38 special or 44 special for Home Defense/Conceal Carry dilemma

[Lurker66]

It shuts down the percieved noise, but the hearing damage will be permanent, and be assured it is permanent. Don't ask me how I know.

huh?

.

 

[Shootin 4 Fun]

I would really like a little bulldog, really like the 44spc but they don't sell it at Walmart

They do at Fat Boy Tactical. We purchased one to sale and I've been carrying it. I really like the gun, we should probably order another one.

 

[Shadowrider]

I'm a fan of the Speer gold dot short barrel loads in .38 +P. They chrono exactly what Speer claims out of my S&W 442 and are a great load for a snubbie.
With that said the .357 short barrel loads are not even close the magnum loadings. They are just a .38 load in a magnum case. If you are gonna shoot magnums I'm a firm believer in shooting MAGNUMS. Depending on your gun with S&W K frames being a no no because of forcing cones notoriously splitting with them, the .125 grain JHP loads @ 1450FPS (or faster) just don't get beat by much.

Buffalo Bore makes some screaming .38 and .357 loads that are low flash. The .38 +P gold dot loads are a good choice but be aware that they are in no way .357s or anything even close. They would be a decent choice for your wife.

 

[druryj]

It shuts down the percieved noise, but the hearing damage will be permanent, and be assured it is permanent. Don't ask me how I know.

Huh? What'd you say? And internet lore be damned, you may at the time percieve no "noise" but you may also feel a sudden warmth spreading on either the front, or back, or both of your trousers.

 

[n2sooners]

I saw a good tip the other day on home protection. If you have a nice pair of electronic hearing protectors, instead of leaving them in your range bag, put them close to your gun and use them if you have a chance if you have to defend yourself at night. It just gives you one more advantage. And while hearing loss sucks, hearing loss plus tinnitus sucks even more.

 

[dennishoddy]

I saw a good tip the other day on home protection. If you have a nice pair of electronic hearing protectors, instead of leaving them in your range bag, put them close to your gun and use them if you have a chance if you have to defend yourself at night. It just gives you one more advantage. And while hearing loss sucks, hearing loss plus tinnitus sucks even more.

This is extremely great advice! Y'all heed.

 

[dennishoddy]

I'm a fan of the Speer gold dot short barrel loads in .38 +P. They chrono exactly what Speer claims out of my S&W 442 and are a great load for a snubbie.
With that said the .357 short barrel loads are not even close the magnum loadings. They are just a .38 load in a magnum case. If you are gonna shoot magnums I'm a firm believer in shooting MAGNUMS. Depending on your gun with S&W K frames being a no no because of forcing cones notoriously splitting with them, the .125 grain JHP loads @ 1450FPS (or faster) just don't get beat by much.

Buffalo Bore makes some screaming .38 and .357 loads that are low flash. The .38 +P gold dot loads are a good choice but be aware that they are in no way .357s or anything even close. They would be a decent choice for your wife.

Have you ran any of the short barrel loads across a chrony?
I came across a Davis Derringer with a 2" barrel in a trade. Shot some standard factory lead loads into a 55 gallon drum. It only dented it. Did not penetrate it, so I got rid of it.
Do you think the premium loads are better?
That test turned me off of short barreled guns.
I will say that the manufactures are designing new loads for them though.

 

[Shadowrider]

Have you ran any of the short barrel loads across a chrony?
I came across a Davis Derringer with a 2" barrel in a trade. Shot some standard factory lead loads into a 55 gallon drum. It only dented it. Did not penetrate it, so I got rid of it.
Do you think the premium loads are better?
That test turned me off of short barreled guns.
I will say that the manufactures are designing new loads for them though.

Yes I have chrono'd the .38 +P Short Barrel loads out of my particular J frame snubbie. The average was within 5 fps of what their website lists which was pretty surprising as I was expecting less. I suspect that it was so very slightly lower because I had the chrono at 15 feet. They show a velocity at the muzzle, though I'll admit that I don't know their setup and don't know how they get a velocity at the muzzle.

I've not tested at any objects but all the reviews I've found were impressive for penetration and expansion. That also pretty much runs across the full spectrum of factory loaded gold dots from what I've seen. Federal HST is another good one. Hard to go wrong with either.

What kind of barrel? I used to get 55gal drums of various acids in stainless drums. The nitric acid drums in particular were really heavy duty. I don't know if they would make it through those or not, but your average run of the mill steel drum I wouldn't think would be an issue. But every gun is different too, maybe you had one that wasn't kosher? Edit: I just saw you stated plain lead loads. The .38 special 158gr RN lead bullet is a notorius weakling. That was probably it.

 

[dennishoddy]

The .38 special 158gr RN lead bullet is a notorius weakling. That was probably it.

Your correct. That was the load. In the same drum, a .22 bulk rimfire would penetrate and severely dent the back side of the drum. With the reports I'd seen about the Davis, I didn't want to go to +P stuff.

 

[aeropb]

Anything you shoot indoors at night will disorient you and ring the **** out of your ears. I've tried it and I'm prepared for it. That said you should stick with 357 as it gives you the most flexibility and get a lever action for hunting.