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Is the .45’s Stopping Power a Myth?

I carried a .45 for thirty plus years. I love the .45. However, 9, 40, 45, etc. are all the same. I've seen the ER pics comparing wound channels. There is no discernable difference between them. Pistol calibers are a defensive tool. .357 was the supposed holy grail of one shot stopability, but it's all a myth. I watched the video of a perp shoot a clerk pointblank in the chest with a .357 and she stood there arguing with him for another couple of minutes before eventually going to her knees and bleeding out. Stopability is a term we love to throw around, but it's all horse pucky. Pistols are merely defensive weapons. If you want to put down a threat, shoot them with a carbine in a rifle caliber.
 
HayesGreener said:
9mm or .38 will get the job done, I will not quibble over it. However, If one of the objectives of stopping an assailant is to let the blood out, well, it stands to reason that bigger holes let the blood out faster. I am a proponent of .45 acp with +P ammo for self defense because by my reasoning, you just can't ignore the physics where bigger bullets are concerned. Shot placement is crucial no matter the caliber, and I do not intend to miss my target, so 230 grains of 45 in a SAO pistol is my choice to get the job done. I do admit, however, to being a dinosaur.
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.45 +P 155 gr left a quarter size hole in the front skull plate of a hog, and thats super thick sloped bone matter.
Sounded like a jug of milk being poured out
 
HayesGreener said:
9mm or .38 will get the job done, I will not quibble over it. However, If one of the objectives of stopping an assailant is to let the blood out, well, it stands to reason that bigger holes let the blood out faster. I am a proponent of .45 acp with +P ammo for self defense because by my reasoning, you just can't ignore the physics where bigger bullets are concerned. Shot placement is crucial no matter the caliber, and I do not intend to miss my target, so 230 grains of 45 in a SAO pistol is my choice to get the job done. I do admit, however, to being a dinosaur.
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Hence my affinity for 12 gauge shotguns.
 
Mike H. said:
“Is the .45’s Stopping Power a Myth?”
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No. The stopping power of the 45 ACP is not a myth. The big, slow 230 gr bullet has more than enough penetration against a human adversary. You can get the same results with a different cartridge, but a hole is a hole. I don't carry hollow points. Penetration is what I want and anything that interferes with it introduces a chance of failure.
 
trader said:
We should do a poll here on the armory life - those preferring a .45acp of their choice loading and platform vs one for the 9mm and 40 (maybe 10mm too is that isn't blasphemy lol) and see. The q is if you had but one gun and two mags and there was 3-5 assailants which would you choose and why. - full disclosure - I'm an Xer and still prefer a 45 or 10mm over a 9mm so there.
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HayesGreener said:
9mm or .38 will get the job done, I will not quibble over it. However, If one of the objectives of stopping an assailant is to let the blood out, well, it stands to reason that bigger holes let the blood out faster. I am a proponent of .45 acp with +P ammo for self defense because by my reasoning, you just can't ignore the physics where bigger bullets are concerned. Shot placement is crucial no matter the caliber, and I do not intend to miss my target, so 230 grains of 45 in a SAO pistol is my choice to get the job done. I do admit, however, to being a dinosaur.
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It’s impossible to improve on perfection! Based on may hunting experiences I’ve found that through and through shots most always results in a dead deer. I expect it’s the same for about everything else, unless your target is not from earth!
 
Recusant said:
It’s impossible to improve on perfection! Based on may hunting experiences I’ve found that through and through shots most always results in a dead deer. I expect it’s the same for about everything else, unless your target is not from earth!
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shhh I think he heard you and is coming over here - quick - out one of Bass' 5 back doors!
1728581208361.png
 
Steve D said:
No. The stopping power of the 45 ACP is not a myth. The big, slow 230 gr bullet has more than enough penetration against a human adversary. You can get the same results with a different cartridge, but a hole is a hole. I don't carry hollow points. Penetration is what I want and anything that interferes with it introduces a chance of failure.
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If you line up current production quality defensive ammunition in the popular calibers. There isn’t a medical examiner around that can tell you the difference in wounds from a 38, 9mm 40, 10mm 45 acp. Out of handguns Without seeing the bullet itself.

This is with torso hits on soft tissue bodies. Darryle Bolke mentioned this and as he has sat in on a number of autopsies and fingered with several medical DR’s

While sure you can shoot a milk jug or whatever and sort of tell a slightly bigger hole (but you also know what you shot) if you have no idea and are simply looking at a body wih no recovered bullet you won’t be able to tell!
 
since we are talking about medical examiners here are two real study papers not conjecture on the subject:

two excellent articles - Warning - real pictures from autopsies included, not for the squeamish

first one is long

second one is very very long but thorough

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Gunshot Wounds: Ballistics, Pathology, and Treatment Recommendations, with a Focus on Retained Bullets

As the epidemic of gunshot injuries and firearm fatalities continues to proliferate in the United States, knowledge regarding gunshot wound (GSW) injury and management is increasingly relevant to health-care providers. Unfortunately, existing guidelines ...
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

note the entrance hole 45 vs 9mm
 
Another well researched article by Mike Boyle!

Subjective interpretations of caliber aside, there is one important component that touches them all. Each will have a hemorrhagic effect and each will have a neurological effect. The latter will have a stop closer to immediate as hemorrhaging does not come into play. The head is the same size as the critical torso area so it comes down to where you are sending the rounds if you are committed to the ultimate decision.
 
The Night Rider said:
No. Not with Marine issue ball.
You might want to Google "Sea Stories".
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Heard the same about the M-16 in the Nam…that 5.56 bullet would hit in the arm, travel up the bone and blow the shoulder off. Never saw that in combat. IMO, the AK round did more damage. Unfortunately, saw too many other Marines who had been shot, including some of my team. Story to that, for another time…Semper Fi.
 
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