[poilu]

i just picked up a mint ss ruger speed six in .38 special only with a 2 3/4 inch barrel. any ideas for a good load for this piece? right now it's loaded with winchester +p 130 gr. sxt personal protection. thanks.

[Lone Star]

That's a good .38 load. Speer's Gold Dot or Federal's Hydra-Shok are also fine.

You might try the lead Plus P 158-grain hollowpoints, too. They should penetrate better. Alas, Federal and I think, Remington, have dropped it. Winchester was still making the lead HP last time I checked.

Lone Star

[RON in PA]

What Lone Star said except that Remington may still make the old FBI 158 gr load. Just got a case from K-Y Importers.

[Jim March]

Yup. Those are the three I trust:

* Gold Dot 125+P (as long as it's a Speer 38+P, or somebody loading the 38spl variant 125grain projectile @ 38+P, such as Georgia Arms, Proload or Black Hills - loading the 357 projectile meant for higher speeds in 38 cases at +P velocity would suck, but I don't think any of those three or Speer has made that screwup. Home reloaders have though.).

* Winchester 130 38+P Supreme - one of the best loads Winchester has done in years. Wacking great big hollowpoint cavity.

* Any lead 158+P semi-wadcutter hollowpoint, also known as the LSWC-HP+P. Winchester is OK, Remington is supposedly a hair hotter. (NOT Nyclad, not Federal at all if I can avoid it!).

If the threat is dogs or cougars, the lead 158+Ps should punch deeper, and would be my first choice in barrels from 2" to 4".

In your barrel length, for general street use, that Winchester or a Gold Dot are a tossup - use whichever groups best, if you get a chance to compare. If your gun is more accurate with the 158s, use that. As the barrel length gets longer, esp. past 4", the Gold Dot comes in first because it resists "over-speed problems" - in a 6" barrel, you'd be nuts to use anything else :).