Some factoids about the handgun ammuntion pictured. (For identification, see the post just prior to this one.)Although it is the worst fight-stopper compared to the others, more people have been killed by the itty bitty .22 round on the far left than any of the others. That's not because it is wicked- bad-deadly, but because there are more weapons that chamber that round worldwide than the others, and it can be fired from a rifle as well as a handgun, so more people have been shot with .22's than with any other caliber.
In a gunfight, killing people is not the goal, it is to stop them shooting at you. If you hit them, and they get off six shots that all hit you and kill you, you probably wouldn't be greatly comforted knowing that they died eight hours later from your shot.
So far, no humans have been shot with the .500 Max, according to the guy who came up with the guns that fire 'em.
For stopping power -- and let's avoid the long, drawn out argument between the jello-junkies and the morgue-monsters -- of the rounds pictured, the .357 Magnum is the round of choice from a handgun. There are others that are close -- the .40 S&W (not pictured) and the 10mm, but the .357 Mag is the best of this lot.
"Stopping power" here is defined as the number of people who, when hit solidly in the body, are unable to continue aggressive action against you after you shoot them; i.e., they fall down and lose interest in bothering you. For the best .357 Magnum rounds, this is a hair over 96%, based on actual shootings.
Though I have to say that I suspect anybody shot with the .50 cal is going to fare very badly, and if I was betting money, I'd lay odds that's a better stopper than anything on the table.
The .32 auto and .32 Long Colt are marginal stoppers. The .38 Special so-so, and the 9mm slightly better than the .38. The .45 ACP is a hair better than both in most loadings, but not the one pictured, which is the military round.
2 comments:
Back in the day, there was a young guy, a gunsmith in Vientiene, Laos who would make you a single-shot bolt-action pistol that would chamber the .50 round from an aircraft-type Browning. This allowed you to use an API round if the regular .50 ball wasn't enough to do the job. In a rare fit of common sense, I passed up the opportunity to own one of these beauties, figuring that I'd never have to deal with a rhino in my yard.
I shot Reeder's handcannon, a five-shooter that fires the big round on the far right, and bringing it back on line after one round is not a quick process. I'm a fairly large fellow, and the recoil is passing stout.
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