10mm Bullet Weight Choice...any other calibers have more options?

Can you be more specific? Duty-type autoloaders only, or all handguns? Typical factory ammunition only or handloads / boutique ammunition allowed?

Generally speaking, the greater the case capacity, the greater the pressure range possible.
 
Not many pistol cartridges have the variety of loads and projectile weights as the 10mmAuto. It is a wonderful caliber to shoot and load for. My only wish is that we did not have to use large primers in it. Maybe starline will custom build 10,000 pcs for me
 
In pistol format?

.45 ACP/.45 Super, although technically two different calibers, they can be used in the same handgun, and offer a bullet weight range of 155 grs to at least 300.
 
NHunter said:
I would like to know if there are any other current pistol calibers which offer a wider choice of both bullet weight and power load ...]
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Looking at Hodgdon's online reloading data....... pretty much every common pistol calibre has a wider choice of bullet weight. But that's just their data: they only show a range of 135-200gr for 10mm. Hodgdon shows 65-147gr for 9mm, 90-180gr for 357, 88-200gr for 40S&W, 165-355gr for 44 Mag, 118-230gr for 45ACP.

For range of power load, published data shows that the 44 Magnum can be loaded from 350 ft-lbs to 1400 ft-lbs (and that is just loads for 240gr bullets).

So, yes, there are plenty of pistol cartridges more flexible than 10mm.
 
Anything under 180 grains and 700 ft-lb energy is blasphemy for a 10mm. So it really isn't all that versatile when there are like 4 bullet sizes and only high volume powder loads :stirthepot2:
 
10mm is a magnificent beast, and 180gr bullets are likely the most common you'll find. If you reload, you can make them as potent as you want, really.

The one thing you'll have to understand is that even though the round is amazing, it's so powerful and snappy that you'll never be able to fire it accurately on rapid rate.

You may be able to handle 9mm, 40, and 45, but you can really only fire about one round of 10mm per second accurately.

Nothing wrong with that if you're shooting for accuracy, but it's a terrible calibre choice if you're doing competitions of any kind where speed and the amount of hits on target matter.

With a 10-round mag limit, though, there's really no way to get more overall power in a pistol magazine, and out of a carbine rifle with the extra muzzle velocity and control it would be great.

If CCW/ATC were allowed, though, I'd have one for sure. For one-shot power, nothing shuts up the annoying 45 crowd like the hard data on 10mm.
 
Petamocto said:
10mm is a magnificent beast, and 180gr bullets are likely the most common you'll find. If you reload, you can make them as potent as you want, really.

The one thing you'll have to understand is that even though the round is amazing, it's so powerful and snappy that you'll never be able to fire it accurately on rapid rate.

You may be able to handle 9mm, 40, and 45, but you can really only fire about one round of 10mm per second accurately.

Nothing wrong with that if you're shooting for accuracy, but it's a terrible calibre choice if you're doing competitions of any kind where speed and the amount of hits on target matter.

With a 10-round mag limit, though, there's really no way to get more overall power in a pistol magazine, and out of a carbine rifle with the extra muzzle velocity and control it would be great.

If CCW/ATC were allowed, though, I'd have one for sure. For one-shot power, nothing shuts up the annoying 45 crowd like the hard data on 10mm.
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I shoot IPSC with 10mm and have no issues competing. I might be in last place, but that is more a function of being out of shape. What is in my favor is grip strength/ popeye forearms.
 
I reload 10mm for ATC in the US.

Currently running both 220gr @ ~1200 fps and 180gr @ ~1350 fps according to my chrony. I make them to mimic the Buffalo Bore "Heavy" loads. I can fire them fast enough out of a G20 Gen4 if I had to, but accuracy will be "minute of pig" vs "minute of angle"
 
870P said:
Not out of a truly practical semiauto handgun there isn't.
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The OP didn't specify practical or semiauto, rather simply asked for "current pistol calibres". Given the OP's parameters, the 44 Magnum is superior to the 10mm. If we're talking a practical (i.e. not a Desert Eagle) semiauto, then sure, the 10mm is hard to beat, though 44 Magnums are available in revolvers that are just as practical for many purposes as 10mm autos.

But the OP asked in the thread title about bullet weight choice options, then also asked in the first post about range of power. The reality is that every popular pistol calibre can use a wide variety of bullet weights and power loadings, not just the 10mm.
 
Calahan said:
The OP didn't specify practical or semiauto, rather simply asked for "current pistol calibres". Given the OP's parameters, the 44 Magnum is superior to the 10mm. If we're talking a practical (i.e. not a Desert Eagle) semiauto, then sure, the 10mm is hard to beat, though 44 Magnums are available in revolvers that are just as practical for many purposes as 10mm autos.

But the OP asked in the thread title about bullet weight choice options, then also asked in the first post about range of power. The reality is that every popular pistol calibre can use a wide variety of bullet weights and power loadings, not just the 10mm.
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This. I would add if it was just based upon the choice of bullets available I would rank the 38spl as being close to the leader of the pack followed closely by the 45acp.

If the 10mm was as versatile a cartridge as the OP and one or two others would have us ir want us to believe the carridge would be far more popular. It isn't and it isn't. It does has it's niche.

Take Care

Bob
 
Calahan said:
The OP didn't specify practical or semiauto, rather simply asked for "current pistol calibres". Given the OP's parameters, the 44 Magnum is superior to the 10mm. If we're talking a practical (i.e. not a Desert Eagle) semiauto, then sure, the 10mm is hard to beat, though 44 Magnums are available in revolvers that are just as practical for many purposes as 10mm autos.

But the OP asked in the thread title about bullet weight choice options, then also asked in the first post about range of power. The reality is that every popular pistol calibre can use a wide variety of bullet weights and power loadings, not just the 10mm.
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"Pistol" almost always indicates semiautomatic handguns, and given that, its hard to beat the 10mm and .45 Super in a regular duty style handgun.

If we're not limited to semiautos, my vote for most versatile handgun cartridge would be the .45 Colt.

From mouse sneeze loads all the way up to the full power .44 Magnum equivalent +P loads, it just gets it done, and the hot stuff is noticeably easier on the shooter than equivalent cartridges.
 
I carry a 10mm 1911long slide for my wilderness ATC here in Bc. I currently load 200gr hardcast at 1250fps using longshot powder.
Hornady 180gr and 200gr xtp are also really good bullets but I prefer the hard cast bullets so I can get deep penetration into a grizzly scull.
 
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