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Old 04-28-2018, 05:08 AM
Mazryonh Mazryonh is offline
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Join Date: Feb 2010
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Quote:
Originally Posted by funkychinaman View Post
And if they wanted more power, then there's various AR carbines in 5.56.

Sorry about the sarcasm, but it's like arguing for Betamax at this point. The 10mm Auto had its chance, and for a variety of reasons, no one bit. It's time to move on.
Betamax? "Be kind, rewind!"

But seriously, aren't you glad electronic trends like Moore's Law don't apply to the laws of ballistics (which are the same as they were in the 1980s and before) and ballistic weapons in general? We still use muzzleloaders, airguns, bows, and even slingshots. Obsolescence in ballistic weaponry isn't quite as cut-and-dry as obsolescence in the IT world. Besides, the infrastructure that once supported Betamax is long gone. 10mm Auto ammunition on the other hand still has existing infrastructure to support it, or infrastructure that could be easily converted to do so.

Here are some interesting links. I don't know if this is current but here's a link saying that the FBI Hostage Rescue Team still uses the MP5/10. I've heard elsewhere that H&K still supplies them with replacement parts.

There's another magazine article here that outlines a couple other reasons why the MP5 is useful in CQB over the M4 and other 5.56mm SBRs. One was the lowered noise level of the MP5, even while unsuppressed, to reduce hearing damage and suppressor wear. Another was that friendly fire incidents with the MP5 were much less likely to be lethal since most kevlar is good enough to stop 9mm rounds, while you need a Level III or Level IV armour plate to stop 5.56mm NATO rounds (and that might not even stop AP versions). The need for AP fire was covered by one or a few members of a team carrying an M4. Yes, this article was written before the adoption of .300 BLK in M4 carbines for subsonic suppressed fire, but I'll get to that shortly.

So there is in fact some evidence that the 10mm in SMG or pistol-caliber carbine form could be a good solution to bridge the capability gap between SMGs and SBRs (i.e., being able to get good midrange performance with ease of suppression with subsonic ammo), most especially in an LEO context where the ability to share ammunition between handguns and SMGs can simplify logistics (and I haven't heard of any .300 BLK semiauto handguns). Being able to shoot through car windshields is also something some 5.56mm NATO loadings have trouble with, whereas 10mm in full-power loadings has less trouble doing so.

There's also the possibility to close the AP capability gap (at least at short range) by loading 10mm ammo with penetrators, just like the Russians did with their 9mm AP loadings. With greater case volume available in 10mm Auto than the 9x19mm cartridge, you could get more effective range while retaining AP abilities than the lightly-loaded and overpressured 9mm AP projectiles can.
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