10mm Auto v .45 ACP, your thoughts requested.

Marion David Poff

Marion David Poff

Joined
Oct 8, 1998
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5,403
So,

I will be buying a 1911A1, most likely a Springfield Custom or a Wilson Combat, but I need to save up, and I want to give it some more thought.

Until then, I am considering buying a Glock.

Glock offers a 10mm Auto model, and what I have read seems to tell me that the 10mm round is a very effective and powerful round.

Is there a downside?

.45 ACP has withstood the test of time, are there any reasons to choose it over 10mm Auto?

Thanks in advance for the intelligent discourse.
 
The 10mm round KICKS ASS! I have a Glock model 20 in this caliber, and it's MY favorite. Think of it as a 16 shot .41 magnum.:).
 
The 10mm is a powerful cartridge that penetrates very well, of course assuming the bullet is constructed to hold together and not expand violently. Cor-bon makes a hunting load in 10mm with bonded core bullet. I do not think anything comparable is available in 45 acp. A 10mm Glock is on my short list of weapons to acquire in the future. It will give me the power of my old 41 Magnum revolver in a package better suited to my medium-sized hands. I do not mean to belittle the 1911 pistol, but if you have a Glock, you may wonder why you need any other type of pistol. I carry a Glock 22 in 40 S&W "in harm's way" daily. If a catastrophe took away all my pistols, I would rebuild my battery with various Glocks, and possibly no other type of handgun except a small-frame revolver for pocket carry/backup. I am the proud owner of a Les Baer, a Wilson, and a very nice Colt, BTW.
 
The 10 is a very powerful cartridge...but your intended use might cause you to consider something else.

If conceability is a concern, you might consider a .40, which is just a shorter 10. 357 Sig also gets favorable reviews from lots of folks, including LEOs. A Glock 27 is very concealable, yet with a Corbon (135 gr. HP) load, you are still packing some punch.

I like my 27 very much for another reason: If it gets stolen or confiscated, I'm not out a pile of cash as I would be with a Les Baer or some other custom. I love to carry my customized Para (work done by Evolution Gun Works), but I wouldn't like to have a couple grand sitting in some evidence room if I had to use the thing in an unfriendly encounter. And with the Glock, you still get super reliability you don't get with cheap throwaways.

Since I am not superman, I have found the 10 to be a little tougher to control on follow up shots than a .45 or a .40. The 10 also has considerable muzzle flash, which isn't the greatest thing.

If you can find a range that rents, try a 10. I know some folks who did that and thought it packed a little too much.

Another thought: If you reload, since you are planning on a 45 later, look at a small Glock 45 (I think model 36, but I can't remember off the top) and avoid the expense of additional dies, etc.

And finally, as with knives, you can't have too many...so I probably haven't been much help at all.

Happy Holidays,

Mike
 
10mm is a great round, but it is costly, and while you can find ammo you don't have many choices. Also, check out the prices 16rd Glock mags :eek: If you bought a new G20 and a few pre-ban mags, you would be well on your way to a Wilson .45. Recoil on a 10mm is not terrible, I would describe it as "sharp".

Personal opinion, having owned a G20, and shot Colt and S&W 10mms, and owning some higher end 1911s-buy a 1911 in .45, they're more ergonomic and you can buy good mags at a 4:1 ratio to G20s. Get some Corbon .45 if you want it hot.
 
MDP,

I would select the .45 over the 10 mm for the following reasons:

Ammunition is much less expensive for the .45. There are more combat rounds available from numerous manufacturers for the .45. There is much more practice ammunition at much, much better prices for the .45 and they come in everything from soft to sharp recoil. Cheaper practice ammo equates to more practice opportunity. More practice equates to greater skill and that equates to better survivability.

There are plenty of +P+ loadings for the .45 that drive it to high muzzel velocities. There are not plenty of lower energy loadings for the 10mm.

Magazine availabiltiy for the .45 is better than for the 10 mm.

There are more .45 handguns than 10 mm handguns. This doesn't matter if you get a Glock since you have the same form factor with either caliber. If the Glock fits, it fits in either caliber. If the Glock doesn't fit you might as well forget the 10mm.

Capacity are roughly equivalent, so that doesn't matter.

I carry a P12 that has been thoroughly smithed. I may have $800 in the gun and I shoot the center out of the 10 ring with it at civilian encounter distances (10-30 ft.) using double and triple taps on a combat range.

Spend your money on training, practice and ammo instead of the gun. Once you've got a gun that will go bang EVERY time nothing other than training matters.
 
The Glock model 20 is a fine gun, but as reported above has a "sharp" recoil. I'm comfortable with the overall size and have owned and shot a model 21 for long enough that the Trijicons are about ready for replacement (I had them installed while waiting to pick it up).

If a model 21, loaded with a full mag of good stuff, won't get you out of whatever you've gotten into, a Model 20 with a more powerful cartridge probably wouldn't have helped much anyway IMHO.

The 10mm round certainly offers more energy, and if you are carrying in the outback and bears are an issue that might be a value, but other than that, I can't think of a time where a more controlable .45 ACP chambering wouldn't be preferable. Nevermind the broad availability of .45 ACP (you can get it almost anywhere).

