.40 S&W

The .40 S&W is a polarizing cartridge, and that’s putting it mildly. It was the dominant law enforcement round in America for about twenty-five years, carried by more police departments than any other handgun caliber. Then the FBI switched back to 9mm in 2015, and a lot of agencies followed. Now the gun internet treats it like a cautionary tale. The reality is messier than that — the .40 is a capable cartridge that hits harder than 9mm, and its reputation for “snappy” recoil has been somewhat exaggerated. But it does kick more, and it does hold fewer rounds, and those things matter.

The .40 S&W was developed in 1990 by Smith & Wesson and Winchester in direct response to the 1986 FBI Miami shootout, in which two agents were killed despite hitting the suspects multiple times with 9mm rounds. The FBI wanted something with more stopping power than 9mm but more manageable than 10mm Auto, which had proven too punishing for many agents to qualify with. The .40 S&W was essentially a shortened, downloaded 10mm — same diameter bullet, less powder, more comfortable to shoot. The FBI adopted it, and within a few years it had swept through law enforcement nationwide.

A standard 165-grain .40 S&W load runs about 1,130 feet per second and produces around 468 foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle. A 180-grain load — the classic .40 loading — runs closer to 1,000 fps and 400 ft-lbs. Both numbers sit comfortably between 9mm and .357 Magnum. The .40 hits harder than 9mm and produces a wider wound channel with most hollow point designs. It also has more felt recoil, which affects split times in fast shooting and can affect accuracy for less experienced shooters. Whether that tradeoff is worth it is the argument that never ends.

Law enforcement duty use — though that market has shrunk considerably since 2015. Self-defense carry. Competition shooting, particularly in USPSA where the .40’s higher power factor allows major scoring with standard pressure loads. The used gun market has flooded with ex-law enforcement .40 pistols at very attractive prices, which means it’s also become a surprisingly affordable way to buy a quality duty-grade handgun. That’s not nothing.

Pros: genuine ballistic improvement over 9mm, proven law enforcement track record, excellent terminal performance with quality hollow points, and a wide selection of quality pistols. Cons: snappier recoil makes fast accurate shooting harder, reduced magazine capacity compared to 9mm in the same frame, and a firearms community that has largely decided to move on. Ammunition is somewhat more expensive than 9mm and the selection has narrowed as manufacturers respond to declining demand. The .40 isn’t a bad cartridge — it was just caught in the middle of a caliber war it didn’t ask for.

The .40 S&W went from concept to production in under a year — an extraordinarily fast development cycle for a new cartridge. At its peak, it was the most widely carried law enforcement round in the United States by a significant margin. The irony of its origin story — that it was specifically designed as a less powerful 10mm — is not lost on 10mm fans, who have been saying “told you so” since approximately 1990.

Arms East carries .40 S&W pistols and ammunition. If you’re in the market for a quality used duty pistol at a genuinely good price, this is worth a conversation — the ex-law enforcement market has put some excellent guns out there at prices that are hard to argue with. Come talk to us and we’ll show you what’s in stock.