My Taurus 605 shoots 125 gr. .357 SJHPs to point of aim and shoots tight groups as well.

Lots of good information expressed above. It's rare to see this topic discussed so well.

If I can summarize what I've gotten, with reference to the original question, what it boils down to is individual preference, among reputable ammunition manufacturers. What is the shooter comfortable with, in terms of holding a gun in his hand and getting the effects of the controlled explosion.

I spent a lot of time looking at the manufacturer's ballistics data for lots of different .38 and .357 cartridges, and came to the conclusion that it's a pretty wide and continuous selection of choices. You can go from mild to wild, and everything in between. There's some .38 special +P's that are more powerful, all things considered, than some .357 magnums. And, basically, all of them are deadly, when used properly. True, some are more deadly than others, but all of them will work.

My suggestion would be to get a box of each of several different cartridges of varying weight and from different manufacturers (and brands within manufacturers) and see what works for you, keeping in mind that what you use for target practice isn't necessarily what you'll use for daily carrying (although you should, of course, practice with that, too).

For example, if 158 grain .357's have a little too much kick in your 2" barrel J frame for total shooting comfort at the range, but are still within the scope of your ability to control the gun, you may still want to carry those rounds for defensive use, but practice with a 125 grain.

I, myself, have never heard the phrase, "full house" used in connection with cartridges; it sounds like marketing fluffery to me.

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I, myself, have never heard the phrase, "full house" used in connection with cartridges; it sounds like marketing fluffery to me.

I've heard the term "full house" several times over the years and have always taken that term to mean loaded to maximum pressures. I'm sure that someone here more knowledgeable than me will correct me if I'm wrong.

I used to manage a gun store in the late '80s between college and law school. I heard the term all the time even back then.

Buffalo Bore's .357 Mag 158-gr JHCs are full house. So are my identical 18.0 gr Lil' Gun/mag primer/158-gr bullet loads.

I, too, am very familiar with the term 'full house' and tend to use it from time to time. I guess, though, I haven't noted it in print for a while.

Appreciate the usual wealth of knowledge and will do some comparison shooting. Tough job, but somebody's got to do it.
Regards

quote:

Originally posted by bhk:
I, too, am very familiar with the term 'full house' and tend to use it from time to time. I guess, though, I haven't noted it in print for a while.

3 Aces, 2 Kings... All seriousness aside, I've used the term off and on for years, and I always use it to indicate a load that is at or near the top end of velocity or pressure allowable for a given bullet weight. Like "food poisoning," however, it is a term with no specific, objective meaning.