Loss of faith in the .38

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If all else fails,don't give up on the 38, move to a city which has a thinner phone book.:what: :neener:
Just kidding,
BOBE
 
The implication here is that they lack enough energy to penetrate through bone and into vital organs
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No implication about it. I knew a guy who was shot with a 38spcl and the bullet was stopped by his rib bone. Neat looking scar.

I used to shoot a lot of 38s at targets in my 357 but only full power 357 for self-defense. Penetration rules.
 
Puncha, the S&B 148gr WC was never meant to be a self defense load. It is even less powerful than a standard pressure 130gr LRN (Lead Round Nose). Its real purpose is to cut pretty little holes in target paper with minimal recoil. The Wadcutter is only effective as a self defense load when a LOT of power is loaded behind it.

Just out of curiosity, is reloading legal in your area? Pulling that 148gr WC adding in a little more powder and reseating it could give you a kick butt cartridge. There are a couple of people around who could help you figure out exactly how much powder to use.
 
.38 spec stopping power

First off your distance is too great, as someone else pointed out before me, most self defense situations do not happen at that distance. [usually 21feet and under]

Secondly, forget what they will not sell you around town. Go a little ways out of town and get yourself some winchester 130gr +P sxt [yes that is a hp] or speer gold dot 125gr ghdp [this is +P ammo also] You can even order ammo on line in most states. If your gun does not handle +P ammo then It is marginal for sd/hd. Otherwise a .38 w/4inch barrel or even a snubbie [the four inch is better] Is a pretty good defensive weapon.

I would not let a local ordinance dictate what I carry in my gun, or if I carry a gun, or keep a gun around the house for protection. My safety and the safety of my family come first. You can try me after the shooting is done. I am sure I will do just fine. Most judges and jurys are not as in love with the bad guy as you would think. Take care!

[Remember two in the body and one in the head make the bad guy dead]
Old law enforcement advice.
 
I have the misfortune of having worked with someone who's son committed suicide with a 2" S&W .38 and lead 148 gr WC's. While it was contact range they worked.

Bob
 
.357 Magnum wrote: "forget what they will not sell you around town. Go a little ways out of town and get yourself some winchester 130gr +P sxt [yes that is a hp] or speer gold dot 125gr ghdp [this is +P ammo also] You can even order ammo on line in most states."

I may be reading between the lines, but I think Puncha, the original poster, is from Australia. He may not have the options you mention.
 
I am from...

...South East Asia. The gunstores in my country usually sell crap from China, India and some $%#@ from South Africa. Occassionally, we get decent stuff from Magtech, CCI, Winchester or even Fiocchi but HPs are quite rare. The S&B stuff that I shot was bought second hand from a friend and was 22 years old.

We have to make an application to the authorities each time we make an ammo purchase and if its for HP ammo, the application will quite certainly NOT be approved.
 
BTW, if anyone is asking me to consider HP rounds or +P rounds, I would like to add that the local authorities have very recently tightened controls over the sale of +P or HP ammo to non LEOs
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Where would this be? :confused:

Besides, you can get it online.


I have shot standard LRN at a target stand built by wooden 2 x 4s. I fired at the base of the stand. The round went though one of the 2 x 4s that made up the front of the base and well into the one on the back of the base.
 
We have to make an application to the authorities each time we make an ammo purchase and if its for HP ammo, the application will quite certainly NOT be approved.
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Is there a limit on how much you can buy at one time? Consider using a 158 gr SWC load. Even standerd loads would be much better then using the 148 gr WC.

-Bill
 
I'm curious that you can't get .38Spl+P where you're at. You might try rolling your own. 5.4grs of Win231 topped with a 125gr Horanady XTP would be much better than a LSWC or LRN.
 
Tightly bundled dry paper is a tough medium - some years back, a friend fired a full power .41 Magnum at an 8" thick bundle of newsprint, and the bullet barely got halfway through.
We have to make an application to the authorities each time we make an ammo purchase and if its for HP ammo, the application will quite certainly NOT be approved.
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OK, so you're somewhere in SE Asia . . . have you checked the laws on handloading?

With something simple like a Lyman 310 hand tool (which doesn't even look like a loading press) and an inertia puller, you can probably 1) take apart the HBWC target ammo; 2) Salvage the powder from say, 5 rounds and use it to make 4; (An increase of 25% in powder charge ought to be safe, considering how lightly target ammo is loaded.) 3) Load the HBWC bullets backwards in the original cases.

Be innovative - if the gunsmiths in Peshwar can make machine guns using only simple hand tools, you ought to be able to make some decent ammo yourself, as long as you can access the raw materials.
 
As for reversing the hollow base wadcutter all he needs is the inertia bullet, puller which looks like a plastic hammer, to pull the bullet and a medium sized C-clamp to reseat it.

But I would shange the ratio to 10 rounds to make 9.
 
Gonna try again

This time, I'm going to decrease the range to 12 meters and kick the power level up a notch to early 1980s service grade 158gr LRNs. The target this time will be 360 sheets of paper held together with sticky tape. Wish me luck and i'll try to take some pics for posting.

By the way, will 125gr +P SJSPs offer any increase in performance?
 
.38 just fine...

...here's my list...

S&W 642-2 airweight snubby gets Hornady 125gr XTP jhp (non +p)

S&W 60-7 steel snubby gets Federal 125gr Hi-Shok sjhp +p

whatever .357 magnum revolver is in the collection (in this case a 6" ruger GP-100) will probably get either the Hornady load or Remington UMC 125gr sjhp +p since the Federal Hi-Shoks are not as readily available to me right now and I need to test the load before I trust it for defensive use; the only purpose that magnum loads have in my house is a SHTF backup load to the .38's!

I have been relying on .38 or .38 +p as my primary defensive load in different wheelie guns since mid 2002 and I have only been shooting since early 2001.
 
Both loads you listed are designed specificly for targets. Try some Cor-Bon or the new 135gr Gold-Dot "snubbie load", I think you will see different results.
 
Quoted by Puncha:
iv) It's now very difficult to buy self protection ammo where I reside due to recent govt regulations.
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Which state (or country) is this in?
 
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