The two new guns were a selective-double-action CZ 75B and the double-action-only Ruger SP40, which we found listing around $580 and $569, respectively. Also, we went looking for value, shooting two brand-new guns against veterans which, perhaps, still had some game left in them. With these facts in mind, we wanted to test four 40-caliber handguns of different configurations to see which one suited our testers the best. They are relatively mild to fire and reliable. So, it was logical that he gravitated toward service-size 40 S&W handguns as the right fit of cartridge and pistol.įull-size handguns are among the most common 40 S&W handguns chosen for home and personal defense. This rater also tested compact and subcompact 40-caliber pistols and came away believing that forties lighter and smaller than the Glock 23 are too much for most shooters to handle well. After empirical testing, he came to the conclusion that the 40 is more like the 45 than the 9mm in terminal ballistics, and that’s a good place to be. One of our raters has much field experience and favored the 45 ACP and did not give the 40 S&W much attention. Here, though, this report is in part a continuation of 40-caliber ammunition tests we conducted some years ago. Most of us choose the 45 ACP for its terminal performance and the 9mm Luger for capacity. Pistols chambered for the 40 S&W round often are the odd man out as the first choice of a citizen contemplating arming himself or herself.

.40 calibre revolver