Went to my first Bowling Pin match....using a 610 Revolver.

While cal 40 S&W works "ok"....

the 10mm reallyReallyREALLY WORKS!!!

I could have told you that! (Although the folks I've seen trying to use .40s haven't been happy with the results...) What loads were you using in your 610? I use a .45ACP, loaded with 240gr. extended H&G 68s, running at 940-960fps. from my old pin gun, and it really smacks 'em back.

About all you can do to help a .40 is use the heaviest bullets available.

Big newbie mistake is to shoot pins with light bullets. You knock them down quickly and then try to get them off the table......

I used to shoot pins with a .41 Magnum, a Smith M57.
Bullets were 210, 215 and 225 grain LSWCs.
I used enough Unique to drive them around 1,000 fps. Pins left the table pronto, in a cloud of splinters.

Ten mm loads that approximated those should work fine IMO. If you look at the velocity and energy of the old .41 Magnum "police load" and some .40 S&W loads they are pretty close.

Thanks for the tips. When I accumulate enough brass for home reloads I'll bump 'em up notch.


The 10mm loads are with 180g JTFP but I don't know the powder type or amount.

I did note the pins would propel themselves directly backward off the table while still mostly vertical in most cases before they would rotate and fall. I took this as a good sign of 'enough gun' for the purpose.

I was aiming for the proper sweet spot on the pin.

With this heavy 610 the recoil was quite pleasant, rather like moderate to heavy 357 loads only without the annoying sonic aspects. With the 40 S&W 180g it was rather like 38 specials as far as perceived recoil.

Shot my first with a beretta 9mm with 124 hardball. Other shooters scoffed but if you hit them correctly, the nine will do. If I do it again it will be with a .45 however.

...re: "will do it"...yes...

but "will DO IT" is what I was looking for...

Kind of like the difference between a 190HP pick up and a 325 HP pick up towing your camper uphill against the wind....

..

This message has been edited. Last edited by: MrApathy,

The most effective load I have ever used was a 255 gr. WC in the .45 Colt Redhawk, loaded to somewhere over 900 FPS. I have seen a nice full wadcutter for the .45 ACP but it was less than 255 grs. And I had good luck with the 225 gr. FP in the Glock 21.

I also have a box of Pin Grabbers for the .38 Super, but I never got around to loading them and I no longer have a .38 Super.

Dave Sinko

If one were to try pins with a .357/38 would a slow moving 180-200gr slug do the trick or is the bullet diameter to much of a hindrance compared to a .4XX caliber? Shooting bowling pins sounds fun, and from what some of you are saying slow/heavy is the order of the day.

Velocities that are too low result in bounce backs off the pins. Pins are hard and rounded and will make bullets glance sometimes.

I saw a few people nailed by bounce backs at the old Second Chance Shoot and talked to others who been nicked in practice.

Heavy bullets going fairly fast are better than heavy bullets going slow.

ACP230 has it right. I like to use my 1911 with atleast 200gr bullet and load'em up. I've seen ricochet (several)one in particular. It came back and hit him in the throat (.45 cal.). Left a mark but he was O.K. After about a year were the mark was is now a lump. It had become progressively worse. The doc cut it out because of his concern. It was a 230gr under powered load that had ricoched. Pins can be dangerous.