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Your guys thoughts on OC/CC a .44 magnum

cpgrad08

cpgrad08

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I so some people I know in other circles I having my grief on carrying a .44 Magnum (usually OC but I have CC it sometimes) saying it way to powerful for street carry and that I will destroy my ears from the sound it produces if I shoot in a defensive shooting. While I do switch between Critical defense in .44 spl and mag, I still get people saying if I shoot the gun it will go though the wall and kill grandma on the other side. I just wondering your guys thoughts on carrying a .44 mag?
 
Open carry it and enjoy never having to actually fire it in a hostile situation.





Seriously, though...if they are concerned with bullets from your gun going through another persons wall, then they should have the same concern for a great deal of other guns. I mean, unless we're talking brick, here, most bullets will go through sheet rock and dry wall with minimal issues. I mean, think about it...what is a house actually made of these days? A 4x4 frame, and then cheap plywood. How many layers of plywood would even a .22 go through?
 
Well, Kevin has a point. Overpenetration is a possible issue with almost any firearm.



The .44 magnum is a bit egregious on that point as a handgun though. The main objection most pro's have is that the .44 mag adds a lot of recoil and noise without an appreciable increase in "stopping power" (which is a bit of a misnomer where all handguns are concerned) but street stats indicate the .45 acp, 9mm +P and .357 jhp all to be slightly superior in "stopping power" than the 44mag, and WAY better in terms of rate of fire on repeat shots.

Resorting to personal anecdote, I find the 44mag hard to control while having no problems making a can dance with a 1911 in 45 cal. Now with sufficient practice you can train yourself to get used to the recoil and blast of the 44mag, sure. Most pros don't find the extra weight and bother worth it, considering its performance as a man-stopper is not improved over more easily managed guns.

You could carry .44 specials in it, as you mention. Again, street stats show a slight reduction in effectiveness compared to the 45, 9mm+P and .357mag. That's a generalization of course since so much of "stopping power" depends on shot placement, which is the Injun and not the arrow mostly.

When I was a cop I continued carrying a .357 revolver (Smith Wesson M13) when most were switching to Glocks, because I could drive tacks with my wheelgun and mistrusted the early polymer pistols as service sidearms.


So basically I'm saying, there's a certain validity to the criticism you're hearing, but if that's your personal choice of carry gun and you shoot well with it, do your thing.
 
cpgrad08 said:
I so some people I know in other circles I having my grief on carrying a .44 Magnum (usually OC but I have CC it sometimes) saying it way to powerful for street carry and that I will destroy my ears from the sound it produces if I shoot in a defensive shooting. While I do switch between Critical defense in .44 spl and mag, I still get people saying if I shoot the gun it will go though the wall and kill grandma on the other side. I just wondering your guys thoughts on carrying a .44 mag?
Click to expand...



two problems
control between shots

perception of a jury if you have to shoot someone in SD
 
TurtleDude said:
two problems
control between shots

perception of a jury if you have to shoot someone in SD
Click to expand...

Assuming if it went to trial.

I have found by changing the grips and some practice that the recoil isn't much great then my 4 in .357 mag.
 
Goshin said:
Well, Kevin has a point. Overpenetration is a possible issue with almost any firearm.



The .44 magnum is a bit egregious on that point as a handgun though. The main objection most pro's have is that the .44 mag adds a lot of recoil and noise without an appreciable increase in "stopping power" (which is a bit of a misnomer where all handguns are concerned) but street stats indicate the .45 acp, 9mm +P and .357 jhp all to be slightly superior in "stopping power" than the 44mag, and WAY better in terms of rate of fire on repeat shots.

Resorting to personal anecdote, I find the 44mag hard to control while having no problems making a can dance with a 1911 in 45 cal. Now with sufficient practice you can train yourself to get used to the recoil and blast of the 44mag, sure. Most pros don't find the extra weight and bother worth it, considering its performance as a man-stopper is not improved over more easily managed guns.

You could carry .44 specials in it, as you mention. Again, street stats show a slight reduction in effectiveness compared to the 45, 9mm+P and .357mag. That's a generalization of course since so much of "stopping power" depends on shot placement, which is the Injun and not the arrow mostly.

When I was a cop I continued carrying a .357 revolver (Smith Wesson M13) when most were switching to Glocks, because I could drive tacks with my wheelgun and mistrusted the early polymer pistols as service sidearms.


So basically I'm saying, there's a certain validity to the criticism you're hearing, but if that's your personal choice of carry gun and you shoot well with it, do your thing.
Click to expand...

Good move, if I was cop, I would rather have a revolver, when I was an MP I hated the m9.
 
cpgrad08 said:
Assuming if it went to trial.

I have found by changing the grips and some practice that the recoil isn't much great then my 4 in .357 mag.
Click to expand...

I like revolvers but I prefer autos for self defense. that is too much weight IMHO and the rounds are very expensive to practice with
 
TurtleDude said:
I like revolvers but I prefer autos for self defense. that is too much weight IMHO and the rounds are very expensive to practice with
Click to expand...

I mainly carry my 686 and 642. I find .38 spl and .357 not that expensive compared to Auto loads, but it is a pain to find FMJ or semi jacketed .44 spl.
 
TurtleDude said:
I like revolvers but I prefer autos for self defense. that is too much weight IMHO and the rounds are very expensive to practice with
Click to expand...

The new SW MP ported guns look like very good defense guns.
 
cpgrad08 said:
The new SW MP ported guns look like very good defense guns.
Click to expand...

I am not a big fan of ports for the reason that the flash at night can be problematic
 
TurtleDude said:
I am not a big fan of ports for the reason that the flash at night can be problematic
Click to expand...




Also if you ever shoot from a "retention position" those ports can actually hurt you. We had an incident once on my range with a ported revolver shooting from retention, a lady got hurt slightly and now I don't allow any ported weapons in a close-combat shooting class.
 
I prefer small frame revolvers for open/concealed. My steady carry weapon was a Ruger SP101 .357 Magnum 3" barrel on my last job. I did property recovery's for FNMA and other property asset managers. I was always crawling through windows, crawl spaces, and attics. I worked a lot of tough neighborhoods.

.44 magnum........no way.

It's too big, and draws too much attention.
 
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