In today’s article, Roy Huntington reviews the Fiocchi Hyperformance 10mm Auto handgun ammunition. Designed for “Handgun Hunting & Wilderness Defense,” these centerfire cartridges use a Barnes Bullets XPB copper hollow-point projectile for deep penetration, controlled expansion and weight retention. How do they perform? Huntington gives us a thorough examination of this load, leaving no question unanswered. The handgun ammunition was provided by Fiocchi of America for this review.
Something nearly magical has occurred over the past few years. The resurgence of interest in the 10mm Auto has spawned a deluge of new loads, guns and handloading options. This seems to be driven by a new-found and significant interest in the caliber for hunting and defense.
I think the 10mm was an underdog for much too long. An undeserved reputation for being “too potent!” and early guns wearing out quickly often stole the spotlight on this versatile, powerful, accurate and easy-to-load cartridge.
[Think it is too powerful? Read our article on How Powerful Is 10mm?]
Today, there are dozens of high-quality factory loadings for the 10mm, offering shooters a wide cross-section of options. Among them is that classic ammunition manufacturer Fiocchi’s latest. Their “Hyperformance” load showcases what innovation and technology can do for a cartridge, and opens the door to helping to modernize the 10mm even more.
But first, let’s put a few rumors and nay-sayer comments to bed. No, the 10mm is not the same as a .41 Magnum. Hot 10mm loads can sort of “chase” lower-end .41 loads, but if you need a .41 Magnum, you should buy one.
The other item I’d like to put to rest is the “fearsome” recoil of the 10mm. Sorry folks, it’s just not like that at all. Sure, a hot 180-gr. load can be snappy, but if you can shoot a lightweight .45 ACP 1911, then a 10mm is just as easy. Grip, squeeze, lock your wrist, get a firm stance, roll your shoulders forward, and blast away. Don’t, as my young daughter used to say, “Be afeard of it.” Quick, can you think of anyone who has ever been “injured” from that fearsome recoil? Me neither.
A Brief History of Fiocchi
I firmly believe the history of a company is at least as important as the products they create. Fiocchi Munizioni was founded in 1876 in Lecco, Italy, and has been making ammunition ever since. That’s a long time in-grade, I’d say.
In the 1950s, Fiocchi began importing ammo into the U.S. and it was met very positively. I recall seeing Fiocchi in gun stores in the middle ‘70s when I was starting in the early days of action pistol shooting. It quickly gained a reputation for quality, consistency and good value. Over the years, I’ve often used Fiocchi ammo for hunting, competition, test ammo for articles, and casual shooting and training.
And, not surprisingly, in typical Italian style, Fiocchi pays close attention to the art, mechanical accuracy and even the look of their ammo. They value quality and design, and I think even apply that famous Italian sense of design to the look of the boxes.
In 1983, they founded a manufacturing facility here in the U.S., in Ozark, Missouri. They recently added yet another facility, this time near Little Rock Arkansas. Fiocchi currently employs nearly 200 U.S. workers, and I discovered about 80% of the Fiocchi-branded products sold in the U.S. are loaded here in the states.
With this bit of history under your belt, I hope you see they are not only invested in quality and performance, but they are invested right here in our own back yard, too.
Hyperformance
The concept for Fiocchi’s new 10mm load is to support the handgun hunter and/or the person who wants a reliable cartridge for, as they say — “Wilderness Defense.” Both of these jobs require a cartridge/bullet combo promising to be fail-safe when called upon.
While the hunting side may not be totally as critical as the defensive role, both are still demanding. Fiocchi focuses careful attention toward their precision-formed brass cases, uses only clean-burn powders and loads all of the components with precision and care. Their U.S. facility is modern in every respect, and it shows in the repeatable quality of their loaded ammo.
The Hyperformance line uses the proven Barnes XPB bullet, matched to the right load to give the best terminal performance possible. Barnes is famous for their monolithic copper hollow point bullets, which have proven themselves around the world on big, dangerous game and in defensive situations. Fiocchi has expanded on the Hyperformance line-up, rounding out the original .357 Magnum, .44 Magnum and .45 Colt loads to include this new 10mm offering.
Factory specs for the 10mm load show a 155-gr. Barnes XPD HP bullet at 1,165 fps. The box label did not specify the barrel length the cartridge was tested in, but I suspect it was about a 5″ pressure barrel or semi-auto. I had a new XDM-Elite 3.8″ Compact OSP 10mm on-hand to test how the round shoots, and used another semi-auto I had with a 4.5″ barrel to see if there were any velocity differences. I have to say, after shooting quite a bit of this load, I found it to be accurate, easy to control and reliable in both test guns.
