.357 Magnum Revolver or his 10mm Auto?

I'm so jealous of your Colt Python!! My favorite gun!!!

I own a Ruger GP 100 (.357 magnum) and a Glock 20 (10mm).

And I would say as a round, the .357 magnum is better..

I have done countless testings with both rounds and I can honestly say that the .357 mag came out victorious in almost every aspect.. It penetrates much better than a 10mm. It's easier to find, and cheaper..

Most 10mm rounds available are under-powered.. Only a select few are loaded to their full potential, and those are very pricey. On the other hand, the cheap Winchester .357 mag is loaded very hot to almost as high as the top 10mm.

The only thing the 10mm has going for it is that you can carry more rounds because it's a pistol cartridge.. My Glock 20 holds 15 rounds, while my Ruger holds 6.

I could go on and.. But like a said, as a round, the .357 magnum is superior!

However, in a gunfight, I would probably take the Glock because of the extra rounds (even though you may not need them, but you never know.. lol).

Hope this helps..

You are comparing a $500 glock to a $1400-$2300 dollar Colt. Colt ALL the way! Besides, comparing a 10mm to a .357 mag is like comparing a .40 to a .44 mag. No comparison, just look at the cartridge size, the .357 is HUGE compared to the 10mm. I would choose my Colt Python over my Glock any day of the week.

In terms of who has the better gun, you could have stopped after typing "Colt Python." You win then and there, IMO.

Regarding the .357 vs the 10mm, I answered a question about this just the other day. Commercial off-the-shelf loads are all over the map, but for the most part, the muzzle energy is roughly equivalent between the two. However, SAAMI specs allow for a higher maximum pressure from the 10mm, so in theory, that round can be loaded to be more powerful. Your Colt may well use the powder charge more efficiently than his Glock, however, so if you were to chronograph each gun with the hottest load you could find, your Colt may well come out ahead.

Unfortunately, when we talk about a gun being "powerful," we are probably more interested in knock-down power than just raw energy. Both the .357 and 10mm are fairly likely to shoot all the way through a human target--especially if they're loaded to their maximum potential. Any energy that remains once the bullet exits the other side of the target is wasted. So, we have to look at what kind of damage was done prior to that. Unfortunately, his 10mm is going to leave a bigger hole than your .357 (~9mm).

If you want to bring reliability into the conversation, the Glock is arguably the most reliable semi-automatic handgun in the world. However, as well-engineered as it is, it still cannot match the rugged reliability of a well-made revolver, and your Colt is most definitely that. I'll wager that your gun is the more accurate of the two by a fair margin, also. Where you might have the edge in accuracy, you certainly lose in capacity, though.

As I hinted at before, if value comes into the conversation, the Python wins hands-down. Even in rough condition, I wouldn't trade your gun for two of his.

His Glock is an obvious winner for accessories, or being tacti-cool. I don't even like to consider that factor, since the accessories available for a gun really have nothing to do with the quality of the gun itself. Still, he may have the sizable backstrap and palm swells and all that, and there IS more customization that can be done to his gun without going to the gunsmith.

Here's how I tally things up:

Muzzle energy: Tie

Knock-down power: Glock

Reliability: Colt

Accuracy: Colt

Capacity: Glock

Value: Colt

Accessories: Glock

-----------------------------

Results: TIE, Glock 3.5, Colt 3.5

For the record, I really wanted your Python to come out ahead. I'd choose it over the Glock any day. They're both great guns, there's no doubt, but this is like comparing a finely-crafted sailing yacht to a sleek powerboat. At the end of the day, they're designed for the same thing, but they take drastically different approaches to getting there. Congrats to both of you for owning some fine guns, though.

Edit: Hey, there we go! Matt makes an excellent point. Your Colt can take .357s, .38 special/+P/+s, .38 longs, AND .38 shorts, with varying degrees of success. Let's see his Glock do that! You win.

You can buy Glock 20s all day long. But you will not often find a nice Python at a price most people would pay. That Python if it has no issues is CLASS as real as it gets in the world of great firearms.

No Glock can compare to the quality of that Python. See any plastic on the Colt ? 'nough said.

Edit : I think I would suggest an accuracy challenge to settle this question. Yes sir, someone is going to loose their watch. Watches at 50 '.

AND I DON't mean shoot at your own watch.

Which is better ? Personally, I would take the Glock...and I have both. ( not the 20...the 21 ) The 357 doesn't have a safety, no slide to work and hold 6 shots. The Glock has a great safety system, a slide to work...but with that safety, you can safely carry one in the chamber and simply have to squeeze the trigger ...and you can do that 15 times.....more accurately and faster than a D/A revolver. Ballistically, the 10 packs more punch. Yes the 357 will take 38 ammo for target / more economical shooting, but I think there is a 22LR conversion available for both the 20 and 21. It comes down to personal preference...do you want the old school wheel-gun or a relatively light semi-auto that packs a lot of punch ? Ask your buddy if he wants to trade me...if I could do it again...or afford to buy another pistola right now, I would have the 20...hands down. ( and I'm not a diehard Glock-a-holic, either )

The Colt Python is a nicer firearm - generally better fit and finish, more accurate, nicer trigger.

10mm generally specs at having greater Kinetic Energy than .357 Magnum. However, there are enough differences between different manufacturers regarding their loads that you can get ones that overlap.

Bullet design will change terminal effects. A semi wadcutter vs. a ball nose FMJ will do really different things in soft targets like a series of watermelons or milk jubs.

Personally? I would take your Colt because I like it better than the Glock, but ultimately I plan on putting a 10mm semi auto in my gun safe at some point - just don't know what kind yet. Almost certainly not a Glock though. - I do already have a .357.

Thinkingblade

I also love my Python it is now worth 4 times what I paid for it . My buddy loves his Glock well He can keep it .. in 20 years I have a Colt Python art work in pistol history . He has a plastic thing that might be worth a few bucks nothing special about it . I have never heard of a Colt revolver having the trigger fall out .. but I have glocks . Failures of springs and so on ...

He owns a Glock. Glock owners are like teenagers who just paid $400 for a 1982 Honda Civic and now think that car is the 'best' one in the whole wide world.

For CCW or as a service pistol - I would carry the Glock 10mm.

For outdoors, walking, hiking, fishing, hunting, black bear protection or as a survival or emergency sidearm while on my ATV or way out in the woods - the 357 for sure. When out are outdoors - this is no place for a semi-auto pistol that can jam on just a tiny bit of belly button lint, leaf, twig, or bit of dirt. You roll your ATV on it's side going through mud with a Glock - and it gets mucked - you wont be able to use it until you get home and it spends an hour in the ultrasonic cleaner. That 357 - you can rinse it off in a puddle or stream, shake the water off - and continue having fun.

which is more powerful is a toss up but you've got a hand polished ,hand fitted & fine tuned classic 1957 Cadillac while he has a new 4x4 Chevy pickup that was produced on an automated production line by robots.

Both are very good pistols & the Glock will probably require less routine maintenance but the python is a precision work of art .

10 Mm Revolver