Beretta Backers Beat Down the .45 Revival

September 24, 2006: Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Defense began a search for a new .45 caliber combat pistol. Now that search has been mysteriously called off. The Department of Defense has announced, without any explanation, that is no longer looking for a new combat pistol.

Last January, after two decades of use, the U.S. Department of Defense appeared to be getting rid of its Beretta M9 9mm pistol, and going back to the 11.4mm (.45 caliber) weapon. There have been constant complaints about the lesser (compared to the .45) hitting power of the 9mm, as well as reliability problems with the Beretta. And in the last few years, SOCOM (Special Operations Command) and the marines have officially adopted .45 caliber pistols as "official alternatives" to the M9 Beretta.

Back in January, SOCOM was given the task of finding a design that will be suitable as the JCP (Joint Combat Pistol). Various designs were to be evaluated, but all had to be .45 caliber and have a eight round magazine (at least), and high capacity mags holding up to 15. The new .45 was also to have a rail up top for attachments, and be able to take a silencer. Length was to be no more than 9.65 inches, and width no more than 1.53 inches.

The M1911 .45 caliber pistol that the 9mm Beretta replaced in 1985, was, as its nomenclature implied, an old design. There are several modern designs out there for .45 caliber pistols that are lighter, carry more ammo and are easier to maintain than the pre-World War I M1911 (which is actually about a century old, as a design). The Department of Defense planned to buy 645,000 JCPs. But now, the troops are being told to keep their 9mm Berettas, and all the complaints they have about those weapons.

Well........the Automag would be nice!

Actually, all things considered...and believe me ol' Squantos and I have been grinding this one down into fine, microscope-inspected dust, inside, outside, backward, upside down, for over a year now, day and night, anecdotes, experience, specialty ammo, every web site we could find...and we found a few (!)....because we wanted to deduce and decide upon what we should carry for all circumstances if only ONE handgun were to be chosen. The age-old "one gun" debate. We searched for an all-purpose unit, which would not be unreasonable to use should a long gun not be there.

The problem for us, not on duty that is (when others make the decision for one...more or less!), comes back to ammunition resupply, which is not a problem for the Armed Forces.

We both agreed that when it comes to STOPPING an animal, vegetable, or military adversary, we would both rather have a .44 Special or Magnum in our hands. One call does it all, more or less. 9mms are so small as to require bullet expansion for effective diameter, and expansion limits penetration, by simple physics, and is unpredictable. An unexpanded 9mm FMJ creates a very narrow permanent channel, further decreasing the odds of hitting structure essential for a STOP. We are not hunting here, but trying to prevent a probably MUCH better armed attacker from killing us, NOW. Dangerous animals are quite well armed too, as many can attest. The .45 Auto (trying not to attract Buffalo Head) creates a wide channel, and penetrates well even at longer ranges if one can manage the trajectory, because of its heavy bullet weight. However, in some uses, the wide diameter and blunt tip limit penetration into harder surfaces...not a good thing. Although Squantos shot a record book mountain lion to death with his .45, when it was discovered to be stalking his men right behind them as they crawled upon the ground during night training, he was fortunate enough to hit it in the ear...and it took another shot at that. It may not have been so effective on a bear. This is why we both carry .44 Magnums when afield for hiking, etc.

I have been told that the .41 does not perform nearly as well as the .44 Magnum, and I know that ammunition is very hard to find. Also, the larger projectile should need less barrel length (velocity) to be properly effective. Anyway, we are speaking about automatics, military arms here. We both back our automatics up with revolvers though, when afield for sport or farm utility, or simply carry the .44.

He bought a Glock 20, and had Larry Kelly Mag-na-Port it, not the one-hole sunroof style...and he says it handles like a .38! Target shooters claim that the 10mm works wonderfully in ported revolvers. So, in a reliable package, with the right loads...180gr. and up, I should think, it really does the job. I think that flat-nosed ball (TC) would be very useful in military and chips down survival situations. Also, more diameter and more weight enhances permanent channel diameter and penetration depth without resorting to higher velocities, a problem in smaller handguns. I have also discovered that the magical "hydrostatic shock" effect does not apply to handgun velocities....so that adding +P velocity (and pressure) is not necessarily the best answer to better performance. For hollow point of expanding bullet use, it can actually LESSEN penetration depth, and/or cause fragmentation. It also beats hell out of any semi-auto handgun. The better method is to increase bullet weight....which is part of why the penetration performance .45ACP (here he comes) continues to prove so effective in mortal combat to this day....higher projectile weight causes deeper penetration even at moderate to LOWER velocity. Larger diameter improves bullet effectiveness against living targets too, but the trade off can be greater bullet drop at longer ranges. Ahem.

