Which is most economical/powerful for the money? I would like a reliable hand gun to be shot a lot. I want semi-auto prefer 15 shot but can be less. I've listed .357,.45,10mm but it can be something else. I think .44 mag ammo is too exspensive. I've talked to my friends and they all have different opinions. I've shot my brothers S&W .500 magnum a nice gun but just too much power. It sure does make my ears ring without protection. But at the range everyone looks! I keep telling my brother Clint Eastwood would be proud of him.lol I'm just looking for enough advice so I can make up my mind. I'd like to buy them all but can't afford to. Thanks
Trying to decide .357,.45acp,10mm?
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fisherman66
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Buy an inexpensive reloader and get what you really want.
15 shots? I don't know if that is doable, but the 10mm will get you closest.
15 shots? I don't know if that is doable, but the 10mm will get you closest.
GregGry
Member
Are you deaf? I shot that beast with ear protection and it made my ears ring. Granted it was indoors at a range...
TwoGun
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Of the calibers you mentioned, the .357 revolver has the ability to shoot .38 special rounds which I think are probably less expensive than the any of the others. Only a few auto's will carry that kind of round count with the bigger calibers but the Para P-14 wil handle 14+1 rounds of .45ACP and Glocks in both .45 and 10MM will carry close to that. I think if you are not going to reload the .45 will be less expensive to shoot than the 10MM and you will certainly get a lot more ammo choices. But the 10MM is certainly more powerful than the .45.
Without more infor on the pistol's intended role it's kind of difficult to give any more of an idea of a direction to go. Requireing power, high mag capacity and low cost is a big order. Handloading can help a great deal however. Even a little Lee semi-progressive press will allow you to get a lot more shooting for the same money as buying new ammo.
Without more infor on the pistol's intended role it's kind of difficult to give any more of an idea of a direction to go. Requireing power, high mag capacity and low cost is a big order. Handloading can help a great deal however. Even a little Lee semi-progressive press will allow you to get a lot more shooting for the same money as buying new ammo.
MTMilitiaman
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I just bought a Glock 20 which is Glock's fullsize 10mm Auto. I think this is probably one of the most underrated combat/defensive pistols ever. It offers 15 rounds of standard magazine capacity. Right now both the included mags are loaded with Double Tap's 180 gr Gold Dot load, which is rated at 1300 fps. Since Mike McNett, the founder of Double Tap Ammunition, is a big fan of the Glock, even so far as to be a moderator at the GlockTalk forums, he tests this ammunition in a Glock 20 with its stock 4.6 inch barrel. This means that the Glock 20 offers energy comparable to a .357 Magnum with greater frontal diameter and the potential for greater mass while offering 2.5x the standard capacity of most revolvers. At 27.68 oz unloaded, the Glock is also a good 10 oz lighter than the 1911 Gov Model and still offers more than twice the magazine capacity. Plus the Glock provides a good 150 to 200 foot pounds more energy than the famed Gov Model and if I might be so bold as to suggest, offers a far better value than most 1911s as it retails for under $600. The Glock is arguably more reliable, is certainly easier to field strip and maintain, and is of similar practical accuracy for intended applications. The Glock's finish is first rate, the pistol as a whole has established a reputation for being very durable, and for being very simple to work on when parts do need to be replaced. Despite all of this, the Glock 20 remains comfortable to shoot even with some of the hottest ammunition on the market. Recoil and muzzle flip of the Glock 20 with the afermentioned loads are not any more severe or daunting to me than my dad's handloads driving a 230 gr Gold Dot to 950 fps from a Springfield MilSpec. I credit this to the Glock's low bore axis, polymer frame, and grip angle and width, which help distribute recoil energies. Long story short, I am a very big fan of the Glock 20 and the 10mm Auto right now. However, of all the advantages this platform offers, ammunition availability and cost are not among them. If these factors are important to you, I suggest something more along the lines of the 9x19 or .40 Smith and Wesson, though you may still want to seriously consider Glock.
