10mm options

[Markbo]

Some yeayhoo just HAD to post a thread about his new EAA and Kimber 10mm's. Well I can't stop thinking about them now, thank you very much! I have ALWAYS wanted a 10mm to hunt with and I have always wanted an EAA Witness since I first saw them. I have never gotten either. I don't know why... just haven't.

I need some kicking into gear I guess. I am 100% familiar and comfortable with the 1911 platform. But it is not out of the question that I will want to mount an optical site of some kind since this will definitely be a hunting gun. Doable but bulky on a 1911. What about the Witness? Any easier?

Which leads to my next point - power. I will want as much as I can squeeze out of the cartridge. I do handload so I know I can do it.

What 10mm pistols (not revolvers) are out there?
Which will stand up to stout loads?
Can I get a level of accuracy out of a Witness than I can a 1911? I am an accuracy NUT and whatever I choose must be a tack driver.

On a more esoteric note, I have never held, let alone shot any CZ or variant. Don't know why... just never have. Whether I like the feel of one I can find out in some local shop... I don't know any that carry the Witness, but I know they are supposed to be very close to the original's ergonomics.

But how will that grip feel with really stout loads? I know what the 1911 will feel like because I have one in .460 Rowland. How will an EAA model hold up? ARRRRRRRRGHH.

I am in a quandry and I don't know if anyone can help or not!
Help!

 

[ewayte]

Glock 20, 29
Dan Wesson Pointman Seven, Commander Classic Bobtail, Razorback
EAA Witness series
Kimber Eclipse Custom II
Smith & Wesson 610 revolver

 

[Javelin]

I had some trigger time on a G20 and a G22 before I made my decision for a G23 (I chose the .40 b/c of the ammo cost of the 10mm). The recoil is not that bad from a 10mm. Any grown man can easily fire the round from a full sized pistol with ease.

 

[wally]

Witness Elite Hunter 10mm sounds like what you want. Scope mount costs about ~120, frame comes drilled for it.

Here is a thread with some photos of my Witness Limited .45 with red dot sight.
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=316306

You can get it or the Hunter in 10mm as well as .45. Can be a bit hard to find but worth looking for if you are serious about 10mm handgun hunting.

I've got a Witness Elite Match in 10mm and its very comfortable to shoot full power loads.

--wally.

 

[varoadking]

Look for a pre-owned 3rd generation S&W 10XX series autoloader...it should run you in the $600-$800 range, depending upon condition. I stole my 1046 for $625.00...two have sold recently on GunBroker.com for north of $3K...

1 of 151 S&W 1046's:



1 of 1,660 S&W 1086's:

 

[roscoe]

Just beware the Witness slide cracks. Do a search on 'EAA' and '10mm' and 'customer service'. It turned me completely off the Witness, which is too bad since I love my CZ75. My advice is to stick with the Glocks, because they are the only pistols still manufactured that were designed from the ground up for the 10mm round. You can put DoubleTap through them all day without fear.

 

[Markbo]

Afraid I don't like Glocks. I find the trigger/guard very uncomfortable.

And thanks everyone for the ideas, but I am looking for something that is not a carry weapon. I want something with a longer barrel to maximize power and accuracy.

 

[wally]

My 10mm Witness (standard, not Elite Match) Compact slide cracked. EAA replaced it 7 days door to door.

My issue with their customer service was I had to send the whole gun back instead of just the upper (which costs quite a lot more) and they didn't pay shipping

The replacement slide was the "old" square profile, I think Tanfoglio has messed up by using the "new" rounded profile slides on the 10mm, especially the Compact. Replacement has been fine so far, a good bit past the round count where the original broke.

Markbo, go to the EAA website and request a calalog (or call them) and take a look at the Witness Elite series of 10mm guns.

I can't shoot Glocks well, doesn't matter how good they are if you can't hit with them! Nothing wrong with my 17 or 21 off sandbags, they just don't fit me well so I can't shoot them well in any realistic situation.

--wally.

 

[shooter1]

I have a Witness 10mm that I bought 5 or 6 years ago, still going strong. It has the old slide profile. Great shooter.
str1

 

[jmr40]

For your intended purposes it sounds like you need a revolver in .357, .41, or .44 Magnum. You said you don't care for Glocks, but they are the best bet in a new 10 mm. A used S&W 1006 would be my only other reccomendation. I've heard of too many problems with the EAA, especially in 10 mm.

 

[Markbo]

I have lots of each of those calibers in revolvers. I want something to add to the stable that I don't have already and the 10mm and Witness have always intruiged me. Perhaps the Witness is not the best format for my foray into a 10mm auto.

 

[jmr40]

Maybe you should give the Glock a chance. I doubted them for years and said that I would never own one. I ran across a used one at a price that I could not turn down and they have grown on me. The trigger takes some getting used to but Glocks can safely be dry fired to get the hang of them.

 

[Snarlingiron]

I spent Sunday morning shooting my buddies G29, along with my G19, and G26. Awsome. I really didn't notice any difference between it and my 9mm's. A little more recoil, but not bad at all. I was able to hit just as well with it as I can with my 9's, but I am very comfortable with the Glock platform. I am on the prowl for a good used G29 now.

 

[9mmepiphany]

ifyou really want tohave something special in a 10mm, Grayguns Inc is now offering a 10mm conversion for the Sig 220ST.

it's not cheap, but it would be unique...you wouldn't see many about

 

[jfh]

Markbo: Since others have offered up their idea of a good 10mm platform, I'll confine most of my remarks to sorting out the 75B / 1911 platform decision.

1. You're right--you simply have to go to a shop that has an EAA Witness, steel frame, in stock and try handling it.

New or used, it doesn't matter as long as it is the current 'full-size' frame. Regardless of the model, that handling will give you an insight into how the grip feels in your hand and how the ergonomics work for you.

2. I agree with Wally; it sounds like the Elite Hunter is the one for you to get. Of course, SAA has been flashing about a Custom Shop 10mm Longslide in the 'zines and press releases--but that one sells for about $3500.00, IIRC.

If you decide to get a Witness--based on that "feel and ergonomics" reaction at the gun store, then think of this gun as less of a "retail purchase" and more as a "project gun." Thinking of it as a project gun will lessen the anxiety about the quality of EAA's Customer Service, if not about the issues of QC in the gun itself. It sounds to me that you may be tweaking the pistol anyway, which will probably eliminate warranty issues.

My take is that EAA has the parts available, if needed, and I think a busted frame is highly unlikely. As noted elsewhere parts seem to be readily available. After I finished that mini-review, I started looking around, and found this shop: tanfoglioparts.com , and through that site I found his forum and that of other smiths and dealers for the EAA guns.

There's obvious a smaller, but hardcore following for these guns. They appear to be mostly IPSC-type shooters, but they know the chassis inside and out.

Personally, I've decided to chase down the cost of doing a bushing fit to my 10mm Elite Match, if only to know more about tweaking this pistol. I'll wait to do any such work until (1) I've finished a break-in, particularly burnishing the barrel; (2) I've sorted out a good accuracy-type reload for it, and (3) I can shoot at my normal range to get an honest comparison for accuracy.

I have no doubt these guns can be tack-drivers, but I suspect that to get them to that point may require aftermarket barrels and good 'smithing. EAA is a max-value / price-point and features seller, and I have no doubt that their specs to Tanfolglio reflect that.

Overall, then, I'd encourage you to build up an Elite Hunter--if only to do an alternative to the 1911s you know well.

Jim H.