Conflicting Answers from S&W

[MrDig]

I have two conflicting reports from Smith and Wesson Customer Service, on the phone one guy said I should not shoot +P ammunition in my Model 10 and an Email that states it is ok
Born on date is March of 1991 for the revolver, on the phone the guy said Model 10 made prior to 1996 were not safe for +P and the email says again that my gun should handle it just fine. What do I do now?
S&W Model 10-10
4inch Bbl
Remington 125gr +P SJHP L38S2 ammunition
Any guesses what what to do?
Anyone with the same era gun have experience with shooting +P?

Next question is should I shoot the Plus P off in my Ruger GP 100 and reload to standard 38 loads? Making it safe to shoot in my model 10.
Yes the case will say +P but I will know that it is standard load.

 

[DPris]

Whoever told you it's unsafe for +P prior to '96 was an ill-informed nimrod, to put it politely.

Generally speaking, any S&W .38 SPECIAL Model 10 made after 1957 is perfectly fine with +P loads, assuming good condition.

Zero danger.
+P CAN accellerate wear, but I wouldn't worry about it.
We were shooting +P in Model 64s, the stainless version of the 10, in 1980 through our PD-issued guns, and I still have mine 32 years after it was issued to me.

Shoot +P all you want in your 10, there is no reason not to.
The gun isn't THAT fragile.
Denis

 

[rcmodel]

I say any Model 10 made after WWII is safe to shoot +P ammo in.

1996 certainly has nothing to do with anything that I know of.

+P .38 pressure is nothing to get excited about anyway.


rc

 

[DPris]

I'd tend to agree, but I was going with S&W's own statements in the past regarding +P after '57.
Denis

 

[MrDig]

Relieved, I have 300 rounds of Remington 125gr SJHP +P L38S2,
My Brother also said he would swap some reloads of his if I was nervous about it but I really want to shoot this gun before he comes back from his "Winter" home
Thanks for the replies gentlemen

 

[Guillermo]

The very idea that +P is somehow "hot" is laughable.

It is a success story of the marketing weenies.

+P is virtually the same as regular pressure ammo before SAAMI changed the standards.

Any well made revolver made in the 30's or since can EASILY handle +P.

Saxon Pig is a really smart fellow and he has tons of research to back it up.

Let me repeat, +P is silliness. They are selling us regular ammo saying it is "hot" and the current regular ammo is an impotent target round.

http://www.smithandwessonforums.com/forum/ammo-forum/77-faq-my-p-study.html

 

[ArchAngelCD]

Like said above, current +P commercial ammo isn't all that hot and will not harm your Model 10, especially a M10-10. BTW, the M10-10 was the last model produced before MIM parts were used in the M10.

Pictures???

 

[Ruger Redhawk]

I've been wondering for awhile if my 1970's M60 and a early 80's M649 are safe with +P. Both are the 38 spls. I have never put a +P through either of them but I do carry them with +P's. I figure a few rounds won't hurt it using it for serious business.

 

[rcmodel]

All Model 36 & 60 Chiefs Specials from the get go in the early 50's have had heat treated cylinders and frames.

In some respects they are nearly as strong as the K-Frame magnums of the era.
(5-shot cylinder with locking bolt cuts between the chambers, no projecting barrel shank, no forcing cone cut)

Choot'm Lizabet! Choot'm!!

rc

 

[Ruger Redhawk]

Thanks rcmodel. Looks like I'm good to go.

 

[sidheshooter]

One more vote for permanently turning off the part of our brains that considers this issue.

I have put a couple of thousand +P rounds through a pinned barrel, firing pin on the hammer K-frame .38 with no effect over a good number of years. And that doesn't include the roughly 500 rounds of +P+ corbon "RCMP" ammo from the days of yore.

As well, I'm pretty much with the considerable posting on this that the above mentioned Saxonpig has done, ie:

http://shootingwithhobie.blogspot.com/2009/01/p-phenomenon-by-saxonpig.html

In short, +P is not all that "plus", and even if it was, a K-frame would eat it up.

Not to be a skeptic, but "before 1996 not safe for +P" sounds a lot like "you really need to buy one of our post-lock, post MIM, expensive new guns, hint hint"

Or not, but then, I'm not seeing another Occam's razor–explanation for pulling the year 1996 out of a hat. Maybe someone will post a better theory on why 1996 (or any recent year, for that matter).

 

[MrDig]

Well I fired 100 rounds of 125gr +P sjhp at the range yesterday. Not one hiccough, except for me having a few fliers. It is accurate, stable and I'm in love with S&W I'm thinking of selling a couple of other Guns to get a 629.