Two big things concerning this handgun- first, it is presently for sale at Cheaperthandirt.com for less than two hundred dollars. Second it is Hi Point’s first and only 10mm handgun. If you ask practically any retailer they will tell you that they sell more Hi Point firearms than most any other. No surprises there. And while it is easy enough to criticize a cheap pistol we don’t all have a budget for Glocks SIGs and Colts. The Hi Point is a projectile launcher and a cheap but somehow attractive one. Lets look at the JXP 10. The pistol features an extended and threaded barrel full-length accessory rail and even a red dot ready slide. The JXP 10 pistol and the 1095 carbine each use the same ten round magazine. There were few surprises with the JXP. This is a blowback operated 10mm handgun. The frame is polymer while the frame is a type of alloy. Not aluminum alloy but a non ferrous metal slide and a heavy slide. The pistol is striker fired the trigger is single action and the magazine is a single column. Take down disassembly and safety location are the same as any other Hi Point handgun. The threaded barrel follows the .578 x 28 TPI standard. The front sight is compatible with the Glock handgun allowing shooters to change the front out for tritium inserts if desired. I don’t think previous Hi Point pistols had this feature. A fully adjustable rear sight is a good touch.
The sights are a dual red painted dot rear sight and yellow outline front. To mount a red dot sight remove the rear sight. A short picatinny rail may be mounted. I didn’t explore this option but it seems a neat set up. I question the ability to accommodate a range of optics until we are certain of availability as concerns Hi Points adaptors. As it is you may mount an affordable red dot.
The 10mm automatic cartridge offers real power in a handgun and may be quite accurate. The loads range from 135 grain hollow points that open quickly to hard cast 200 grain deep penetrating bullets. Hikers and campers who explore the outdoors are not gunny but realize that it is a very good idea to have effective protection against man and beast. The Hi Point is as exciting as a car jack. But if you need the car jack or the pistol either is good to have. The slide is a type of crinkle finish. The slide is massive to counter 10mm recoil and function in a blow back operated handgun. There are forward and rear cocking serrations. The grip panels have been redesigned for the 10mm pistol A balance of adhesion and abrasion is very good to have. An accessory rail is molded into the dust cover.
The Hi Point 10mm is no lightweight. The pistol weighs a full 49 ounces unloaded. Hi Point firearms are covered by a lifetime warranty. The pistol is similar to the .45 ACP Hi Point but much heavier. Trigger compression is six pounds average. It may break at 5.5 pounds or it may break at 6.5 pounds. This limits consistent application of the trigger. The single supplied magazines was difficult to load after the eighth round. I managed to load to full capacity with some effort. Most of the range evaluation was done with Fiocchi ammunition. Initial firing was done at 7 yards. Despite the blowback action and heavy slide recoil wasn’t more than a 1911 10mm, less than most 10mm polymer frame guns, all due to the heavy weight. A factor in recoil is the abrupt snap when the slide reaches the end of its travel. A Glock 10mm weighs 28 ounces for comparison. The slide requires some strength to rack. Most will need to bring the handgun in close to the chest and rack the slide to make ready.
At 21 feet I cut a ragged hole in the target with several magazines. Moving to 10 yards results were much the same. Moving to a solid bench rest firing position I settled into the MTM Caseguard K Zone firing rest. Acclimating to the trigger is difficult. A five shot group of three inches was the best I was able to register at 15 yards, some were larger. I think that I would be able to deliver meaningful fire at 25 yards with practice in the pistol. At it is the pistol is ok for cabin or tent defense against animals or home defense. I stopped at 220 rounds over a period of several weeks. There were no stoppages of any type.
