BUYING 10mm Ammo

[Zaydok Allen]

Underwood is what I buy when looking for serious 10mm ammo. It’s at lest reasonable.

I’ve also tested one of their loads and it met advertised velocity. I look forward to testing more loads.

 

[TN Outlaw]

Underwood
Buffalo Bore
Double Tap

Those 3 should cover all of your needs for serious full house loads.

 

[MTMilitiaman]

The first word in the title was capitalized because this is not a discussion on reloading.

I'm interested in opinions of inexpensive ball ammo for range use in a 1911.

I've looked locally and options are slim and pricey. I just ordered some S&B from Sportsman Guide for $15 a box of 50, a decent price if it's any good. Looked on Cheaper Than Dirt at some stuff called American Quality that was a decent price in bulk but I've never heard of it.


So, to restate, looking for decent options for inexpensive 10mm range ammo.

Thanks...

Depends if you want real 10mm ammo. If you're willing to practice with the lighter .40 S&W level stuff, there are plenty of options from big name companies like Remington. However, if you want to practice with full power ammo, your options are more limited, as mainstream manufactures have yet to embrace 10mm awesomeness with real full power loads. So you are stuck looking to boutique ammo manufactures, like Double Tap and Underwood. These companies will see full power FMJ for practice and woods carry, and they sell it in bulk, or at least in 500 round cases. It won't be as cheap as the mainstream stuff, but it will probably be better quality, and it will be full power.

If you carry full power ammo for defense, you should probably practice with full power ammo. I would still recommend reloading practice ammo and just buying your defense ammo, as it is cheaper and more convenient in the long run. If handloading is not an option, Double Tap, Underwood, and Grizzly Cartridge Co make good, full power ammo for the 10mm Auto.

 

[MTMilitiaman]

My 40 Smith & Wesson loads run about 100 ft./s faster for the same bullet weight as most factory 10 mm loads. And said loads are a couple of grains below max per reloading manual. Why bother with a 10 mm for practice? I've always thought it ironic that many refer to Smith and Wesson 40 as short and week. The truth is it is a very powerful round when loaded to the high-end of the scale. Like the 9 mm the case is full of powder and very efficient. Unlike the 45 ACP and 10 mm which are roomier cases. Although large bullet do fill 10 mm case nicely.
Apologize to the op for continued the /The not answering his question.

Most 10mm Auto is underpowered. The .40 S&W was developed to duplicate the "FBI load" for the 10mm Auto, which was loaded 200+ fps below max to reduce recoil. So if your intention is to acquire .40 S&W level ballistics, then yes, the 10mm makes little sense and the .40 is probably more efficient. However, the .40 will never be able to match the performance of the 10mm Auto, so if you are looking for true magnum level performance, the 10mm Auto is the only real choice.

The .40 S&W is limited by industry specs and SAAMI to 35000 PSI, which is the same as standard pressure 9x19. There is no SAAMI or industry spec for +P .40 S&W, no firearm on the market is designed to handle .40 S&W loaded over 35000 PSI, and you should avoid entirely companies which offer .40 S&W ammo labeled as being +P, as this is unsafe, irresponsible, and loaded outside industry specs. The .45 ACP runs at 21000 for standard pressure and 23000 PSI for +P. IIRC. The 10mm Auto runs at 37500 PSI, which is really close to 9x19 +P @ 38000 PSI. So depending on your definition of efficiency, the .40 is more efficient than neither 9mm or the 10mm.

The .40 S&W has a case volume of 19.3 gr H2O. The 10mm Auto has a case volume of 24.1 gr H2O.

Bottom line is that the 10mm Auto has more capacity and a higher operating pressure, so it will always shoot the same weight bullet 200+ fps faster than the .40 S&W from the same length barrel when both cartridges are loaded to industry standard operating pressures.

 

[Casefull]

I shoot and reload for both. My definition of efficiency is with equal loads of powder and bullet weight the 40 produces measurably higher velocities than 10mm. Obviously this is not true once larger charges/bullet weights exceed case volume of the 40.
This is even more apparent comparing 9mm to 38 super. I have verified this with loads and chrono testing.
Not dissing the 10 just pointing out full cases are more efficient. My experience is factory 10mm tends to be downloaded more often than factory 40sw. That's why I handload so I can get velocitys these rounds were designed to produce.