hunt with a 40sw

[j350hp]

anybody do any hunting of any kind with the 40sw. i like the glock 35 and was wondering what people thought.

[ducati]

The guy I bought my G22 off of had killed several does with the G22 with a 180 gr bullet. It can be done, just keep your shots within bow range..

[j350hp]

thats what im thinkin i lookin at a glock 35 and was just wonderin if it could be an all around gun

[Mikey]

If you want to hunt with the 10mm bore, why don't you get a glock in 10mm and a aftermarket barrel for 40 S&W; that way you can hunt with the 10mm and do whatever you may wish with the 40 S&W.  You cannot load the 40 S&W to be anywhere near as potent as the 10mm and the 10 is fine for hog, whitetail, or some bear.  jmtcw.

[Mohawk]

There is no reason why you should not use the .40 for deer with a good expanding HP. Should work fine with a double lung hit, broadside. Hogs or heavier go to 10mm. Just my opinion of course.... Mikey has raised me for the last ten years so I can't discount that.... LOL.  Broadside, anything through both lungs on a deer is fine.... My evaluation..... Good luck! 

[Mikey]

Mohawk:  How come you never write?  Dang it Son, didn't I learn ya proper to use a 200 gn cast swc on yer whitetail, not some 158 gn Buffler snot er sumptin .......

[Mohawk]

Sorry Papa, all I had was these danged factory loads in the pretty box..... You done learned me well though...... Always wanted those 200 grainers but can't find the folks to load them.....

[Mikey]

Awww, ya done good Son, I'm always proud of ya.

[AndyHass]

I have finished a couple deer with a 40SW.  The results were NOT impressive, and this was with personal defense rounds and 10 feet or less.  I am sure if you put it in the lungs the deer will go down, but do it somewhere open because they may not bleed and may not go down that quickly.  Absolutely no shock damage.

[Mohawk]

Shock damage?

[Merle]

I have finished a couple deer with a 40SW.  The results were NOT impressive, and this was with personal defense rounds and 10 feet or less.  I am sure if you put it in the lungs the deer will go down, but do it somewhere open because they may not bleed and may not go down that quickly.  Absolutely no shock damage.

I suspect that a defense load would not be the best choice; pretty much the same story as the 357 Mag. Heavier bullets that penetrate deeply SHOULD do a better job.

    

[AndyHass]

I have finished a couple deer with a 40SW.  The results were NOT impressive, and this was with personal defense rounds and 10 feet or less.  I am sure if you put it in the lungs the deer will go down, but do it somewhere open because they may not bleed and may not go down that quickly.  Absolutely no shock damage.

I suspect that a defense load would not be the best choice; pretty much the same story as the 357 Mag. Heavier bullets that penetrate deeply SHOULD do a better job.

    

If you have a way to penetrate more deeply than a pass-thru, I am all ears.

The issue is that with the low energy there was no significant damage outside the wound channel (aka shock damage), so bleeding is much slower.  Despite a pass-thru and apparent ok expansion the lungs took 2 rounds to deflate.  The 40SW is a very low muzzle energy round so this is not surprising.  Like I said it punched a hole but that is about all it did, I would have liked to see more damage which is why I have stepped up to a 41Mag as my backup gun. 

The 40SW is convenient to carry for self-defense, and I love it for that purpose, it is NOT a great hunting round.

[Mohawk]

A .58 wound track nothing to sneeze at as with my .357/.38 deer kills. If you're looking for rifle like wound tracks most any straight walled cartridges, if not all, will disappoint you. Even with a .44 Mag through a rifle my brother's deer using a JSP was not overlly impressive. Didn't die any quicker than my .38 deer. What exactly do you expect a handgun cartridge to do?

[AndyHass]

A .58 wound track nothing to sneeze at as with my .357/.38 deer kills. If you're looking for rifle like wound tracks most any straight walled cartridges, if not all, will disappoint you. Even with a .44 Mag through a rifle my brother's deer using a JSP was not overlly impressive. Didn't die any quicker than my .38 deer. What exactly do you expect a handgun cartridge to do?

The bolded sections make are incoherent, I'm not sure I get what you are saying.

If you are saying that there is no meaningful difference between the damage created by a 40SW and a 357/41/44Mag, I must ask....have you ever actually shot a medium/large game animal with a 40SW?  Because I have.  And a 41 and a 44 as well.  There is a significant difference.

What have you shot with a 40SW?

Want an easy demo?  Set some milk jugs full of water out and shoot them with a 40, and a 41/44.  With the 40, they will quiver and slowly leak water through two holes.  With a 41/44, you won't have an intact milk jug left after impact.

