Pistols through ages?

[Eternal_Freedom]

Really? I figured that a shotgun shell would beat a pistol round when you're really close.

[Zaune]

I still say that if you need more bang for your buck than a modern 9x19mm round with a military-spec loading, forget carrying it under your coat and keep a sawn-off shotgun or an Uzi in a duffel-bag.

[Beowulf]

Really? I figured that a shotgun shell would beat a pistol round when you're really close.

.410 shotgun shells have a maximum pressure of 13kpsi. 9mm has a maximum pressure of 35kpsi. 12 gauge shotguns have even lower max pressure, but they have alot of weight on the projectile(s), so even with the lower velocity, they still end up with more power. .410 doesn't have that advantage. .410 shotguns normally have at least a 18in barrel, while a 9mm pistol barrel is only on the order of 5 inches, so that helps a shotgun get more velocity out of the limited pressure available, but shotguns are always going to be subsonic, and without a mass advantage, there's no point.

Now, if you want to conceal a 12 guage: http://www.serbu.com/top/superShorty.php
Admittedly, you only get 3 shots out of it...

[The Kernel]

For a modern pistol if cost were no object then an FN Five-Seven is almost certainly the best way to go. The only downside is the cost of ammunition.

For a more conventional caliber the Sig P226 chambered in .40 S&W is probably the safest choice.

[Kitsune]

For a modern pistol if cost were no object then an FN Five-Seven is almost certainly the best way to go. The only downside is the cost of ammunition.

For a more conventional caliber the Sig P226 chambered in .40 S&W is probably the safest choice.

Going conventional in that caliber, the .357 Sig is probably the better choice. Has very close to .357 Magnum performance.

[Beowulf]

For a modern pistol if cost were no object then an FN Five-Seven is almost certainly the best way to go. The only downside is the cost of ammunition.

For a more conventional caliber the Sig P226 chambered in .40 S&W is probably the safest choice.

Going conventional in that caliber, the .357 Sig is probably the better choice. Has very close to .357 Magnum performance.

If you're going semi-conventional, a Glock 20 or 21, in .460 Rowland is probably the gun and round of choice. .45 ACP rounds will work in one in a pinch, but it's got twice the maximum pressure. Can get a 80 grain bullet to 3kfps, or use a 260 grain at 1150 fps out of 5.5" barrel. It's effectively .44 Magnum levels. Yeah, the ammo is expensive, but I'd expect most of the combat rounds would end up being handloads anyway. Who would sell a silver cored bullet?

[Eternal_Freedom]

Really? I figured that a shotgun shell would beat a pistol round when you're really close.

.410 shotgun shells have a maximum pressure of 13kpsi. 9mm has a maximum pressure of 35kpsi. 12 gauge shotguns have even lower max pressure, but they have alot of weight on the projectile(s), so even with the lower velocity, they still end up with more power. .410 doesn't have that advantage. .410 shotguns normally have at least a 18in barrel, while a 9mm pistol barrel is only on the order of 5 inches, so that helps a shotgun get more velocity out of the limited pressure available, but shotguns are always going to be subsonic, and without a mass advantage, there's no point.

Now, if you want to conceal a 12 guage: http://www.serbu.com/top/superShorty.php
Admittedly, you only get 3 shots out of it...

That I did not know. Thanks for sharing though, most informative.

[The Kernel]

For a modern pistol if cost were no object then an FN Five-Seven is almost certainly the best way to go. The only downside is the cost of ammunition.

For a more conventional caliber the Sig P226 chambered in .40 S&W is probably the safest choice.

Going conventional in that caliber, the .357 Sig is probably the better choice. Has very close to .357 Magnum performance.

If you're going semi-conventional, a Glock 20 or 21, in .460 Rowland is probably the gun and round of choice. .45 ACP rounds will work in one in a pinch, but it's got twice the maximum pressure. Can get a 80 grain bullet to 3kfps, or use a 260 grain at 1150 fps out of 5.5" barrel. It's effectively .44 Magnum levels. Yeah, the ammo is expensive, but I'd expect most of the combat rounds would end up being handloads anyway. Who would sell a silver cored bullet?

.460 Rowland is hardly conventional and when you get out of the 9mm/.40 S&W/.45 ACP calibers there's really no point going to anything but a 5.7 x 28mm round for pistols for a defensive weapon. We can discuss all we like about the relative merits of various pistol calibers but the 5.7 is simply a better pistol round for defensive purposes as it has less recoil than even the 9mm, has terrific penetration (even if you can't get the SS198LF ammunition the civilian variants aren't much different), is extremely light and allows for a pistol that carries 20-30 rounds comfortably.

Put it another way...exactly what advantage does your Glock conversion have? You end up with a much heavier weapon that kicks like a mule and carries far fewer rounds per magazine. This is no secret--the 5.7x28 round was designed to penetrate and kill those wearing body armor and that's exactly what it does. It's not unique to this caliber either, the H&K and Russian military variants on the same concept are designed much the same way.

I'm not a fanboy of the Five Seven by any means but I respect what FN did with it and the P90 and sales to both military and law enforcement worldwide reflect the performance of this system for close range defensive weapons.

[Kitsune]

I would argue that teh 10 mm is still a reasonably common round and the .357 Sig is a common enough round as well.

[His Divine Shadow]

Just assume that power does matter for ease of discussion
There are otehr meanies like demons that are not killed through piercing the heart
Werewolves are killed with silver but they are still far tougher against silver than a normal human would be against normal bullets

A Colt SAA in .45LC, he can overcome the loading issue by carrying two and being practiced at reloading them under stress. Habits are powerful things though and it is doubtful he would abandon the SAA easily, even in real life it has extreme staying power, the gun is still made, I even have one. I would read sixguns by elmer keith to see a bit of that mentality.

If we assume the character is quite conservative he can likely eschew autos altogether. If power matters, then revolvers have always been on the winning side really, I guess it depends if the story will have a guy gunning down hordes of creatures or fighting smaller more personal battles. I think the most likely "upgrade" this character would consider is the .45ACP M1917 revolver used in WW1 when the US couldn't make 1911s fast enough, it has a swing out cylinder and you use moonclips to load it, which speeds up ejection and reloading. I assume he'd probably stick with those until the 50s when Elmer Keith gets S&W and remington to come out with the first .44 magnums. Alternatively he hot loads .44 special revolvers during the 20's to 50's like Skeeter Skelton and Elmer Keith did (and blew up lots of guns and led to the development of the .44 magnum) and from there on out it's probably 44mag wessons all the way to the 2000s. Sure there where other rounds that where more powerful, but none as common as the 44mag. I would even envision this guy as sentimental and keep all his old guns around, cleaned, loaded and ready to be used.

I also think it's worth to just stay away from oddball cartridges and the like, stick to whats common and what works, wanking over theoretical stats on a paper for caliber X is just never a substitute for ease of finding components, parts and factory ammo. This character as I've now imagined him in my head sounds like a reloader and he will probably love the fact that components are readily available and that revolvers don't eject your used brass.

Some of the more modern guns nowadays though might make the character reconsider his revolveritis, a Glock 20 is a simple and reliable gun with a powerful round and superior ammo capacity. The round is sorta common.