What advantage - 9mm revo. vs .38 spl?

[FunYet]

I've seen a couple of Taurus 9mm snubbie revolvers at the local gun store. Neat little gun. What, if any, advantage does 9mm have in a snubbie over .38 spl (or .38 +P)?

-I know the moon clip makes reloading very fast.
-I know 9mm is cheap to shoot.

Are there any ballistic advantages?

Anyone who has one of these revolvers have any comments on the gun?

Thanks

 

[Greybeard]

A friend has a Ruger 5-holer. IIRC, the fps on the 9 are considerably better than 38 out of the short tubes.

 

[Cayoot]

I hate sounding stupid ( I do it so often that I should be used to it by now), but what does "IIRC" mean?

 

[1911user]

IIRC - If I Recall Correctly

 

[Cayoot]

Thanks so much!

 

[RickH]

More varieties of ammo in 9mm at most stores.

 

[9mmepiphany]

the 9mm is just a more efficient package in obtaining the same velocities with the same bullet weights...at least in snubby barrels. most of the powder space in the longer .38spl case is wasted as it was originally sized for use with black powder.

the advantage of the .38spl, comes forward as barrels get longer, the powder gets slower and the bullet gets heavier

 

[BluesBear]

Taurus is making their 9mm revolvers in two sizes.
One is the standard J-frame size with a long .38/.357 length cylinder.

The other has a short cylinder better suited to the shorter 9mm round. Less jump to the forcing cone. The corrospondingly slightly smaller frame aids concealment.

 

[denfoote]

Are the Taurus Revolvers rated for 9mm+P??
Anybody know??
If that is the case, I may have to pick one up!!!

 

[1911austin]

I called customer and asked if the 905 I had was rated for +p. They asked if I was mistaking about the model number and asked if I had a .38 special because they have never heard of +p ammo for a 9mm. After ensuring them that I was in fact asking if the Model 905, chambered for 9mm, was rated for +p the answer was NO. I did not call back to see if maybe someone smarter would answer the phone.

 

[R.H. Lee]

I'll be contrarian and say the .38 spcl. Moonclips are a PITA, you can buy or handload just about any bullet/velocity combination in .38, and there's AFAIK no savings on size or weight with the 9mm.

 

[LC '92]

Let me start by saying I have never had a 9mm revolver and I really suspect this might be troll baiting , but....

I have had dozens of .38 Special revolvers, mostly S&W's. The .38 Special can easily do anything the 9mm can do. In addition it can launch the heavier 158 grain Kieth style bullet to 1000 fps from a 4" barrel. The 9mm cannot handle these heavier and better designed bullets. I think the 9mm may have the advantage of having more choices in factory loads but in no way does it offer any ballistic advantage over the .38 Special when the loads compared are loaded to the same pressure and with the same bullet. The .38 has the case capacity needed for heavy charges of 2400 and still enough capacity for the heavy bullets.

One might argue that with bullets under 125 grains, the 9mm can hold its own against the .38 Special, but that is where it stops. The 9mm would make a great little concealed carry revolver and if they weren't so costy in the S&W revolver, I would have had one by now.

Which is best? You decide. But thank God we live in a land where we are free to choose!

See: //http://www.sixguns.com/tests/tt38spcl.htm for some good .38 Special advice.

 

[Cayoot]

.38 spl, bigger bullet, heaver bullet, potentially more accurate. As far as I can see, there is no real comparison.

The only reason that I can see of having a revolver chambered in 9mm is if you also own a brass puker in 9mm.

 

[R.H. Lee]

Cayoot- revolver man are ya?

 

[Cayoot]

What gave it away?

 

[Tacoma]

You hit on the answer yourself. Moonclips and cheap ammo make it an attractive caliber for a revolver IMHO. I'm not going to argue it's a "better" defence round. I just think they are slick to load, and cheaper to feed with factory ammo. ( What other centerfire can you feed factory ammo @ $10.50/100) Accuracy and "umph" are pleasing too. FWIW, I have a Ruger SP 101 3" ( and a Ruger Blackhawk convertible) in 9mm. The little 101 has become a favorite in it's short stay with me. Yes, I also have a dozen + 38's/357 that I'm not giving up soon either. Fortunately, there is room for both.

 

[Brian Williams]

9mm beats a 38 spec out of a 2" barrel any day. I do not have specs but I have seen them either here or on TFL.
I had a S&W 940 and it is a great revolver and I only sold it because I got a 940 cylinder and put it in a 642 to make a 942 lightweight 940.

 

[Morgan]

9mm revolvers are very cool - I recently picked up a 940, and I love it.

However, my backup gun is an Airweight .38 Spc. The lighter weight makes a difference in certain carry modes.

If I could only have a J-frame for primary, I'd certainly take the 9mm.

 

[KurtC]

I have owned, carried or qualified with at least a dozen revolvers in .38 sp, .357, 10mm, .44 mag and .45 Colt. I eventually parted with all of them.

The only two I carry nowadays are a 4" S&W 625 in .45 acp and a 3" Ruger SP101 in 9mm. You just can't beat short cartridges in full moon clips for speed and convenience.

 

[BluesBear]

To the best of my knowledge all Taurus revolvers currently in production are +P rated.

You need to remember that what the 9mm does it does at TWICE the pressure of a standard .38 Special. Which puts it in the .357 Magnum pressure range.

Check your ammo catalogues. You'll find a LOT more loads available in .38 Special than 9mm.

What you won't find is cheap surplus .38 Special ammo.

Personally I prefer a revolver that doesn't need any "attachments" to load or eject ammunition.

Also except for the new Taurus 905I series all of the other 9mm revolvers use a .38/.357 length cylinder, including the Taurus 905 Series.


I wonder why someone doesn't make a J-frame sized revolver chambered for .38 Super. .38 Super handles heavier bullets much better than 9mm does.

 

[PaleRyder]

In my neck of the woods, .38 special rounds are almost identically prices to 9mm rounds.

I'll take the .38 special also.

 

[trickyasafox]

i apologize if im risking hijacking the thread here but. . . .

i am getting a ruger gp100 so i have my 357 38 base covered until funds allow me 2 in each catagory, but i'd also like a 9mm revolver for practical carry, and occasional(and by occasional i mean very frequent) target practice.

what gun companies still produce 9mm revo;s? how much should i expect to pay? are moon clips readily available?

thanks all

 

[happy old sailor]

.38 Super in a little revolver?? now you are talking.

 

[357wheelgunner]

"-I know the moon clip makes reloading very fast."

why worry about reloading? Just make your 5 or 6 shots count.

Another main advantage the .38 has is the ability to use any bullet design it wants- revolvers are not picky about feeding different bullets. This allows the revolver to shoot bullets with a deep, wide hollow point that would never feed in an automatic. Try loading a 158gr lead hollow point, with that huge hollow cavity in a 9mm casing. Then, IF you got it to load and feed, try pushing it to 900fps or so out of a 3" barrel. There is a reason that the FBI used a S&W model 13 3" for many years, loaded with a .38special +P lead hollow point. That combo was, and still is, an awesome duo for personal protection.

Also, the 9mm is faster out of a short barrel due to the extremely high pressures. If you are gonna shoot a 9mm in a little pistol why not use a .357? I'd think that 9mm would tear a little J-Frame apart as fast as 125gr. .357 magnums would. Auto pistols tend to stand up to high pressure rounds a bit better than a small or medium frame revolver (say a glock 19 vs. an S&W K-frame)

If you want a 9mm, get an autopistol, and if you want a revolver get it in .38, .357, or .44

 

[wheelgunslinger]

I'll second the previous post.