The ARROW not the bow: 9mm ammo evolution

When I was twelve a friend of my father handed me 35lb draw-weight hickory bow he'd hewn from a bough he'd been seasoning for 4 years. It's one of those events of my youth that stands out in my catalog of outstanding memories, and I practiced with that bow every day for 4 years until at the age of 16 I replaced it was a composite horseman's bow of 65lb draw weight (another story). Along with the hickory bow I was presented with a fletching jig, a handful of Port Orford cedar staves, a paper bag of spliced goose feathers, a tube of adhesive and a mixture of rubber blunts and steel field points. That guy (Tom was his name) then taught and relayed to me the importance of a fine arrow and how one could actually form a bow from virtually any bent stick, and shoot straight, so long as the arrow was true. Boy was that a lesson, and one that's spared me blowing hundreds of dollars on expensive bows when all I needed was a basic recurve and a quiver full of the best arrows I could possibly craft.

The same is essentially true of the gun. Virtually all the firearms on the market today perform basically the exact same function as they have since the invention of the cartridge: a trigger releases a firing pin which ignites a primer and a charge and sends a chunk of metal out of a barrel. Sure, some of them do this with more refinement than others but after the trigger, pin, breach and barrel have done their launch job, it's all down to the bullet to determine the final result. If you have a poorly made or faulty round then even a $40,000 Krieghoff isn't going to get you a trophy but if I have quality round then even a $250 Savage will give me MOA all day long.

One of the most hotly debated issues on the web is the efficacy of the 9mm as an anti personnel round (which is what it was designed for). Some folks claim it's not a one-shot man-stopper whilst others swear by it. Even the FBI had to conduct tests a few years back to determine it's true capabilities. Some state you need at least a 45acp, whilst others (usually the better shots) are comfortable with a 22LR with the proviso of shot placement. Personally I feel any size caliber is potentially ineffectual if you hit a foot, whilst even rimfire is ample if you hit an eye. But being it's the central mass that's the easiest target to acquire under stress, then I'd say the 9mm round is borderline in standard ball of even HP configuration. Remember, only one shot! 9mm handguns counter that disadvantage with larger capacities and peace officer and military duty weapons typically carry 17+ rounds and will often be discharged multiple times at an assailant. Two or three 9mm rounds are undoubtedly as effective as one 45acp, BUT, you still have to hit a threat two times to match it. And if it keeps coming you have to hit it again. And again. And for this repeated target acquisition, training and a cool head are imperative if you want to beat out pure luck. What our LEO's have to deal with on American streets, where opioids and other physically emboldening and mind altering drugs can exaggerate a threat, doesn't bear thinking about. But if I were a cop I know I'd want the best round technology can offer loaded in my sidearm.

At long last there is a new family of ammunition that might just be the requisite evolution of the 9mm round and one that puts it in the realm of one-shot man-stopper. Some reviewers are so enthused you'd think it was the fabled silver bullet reserved for the werewolf, however I think in fairness it performs like a rifle caliber and therefore this means your shots from your sidearm count for more. This might mean that your little single stack sub compact 9mm isn't as borderline as you might have feared: make one solid central-mass hit with this new ammo and the chances of a full stop are pretty good (remember, it's not the bow, it's the arrow!). One shot is the holy grail, the golden mean. To that end Underwood, Lehigh, G9 and Inceptor are four manufacturers producing bullets that upon entering soft tissue grab, pressurize and eject it at twice the directional speed of the bullet. The specially designed grooves in the nose harness the soft tissue and spin it aside like a blender creating a large wound cavity - this is the known as the Venturi Effect. Underwoods, Lehigh and G9's are CNC'd from solid copper whereas Inceptors are molded from a copper-polymer resin (MIM). These manufacturers also produce this round in other pistol calibers (i.e. 380acp & 45acp) so you have choices, however the physics behind how these rounds work means they function optimally at high velocities therefore the 9mm is probably the best of the bunch. They are also ranked highly in terms of accuracy and feed reliability. But they are expensive and average a $1.50 a round, so something worth taking into consideration if planning purchases around them.

All the 9mm semi-auto pistol designs on the current market are simply variants in ergonomics, period. The guts feed and poop exactly the same way (with varying degrees of reliability of course). Naturally all makers wish to claim their's is the best but if the truth be known it ultimately boils down to the bullet used and I think we now have the right arrow for all the various bows available to us. So we can now freely choose the 9mm pistol that fits our budget, preferences and pocket and go about our day knowing we are amply armed if the unthinkable happens and we are compelled to protect ourselves or our family. This new generation of ammunition is testament to our ability to micro-analyze the physics of projectiles and though some might say humanity is acquiring all the right technology for all the wrong reasons I prefer to quote Arthur C Clarke who said "any sufficiently advanced technology is equivalent to magic." Ed