9mm and 10 mm

[Fat Boy]

Just a question (possibly stupid...)

Given that the 10 mm is so closely related to the 9 mm in diameter, is shooting a 10 mm somewhat similar to shooting a 9mm +p?

I am interested in the 10 mm, but have some questions about recoil- I often read of its being compared to a 45 acp, but it seems to be closer to the 9mm in diameter, while closer to the 45 acp in grain/weight?

Thanks for tutoring a novice on the 10 mm

 

[Jed Carter]

You should search threads for more detailed and accurate information on the 10mm. All I know is the 10mm pushes a 180 grain bullet at around 1300fps and becoup ft/lbs of force. More ft/lb than a .357 magnum, closer to the .44 magnum. The .40S&W is closer to the 9mm and out of the same type of pistol has somewhat more recoil than the 9mm. If you have to buy factory ammo the 10mm is affordable if money is no object, Uncle Ted Nugent's favorite pistol caliber.

 

[gofastman]

No, a 10mm is a almost at 41 mag power levels.
Its got a pretty good "snap", as opposed to a "push" with a .45

A Glock 20 was/is my first handgun, if I could go back and change that, I wouldn't, I love that gun!

 

[Zerodefect]

9mm and 10mm are nothing alike at all. Similar names, but completely different designs.

The 9mm, .40, .357 sig, .45 gap are all about the same length and have similar levels of power. About in that order give or take the Sig. They can all fit into similar pistol sizes. For example a Glock 19,23,32, 38? are all in the same compact frames.

.45acp and 10mm are larger and require a heavier weapon design. Like the Glock 21 and 20. 10mm is quite a jump more powerful than the other pistol rounds.

The 10mm round is pretty serious and needs a dedicated design from the ground up. The only good 10m I've shot has been the Glock 20. The 10mm 1911's I've shot were all rubbbish. Bad ergos, uncomfortable for range work.

 

[Manco]

The 9mm, .40, .357 sig, .45 gap are all about the same length and have similar levels of power. About in that order give or take the Sig. They can all fit into similar pistol sizes. For example a Glock 19,23,32, 38? are all in the same compact frames.

.45acp and 10mm are larger and require a heavier weapon design.

Well, .45 ACP needs a larger frame because of the size of the cartridges, but otherwise it's closer in "power" to the other calibers. 9mm is actually a bit weaker than the others, while 10mm can be considered a Magnum caliber. So that's three groups with regard to "power": 9mm, 10mm, and the rest in the same basic group between them.

Without getting too specific or dropping a bunch of numbers which can vary widely in actual loads anyway, the reason "power" is in quotes is that the calibers grouped together generally either have higher energy and less momentum, or lower energy and higher momentum, but overall they're similar in potential.

From lowest to highest energy we have: .45 GAP, .45 ACP, .40 S&W, .357 SIG.

Note that the major manufacturers actually tend to load .45 GAP hotter than .45 ACP for some reason, although the latter has greater potential in theory, so I gave it the nod here. As intended, however, they're basically equivalent.

And from lowest to highest momentum (power factor): .357 SIG, .40 S&W, .45 GAP, .45 ACP.

The note above applies to this list as well.

 

[IdahoLT1]

No, a 10mm is a almost at 41 mag power levels.
Its got a pretty good "snap", as opposed to a "push" with a .45

A Glock 20 was/is my first handgun, if I could go back and change that, I wouldn't.

Wrong. A lot of people try to compare the 10mm to big revolver calibers. It is equivalent to a .357mag. Depending on the manufacturer/reloader there will be a +/-25fps difference between the two using similar bullet weights.

A "hot" .41 mag will push a 265 gr. bullet @ 1,310fps out of a 4" barrel creating 1,010 ft/lbs of energy. Thats almost 300 more ft/lbs of energy than the hottest 10mm's. Its no where close to a .44mag which can push a 340gr bullet @ 1400fps out of a 5.5" barrel creating 1480ft/lbs of enery. Thats twice as powerful as a 10mm.

