I'm sure we've all heard that "10 mm is an overpenetrating round," and "147gr 9mm don't have enough velocity to expand..."
I wanted to see for myself, using the best testing medium
that my poor graduate student lifestyle could afford
The following factory rounds were tested :
RESULTS (averages of two or three shots)
Final diameter measured w/ micrometer; due to non-circular nature of
most of the expanded bullets (i.e. the "talons..."), these data should
be taken w/ a grain of NaCl.
Observations
As a 'control,' a 124 grain semi-jacketed flat point was fired.
These suckers tore through at least 20 inches of phone book...
*All* of the bullets expanded beautifully, and in fact look just
like those shown in the magazine ads! Buy a raffle ticket today!
Depth of penetration was determined by measuring the distance
from the initial impact surface to final resting spot of the front of
the bullet.
I conclude from these data that the 10mm's reputation as being
an "overpenetrator" is a load of crap. It seems that bullet construction
and design play a far more important role in determining penetration
depth than caliber alone (As the 9mm flat point clearly shows.)
I hope you all find this little experiment to be as interesting
as it was fun for me to perform!
P.S. Anyone notice the clever use of subliminal advertising? ;-)
Martin P. Olsen (whose favorite .SIG is a 228 ;-)
Depth of penetration, retained weight, and final diameter were all
measured. A 10mm Delta Elite and 9mm Sig-Sauer 228 were used.
Bullet Retained Weight Final Diam.(% Expansion) Depth of penetration
9mm 124gr SF | 122.7 gr | .652" (83.05%) | 5.75"
9mm 147gr BT | 147.3 gr * | .651" (82.96%) | 7.38"
9mm 115gr ST | 116.1 gr * | .621" (74.44%) | 6.62"
Bullet Retained Weight Final Diam.(% Expansion) Depth of penetration
10mm 200gr BT | 199.7 gr | .691" (72.75%) | 6.5"
10mm 180gr SF | 180.2 gr * | .653" (63.25%) | 6.38"
10mm 180gr HS | 181.1 gr * | .681" (70.25%) | 6.5"
10mm 175gr ST | 169.3 gr | .687" (71.83%) | 7.75"
* Some phone book material wedged in expanded bullet, assume nearly
total weight retention.