MachIVshooter
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What? The 10mm is not the only pistol cartridge? Well, I guess I haven't been missing much anyway 
10mm is not much more expensive than .45 and just a tad less than decent .357, but it overshadows both in performance.
10mm is not much more expensive than .45 and just a tad less than decent .357, but it overshadows both in performance.
Gordy Wesen
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If you're buying a tool what are you going to use it for? Its hard to make one gun do everything.
Consider ammo availability also. 10mm is a good round and I'm sure you can shop around and find some at an ok price but many gun shops do not carry it or have a very limited selection/amount of it in stock. I'd personally go with 357mag in your case most likely.
Actually, the 10mm and .357 Magnum are for all practical purposes ballistic twins. There is no performance difference between upper end 10mm and upper end .357 Magnum loads. The only difference between them is whether you want a wheelgun or a bottom feeder.
If it were me, I would get a nice 357 L Frame. I would learn to reload. I would shoot to my hearts content without thoughts of loosing brass from them being flung all over hell and gone! I would have revolver round that is pleasant to shoot, and it packs a heavy duty punch! I would only use 357 brass, but I would load down to 38 spec. velocities. To me it is a great gun and platform!
Big Bad Wolf
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Don't forget, with the 10mm you can shoot the cheaper .40 with just a barrel swap in semi-auto's and in revolver form you don't even need that.
Shooter973
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Which one?
It's almost un-American not to have a 357mag. It's a great cartridge and will serve a lot of your purposes. Start out with a good high quality make of handgun, and then move on to the 45acp, with the 10mm coming as you get more experience with handguns. You may find that you are happier with something that doesn't recoil as much as some of the others. 10mm are pretty hot rounds. and they are pretty pricey to.
It's almost un-American not to have a 357mag. It's a great cartridge and will serve a lot of your purposes. Start out with a good high quality make of handgun, and then move on to the 45acp, with the 10mm coming as you get more experience with handguns. You may find that you are happier with something that doesn't recoil as much as some of the others. 10mm are pretty hot rounds. and they are pretty pricey to.
Here's my 2 cents
I have all 3 calibers. I'll keep it short and sweet.
10mm:
In my opinion, 10mm is the best of all worlds but if you're not a reloader, stay away from 10mm. It's not easy coming across "real" 10mm ammol. Sure, there's Double Tap and Georgia Arms but those are mail order distributers. Then, I'd be wary of other places that advertise 10mm--most likely, it aint the real deal. But, I just bought the S&W 610 Revolver. Bro., it's the sweetest feeling pistol in my arsenal.
.45 cal:
I'm sorry but I'm not impressed with .45. I hand load my ammo and can't find the perfect recipe. But, it's the perfect neutral ground between .357 and 10mm.
.357 cal.:
Hell what can I say, it's a perfect caliber. Esp. out of a good revolver.
Assuming that I wasn't a reloader, I'd go with the .357. But, heck, get them all. You won't be disappointed.
I have all 3 calibers. I'll keep it short and sweet.
10mm:
In my opinion, 10mm is the best of all worlds but if you're not a reloader, stay away from 10mm. It's not easy coming across "real" 10mm ammol. Sure, there's Double Tap and Georgia Arms but those are mail order distributers. Then, I'd be wary of other places that advertise 10mm--most likely, it aint the real deal. But, I just bought the S&W 610 Revolver. Bro., it's the sweetest feeling pistol in my arsenal.
.45 cal:
I'm sorry but I'm not impressed with .45. I hand load my ammo and can't find the perfect recipe. But, it's the perfect neutral ground between .357 and 10mm.
.357 cal.:
Hell what can I say, it's a perfect caliber. Esp. out of a good revolver.
Assuming that I wasn't a reloader, I'd go with the .357. But, heck, get them all. You won't be disappointed.
