The semi-wadcutter is the ultimate general purpose bullet. They will work well for defense, hunting, or target shooting. Of nonexpanding bullet types for defense, I prefer wadcutters to SWCs because I believe trying to reload a gun in a gunfight will likely be a waste of time. YMMV. My wife's gun is loaded with .38 wadcutters, but I prefer and use hollowpoints in my carry guns.