Quietest .38 Ammo

[kannonfyre]

Without reloading your own rounds, which factory .38 loads are the quietest and yet offer at least 9"s of penetration in ballistic penetration?

I know that "quiet" is a relative term here but I'm looking at a round that does not permanently or overly damage hearing if fired within a building for HD needs.

 

[RyanM]

Standard pressure 158 gr LRN "widowmakers." They're not called widowmakers because they kill well. They're called that because your wife will be widowed if you ever have to shoot someone in earnest with them.

Also, they will cause permanent damage to your hearing if fired indoors, as will any other firearm, even a .22. Your best bet is to rearrange your priorities. Surviving > hearing.

Your best bet in .38 is either Remington or Federal +P 158 gr LHPs if barrel length is 3" or greater, or Speer +P 135 gr short barrel Gold Dots if under 3".

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

I know of no way to attenuate the report of a gunshot without a sound suppressor (which won't work on a revolver anyway, despite what you see in movies and TV). Just the primer alone makes a substantial amount of noise. If you have time to put them on, an electronic muff or other small sound magnifying/loud noise suppressing hearing protector has much merit.