[Mohawk]

Yes I would use a .40. And yes have killed deer with .357 full power SJHP. Do you think that a .41 Mag is going to give you some softball sized exit wound as some highpowered rifles do? What part about my previous post don't you understand? I would be happy to explain. By .58 wound track means an expanded .38/.357 privides this on average which means more than half an inch. And lungs not collapsing unless hit by two .40 bullets??? My last deer went 35 yards after one .38 Spl round(deer in my avatar). Both lungs collapsed. So why wouldn't I use a .40? I have had deer stay on their feet longer when hit by a .280 Rem through both lungs than with a .38/.357.  I don't think the .41 will have such a tremendous temporary cavitation to make the deer fly backwards that I am guessing you do. But that's fine, we all have reasons for using what we do. I have examined enough wound trauma, man and animal, to not expect too much from a cartridge unless the casing has a bottleneck or happens to be plastic.(Most of ya'll will understand this...  (:  And regarding milk jugs..... yeah, its a decent indicator regarding penetration, did it myself years ago. But when you see the milk carton with a  5" hole after shooting it..... that translates to nothing but expanded bullet size hole on a living target. I hope this helps clarify. If not, its a good thread and we can both learn a lot.   

[mcwoodduck]

Shooting Deer with anyhand gun is possible.
Just make sure the shot is with in your shooting capibilities.
For giggles I can hit a clay pigeon at 150 to 200 yards with my .40  but would never think to take a shot on an animal at that far.
A hole in the lungs is not going to have the deer run far.
The only thing i can tell you about carrying a handgun in the woods is you are not going to quick draw a deer.
You go to draw and before you can get the auto out all you will see is that huge white flag of a white tailed buck bounding away through the trees.
Don't ask how i know.  If you are going to handgun hunt keep it in your hands.

[Mohawk]

You can't expect rifle performance from a straight walled cartridge. Most hunters know the limitations and hunt on that. If a .58" wound is insufficient then blaze on ! If different I would love to see it.... Let's compare qround ballistics....

[mcwoodduck]

You can't expect rifle performance from a straight walled cartridge. Most hunters know the limitations and hunt on that. If a .58" wound is insufficient then blaze on ! If different I would love to see it.... Let's compare qround ballistics....

Whoa!  Never said it would.
But you look at the ballistics of a Black powder rifle.
A .45 hawkin round ball is .440 weighing about 125-140 grain and pushed by about 50 to 60 grains of Black powder to about 1400 FPS
People have been shooting deer with this combo for well over 150 years.
Similar in ballistics to most non magnum handguns.
165 to 180 grains leaving a .40 S&W handgun at 950 to 1100 FPS.
The only concern I have is being able to hit the deer with the handgun.  It has taken me years to beable to shoot the way I can with a handgun and it is a perishable skill, the less you shoot the worse you get.
You shooting a deer with the 38 Special is a great throphy.  I am not taking anything away from your harvest.  I am a little jealous as I did not get to go hunting this year for deer.  You knew the limits of your shooting ability and were able to put a bullet in the vitals.  That is more what I was trying to say.
Even out to 100 yards a large slug (.357 and up and weighing more than 140 grains) from a handgun will kill a deer.
There was a gentleman that took the pre Model 27 S&W in 357 mag hunting all over the country and took moose, brown bear and other animals with it.

[Mohawk]

Not referring to you, Wood Duck. You know the game.  I agree with most of what you said..... Sorry if it came out that way. On phone and can't quote posts.....

[AndyHass]

I don't think the .41 will have such a tremendous temporary cavitation to make the deer fly backwards that I am guessing you do. But that's fine, we all have reasons for using what we do.    

If you cannot carry on a discussion at an adult level, you're not worth my time.  Resorting to immature insults is typically the ammunition of someone who cannot support their opinion with real knowledge or experience.

There is a reason both the 40SW and the 38 Spl are not legal hunting cartridges in many states.  A 22LR with pass thru the lungs of a deer but that does not mean it is a good round for the purpose.

[Redhawk1]

I don't think the .41 will have such a tremendous temporary cavitation to make the deer fly backwards that I am guessing you do. But that's fine, we all have reasons for using what we do.    

If you cannot carry on a discussion at an adult level, you're not worth my time.  Resorting to immature insults is typically the ammunition of someone who cannot support their opinion with real knowledge or experience.

There is a reason both the 40SW and the 38 Spl are not legal hunting cartridges in many states.  A 22LR with pass thru the lungs of a deer but that does not mean it is a good round for the purpose.

Well said Andy!

[Mohawk]

And there is an equally good reason why the .38 and .40 are legal in some states.  I simply haven't seen anything overwhelming that gives the .41 a great advantage. And I have seen the .40 do very well at causing damage. The .38 as well. Not hear to debate or mean to offend anybody. Just stating what I have personally observed. And I was sincere in my previous question. I have never seen any man or animal that has taken two bullets of any caliber and have their lungs not deflate. Could it happen? Sure. You were adult enough to comment on my lack of coherency so hopefully I am understood a little better this time to avoid any confusion. Again, no offense intended.