So, back to the OPs original question.....
There can be lots of debate over the question of .38 special vs. .357 Magnum, and their relation to .45 ACP as a defence weapon. I won't continue the opening of Pandora's box with my opinions on which is best and why. As you can see, there will be a lot of opinions and analysis. I am very fond of .45 ACP, but I don't see that it has any big advantage over .357 in performance, size, options or anything else to restrict yourself to it.
Here's sort of a simplisitic view of it, in the Army we used to say "K.I.S.S" (keep it simple, stupid) and often that really works. With that idea in mind, I would opt for the model 65 for the simple fact that you can fire either .38 special (to include +P) or .357 magnum through it, and so have your choice of two cartridges and still stay at least equal (or more, considering your point of view on the comparison) with .45 ACP. I think that sounds like a good price for a 65 that you have found, too. Plus, I really like K-Frames and Model 65s
Seriously, I think the 65 would be a good do-all and not a compromise. Nothing wrong with the 64 or 457, but the 65 would give you "best of both worlds". And remember it's JMHO.