PDWs...and other small arms.

[Tony Williams]

One would think that a major challenge for pistol cartridge PDW's with diameters less than about 10 mm is getting sufficient lethality.

Is there any testing that illuminates this issue?

The gel tests I have seen show little difference between 9mm and .45 ball. Make of that what you will...

The real difference is between an FMJ ball and a well-designed hollowpoint: a good 9mm HP blasts a huge wound track compared with a .45 ball.

I agree about the 7.62x25, it would make a good PDW cartridge (although the hot SMG loadings are rather hot for a pistol - too much flash and blast). I suspect that some interesting things could be done with it given modern bullet designs, but it's been ignored for a long time.