MachIVshooter
Member
If you say so. All I know is while my top 10mm loads make 790 FPE (720 from the compact), the hottest .357 loads I have developed make 727 FPE and I had to bang the ejector on the truck bed to get 'em out. I backed off from those; the hottest I go now is with 110 grainers at 1612 FPS for 635 FPE. But the nuclear 10mm loads run fine, with no case damage or pressure signs. This is not to say that I don't like .357 mag, but 10mm offers a definite advantage, namely higher capacity and faster reloads. I can get 30 rounds out of my Witness Compact faster than 12 rounds out of my Security Six. Just for arguments sake, thats a total of 21,600 FPE in less time than 7620 Total FPE.
IMO, the only reason the 10mm has not eclipsed the .357 as top dog for 1 shot stops is lack of popularity, availability of good ammo, and a much shorter existence.
As for decent factory ammo, I am seeing more and more gunshops carrying Buffalo Bore's 10mm heavy with 180 gr. Gold dots. Energy is 686 FPE.
most economical,reliable and able to be loaded to a good range of power levels would be a .357 revolver. Strongest one availble,I belive is the Ruger gp100. I own two of these and they are the most versatile of guns. You can plink with light .38 spls and hit hard with heavy-loaded .357 mag. The gp can be field stripped for cleaning with a coin . The front sight can be easily swapped out for different types and the grips are easily changed from larger to smaller,or vice-versa. They get even better when you can reload...
TWBryan
TWBryan
unspellable
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reliability
On the reliability front I had my Glock 20 jam once. Upon examination I found the cartrdige to be so oversized that it could not be chambered. I had the same experience with a Winchester Model 1894 in 32 Special. I had a 25 ACP fail to fire because the primer was loaded in the case sideways. (All factory loads.) An aquaintance bought a box of Winchester 458's and found the bullets consisted of the empty jackets with no lead core.
Morale of the story: There's no point in talking about reliabilty unless you inspect each individual cartridge before putting it in your carry piece. The old African big game hunters did the same.
On the reliability front I had my Glock 20 jam once. Upon examination I found the cartrdige to be so oversized that it could not be chambered. I had the same experience with a Winchester Model 1894 in 32 Special. I had a 25 ACP fail to fire because the primer was loaded in the case sideways. (All factory loads.) An aquaintance bought a box of Winchester 458's and found the bullets consisted of the empty jackets with no lead core.
Morale of the story: There's no point in talking about reliabilty unless you inspect each individual cartridge before putting it in your carry piece. The old African big game hunters did the same.
Vern Humphrey
Member
I have a Colt M357 and a Colt SAA in .357. My "hot loads" for these guns drive a 125 grain bullet to 1750 fps (loaded with 19 grains of H110), and that works out to a hair under 850 FPE. Both guns eject nicely.
Graystar
Member
That's what I was gonna ask.
Don't overlook the fact that you can drop a .40 barrel into a 357SIG gun (and vice versa, but that's a tiny bit risky.) .40 is like 10mm for average humans (as opposed to those "Universal Soldier" types.) So it’s like getting two guns for the price of a barrel.
Vern Humphrey
Member
You can drop an $8 Wolff 28-lb recoil spring into a 1911 and shoot 45-super loads (a 230 grain bullet at around 1100 fps, or a 185 grain bullet at 1300-1400 fps.) You can also drop in a .400 CorBon barrel and shoot that.
So you get three guns for the price of one barrel and one recoil spring.
MachIVshooter -
I see you have no trouble recommending Buffalo Bore's 180-grain 10mm load at 686 fpe. How did you miss Buffalo Bore's 180-grain load at 783 fpe (or their 170-grain load at 740 fpe)--both hotter than their (or DT's for that matter) 10mm load.
The .357 Magnum and 10mm are most definitely ballistic twins. The only question remains do you want a wheelgun or a bottom feeder.
Maybe you ought to give up reloading and rely on factory ammo. Buffalo Bore's top factory .357 Magnum load tops 800 fpe (802 to be specific). Like I said, ballistic twins.
I see you have no trouble recommending Buffalo Bore's 180-grain 10mm load at 686 fpe. How did you miss Buffalo Bore's 180-grain load at 783 fpe (or their 170-grain load at 740 fpe)--both hotter than their (or DT's for that matter) 10mm load.