Just MHO,

jmx
 
I agree with HSO. I love my 45's and admit to having a passing affair with a 10mm but I found it a little too much for me (OK so I am a wimp). After a 150 round session I found myself flinching BAD. The .40 (10mm lite) ;) is good but still perfer the .45. Ammo is relatively inexpensive and I get to shoot more . :D
 
For the purposes of this thread, I will comment on my former Delta Elite, a 1911 in 10mm Auto.

Great gun, very reliable, a bit of a problem to find an accurate handload for, but very powerful.

I had purchased a Hensley & Gibbs 200 grain 4-ganger mold for the 10mm back when my Bren Ten was new and ammo was scarce in my area. I had been hording brass, I had lots of Hercules (now Alliiant) Blue Dot powder, and about 25 pounds of Alcan AL-8 powder.

Forget the hype about the 10mm being a .41 magnum automatic. Yes, it can be done, and the first Norma loads approached it in power. But what a cost in both money and the longevity of the pistol. In 1984, I paid fourteen dollars for 20 Norma cartridges. For +three years that was the only way to get brass! I put a multi-spring recoil assembly in the Delta (it was called a Carter, or Charter, or Carlyle recoil assembly, I forget) just to keep the plastic guide plug from eating itself.

Finally, I settled on a load of a 200 grain linotype slug, enough powder to get 1,000 feet out of it and a cold primer. I was recreating, guess what, a .45 ACP range load!
 
Both are AWESOME rounds!

I prefer the .45 because that is what I'm used to and grew up with.

Obviously those who have studied firearms have knowledge about the 10s versatility. IMO, however, if you aren't into reloading, it would be tricky to take advantage of this. Plus you have to be aware of the large number of 10mm rounds that are loaded only to .40 specs.

.45... low pressure. Throw in the +P and you are havin fun. Throw in the .45 Supers or 450 SMCs and you are REALLY going at it. Could even hunt with the 450 SMCs with a spring change in an otherwise unmodified firearm (unless you have a USP which can shoot em as-is).

Well, if you really want the maximum oomph, .40 Super.

But as I said... .45 is "good enough" for me - and my favorite. There are just too many choices and not enough $. Either would do very well in a pinch. I would love to have a 10mm.
 
Gentelmen,

Thank you ever so much.

Once again, you have distilled the issue down to it's most important elements.

I will be shooting .45 ACP.
 
Colt Delta Elite 10mm. One of my true favorites.

Best of both worlds.

Too bad the .40 really hit the market and dominated the 10mm about a decade ago.
 
Sorry, I did not mean to imply the 10mm is the ballistic equal of the full-power 41 loads. But, a wild hog hit with a 10mm bonded-core bullet would probably run not be able to tell the difference. IMHO, they are close enough that I plan to acquire a Glock 10mm to fill the role of my old and tired 41 revolver. Also, not being a handloader, I have looked for a good bonded-core 45 acp factory load for hunting, and not yet found one. For tactical use, the hotter 10mm loads are in the same ballistic ball park as the 41 Silvertips is once used as a duty load.
 
Rex G,

The first 500 rounds of Norma ammo I bought WERE equal to a .41 Magnum. Even Harlene at Dornaus & Dixon told people to quit using them; she would direct them to pamphlets of approved handloads.

Those first loads were also only FMJ, full metal jacket. The next batch of Norma loads were stamped NP on the primers. Very erratic, some hot, some very mild. The third set, now with hollow-points were also erratic.

Jeff Cooper got a bear (I believe in Alaska) with the early stuff. For several months he even trained students at Gunsite Raven with a Bren Ten.

I believe these early hot loads were the reason that the .40 SW was invented. The overall shorter length and milder loading made smaller lighter guns practical. I never had one of the first 1006's or 1076' for the 10mm Auto, but I did buy an early 4006. Typical SW, well made, the accuracy was a bit spotty, but a nice gun. I think my present 4516 is a better gun while similar in size. The 4006 had hi-cap magazines, however.
 
But, a wild hog hit with a 10mm bonded-core bullet would probably run not be able to tell the difference.
Click to expand...

Doesn't Nugent routinely make 100 yd kills on African hogs with his G20?
 
Originally posted by krept
Doesn't Nugent routinely make 100 yd kills on African hogs with his G20?
Click to expand...

Yep, He wrote an article in American Handgunner a couple of years back about it. Huge Warthog taken with one.
 
If the SHTF for an extended period, you will be glad if you have a "common" or military caliber. "Psst, can I buy a few rounds of 10 from you?" Meanwhile, there will be .45 and 9MM (and probably .40SW) by the box full. Same for reloading supplies. IMHO the best Glock is a model 23. Plenty of firepower and punch. - Lee (Glock 17, 19, 23, 27)
 
Have you thought about the 40S&W, it is sometimes called the 10mm Short. Read everything you can get your hands on about the different calibers. I love my Glock 23. Consealable and fits well in your hands. Recoil is not bad and its accurate out of the box.


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What does not kill me, makes me stronger.
 
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