What SD ammo do you use in your .38 Special?

In .357? I'll use a 158 hp typically the federal swchp.

In .38 I like to use federal wadcutters which are 148 grain.

Most .38s and .357s with fixed sights were/were regulated to use 158 gr bullets if there is not adjustable sights on the thing I will go ahead and just use heavier grain offerings. If my revolver does have adjustable sights it's most likely not a .38 cal...

I’ve been using the new Federal HST 130 grain +p as of late, with either the Golden Saber or Short Barrel Gold Dot as a reload. I’ve been impressed with the lower recoil/blast/flash of the HST, and accuracy has been excellent in the guns I’ve tried them in.

Inceptor ARX .38 Special 77 grain

On the rare occasions I carry a 38, it is loaded with either my 148 WC or 158 SWC reloads.

I use factory 148 hbwc in a J frame.

147 gr Federal +p+ or 158 lswc in a k frame or 357.

I load my EDC S&W 637 with Federal HST 130gr .38 spl +P. Reloads are 2 Safariland speed loaders loaded with Remington 125gr Golden Sabers as they load easier from the speed loaders than the short HST's.

Hornady Critical Defense 110 gr +P for me. Critical Defense .357 is also good stuff, I have some of that as well.

There are several good choices from Federal. Winchester, Hornady, Speer, Remington, etc. Give a few a try and see what your gun shoots best and you'll be just fine.

Stay safe!

For a snubby, Gold Dot 135 grain SB. For a 4" remington 158 grain LSWC HP (HTP) +P.

I am a J frame guy. I read threads here on the subject of ammo performance for snubs until my head felt like it was going to explode. Then I loaded my carry guns with 148 gr wadcutters.

I feel much better now.

Another 158gr SWC user here, typically my own reloads.

If you want done great reading, Lucky Gunner did a ballistic gel test a while back. The results are interesting.

In my 6" M&P, I'm happy with most anything heavier than 110gr at standard velocity or better. I keep the gun loaded with standard pressure Hornady 158gr XTP.

In my Rossi with a 2" barrel, I like a heavier deeper driving bullet design over any expanding ammo. For now I keep 158gr +P TMJ from Speer in the gun, mostly because I like the weight savings afforded by the aluminum cases.

Precision One 148g wadcutters

The 442 gets Winchester 130gr PDX1

The Model 10 get handloaded 158gr XTP

When I carried a 642 I loaded it with 135 gr Speer Short Barrel +p ammo.

My current carry is a S&W 386 NG. Unfortunately it has a 2.5" barrel. That means the ejector rod and stroke are compromised. I occasionally got failures to eject with Magnum length brass. Consequently I now carry Buffalo Bore's 38 Special +P 158g SWCHP-GC. The chronograph says it's running about 1050 fps from this 2.5" barrel. That's the bottom end of 357 Mag performance from this barrel length, so I'm living with it.

Dave

140 gr. is as light as I'm willing to use in a .38 Spl. Anything lighter than that is only going to generate more muzzle flash and flame cutting while offering no real benefit. While you may gain a little bit of recoil reduction in a flyweight polymer/alloy snub you are not really going to gain anything in performance. Mass is your friend in defensive shooting. Lightweight bullets in lightweight guns are just silly if someone is trying to kill you.

Mark 40 said:

Precision One 148g wadcutters

Click to expand...

Are these the copper plated wadcutters? Are they light loaded like typical wadcutters or a little warmer?

Remington 158 LSWCHP +p

Although my revolver is a 357 I chose to load it up with the already mentioned Federal HST 130 Micro's along with two speed strips of the HST 's. They are quite accurate in my Ruger Police Service Six. They get good reviews and meet the standards put out by the FBI for penitration.

Most current ammo available for SD is loaded with a bullet that will do what it was developed to do. IMO you should find what is most accurate in your revolver and go with that.

The best bullet and ammo in the world will do no good unless you hit what you are shooting at.
(I say that so much I should put it in my sig below)

Speer Short Barrel 135gr Gold Dots in the J frame right now. I wouldn't feel inadequate if it was loaded with wad cutters though.

Following the advice of Galil5.56 I am using 158 gr Speer LSWC-HP with a maximum charge of Unique. The Speer bullets are soft, swaged lead and have the lube worked into the outer layer of the lead. In my 2" Colt Cobra I had no leading after 50 rounds. And since the lube is in, not on, the bullet the lube does not transfer to my fingers.

Remington 125 gr JHP +P
Any manufacturer 158gr LSWCHP +P

I generally practice with that Remington load too. I really don’t like so called standard pressure 38. Really it 38 -P and 38 +P is standard pressure.