I saw them being marketed a few years ago by a company called Northwest Custom Projectile in Montana. A few emails to them at the time went unanswered and their website is now down.

A friend loads .38 standard pressure rounds for me, using a non-hp semi wad cutter. It's accurate and not too hefty in an Airweight and a piece of cake in ss J frame and a Colt DS II. Why wouldn't that 158 gr. bullet be as effective as a 140 wad cutter.

HiCap

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HiCap

A wadcutter has a full-caliber (or damn close) flat nose (meplat) for max striking power. A SWC has a flat nose, but not full caliber, so has less strking power. The SWC does have a sharp full-caliber shoulder, but depending on the exact bullet used it also has a tapered nose which seems like it would tend to push through tissue like a round nose instead of cutting through like a wadcutter. I used to handload a hardcast 148 gr DEWC for self-defense use, but switched to a soft lead SWC-HP for that little bit more bullet weight and (hopefully) some degree of expansion.

That makes sense. My carry load is the SWHP +P, though I think the standard P would suffice. I had some wadcutters made by a gentlman with a beard who loaded the Cirillo load, but he went out of business; too bad. The old loads work fine and don't shoot low like the death ray super-duper high vel light weights do.

HiCap

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HiCap

I think both the 148 and 158 lead WC bullets work great in the snub nose for SD but when you put that big 158 Lhp in a 4" barrel at +P velositys it is getting near maximum penetration and I will not shoot them out of my 686 6" due to some of the bullets over penetrating in some of my test.

I ageee 100% on the softness and makeup of a lead bullet along with the velosity that it is fired which makes for a nice SD load.
Most copper plated bullets are too thick or hard to open up correctly in 2-3" revolvers with the factory velositys that are on the shelves,only a few are made for the snub nose guns that will work correctly and are usually +P ammo.......one reason the lead bullets are finding a home with the standard 38 guns.
I have yet to try a full house load of Unique with a 148gr but after reading about it all these years,I am going to give it try this year,just to see what is going on in the real world. Just going to wait a little til all the snow melts around here .

Maybe for YOU.

I know of several defensive shootings by both law-enforcement and ordinary people over the years where the potential victim placed one or more shots right on target with a handgun, occasionally at considerable distance.

Shot placement should be a priority!

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Groo here
Because , until we get energy rifles, we are still just chucking
rocks.
Large ones at slow speeds, small ones at high speeds.
The basic results are still the same.
Once you do the required amount of damage, the extra is just that ,
Extra.