Think about the fact that the US Military is getting ready to replace all of theirs with 45s.
Dumping the 38s to go back to 45s ........ didn't we already go through this once after the Spanish American War?
So9
Just thinkin' here.
My 9mm will punch through some sheetrock, the back of a sofa and still have a little sting left to it. My clip holds 20 rounds (pre-limited clip days)of hollow points, so I can be very generous to my 'guests'. In the short range 'home turf' area; it's plenty lethal.
However, I do not think that my 9mm will likely exit my brick exterior, go into my neighbors brick exterior and ruin his day. If I had a 45; I'd have to be more stingy with the ammo. I sure hate to feel stingy when I have a guest to 'entertain'.
That's why I went 9mm. Sometimes limited penetration is a good thing. Now, in a police or military setting; I think we would both prefer the biggest, meanest and power packed punch we could get. But not in the middle of Surburbia. At least IMHO.
The US has bounced back and forth between large caliber (.44 to .45) and small caliber (.36/9mm) twice, once during black powder days, and again with smokeless powder.
No doubt, the .45 can have better terminal ballistics. The .36 is easier to shoot in some situations.
For a standard pistol range of 20 feet.
Say a .36 has a .9 probability of hit and a .8 probability of kill, given a hit.
Say a .45 has a .8 probability of hit, and a .9 probability of kill, given a hit.
The combination of each is the same, .8X.9=.72 or 72 percent probability of kill for one round. Shoot two rounds and you get. Pk= .72+.72-.72*.72 =0.9216 or 92 percent.
Cut the distance to 10 feet, and Probability of hit goes up, but Probability of kill given a hit stays the same.
.36......Pk= .95 X .8 = .76 for one round, .94 for two rounds
.45......Pk= .9 X .9 = .81 for one round, .96 for two rounds.
What happens is if your enemy gets closer, the .45 gets better.
Your mileage may vary. the above is one way to think about things.
The question is what happens when you get closer?