Why is the 10mm so unpopular????

[BowhuntnHoosier]

I recently bought a G20 and love it. So why do you all think they are so unpopular. I mean finding ammunition is crazy. If the round was more popular then ammunition would be everywhere....right?? Just tossing this up for conversation.

 

[Expat]

I recently bought a G20 and love it. So why do you all think they are so unpopular. I mean finding ammunition is crazy. If the round was more popular then ammunition would be everywhere....right?? Just tossing this up for conversation.

Because the full powered 10mm loads had more recoil than the females and metrosexuals at the FBI were comfortable with, so they invented the .40. So people have been afraid of its power ever since.

 

[churchmouse]

I am in the middle of a custom 2011 build in 10mm.
Ammo cost is a factor. Full power loads are not cheap.
The anemic crap offered up to keep the ninny's from crying is a joke.

 

[in625shooter]

Sometimes it is a regional thing. In Montana you can find many offerings on most store shelves in 10mm, 41 mag, 454 etc. Also a few LE agencies missed the 10 mm. I know Billings PD at one time issued the Glock 20 but went with the Glock 22. Yellowstone county SD (which includes Billings) has issued the Glock 20 for over 24 years.

I wish the 10mm as well as the 41 were more popular than they are. Booth are great calibers

 

[Fargo]

I recently bought a G20 and love it. So why do you all think they are so unpopular. I mean finding ammunition is crazy. If the round was more popular then ammunition would be everywhere....right?? Just tossing this up for conversation.

As noted above the biggest reason people avoid it is ammo cost, which is directly related to the cartridge never been adopted by the military. 9 mm, 45 ACP, 308, and 556 are all immensely popular because of the ammo availability due to military adoption.

Couple that with a larger gun which is inherently harder to conceal, and you've turned a lot of folks off. Plus many people don't have big enough hands for the guns. I like the round, but avoid it because I can't afford to shoot it.

 

[AmmoManAaron]

10mm is a good round and I wouldn't be opposed to having one (in fact, I'm looking for an AMT Javelina longslide), but I ended up going the .400 Corbon route because I shoot 1911s, found a used barrel at a show for $40, mags are the same, and I can make the brass out of .45 acp using the standard Lee die set. Factory ammo (which is all full power JHP these days) is $1/round which is too expensive for normal use, but is right in line with the premium self defense stuff in other calibers. If you handload, .400 Corbon is actually better, but if not, 10mm is better because you can buy plinking ammo off the shelf a lot easier and cheaper. They both do pretty much the same thing and both are good rounds that really should be more popular.

 

[BugI02]

I will own one someday, because me. For many of the reasons given above I don't anticipate shooting it a lot or carrying it, though.

 

[throttletony]

similar as some of the above mentioned, I think it's (revoked/discontinued) status as a service cartridge is the main reason that it is not popular, this is also the reason that ammo costs are more expensive.
I will definitely own a G20 some day (maybe soon!), and I'll get some reloading dies and be on my way. I think that being a handloader opens up a lot of options for the 10mm, not to mention the easy barrel swaps to shoot different calibers out of the G20. I'd love to try some 9x25 dillon!!!
If someone doesn't want to carry a big revolver, the G20 (or similar) is a great option and gives you more rounds on tap than any revolver.

 

[churchmouse]

I will own one someday, because me. For many of the reasons given above I don't anticipate shooting it a lot or carrying it, though.

My 2011 is for nothing more than doing some range time and letting good friends run it.

 

[phylodog]

If you accept the FBI ballistic testing criteria as reasonable and sufficient for handgun ammunition, the reason why the 10mm is not more popular is because it is unnecessary as a defensive round. There are other calibers capable of offering sufficient expansion, weight retention and penetration without the abusive pressures and recoil of the 10mm, it is overkill if you will. Science shows us that there is a pretty clear point of diminishing returns with handgun ammunition and the damage it is capable of creating. Any significant improvements will come at velocities above 2200 fps and that is rifle territory.

Bigger/faster is not always better as there is a price to be paid on the gun, the shooter and the time it takes to get the sights back on target.

 

[BowhuntnHoosier]

I have started open carrying mine. Or just wearing a denim shirt when in unconstitutional establishments. If more owned these then I believe ammo prices would come down. I do understand though full power loads are not for the vast majority of the population. But it is a manageable round. Thanks for all the comments.

 

[natdscott]

If you accept the FBI ballistic testing criteria as reasonable and sufficient for handgun ammunition, the reason why the 10mm is not more popular is because it is unnecessary as a defensive round. There are other calibers capable of offering sufficient expansion, weight retention and penetration without the abusive pressures and recoil of the 10mm, it is overkill if you will. Science shows us that there is a pretty clear point of diminishing returns with handgun ammunition and the damage it is capable of creating. Any significant improvements will come at velocities above 2200 fps and that is rifle territory.

