The power:accuracy balance

[old lady new shooter]

"Its all about training. 2 or 3 times a year with a box of ammo and you will want to go with whats easiest. I and my boys are out 2-3 times a week and shoot a LOT of ammo so we work up to whats best. Best is a matter of opinion but I lean towards the Elmer Keith philosophy where heavier and faster is better. Master what you shoot. The FBI, who couldnt get their limp wristed shooters to handle the 10mm feels differently."

Have you tested yourself on the same gun with both calibers to see how many accurate shots you can get in the same amount of time with each one? And if your results on such testing with the .357 are as good as .38 spl, would you care to share your secrets? I don't think JUST practice is the answer -- if a person is doing something not ideal, practicing doing that over and over is not going to result in improvement.

 

[IWAC]

NOT "old lady new shooter", but XYL shooter (Former Young Lady New Shooter"), right? Welcome!

HBWC = Hollow-Based Wadcutter, a blunt-nosed projectile, with a hollow base, used as a target round, and tending to be inaccurate/tumble at ranges beyond 50 yards. Some fellows load them with the hollow bases first, for short-range defense loads. The Hollow base is said to expand wickedly at "proper distances", whatever that may be. 7 yards?

DEWC= Double-ended wadcutter; you can load them either end up, used for target shooting, but also effective for SD at "normal(?)" shorter ranges. Lower velocity...about 700-800 fps. I've had them "keyhole" (traveling sideways through the target) at 25 yards. Low recoil, standard target round for...darn near 100 years.

Semi-wadcutter=The most common shape of cast and swaged lead bullets today. It features a full-diameter body, with a step , then a reduced nose, tapering to a flat or hollow point. It gives better accuracy at extended ranges, with a velocity range of 700 fps to KATY BAR THE DOOR! Most useful range of weights is 150-160 grains, at a maximun of 800-1100 fps, In my never-humble opinion.

Lately, plated rounds are becoming popular, due to an overblown lead hazard concern. They are available in the three most common types WC, SWC, and Round nose. It is said that round nose-flat point bullets are as/more accurate than SWC rounds, and as effective. Imo, the jury is still out.

I hope this has helped,and I haven't told you how to build a whole bicycle, when all you wanted to know is how to change the tire! It Is A Fine and Pleasant Madness!

Be well!

 

[old lady new shooter]

^^^^

Thank you for the detailed explanation! Maybe you can also add why they are called "wadcutters"?

 

[Kleanbore]

The sharp edge better cuts a round hole in a paper target that does a round nose bullet.

No argument about the score.

 

[old lady new shooter]

The sharp edge better cuts a round hole in a paper target that does a round nose bullet.

No argument about the score.

Oh boy, I definitely never would have guessed that!

So is it that the varieties are wadcutters, round-nose, and hollow point? And hollow point are considered the most effective for self-defense?

 

[Kleanbore]

And semi-wadcutters. Also, the first Parabellums had a bullet shaped like a truncated cone, and I remember pointed cones in .357 for penetrating car bodies.

People generally prefer JHPs for defensive use. Bonded JHPs are best--they stay together and penetrated more.

But some older semi-autos may not function well with JHPs. That's one reason I sold a Smith Model 39 that I had for years.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

A wadcutter is so called because in the old days, shotgun shooters had to cur their own wads. The wad is the stuff you put over the powder to keep it in place and prevent it mixing with the shot. You also put a wad over the shot to keep it from dribbling out the barrel if you hold the gun horizontally or below.

The best wads are columns of material -- felt, cardboard, and so on -- cut to exactly match the bore and stacked to form a column a half inch or so high.

So when you bought a shotgun in those days, you also bought a wadcutter -- a pipe with one end sharpened. You would put your cardboard, felt, or what have you on a soft board and use a mallet to cut wads.

After you were finished, the remainder of the material looked sort of like lace -- mostly perfectly round holes, with a little material linking the holes together.

Targets shot with wadcutter bullets looked similar -- hence the name.

 

[old lady new shooter]

Fascinating. Thanks!