The .357 Magnum and 10mm are most definitely ballistic twins. The only question remains do you want a wheelgun or a bottom feeder.
"Don't overlook the fact that you can drop a .40 barrel into a 357SIG gun."
Well, don't overlook the fact that, with a 10mm G20, you can get "drop-in" barrels for it in .40S&W, 357Sig & 9x25 Dillon. And all three barrels together still cost less than a gun and mags in either .40 or .357Sig.
Only the aftermarket barrels are needed to shoot these other calibers. The G20's stock 10mm mags and recoil assembly will work just fine with these cartridges.
Let's see.
That makes the G20 a 4-in-1 gun. Wow, such versatility.
Well, don't overlook the fact that, with a 10mm G20, you can get "drop-in" barrels for it in .40S&W, 357Sig & 9x25 Dillon. And all three barrels together still cost less than a gun and mags in either .40 or .357Sig.
Only the aftermarket barrels are needed to shoot these other calibers. The G20's stock 10mm mags and recoil assembly will work just fine with these cartridges.
Let's see.
That makes the G20 a 4-in-1 gun. Wow, such versatility. 
TimboKhan
Member
Good point, fisherman. If capacity is your game, then the .40 is basically your only choice, at least of the three that you suggest.
As far as the 10mm and the .357 being ballistic twins, correct me if I am wrong, but I have always been under the impression that developing a ballistic twin of the .357mag was precisely the goal in developing the 10mm.
unspellable
Member
twins
Actually, the 357 SIG was supposed to be the 357's ballistic twin. As it works out, that's not precisely true as the SIG is really a 9 mm so you can't use the same bullets.
In it's original hot loadings the 10 mm prohably had a tad more horse power than the 357. It's been loaded down a bit since then. But even assuming equal weight bullets at equal velocities the 10 mm has more diameter so you'll never convince the big bore crowd that the 357 is it's equal.
The real way to get 357 performance out of a bottom feeder is to get one chambered for the 357. Not overly common, but they exist.
Actually, the 357 SIG was supposed to be the 357's ballistic twin. As it works out, that's not precisely true as the SIG is really a 9 mm so you can't use the same bullets.
In it's original hot loadings the 10 mm prohably had a tad more horse power than the 357. It's been loaded down a bit since then. But even assuming equal weight bullets at equal velocities the 10 mm has more diameter so you'll never convince the big bore crowd that the 357 is it's equal.
The real way to get 357 performance out of a bottom feeder is to get one chambered for the 357. Not overly common, but they exist.
MTMilitiaman
Member
Okay, so Desert Eagle .357 Magnum offers 9+1 capacity in a rather large handgun weighing almost 70 oz, verses the Glock 20 which offers 15+1 rounds in standard capacity with the option of extending magazine capacity by 2 rounds--and all of this in a handgun that weighs less than half of the Desert Eagle.
Don't get me wrong--I like the Desert Eagle. It is a fine handgun. But I think it fills quite a different role than any Glock and really doesn't come into its own until it is chambered in something at least as potent as the .44 Mag.
As for any other autos chambered for the .357 Magnum, well, they are likely to be very obscure and thus expensive both to buy and to find parts for. I fail to see how this offers any advantage over the Glock.
And people, you can put a heavier recoil spring on a Glock 21 and shoot .45 Supers through it as well--and then you have 13+1 verses 8+1 out of the 1911.
Don't get me wrong--I like the Desert Eagle. It is a fine handgun. But I think it fills quite a different role than any Glock and really doesn't come into its own until it is chambered in something at least as potent as the .44 Mag.
As for any other autos chambered for the .357 Magnum, well, they are likely to be very obscure and thus expensive both to buy and to find parts for. I fail to see how this offers any advantage over the Glock.
And people, you can put a heavier recoil spring on a Glock 21 and shoot .45 Supers through it as well--and then you have 13+1 verses 8+1 out of the 1911.
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