I've been shooting since I was fifteen years old - pistol shooting for the last twenty-six odd years - and I've heard a lot of Bull.. and being a big-reader, - I've read a lot of stuff that claims to be the "real oil" on the topic of what gun can produce what effect.
Colt .45ACP M1911
'Defensive Handgun Effectiveness' by Peters, 'Pistols and Revolvers and Their Use' by Hatcher, 'Gunshot Injuries by LaGarde, 'Textbook of Pistols and Revolvers' by Hatcher, 'FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin' by DiMaio, 'An Evaluation of Police Handgun Ammunition' by US Department of Justice, I've not read all of these - but I've read quotes and repeats in later books.
I have read Askins, Col. Jeff Cooper, Massad Ayoob, Grant Cunningham, and many others. - The FBI Report on using the 10mm and .40S&W, 9mm etc.
Now - don't get me wrong - I enjoy reading strongly held beliefs - If someone talking or writing doesn't have an opinion they are not going to be very interesting eh. - But beliefs are exactly that - some sort of commitment based on an emotional choice, - I'd rather base my opinions on facts.
If you get a chance to study LaGardes experimental shooting handguns at beef cattle - the only truly effective stopper he actually saw used was a sledge-hammer, that was used to put the (13 0nly!) animals out of their distress by crushing their skulls when multiple pistol bullets had merely wounded them.
Greg Ellefritz who gathered together statistics of actual police / recorded shootings (well worth reading) - concludes that if you need 'one shot stops' from your defensive weapon - you'd better get a centre-fire RIFLE. His figures clearly show that even the heaviest handgun rounds fail consistently to deliver. I published Gregs Study Of Stopping Power here back on 26 January 2014.
Still, - entertaining gun writers like Jeff Cooper never let fact change their long held beliefs. Quote from Cooper 1983: "At the front end the 577 literally crumples elephants"
- He then prints a "Knock-Out" Rating showing the 7x57mm scoring only 15.6 while his .577 scores 126.7. The accurate decimal point details really bring home the authenticity of his calculations of 'momentum x cross-sectional area'.
His implied conclusion is that his borrowed "Crumpler" .577" is EIGHT times better for knocking-down elephants than the 7x57mm.
- Don't tell W D M "Karamojo" Bell this about the 7x57mm (.275 Rigby) though - because he used it to kill 800 Elephants without complaining - and recorded all his kills..
We all like a bit of Bull.. - good story eh, but sometimes boring old fact should be considered too.
Marty K
PS: Rod ( gundoc@xtra.co.nz) has e-mailed to say that He'd be much happier with the .577" against elephant than a 7x57mm - well so would I - but the way Jeff Cooper calculated 'knock-down' power leaves a performance gap when judged against actual recorded elephant shootings. - And handguns of any calibre are not really what you'd use for a definite ending to any attack.
Rod also points-out that those Big Game hunters in Africa had very big balls - all of them!
Marty K
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