What bullet weight do you carry in your .38 Special?

[Doug.38PR]

what weight bullet do you carry? I carry 158 gr. Why carry a lighter bullet that is going to have less penetration and expansion in the bad guy and more wear in your gun?

158
150
148
135
130
129
125
110

 

[tc300mag1]

When i carry it since it is a 2" snub i carry 125 federal nyclads that you cant seem to find anywhere anymore

 

[Sistema1927]

Speer 135 +P Gold Dot.

 

[420Stainless]

125 gr. Nyclads here too.

 

[ugaarguy]

158gr LSWCs in my old M&P - sights on these old guns are factory regulated for that weight and it shows.

 

[Ala Dan]

Federal 158 grain Nyclad JHP's~!

 

[sm]

158

 

[bpisler]

Black hills 125gr +P's loaded with the Speer
gold dot bullet in my 642-2.I carry them over
the 158gr because the 125's produce less
muzzle flip and shot POA in this gun.

Federal 158gr +P LSWCHP's in my 3" model
10-7,these shot POA and muzzle flip is not a
problem in the heavier gun.

 

[jeb_ingram]

Corbon DPX 110 grain in my 642.

 

[atlctyslkr]

Federal 129gr +p Hydrashoks

(been known to put them in 357's too)

 

[nitesite]

Remington Express 158-gr LSWC +P in my 442.

 

[Matt Dillon]

RBCD Performance Plus 60 grain

 

[SaxonPig]

125 JHP Remington Golden Sabres hand-loaded to 1,150 FPS. They lose about 100 FPS in the 2" guns.

 

[Coltdriver]

I carry 158 grain semi wad cutters that I hand load. These are as hot as I can handle them but are still manageable.

 

[JNewell]

Was 124 gr GD +P, now 135 gr GD +P.

 

[gopguy]

I sometimes carry a S&W 642 with 125 gr. Nyclads. I have also toted silvertips on occasion.

 

[HiWayMan]

My loads weren't an option, but:

146gr Speer SJSWCHP handloads and 154gr hardcast LWC handloads.

The 146 shoots POA/POI, and the 154 shoots 1.5" high of POA.

 

[Pumpkinheaver]

135+p speer gold dots

 

[Kurt S.]

I have 2 snub .38's, a S&W M36 and Taurus M85 ULCH. I also have a S&W M60 snub in .357.

I have started carrying the Gold Dot 135 grainers in the .38s. The 158 grain LHPs are hell to practice with in my Model 36. I don't normally mind a bit of kick, but I get blisters on my trigger finger from the heavies. I have seen 148 grain WC's bounce off of hard wood posts ; I have no faith in penetration with this load. The 125 grain Nyclads are too hard to find anymore.

Although I have tested the 158 gr load in the Taurus Ultralight, I still have a concern about bullet pulling in that firearm. I settled on Gold Dot 125 Grain +P's for both guns until the the 135 grainers came out recently.

Now in the Model 60 .357, the 158 grain .38 LHP is fine, no blisters. Go figure. However I carry the Corbon 110 grain .357 (1500 fps!) or the 125 grain Rem Golden Sabre in that piece.

 

[magsnubby]

135 gr Gold Dots.

 

[edw794]

158 lhp.

 

[Sport45]

Remington 158gr LSWCHP +P

For practice I use my reloads. Zero 158gr LSWCHP over Titegroup. A healthy load, but not +p.

 

[Stainz]

I keep five Rem R38S12 158gr LHPSWC +P's in my HKS #10 speedloaders for my 2" 10 and 6" 66. The sixth round is a snakeshot capsule. My carry is a 296 with 200gr GDJHP's - GA Arms or Blazers.

Stainz

 

[Faeruss7]

The correct answer is a Speer Goldot 135 grain hollowpoint. Preferably loaded in the +p range to ensure expansion. But I really appreciate everyone elses answers, however misguided.

 

[cookekdjr]

The 158gr fbi load is the best load, as it out-performs every other .38 load out there (as well as a number of .357 loads).
Some lighter j-frames (especially scadium/titanium etc) require jacketed bullets and only shoot reliably with 125gr loads. So I carried 125gr in my 340 and 342 pd's. Managable recoil, reliable performance. It wasn't the most powerful thing out there, but its all about trade offs. The guns weighed 10 ounces and I could carry them anywhere.
-David