I think that the 10mm is a great invention, and that we should use it. In declared war situations, when Ball must be used, it has ample weight and diameter, and flatter trajectory. It screams out of longer barrels too, as in SMGs. Sub-sonic use is effective because of greater weight and diameter too.

So, there's mah Opus. BTW, we fellers has decided to mostly stick wif our plain ol' 9mm BHPs most of the time, loaded with white box Winchester 147gr. HP or Supreme, and specialty ammo from www.RBCD.com since the current unpleasantness could cause a survival bug-out, and we'd have trouble resupplying with 10mm. I carry a Redhawk 7 1/2" .44 a lot when I can....kills the rattlesnakes REAL good, and can fill in for a rifle if'n the balloon goes up when I'm far from home. In peacetime, I'd go to the woods with a 10. Now....hmmmmm.

The military can resupply anything, a civilian must buy or trade.

10mm.

That's my 8 million cents.

(also, gotta reply to the girlfriend's IM now, since I've been right here for a while!)

That's http://www.rbcd.net/

Works really well for extending the utility of my 9mms. I oppugn firing JHP or Ball through (hopefully) rattlesnakes at my feet, then into rock or hard ground. Also makes a "hastily" aimed hit on a feral (no, I got over all of that, personally) dog more likely to stop, not further enrage. The ones out here are mostly guard/fighting dog mixes, and rarely are they alone. I hear they're mating with coyotes too...which sounds a lot like chupacabra or Cujo to cute little well-meaning me.

About using +P in a 9mm...which precipitated the "one handgun" quest, after I got over my disappointment with Squantos' "don't try to turn a pistol into a rifle" statement. (and this from a man who carries an aluminum briefcase with a 6.5mm Swede or .223 Rem. scoped Contender in it!) Well, he was certainly correct, so I never even put the heavier springs and 8" barrel into my carryin' BHP, especially after Mr. Laughridge of Cylinder and Slide stated in an email that "We do not recommend the use of +P in any presently available 9mm handgun."

Well. I went back to my single and double action revolvers for daily use on the land. Then the puppies from hell convinced me to go back to my usual self-protection ride, the P35 Browning. They don't function with CCI shot charges though. Federal discontinued Nyclads, and I have been hit with Silvertip aluminum jacket material before...no fun. Well...perhaps a little. Glasers have copper jackets too. What to do? I can't carry a long handled shovel or a 12ga. all the time....try as I may...and the chafing from this sabre prevents me from wearing shorts in the summer...so....bimetal, powdering on impact RBCD.

I rest my sammich.

I carry my 7 1/2" Redhawk as a suddenly unprepared but out here Survival option, since its long barrel handles longer ranges really well, and the model can stand up to Garretts too, serving as a stand-in for the rifle I wish I had with me.

It is good for close range big game hunting, and it conceals reasonably well under a flannel shirt, unlike most rifles, as I have had pointed out to me!

The .44 shotshell kills venomous snakes right away, and it usually takes me 2 .38s to do more than stun them with a head shot. I find it the most useful cartridge that there is. I also carry and use an old SAA Uberti 6" chambered in .44 magnum, but it really should be used only with Specials. It's a rather rare gun, perhaps for good reason!

My next purchase should be a 4"-629 for CCW, and as a handy to carry snake stopper, and all-around handy critter. Squantos carries and loads for a Titanium etc. .44 Special a lot, and hasn't even blown it up yet, much to his surprise and glee. Not having allowed Eaker to borrow it may be instrumental in its longevity too, we may reasonably speculate.

I understand that J.B. favored the .32 ACP Beretta, and was compelled to change to the .380 Walther by his employer.

The .32 penetrates rather well, and is not particularly loud, which can be handy attributes, especially if one uses it well, and can place precise shots.

After the RFK assasination, Time magazine published an article mentioning a particular .25 ACP shooting. A man was set upon in an alley, and beaten severely. He staggered to a hospital, where he was cleaned up and sent home. Several days later, complaining of headaches, he returned to the hospital, where he was then X-Rayed. They showed the X-Ray. 5 .25 caliber bullets in the brain.

I sometimes carry a Beretta 950 .25 for various reasons, sometimes only as backup when working. One should be aware of its limitations, and prepared for a colorful adventure, should it have to be utilized. I am always relieved when I put it away, faulting myself for not carrying my Mustang Pocketlite .380 when something small is called for.

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