10MM or 357 mag

pharmacyjoe said:
this year I hunted with both (separate days)....

post question is 10mm or 357. which and why if you can only have one.....
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If I had any interest in hunting, and could only have one, it would be the 357. About twice the muzzle energy and a much flatter trajectory than the 10mm.
 
Nobody needs to own anything to know about 'em.
"...Colt Delta Elite..." Don't own one and would not. It's just a 1911A1 in a different chambering. Nothing special. Absolutely not worth the money demanded. $1500ish to 2 grand, up here.
The 10mm isn't anything special either. Doesn't do anything the .45 ACP will not for less money. Not by much money though.
Shot one when they first came out, long ago. Around 1988 or 89. Colt rep at a pin/plate match(great bunch of guys those Colt reps. Another guy, at Second Chance, let us play with his M16K.) provided the pistol and the Norma ammo(nothing else existed then). Even the rep said the Elite didn't compare to the assorted 'pin' guns at the match. No stock factory pistols would.
"...the choice is between a .357 and a 10mm..." Is an apples and oranges comparison.
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So much for trying to keep the ignorant from posting! :eek:

EDIT: There are Delta Elites on gunbroker with starting bids of ~$1000, waiting for a bid.

Double-Tap's cast 200gr .357 load goes 1200fps from 4", while their cast 200gr 10mm load goes 1300 from 4".

If you want carry the latter in a Glock 20, you have more than twice as many of them in a package of about the same size as the .357.
 
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i carry a g29 as a woodsgun.....to me the additional capacity and the ease to carry makes it a better choice than a revolver. Like someone else said the rounds are pretty close in performance....i really dont shoot mine much so i dont care about price per round etc.
 
The best "reverse" combo to own is a .357 Coonan autoloader and a S&W 610 10mm revolver.

Usually this caliber combo is found in the opposite pistol/wheelgun configuration, but for the diehard 10mm/.357 fan nothing is out of reach. ;)

Think of it as a pride of ownership thing. :cool:
 
I have a Coonan. Have had Desert Eagles in .357. Not interested in a 10mm revolver (or for that matter, an autoloader)

Since I have .357 revolvers, autopistols, and also 44 and 45 caliber revolvers & semi autos, there's nothing I see a 10mm does for me.

So, I am posting, but not answering your question, other than I have .357s, and don't have 10mm ( or 40s) so that should tell you where I come down on the question, if I were to answer.


I've got no issues with someone who doesn't own one posting about it, you CAN know valid things about things you don't own. And there are people who own something and have no clue about it.

If you own one, and you know something about it, its pretty obvious when someone who doesn't starts spouting off.

JMNSHO, and worth every penny you paid! :D
 
Admittedly I do not own a 10mm. I have, however, shot approximately a box of ammo through each of two owned by family/friends (a Delta Elite and a Thompson-so both 1911 form factors). Certainly I don't claim to be an expert on either round.

That being said if I could only own one, I'd own the .357. Lower priced ammo, ammo availability and the flexibility to use another cartridge for me outweighed the fun I had shooting the 10mm when I made my purchase at the time.

I would have no issue with owning both, but for me the 10mm would be an "also have".
 
Well, I own one 10mm handgun and five .357 Magnum revolvers so I guess it's pretty obvious which one I prefer. 10mm is probably my favorite semi-auto cartridge because it's one of the few that has enough horsepower to, with the right bullet, mimic the performance of my all-time favorite handgun cartridge: .357 Magnum.

I do, however, prefer the .357 Magnum for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, while I own many of both, I generally prefer revolvers to semi-autos and the variety of revolvers available in .357 Magnum is far, far wider than in 10mm. Also, for the size of a revolver in 10mm (S&W N-Frame), I can get something in a caliber like .41 Magnum or .44 Magnum that gives me top-end performance well beyond anything the 10mm is capable of and can still be loaded down to roughly the equivalent of a 10mm if I so desire. Finally, because it's primarily a semi-auto cartridge, 10mm factory ammo (and to some degree component bullets) is largely restricted to what will feed reliably in a semi-automatic handgun. Because the .357 Magnum is primarily a revolver cartridge, it is not so limited in this way and can be had with a much wider variety of bullet shapes, constructions, and weights.
 
I have a Glock G30sf with a .45 to 10mm conversion barrel. Does this count? ;)

Oh, I also have a GP100, a Blackhawk, a 586 and a Colt Three-Five-Seven.

I like semi-autos better for my overall shooting pleasure, but find myself preferring a revolver for more power. The Gp100 is a 4.2" barrel, while the rest are 6" or more.

For a woods gun, it is hard to pass up a 10mm with 10 rounds for 6 rounds of .357mag. However, I would not feel outgunned with a GP100 on my hip instead of the G30SF with 45 to 10mm barrel in it.
 
package/platform

For me, it's just not the cartridges, which are somewhat similar in performance, but the platform, or the nature of the handgun, that delivers them.

A G20 is a relatively flat, compact package, with few if any protruding parts or sharp edges, and Glocks are renown for their ability to shrug off abuse. A Ruger Blackhawk, big Smith, or other large frame magnum revolver may well have comparitively delicate rear sights, and protruding front sights and hammers that will gouge and bite as you carry them, ejector rods (if DA) that can get bent or come unscrewed, wooden grip panels that can shatter or come unscrewed. Unless the big wheel gun is stainless, one will have to pay attention to some maintenace if carried routinely in the boonies.

I have both, and my G20 has largely retired my M28 and Ruger B-hawk as a woods roamer, not just due to capacity , but in ease of carry and lower maintenance.
 
For a hunting gun, capacity is not important. The first shot is the one that counts.

If you are in battle, I am sure a 1000 round mag would be important.

I have killed things with my 1911s.

I have killed more things with my 357s.

I have only killed targets with my G20 Gen 4.

To answer the OPs question: 357
 
All things being equal, I'd keep my G20 because I can handload some pretty mean rounds that give 357 a run for its money and it has capacity beat by a long shot. The Wolf barrel has improved accuracy nicely as well.
 
I have 5 guns that can shoot 357 magnums, 3 in 357 mag and 2 in 357 Super Mag (maximum). I have 3 in 10mm; two semis and one revolver. I like them all but if I HAD to go with one, today it would be the 10mm.

I say today because that could change tomorrow as there is not a big edge for the 10mm. The 10mm, especially out of a revolver with a decent length barrel, has more energy than a 357 mag and just below what my 41 mag has in actual first-hand chronograph range testing. The 357s are accurate but, overall, the 10mm have a little edge over the 357s in accuracy. However switch to 38 special match rounds and my money goes on the 357 to out shoot the 10mm. In any case, this is academic as I have every intention of keeping them all. YMMV.
 
I had a Delta Elite in the 1990's
I have 1911's in 45 acp
I have a Glock 20 & 29

I would take the Delta Elite / 10mm over a 357 Revolver
-Better for concealed carry, I've carried full size 1911 under a loose fitting shirt.
-Potential for quicker follow up shots
-Greater capacity
-Bigger bullet

From my Glock 20 (shorter barrel than Delta Elite)
Hornady 155 XTP @ 1,335 fps / 614# KE - factory ammo
 
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