As far as recoil, in a full size, all steel gun, it feels like it has a strong .40S&W "snap" with a .45 "push".

Reloading is the best way to go with the 10mm. IMO, its the most versatile cartridge for an auto loader. Bullet weights from 135gr to 230gr. Its good for hutning deer/hogs and can be loaded light for carry in the city. Once you get set up, it cost a few more cents per round to reload compared to the 40S&W

 

[KBintheSLC]

As others have stated, the 9mm and 10mm are two different beasts. The 10mm is significantly more powerful than the 9mm and even the .45 acp. It is essentially comparable to a really hot .357 magnum, or a moderately loaded .41 magnum. I have to warn you, the 10mm is addictive... and it ain't cheap.

 

[Bovice]

If you have the money to buy a gun that just makes you giggle like a high school girl because of its sheer power, get the 10mm. The ammo is hard to find and will be expensive when you can find it. Reloading makes it somewhat less expensive since the .40 uses the same bullet and will be easy to get ahold of in that respect. For brass, you will probably have to buy plenty of new brass to load since building up your own supply with factory ammo will be an expensive and long process. It also uses a large pistol primer vs. a small pistol primer for the .40, another thing to keep in consideration. If you're loading for .45 also, then you'll need large pistol primers anyway and it doesn't matter. My dad recently got into reloading and he loads .40 for me and 9mm for himself and you don't need to change the primers changing from 1 caliber to the other.

For defense purposes, I believe the 10mm is overkill. You can get the job done just as well with the .40. The .40 has a respectable amount of recoil but is also not unreasonable. I would not recommend it to someone new to shooting. 9mm is a good first step to .40, because the .40 feels like a 9mm on steroids. Shoot one and see how you like it. It's personally my favorite.

 

[9mmepiphany]

Given that the 10 mm is so closely related to the 9 mm in diameter...I often read of its being compared to a 45 acp, but it seems to be closer to the 9mm in diameter

a millimeter may make it seem close but consider this:

the 9mm = .355
10mm = .40
.45 ACP = .452

 

[saturno_v]

+1 IdahoLT1


A 10mm Auto loaded to max specs is slightly above a 357 Mag and nowhere close to a full spec 41 Magnum.....44 Mag?? Forget about it...


And I'm a huge 10mm fan!!

 

[Ben86]

The diameter is not close, the recoil is not close at all. 10mm is like a .40 +P+ if that gives you any perspective. 9mm recoil is much softer, and the ammo is mucho cheapo comparatively. 10mm has more recoil than a .45.

 

[ny32182]

In terms of muzzle energy potential, the following is the typical order from least to greatest:

9mm, .40, 357sig, .45, 10mm.

The 9 through 45 are all fairly modest linear increases from one to the next. All serve the same purpose; they are "service" autoloading cartridges, and one is pretty much as good as the next when you strip away personal preference.

10mm is considerably above the .45. It is really more of a "magnum" cartridge in an autoloader in its heavy loadings... as someone mentioned, it can do every bit of what the .357mag can do. With heavy bullets it can be a hunting/woods cartridge, which is a role the others will never take on.

 

[Hk Dan]

"Given that the 10 mm is so closely related to the 9 mm in diameter, is shooting a 10 mm somewhat similar to shooting a 9mm +p?"

The .357 magnum is close to the 9mm in diameter too. So is the .357 Sig and the .38 Super...They are in NO WAY related in terms of effectiveness on paper.

Now, I am in the camp that believes that shot placement is everything, and whether the bullet leaves the bad guy at 1400 FPS or 800 FPS doesn't really matter. 90% of the bullets, even JHPs do just that barring a hit to the T-Spine or some other major structure, and the wound dynamics between an 11mm hole and a 9mm hole aren't that dramatic.

On paper--big difference. Real world, not so much. A hit in the forearm will still tick him off and a hit in the forehead may still stop him, 9mm or 10mm.

One man's opinion,
Dan