caliber, if you can't practice shooting your weapon, you're not going to hit anything with it in a crisis situation, so you are better off relying on your cell-phone and getting somebody who can.

All of this talk about flat shooting loads and accuracy up to 100 yards is IMHO crap. If you find yourself in a situation where you have to defend yourself you will most assuredly be within ten yards. More likely it will be 5 to 10 feet. Flat shooting and long range accuracy will never come into play in personal defense. If you shoot someone 25 yards away I don't like your chances of convincing a jury that it was self defense.
I own a gun store/ indoor range. At work I open carry a full size 1911 and a .380 in a weak side pocket holster. Outside I typically carry a 4 inch 1911 with the same .380 backup. A real gunfight is going to be up close and personal. Whatever weapon you choose to carry should reflect this fact.
Carry what you practice with and practice (a lot) with what you carry.

Duster

Originally posted by kozmo
Anyone who has ever read any of my posts on the topic already knows that I am completely for the .40 S&W. I carry a Sig P239 in the .40 and love it!

I find a .357 too inefficient a round and question it's ranged accuracy - same with the .45. I tend to look for a balance of velocity, transfer of mass (stopping power), along with the overall shooting comfort and target reacquisition.

Both a .357 and .45 tend to have too much recoil and make reacquisition difficult. The recoil also has a tendency to affect accuracy. A 9mm simply over-penetrates and lacks any significant mass transfer, although it is very accurate and simple to shoot. Combine those rounds and you get... wait for it... the .40 S&W... giving the best of all worlds... IMHO

a snub nosed three five seven works wonderfully with suppressed flash powder, a 158 grain hollow point, the best control would be gained with thirty eight special plus p load, maximum control, lower muzzle flash, fast reaquire on targets with low recoil.

Originally posted by AgentBlack
45's are so completely overrated. the big debate over 45 and 9mm came from the military who use ball fmj rounds which are crap no matter the size. according to alot of combat shooters one of "the best" is the much overlooked .41mag, it would have been THE police round back in the day if it were not for the bunny huggers being afraid of anything magnum. i've had alot of fun with 44spl a well. but my pick for best is the 357sig, great power, good range, it puts out the same numbers as a 357mag, and the bottleneck design makes for positive lock up and reliable action. several law enforcement agencies are switching to this caliber because of it's great performance.

most gun fights are within the 7 yard range, within this range you have a couple of choices , but being first thing first, let me explain this, comfort is an issue if your carrying all the time, which you must do if you want to be armed on that occassion when you need to be. Now taking comfort into mind along with power, and what is reliable, your answer is a snub nose three five seven , possible a smith model 65 or a taurus 605, or even the seven shot snub by taurus the 617. I like the taurus because you get what you pay for, and with the smith you get the name, both firearms were rolled out on the same machinery with the same tolerances. Here is the premise for that debate.
If your rich, buy the smith
If your poor, you drive the ford
taurus...
now with a remington soft point semi jacketed 125 grain round your hitting with over five hundred and fifty pounds per sqare inch with in that seven yard norm. The soft point will blow right through and make huge holes. If you want to really rip em apart use a hornady 158 grain xtp, all the kinetic force will be transferred to the target, causing huge initial and post wound channels the size of a highschool football. If shot up close within say four yards or less , lung tissue will be found three feet behind the bad guy.
The reasons for the above calibre are stated , reasons against would be high recoil, enormous muzzle flash, and the fact that this round is known to cause compression waves off of walls that you can feel, This is a deafening hand canon that literally blows the "poop" out of people. Also known to have a survivability rating of less than eight percent if shot in the chest, so if you want to fire one bullet and hit a perp with around ninety percent chance of stopping em cold, get the 357. Plus doesn't the name just sound cool
I would not recomend the titanium frame wheelers because they are just to light and recoil is quite strong, I would buy stainless, a forever gun.

anyways i am jabbered out, have fun, remember shoot center mass over four yards, and head shots four and under, aim for the nose ear line, it will put the lights out right now.

I like the .40 Glock personally, due to reliability and stopping power. .357 is a great round as well as has been previously mentioned. Good stopping power in both rounds, i personally enjoy the .40 Glock because it is incredibly durable and very accurate....also, relatively cheap if you know where to look.

Best cal. would be the one your local LE use or the prevailing gov. so look around see what they carry.. most carry 9mm but if you get a 45 and 1000 rds you should be set for a few years.. (Think Ammo Availability)

GANDER MOUNTAIN DAVENPORT IOWA
HAS MULTIPLE AMOUNTS OF 40 CAL ON SHELF, HUNDREDS OF ROUNDS

the answer to the original question is:

9mm rounds.

have had 2 state troopers recommend going 40 cal. they both, apart from each other, have had experiences with 9mm deflecting on windshields and not penetrating heavy winter coats.

saw some comments on 357sig, have noted that local stores tend to be out of regular 357, 9, 40 and 45 lately, but always have 357 sig, so maybe they (the guns) have some issues?

I carry a 9mm S&W. ammo is cheap so I can practice a good bit. I prefer the 9mm vs. larger callibers. the 9mm has a little less recoil, so I can pop more rounds in les time (maybe a few fractions of a second). But I carry a 9 because if I was to become incapicitated in a gunfight, my wife can shoot a 9 (won't shoot anything bigger). I carry hydroshock but have the FMJ for practice. I have done security work for a few years and all the other SO tell me to get something better. But I love my CCW

Well I just bought my first handgun this weekend and debated back and forth on this issue. I decided on a SIG Sauer P220 - .45 ACP. I chose it because it just felt the best in my hand and I knew I would feel comfortable shooting it. I figure that the gun that I can shoot is the one most likely to protect me.

I have shot .45, 9mm, 1911's and a .357 revolver and I liked all of them. I'm far from an expert but it seems with the right ammo and of those guns will do enough damage. I know my new .45 will drop somebody pretty fast but so would a .22 if its shot in the right spot.

Now its time to practice and get used to it. So like the gun store owner stated above ( flagged you btw), Just find what you like the best and use it.

Originally posted by LiveFreeOrDie..
saw some comments on 357sig, have noted that local stores tend to be out of regular 357, 9, 40 and 45 lately, but always have 357 sig, so maybe they (the guns) have some issues?

I think that's because the 357 sig is newer, and not as popular yet as the other calibers which means there's less demand.

[edit on 16-3-2009 by warpboost]

.50 cal!! Ha just kidding.
But I did love my old Eagle...
I would say .40 based on conjecture but I do not have firsthand experience. NOT 9mm though. The most basic vest will stop it ($100 one hasnt failed yet...) .45 goes right through though.

If you're venturous Id go for 5.7 (P90 round) in the FiveseveN because it is armour piercing (seen it go right through 2 helmets!).

Originally posted by Ridhya
.50 cal!! Ha just kidding.
But I did love my old Eagle...
I would say .40 based on conjecture but I do not have firsthand experience. NOT 9mm though. The most basic vest will stop it ($100 one hasnt failed yet...) .45 goes right through though.

If you're venturous Id go for 5.7 (P90 round) in the FiveseveN because it is armour piercing (seen it go right through 2 helmets!).

The problem with all of this is you don't know what you will be hitting on the other side of your target. BTW a desert eagle is a very heavy gun