On the Shooting Range
I’ve long been a fan of the 10mm, both in autos and revolvers. But I’ve never been a fan of trying to turn it into a magnum. As I said earlier, if you need magnum performance, buy a magnum. The reality is, in the real world, the vast majority of factory 10mm loads can perform such a wide range of duties it makes little sense to try to load them hotter. Reloading to save cash or work up new accuracy loads is always a great idea, just don’t get ahead of yourself with it trying to turn it into a boomer.
I set up my Garmin Xero C1 Pro chronograph and went to work. The Xero is a delight to use; no fuss, fast to set up and turn on, and it works like a charm. It makes this sort of testing a genuine pleasure, unlike more cumbersome chronos.
I put three, five-round strings over the chrono out of the XDM-Elite with the 3.8″ barrel. I was frankly amazed at the consistency of the velocities. One five-round string showed (in feet per second): 1,070; 1,073; 1,079; 1,071; and 1,074. That, my friends, is stunning consistency and helps explain why this is such a reliable and accurate load for the 10mm.
To balance the shorter barrel, I used a 1911-style auto in 10mm with a 4.5″ barrel. The numbers were just as consistent but higher: 1,124; 1,117; 1,120; 1,119; and 1,116. This sort of extreme spread of just a few feet per second means the bullets are flying extremely consistently, with virtually no vertical stringing. Most stock handgun loads can vary by as much as 100 fps or more, so Fiocchi is showing off with this sort of quality control!
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I have some steel plates in my backyard range here. The XDM-Elite with a backstrap selected to fit my smallish hands was a breeze to shoot. Multiple fast shots on a torso plate (“Oh no, the bear is attacking me!”) showed that with a tight grip, locked wrist and firm stance, it was easy to keep things well-centered. The fact the load is a 155-gr. bullet and not a 180 means recoil is certainly lighter. Having said that, a 155 Barnes at almost 1,100 fps from a 3.8″ barrel is nothing to sneer at. Fiocchi’s moniker of “Hunting & Wilderness Defense” rings true here.
Shooting from the 4.5″ test gun was even easier, and while I don’t think the added velocity is critical, the controllability of the slightly longer slide is noticeable. I think if it were me and I carried one of these as a defensive gun in the hunting field, I’d opt for the longer slide. It’s just as easy to carry as the shorter one, especially in the Diamond D Guide’s Choice chest rig shown (available from the Springfield Armory Webstore). Suffice it to say, fast, accurate and controllable shots were easy to manage with either gun.
Measured Performance on the Shooting Range
Targeting
For the final test, I ran three, five-shot groups at 20 yards with the load, using the XD-M Elite as the testing platform. I found the excellent trigger and bold sights to really enhance my ability to be consistent. I used a Ransom Multi-Caliber Steady Rest rather than a wrist-rest on a sandbag. I’ve found it to be an extremely reliable way to chase the best accuracy out of any gun/load combination.
The bottom line here is the fact the 10mm Fiocchi Hyperformance load delivered astonishing accuracy. The “worst” group of the three measured about 1.4″ total, while the other groups were a bit less. I have learned over the years when using a good rest like the Ransom Steady Rest, if you take the outer two hits out and just measure what remains, it pretty much duplicates the results you’d get from a full Ransom mechanical rest. In this case, removing the two outer shots would leave a .95″ 20-yard group from a duty-style pistol and hunting ammunition. Simply amazing.
An interesting side note to this is the fact that during the tests, I’d shoot one round, then put the gun down and walk away. Then return, pick the gun back up, regain the sight picture, etc. I think it’s a real acid test because in the field that first shot is always a cold shot and this shows just what five “cold” shots added up to in the real world. I like to do the same when testing a rifle, but that’s another story.
How Do I Feel About the Fiocchi Hyperformance 10mm?
I marvel at the easy grace and power of a good 10mm load. It truly fills a void between the .38 Super, .45 ACP and the big-bore revolver loads. Not everyone wants or even needs the Sturm und Drang of a heavily loaded .44 Magnum. The 10mm, with the right load, has already proven itself in defense against big bears, 300-lb. wild boars and has even taken African plains game.
A 135-gr. bullet designed for defensive use in a cop’s gun is something very different than what we have here in the Fiocchi load. One is for thin-skinned miscreants, while the other is for thick-skinned critters intent on killing you — with the fangs to back things up.
Choose wisely. This one certainly seems like a good choice to me.
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