Update on my 10mm hunter project.

[frank4570]

I recently purchased a 10mm Witness compact, and now with some practice I am getting my skill up to speed. So today I was able to do a little informal bullet testing. Sierra 180gr hollow point game master, 20 yds, 8gr of 800x at about 1100fps. 1 gal plastic milk jug filled with water.
Results; Milk jug blew up and I found a VERY opened up jacket right behind the jug, still hot, no lead. Basically the thing blew up on nothing but a little water. I am going to use up these bullets in practice then buy some XTPs and try them. I have to have better penetration than what the Game Master gave me.

oops.That should be Sports master not Game master. The Sports master is still a hunting bullet.

[Rich Lucibella]

Check out Buffalo Bore Ammo. Tim Sundles has just started offering some real hot 10mm loads geared toward hunting.
Rich

[Long Path]

Basically the thing blew up on nothing but a little water.

Water's probably your most explosive test medium, to be honest.


What are you planning on hunting with your Witness? Sierra makes a nifty "Tournament Master" in 190g (http://www.sierrabullets.com/bullets/caliber.cfm?Type=handgun&Caliber=10MM), which would be a dandy for penetrating hog (I believe it's primarily a silohuette bullet, but it has a nice meplat.), but probably wouldn't open up on deer.

While I am a huge fan of Sierra rifle bullets, I have to admit that my heart lies with Hornady XTP's with regard to handgun hunting ammo. They're extremely accurate, and have a very, VERY wide window of velocities under which they'll open up reliably but not shred.

If jacket/core separation is your biggest concern, I suggest loading some Gold Dot bullets. (http://www.speer-bullets.com/default.asp?s1=3&s2=7&s3=6) I've been very impressed with the Gold Dot's accuracy, and their biggest claim to fame of course is that they're a bonded bullet that won't separate even when shot through automobile safety glass (just in case you decided to pop an elk as he's driving to work, or something. ;) ).

[frank4570]

I'll be using the 10mm for Whitetail. They are pretty small around here usually. I picked up some 180gr XTPs today. And soon I can do some more testing. The XTPs certainly have a smaller hollowpoint,and are more curved. I'll bet reliability goes up as a result of the shape. Although I am not having reliability issues as long as I clean the gun every once in a while.
Once I get my longer slide I can start cranking up the velocity and really see what the bullets will do.

[frank4570]

Update on my hunting bullets.
Today I tried the XTP bullets on the plastic milk jug. This time the jug was exploded, no surprise, and there was a gash in the dirt where the bullet hit . I found half of a jacket. The jacket would suggest that the bullet mushroomed maybe halfway before the jacked was shed. I didn't find any lead. This bullet looks more promising, I'll do more testing.