Do most officers carry 9mm

[MrAiric7]

Do most officers carry 9mm. I'm looking to purchase a new handgun and want something with a higher capacity magazine. I carry a S&W 457 .45 now, which is nice and small enough for concealment ( I have license) when making runs to the bank or Miami. I'm thinking of getting the XD .40 next.

Do most departments tell you what you can carry? I guess what I am asking is are you allowed to choose to carry a 9mm,.40 or .45, or does the department determine that?

[pkagel]

Depends on the dept' some allow you to carry a wide variety of pistols, some mandate you can only carry what they issue. You need to check with who your trying to get hired by.

[mosetti]

My department mandates the we carry the Beretta Model 92FS Inox in 9mm. No choices here and I despise the Beretta.

[kiddiecop]

If the officer is responsible for buying their own weapon then they usually get to choice which one they want. There are restrictions ie can't be smaller than a 38 or larger than a 45 and some restrict certain manufactures that have not met police standard. I prefer the 40 cal because there is a larger capacity, less velocity than a 9 and almost the stopping power of a 45. I have been told that a 9mm has a tendency to travel through the suspect and possibly hit another person. The 40 shoots nice as well.
Good luck. Most ranges will let you try one on for size and shoot it at the range to see what feels good to you. You want a weapon you can handle and shoot accurately.

[Luke]

If the officer is responsible for buying their own weapon then they usually get to choice which one they want. There are restrictions ie can't be smaller than a 38 or larger than a 45 and some restrict certain manufactures that have not met police standard. I prefer the 40 cal because there is a larger capacity, less velocity than a 9 and almost the stopping power of a 45. I have been told that a 9mm has a tendency to travel through the suspect and possibly hit another person. The 40 shoots nice as well.
Good luck. Most ranges will let you try one on for size and shoot it at the range to see what feels good to you. You want a weapon you can handle and shoot accurately.

+1

.40 is my favorite as well. Our dept. allows you to carry anything you want (obviously they have to aprove it as well), so I carry a Glock 22.

[keith758]

There are very few departments that carry 9mm in my area. Almost all have gone to .40, and a couple have gone to 45s. I carry a Beretta 96 for my full time position and a Glock 22 for my part time job.

[DaveinUtah]

When I went through the academy in '92 they issued all the ammo for the gun range. Most people had 9mm.

When I just recently went through the academy again this past year, 1 person in my class had a 9, one with a .45 and the rest had .40s.


When I got to my department and we had to qualify, they told us they would issue the ammo, but if we had anything besides .40 we would have to purchase our own ammo.


So, here in Utah, .40s are the calibre of choice.

[MrAiric7]

I like the XD .40 but don't want to buy one and then find out later it is not approved. I'll check the different departments. I talked with one officer the other day and he carried two different calibres. His primary was .40 and back up was .38. Is that smart to have two different calibres?

[pkagel]

Kind of a can of worms there and you'll get advise going both ways on this one. Worry about back up guns when you get hired and make the decision yourself. I'm partial to a 5 shot 38 S&W as backup but others think you should carry the same as your primary. A lot has to do with how you will carry it and how much extra weight you feel comfortable with.

Is that smart to have two different calibres?

[lt93lover]

My guy carries a Sig 2340..

[mach4]

The department I worked for we carried Glock 22's, 40mm.

[Rbadgett]

if you're looking for a good carry weapon check out the Kahr CW9 or CW40 Both really small, really comfortable, and really simple. I'm 6'4" nearly 300lbs and I have no problem shooting a Kahr. I dont own one personally, but I've had the pleasure of shooting both the 9 and 40. I'm a huge fan of the XD-40, and thats actually my next purchase, but Kahr makes a great CW. As for what departments issue; I know my city's dept. issues SIG and depending on your hand size, and preference you can get P226 in 9 or .40, or P220 .45 auto. I believe I heard something about once you're at an agency for long enough, if they allow it, sometimes you can get whatever you want. There is an officer I met in San Antonio on SWAT (the one who told me this) and he carried a custom Kimber 1911 Eclipse II while everyone else carried GLOCK and Stainless TLE's. Not sure though, Just what I heard. Good luck.

[Bodie]

Rbadgett

You're only 20 you should still be a huge fan of water pistol.

9 MM are widely used because the ammo is cheaper then the rest.

[USP45FAN]

Mosetti, it is nice to see someone else who despises Beretta's. We carry Beretta 96's and I can't stand them, not to mention they are are over 10 years old. Kinda scary huh?

[horne80]

S&W .40 mandated here.