Today was the first time in quite a while that I was able to get some time in at the range. I decided to take my S&W M10 since I've been neglecting it since I purchased the Ruger .41 magnum Blackhawk. I took along some Magtech 158gr LRN ammo that I've had for a few years now and some handloads. The first being a 158gr SWC over 4.6gr of Unique that has proven to be a good performer. The second is a new load I've been wanting to try, which consists of a Lyman #358665 and 4.0gr of W231. According to the Lyman data this load should be going about 840fps from a 4" barrel, the bullet is supposed to be 158gr but mine are closer to 165gr and they sport a nice meplat to boot. I never shot commercial ammo that contained swaged lead bullets before so I was a little nervous as I was expecting leading. That thought quickly vanished though as there was no more than a slight gray wash in the barrel after a couple cylinder fulls.
However I was elated to see that this ammo shoots very very well from my M10. So too did the handload consisting of the Lyman #358665 bullet and W231. I'm no great shakes with a handgun by any stretch, but with both of these loads I was able to keep all shots in the center of a B24 target at 15 yards when shooting SA and slow aimed fire. That is when I didn't flub and pull a shot slightly outside of the bull. I did do a little DA shooting at 10yards too, I didn't do to badly but definitley have room for improvement, Jerry Miculek need not worry about me breaking any of his records. After the purchase of the .41 mag I forgot just how much I like the S&W M10 and the .38 SPL combinataton. All in all it was much needed range time and I really enjoyed getting re-acquainted with my M10. The M10 solidified exactly why it will be the last handgun I ever let go of today, simple, accurate, and reliable to a fault it don't get much better than that.
However I was elated to see that this ammo shoots very very well from my M10. So too did the handload consisting of the Lyman #358665 bullet and W231. I'm no great shakes with a handgun by any stretch, but with both of these loads I was able to keep all shots in the center of a B24 target at 15 yards when shooting SA and slow aimed fire. That is when I didn't flub and pull a shot slightly outside of the bull. I did do a little DA shooting at 10yards too, I didn't do to badly but definitley have room for improvement, Jerry Miculek need not worry about me breaking any of his records. After the purchase of the .41 mag I forgot just how much I like the S&W M10 and the .38 SPL combinataton. All in all it was much needed range time and I really enjoyed getting re-acquainted with my M10. The M10 solidified exactly why it will be the last handgun I ever let go of today, simple, accurate, and reliable to a fault it don't get much better than that.
