Jump to content
Brian Enos's Forums... Maku mozo!

Convert .40 to 9mm?


gunz213

Recommended Posts

Spoke with a grandmaster shooter at a match and he said his 9mm was a 40 converted to 9. I asked him about the breechface, he said he likes the 40 breechface on his 9mm. I guess you could make an STI 40 into a 9mm without changing the slide. It would be a new extractor, barrel, and barrel bushing, depending on the barrel. Also new mags.

Randy

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Spoke with a grandmaster shooter at a match and he said his 9mm was a 40 converted to 9. I asked him about the breechface, he said he likes the 40 breechface on his 9mm. I guess you could make an STI 40 into a 9mm without changing the slide. It would be a new extractor, barrel, and barrel bushing, depending on the barrel. Also new mags.

Randy

You might want to find another GM to talk to about your 40 to 9 conversion. This guy is either yanking your leg or very misinformed. The breachface for a 9mm and a 40 S&W are two very different animals and don't interchange.

CYa,

Pat

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You might want to talk to a qualified gunsmith, as many of them will fit a second 9mm barrel to a .40 slide gun..... usually all you need is a barrel, extractor, and recoil spring change. And of course a mag. 9mm barrels can be made to work in .40 guns just fine, with tuning, the breachface is very close in size, you just have to tune it to run. Not saying ti would be 100%, but as least as good as all the other .40 to 9 conversion barrels out there on the market for Glocks and XDs, etc.

Maybe give a good gunsmith a call, and see.

Edited by sfinney
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have a .40 S&W 2011 and I have thought about having a 9mm barrel fitted to it. I have seen some folks do this on Kimber's, but I am wondering if anyone has tried it with a STI slide.

Keep the .40 ..... by the time you spend all that money changing parts you could buy a nice used 1911 in 9mm.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 7 months later...

it might work with just changing the barrel. i've put a 10mm barrel in my 38 Super Witness. the 38 Super breech face accommodates the 10mm/40 okay. it's a bit tighter than my 10mm witness breech face, but it works. the extractor was a bit tight at first but it seems to run fine now. i switch back and forth at the range by changing the barrel and magazine.

your extractor might need to be changed or tuned. grab a 9mm round and see how it fits your breech face, and look to see how the extractor might have to be modified to grab the 9mm case.

the ejector might work as is. i have a swap-top 9mm/40 Para; just change top ends and mags and it runs fine.

good luck, and let us know how it works out.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i have a couple sti 140mm mags that will run both 40 and 38sc. i would think the 40 mags would work for 9mm if you add spacers. if not just adjust the feed lips.

Edited by snake32
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Anytime you convert without doing the job thoroughly you risk having problems. 2011's are great guns but remember they are a product of a company that goes all the way when it comes to fitting and parts. No "cut corners" at STI and even more methodical are the folks that take the STI even further like Strayer Voight and of course the mighty LimCat. An STI is a pistol born to do one job and do it well. If you want to make the change to 9mm temporarily have an entire upper section built and keep it with a set of seperate mags. You'll still be below the cost of another complete pistol and you won't have to worry when switching back and forth. Basically just like a .22 caliber conversion your just swapping out top ends and switching mags. Very reliable and no chance of goofing up in the switch. It's very easy when trying to swap extractors and pins and such between the same slide to make a mistake and put the wrong parts in. You get a gun that either fails to extract or jams constantly.

Regarding the approximate cost of the switch it depends and the gunsmith. If you have it in your abilities to fit a slide to your existing frame you will save quite a lot of money. If you aren't an old hand at this though its wise to spend the cash and get it done right. A side note to this are a few cautionary measures when selecting a gunsmith. Choose one who fits slides the "right" way and not using the quick and dirty methods. Cylinder and Slide, Clark, STI themselves are all very good. My smith of choice is J.T. of Holland, MI. Here is a basic breakdown of required parts excluding labor from Brownell's.

STI Slide .38/9mm standard length flat topped bomar cut - $345.31

Same slide Novak cut - $345.95

Classic slide (No Flat top) bomar cut - $271.49

STI .355 Barrel (Bull 5") $211.38

Wilson barrel link - $6.99 (any size same price) NOTE: .278 center to center is the most common size used

Brownells link pin - $10.99 (.154) $6.99 (.156)

Nowlin Extractor $33.72

STI Steel full length guide rod $16.41

STI Reverse Plug 5" - $6.88

STI firing pin - $7.82 (steel) $20.78 (Ti)

STI firing pin stop - $11.98

STI 9/38 mags $60.00 (140mm) $100.00 (170mm)

Wilson firing pin return spring - $2.95

Recoil spring intentionally left out since you'll want to play with poundages and you probably have a full set of them anyway. Ditto for buffers

Using best parts listed here and including 3 140mm (Limited standard) Mags...

Parts Total = $847.39

Shipping Flat = $11.99

Total = $859.38 ($860.00 if you participate in the NRA RoundUp)

Add another $54.99 rear and $16.95 front for STI adjustable sights (Bomar cut rear and 65 degree x .330 dovetail .175 high front) Unless you intend to swap your sights over if this is a permanent change.

Total Shipped with sights = $931.32

My guess is about 2 bills for the smithing give or take which would include...

-Fit slide to your frame

-Fit barrel, Link, Link pin

-Cut chamber to 9mm and set headspace

-Fit firing pin stop

If you want a special finish add extra but that ranges so wildly in price its hard to quote. From basic DuraCoat at around 100 dollars all the way up and beyond NP3 or armorycote which can be over $250.00. Depends on what kind of finish you run though STI slides are fine as they are.

All said and done your probably top side of a Grand no matter how you slice it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...