10mm vs .38 Super +P

[FJ540]

Discuss.

Ok, so maybe that's a bit too vague.

If you were looking for a hotrod semiauto, which would you choose and why?

[maxhunter]

Simple answer is I like both... but I like 10mm's higher terminal performance and muzzle energy over .38 Super +P but to get better performance out of either caliber, you will have to roll you own ammo. Choice of new guns in either caliber is somewhat limited. .38 Super (+P) is making a little bit of a comeback with newer shooters discovering the caliber and considering it for SD carry.

For SD carry or for fun at the range/competition shooting? Maybe it does not need to fit in either category. .38 Super +P is easier to shoot than 10mm with less recoil and less time to follow through and reacquire target(s). If for hunting, the 10mm is the logical choice. For fun, .38 Super+P in a 1911 frame is a blast (no pun intended).

Live large and get both...solves the problem of what to get.

[rugersol]

If all I was tryin to do was hit a number, and I can hit it with the .38, I'd do that!

... much anything else, and I'd be lookin at 10mm... if not .45 Super er .460 Rowland!

[tenmilmag]

He's just messing with us! He a l r e a d y has both and will soon reveal this

[Seismic Sam]

Invalid comparison, and one of the cartridge choices is WRONG!! If you're going to ask the real question it's 9x23 Winchester vs. 10mm. The 9x23 is a cut down and reamed .223 case, and merrily runs along at about 52,000 PSI with small rifle primers to drive a 125 grain Speer Gold Dot at 1450, which is the same as the 357 Sig or 357 Mag. 38 Super +P has a SAAMI max of 36,500, so that's a lot different. In addition, the +P designation does not mean exactly the same thing as +P with other calibers. It was put there partially to differentiate it from the old 38 ACP, which has a SAAMI pressure of 26,500 PSI, so 38 Super and 38 Super +P are really two different designations for what could be the exact same load. I suspect CorBon and DoubleTap 38 Super +P loads really may be hotter, but who knows for sure?

Apart from that, it's mostly ammo capacity, and both guns are up there, unless you get a single stack. EAA 10mm Match holds 15, and EAA 38 Super Match holds 18. Either is one hell of a potent self defense gun, although 10mm definitely has the edge for hunting. However, if you need 15 rounds, then you shouldn't be using it for hunting anyway, so you would probably want the 6" longslide EAA Hunter, which is a Tanfoglio Silver Match frame with a long slide, and has the tapped holes for mounting a scope. Recoil on the 9x23 Winchester is definitely less than 10mm, if you care about recoil at all.

Oh, and the REAL, REAL comparison is the 10mm and 9x25 Dillon, which is a 10mm case necked down to 9mm, and it can get 9mm bullets up in the 1800 FPS range....

[s4s4u]

If you were looking for a hotrod semiauto, which would you choose and why?

That depends on what I am going to use it for. Paper, the 38. Hunting, the 10. SD, neither.

[FJ540]

I don't have either. I've been thinking of adding a witness to the arsenal and I've been contemplating both calibers for that gun.

I also don't really have much of a need for the extra power (side arm against wolves would be about it), but it'd be fun to bump the power factor up from the .45 I carry now.

9x25 Dillon sounds fun. See, this is why I asked.

[mnhntr]

.38 super in a 1911 or 10mm in a tupperware gun. I love the .38 super as an alternative to the .45acp in the 1911.