I have a few AR-15's and I love them, you can never just own one, hehehe, But anyway, I was thinking about buying a handgun for self defense, I was looking at the FN 5.7x28mm, I am wondering, does it really have enough knock down power to be a " Defense Gun" , I really like the looks of the gun, and I like the fact you can take it down with out any tools, just like the AR's, but at the same time I want something I can trust my life with, so for all of you that have some advice for me it would be greatly appreciated. It's either a hand gun or an AK-47 when the ban sunsets..... well I probably will get both thank you

If youre looking for knockdown power, get a 10mm or .45, the 5.7x28 will deliver a minute amount of energy into its target.  Will it reach the goodies on the inside of the bad guy-yes.  Will he be knocked on his ass-no.  I would prefer a larger caliber handgun over the 5.7x28 any day for self defense, although the 5.7 is always easily accessable in my house in case I would need it.  If you want a good knockdown gun, something dead reliable, with high cap mags, then you should either consider a Glock 20, Glock 21, H&K USP (.45ACP), or a Para Ordinance 14.45 or 12.45.  If you find that the larger calibers are harder to control for you, then look to a .40 cal.

as stated above, 5.7mm was designed for one thing - to pierce body armor. it does that very well.
not really very good for soft targets, better off with 9mm,.40 or .45 for that.

a buddy was in love with that round.  then he did a bit of research.

poodle shooter.

Quoted: I really really really just dont get the fascination with this round.... You might as well carry a .22 unless you have an incredibly high chance of coming in contact with numerous aggressors wearing body armor.

For me its the platform more than the round, even though I bought it for the round.   I think FN should put some money into developing a .45 based on this guns design.  Not many .22 mags out there that have the capability of holding 20 rounds at a time either, I think the hi cap ability is another big seller.  There are handguns that shoot .22 LR with up to 100 round mags (calico) but it would take a .22 mag to match this round at best.