Bigger/faster is not always better as there is a price to be paid on the gun, the shooter and the time it takes to get the sights back on target.

There's a lot of sense spoken, above, gentlemen. I can't verify all of it, but I suspect there's some truth as well.

That being said, I do recognize that there are some valid uses for larger-displacement and/or "Magnum" rounds. One example would be full-power .357 Mag loads in a revolver framed to handle them. Without bottle necking or going with an impractically long barrel, there is not a lot of way better to get a heavy piece of metal on target at ranges 100+ yards, and still call it a "pistol".

10mm, while not called a "magnum" is certainly in the range of speed/weights to be considered that from a standard-length pistol. It is indeed on my list of weapons to have built at some point, but I also recognize that I have some requirements of my firearms that fall outside what the Industry would consider the "norm".

Were I to be shooting one enough to feel comfortable with carrying it in a defensive posture, reloading for the round would be an absolute necessity.

-Nate

 

[24Carat]

My 2011 is for nothing more than doing some range time and letting good friends run it.

Hello . . . . Friend !

 

[pudly]

Sometimes it is a regional thing. In Montana you can find many offerings on most store shelves in 10mm, 41 mag, 454 etc. Also a few LE agencies missed the 10 mm. I know Billings PD at one time issued the Glock 20 but went with the Glock 22. Yellowstone county SD (which includes Billings) has issued the Glock 20 for over 24 years.

Regional as in bear country.

 

[Hookeye]

I have slight interest in the Glock 29.

 

[churchmouse]

Hello . . . . Friend !

.....I can see where this will get me.
I need to buy a lot of ammo.......a lot.

 

[in625shooter]

Regional as in bear country.

Really all around. It was popular with several LE Agencies which carried over to popular for Joe Civilians, carrying wasn't an issue lots of open carrying and with jackets etc a lot of times even throughout summer evenings size wasn't an issue.

As far as bear some used the 10mm for both but the 41 and 44 mag was probably taken afield more. Most folks in Montana owned more than a couple guns, think it was the state law or something......

I was stationed there in the early 90's and went back k for a spell on 2010 and have a friend that lives there. He said it is pretty much the same with the 10mm still.

 

[Bapak2ja]

I think the 10mm is not popular because it requires far more effort to master it and use it than the commonly available rounds.

I am a late-to-the-game shooter. No military experience. No hunting or gunning experience as a child. City boy. I know more about basketball, football and libraries than I know about shooting. I am learning, but the course is expensive.

So I started with .22shorts, when dad handed my brother and I a Stevens single-shot bolt-action to learn on while we were visiting the family farm back in Tennessee. Got to shoot it for a couple days; then, back to city life. That old rifle is hanging on my wall and after retirement I will restore it—heck, I may even give it is first cleaning, too!

My military sons got me going in recent years. Started shooting one's Ruger SP101. Decided I did not like double action revolvers, so I got in the game with a Glock 26. Nice gun but the gap between the grip butt and the mag always left me with a blood blister on my pinky. So I sold that off and went to a Taurus 24/7 Gen 1. Worked great for me until the Taurus recall, but that is another story.

For handugns, I needed something simple, easy to master. Glocks, Taurii, and S&Ws were the best options. This led to the caliber question. The options were 9mm, .40, 45. When folks started talking .45LC and .45ACP and .380Auto, things got a bit confusing. Further study and coaching from the boys led me to select the G26. 9mm with hollow points was the best option for SD ammo. I never even heard of 10mm.

Perhaps one could say I have completed Firearms 101 and 102. Shucks, I might even have completed 201. But I am not ready to take on my own gunsmithing yet. Nor am I ready to take on re-loading. The discussion above about the 10mm leads me to the conclusion that to use that round one must be a very advanced gunner. One would also need a very large bank account.

One would have to set up and learn to use the reloading equipment. From what I have read here that will run a minimum of $500, probably closer to $1,000. Then one has to purchase the weapon, purchase some ammo to learn to the shoot the weapon. Then supplies must be obtained.

Bottom line, it would take significant time, money, "learning," and research to become proficient with the round. For you folks with your Ph.D. in modern firearms, it seems a small thing; but for ordinary folks like me, the 10mm is out of our reach. I think that is the reason the 10mm is not a popular round today.

 

[RustyHornet]

.....I can see where this will get me.
I need to buy a lot of ammo.......a lot.

 

[JettaKnight]

From what I hear, it makes a fine hog hunting gun.