In an age of bottom feeders (semi-auto pistols fed from a magazine), does the wheelgun still make sense for self-defense? Is a Revolver a Good Gun for Concealed Carry? That’s nearly 1,100 ft-lbs of energy from a round that kicks less than a. He advised the company recently tested the load in a carbine and averaged more than 2,860 fps. I spoke with a Liberty Ammunition representative about this 10mm load. If I was shooting this round from the 6.5″ barrel version of the Model 610, I have no doubt this gun would exceed 2,500 fps – maybe even more. Frankly, that is in the realm of short barrel rifle load velocities. Averaging more than 2,400 fps, the round approached 800 ft-lbs of energy. The other thing that impressed me was the Liberty Ammunition 10mm load. I imagine that could make for an effective hog round. A 155-grain bullet at 1,325 fps would make more than 600 ft-lbs of energy. I wish the company made a 155-grain version of its 10mm load.
In this 4″ revolver, the 155-grain Speer load averaged almost 1,200 fps for calculated energy levels approaching 500 ft-lbs. It is one of the most effective handgun rounds I’ve come across for stopping attackers. Not only does it perform well in controlled gelatin testing I’ve also seen how well it performs in field conditions. The 155-grain JHP Gold Dot load from Speer is an effective defensive round. 40 S&W in the Model 610 for self-defense purposes. However, that shouldn’t discount the use of. 40 S&W was very similar, the 10mm clearly produced faster velocities and higher levels of bullet energy. Even though the felt recoil between the 10mm and. Whatever your reason, here’s how they performed:Ī few things jump out at me. It may be the only thing you can find locally, or maybe you just like the reduced recoil. 40 caliber self-defense loads in this wheelgun. 40 FMJ rounds through the gun for practice. 357 Magnum, you may want to shoot inexpensive. 40 S&W rounds are much cheaper to shoot in this handgun. While most people will probably stoke their gun with 10mm rounds for protection. All measurements are an average of five shots. Performance measured with a Competition Electronics ProChrono Digital Chronograph at an approximate distance of 15′ from the muzzle of the pistol. Liberty Ammunition Civil Defense 60 gr JHP While at the range, I ran some factory 10mm and. I measured it at 3.8 pounds with my Lyman trigger pull scale. You might expect the single-action (SA) pull to be lighter and crisper. Nevertheless, I had no problem smoothly rolling the trigger back for accurate DA shooting. My digital scale will only measure to 12 pounds and the pull weight exceeded that. It was a bit heavy on the double-action (DA) pull – roughly 13-14 pounds. Such was the case for the Model 610 I reviewed. I’ve found that most of the company’s triggers after about 2008 are smooth and reliable. In my experience, factory triggers from Smith & Wesson suffered for a period in the late 90s to early 2000s. The ramp squared up nicely in the rear notch for a classic silhouette on the target. If the gun was mine, I’m certain I would swap out for something a little more visible for fast acquisition under stress.įor target shooting, the sights were good. For what it’s worth, I was pleased to find Smith still offers those inserts when I reviewed its modern Model 66 Combat Magnum revolvers.Īs I wrote above, the front sight is pinned.
I have always been a fan of the red inserts that Smith & Wesson used on its Combat Magnums and wish the company would have used this on this revolver. The sights proved to be adequate for handgun ranges. Regardless of the reason, the gun was exceedingly pleasant to shoot. I’m guessing that the relatively large frame gives this gun enough mass to soak up much of the felt recoil. I mention all of this to say that the recoil from the Model 610 was somewhere between mild and moderate. Even though I’ve never had any issues with it, recoil is one of the reasons cited by people when discussing why the FBI moved away from the cartridge in the early 90s. I’ve heard a number of people complain about the recoil produced by the 10mm Auto cartridge. Here are the Smith & Wesson Model 610 specs:īlack blade front with adjustable rear white outline The production guns in 20 were also “-3” guns. The Model 610 review gun I had was marked as 610-3. However, in 2008 the gun returned to the catalog albeit briefly. The manufacturing of this gun continued through 2001 when it was dropped from the company catalog. 40 S&W cartridge when it was introduced in 1990. Like the gun I am reviewing, it shot both 10mm and the (then) new. The first Model 610 rolled off the assembly line back in 1989 according to The Standard Catalog of Smith & Wesson. In fact, the Model 610 isn’t really a new gun either. Shooting 10mm from a revolver is not a new concept. 40 S&W rounds.Īnd before anyone asks – yes, it does have an internal lock.
SMITH AND WESSON MODEL 10 8 FULL
S&W includes three full moon clips with the gun.