New Hornady "Backcountry Defense" DGH 10mm -- Solution for M&P 10mm issues?

[mark_lives_things]

New Hornady "Backcountry Defense" DGH 10mm -- Solution for M&P 10mm issues?

I recently got my hands on the new Hornady "Backcountry Defense" DGH 10mm round. It uses a 200 grain specially-jacketed bullet that's intended to combine the terminal performance of a hard cast lead bullet with the reliable feeding, cleanliness, etc. of an FMJ bullet. Its advertised velocity is 90fps short of Underwood 200 grain hard cast, so not making full use of the 10mm cartridge's capability, but it's still more potent than the top-end of .40 S&W.

What's really interesting to me, though, is the bullet profile. It's much more tapered than other rounds marketed for this purpose (defense against dangerous critters). As I measure it, the nose is about 2mm narrower than Underwood hard cast of the same grain weight. See pic -- from left to right, that's the DGH, Underwood hard cast (200gr/1250fps), and Underwood FMJ-FN (180gr/1300fps).

I wonder if this might be a viable round for the the M&P 10mm platform, which seems to struggle with wide flat-nosed bullets, as I've documented extensively. If this bullet design really can approximate the performance of flat-nosed hard cast and can run reliably in M&Ps, without causing magazine drops, it would be a real game-changer.

I no longer have an M&P that I can use to test this round, but I hope someone who has had the magazine drop problem does and is willing to give this round a shot. I'd love to hear about your experience.

 

[Glenn R. McMannly]

Id rather have Underwood in my G20. And do.

 

[mark_lives_things]

Actually, my G20 Gen 5 chokes on Underwood hard cast, so, incidentally, I'm hoping these new Hornady rounds might be the answer there, too, but that's a conversation for another forum

Apparently a lot of guys, myself included, are having issues with the Gen 5.

 

[Autonomous]

A wide projectile meplat has been shown to be problematic in some 10mm pistols.
Knowledgeable 10mm owners don't want to give up 90 fps for their woods loads but accept that reliability is more important.

 

[mark_lives_things]

A wide projectile meplat has been shown to be problematic in some 10mm pistols.
Knowledgeable 10mm owners don't want to give up 90 fps for their woods loads but accept that reliability is more important.

Yes, exactly.

 

[ultratec00]

Looks like the Hornady HAP, which I've wondered could be used for both target and woods. Looks identical to the XTP but no serrations to facilitate expansion.

 

[bobsguns]

Why not buy a 10mm that doesn't have those issues? Seems like a no-brainer to me.

All of my 10mm pistols run like a scalded ape. Those brands are Springfield Armory, Nighthawk, Rock Island Armory & STI. Not a single problem.

My .o2

 

[mark_lives_things]

Why not buy a 10mm that doesn't have those issues? Seems like a no-brainer to me.

All of my 10mm pistols run like a scalded ape. Those brands are Springfield Armory, Nighthawk, Rock Island Armory & STI. Not a single problem.

My .o2

I have other 10mm pistols. I prefer the M&P platform. Or, to be precise, I would prefer it, were it not for the specific problem I've discussed at length on this forum and elsewhere.

 

[Farmer17]

It seems like everyone’s always trying to get a little bit more power out of the 10 mm, more than any other cartridge I can ever think of. Is 20 or 25 more grains of lead really gonna make that much difference? That’s about what a 22 short bullet weighs, I can’t imagine a grizzly charging out of the brush is going to notice the difference.

 

[mark_lives_things]

It seems like everyone’s always trying to get a little bit more power out of the 10 mm, more than any other cartridge I can ever think of. Is 20 or 25 more grains of lead really gonna make that much difference? That’s about what a 22 short bullet weighs, I can’t imagine a grizzly charging out of the brush is going to notice the difference.

No. You're mistaking "I want my 10mm to be 10mm, not .40 S&W" for "I want my 10mm to be something more than 10mm." And the former is a very real concern for the 10mm cartridge because it is so often under-loaded to .40 S&W energy levels.

Also, when talking about cartridges that are marginal for a given application (as 10mm is for predator defense), a ~10% difference in the mass or velocity of the projectile is nothing to sneeze at.

Finally, none of the rounds being discussed here identical but for small difference in weight. There are no two rounds here that are the same except for "20 or 25 more grains of lead."