Is this revolver able to shoot +P .38 without hurting it. It has a 6in barrel. I believe I had read somewhere the K frame was lighter weight and not to continuously run .357 magnums in it. I have never shot +P's in it but have shot .38's. Mostly .357 magnums.
Thanks for any help in this area.

1) A 66 is a "K" frame, not a J
2) .38+p is less powerful than the 357s you say you shoot most of the time.
3) Shoot what you want, except don't use lightweight magnums, like 125gr. Stick with 150gr or so or heavier in the 66. These are the rounds demonstrated to cause problems in the 66/19 platform.

Your M66 is perfectly safe and should last a long, long, time with quality in spec .38 Special loadings of any reasonable power level. That includes +P .38 Special's. They should be very pleasant to fire from your M66 revolver.

quote:

Originally posted by Kamerer: ... 3) Shoot what you want, except don't use lightweight magnums, like 125gr. Stick with 150gr or so or heavier in the 66. These are the rounds demonstrated to cause problems in the 66/19 platform.

Bryan et al; unless you're shooting some pretty old 1970s vintage .357 Magnum ammunition then the 125gr Rule doesn't really apply any longer. It was in those days that people like Super Vel decided to try and really hot rod the .357 Magnum and the .38 Special - as well as other calibers - by using lighter bullets and "hotter" powders. They didn't do enough R&D and began marketing a product that began causing "issues" with the "K" and "J" frame guns as well as those made but those other companies. All that is in the past and unless you're into shooting up unknown ammo that you don't have any idea how old it is or where it came from then simply enjoy your guns with any load you like. The lighter bullets will feel like they are recoiling less but that is only because they don't stay in the barrel as long!

That's not to say that if you load a light 125gr bullet to the same velocity as you do a 158gr one that there won't be less actual recoil but what would the point be???

Thanks for your replies. I really appreciate this. I am wanting to shoot some less expensive ammo.

I have similiar concerns as conan1. Owning a 66-2 and looking for a good self-defense round has been kind of a pain.

Actually it's quite easy to get .38 Special, though when I walk into the local gunstore and ask for .357 Magnum, they offer me Golden Saber 125gr and some off-the-wall brand 110gr JHP. Remembering that I read the light weight stuff might be bad for my k-frame I feel kinda limited to .38 Spl ammo!

And I read KKG's post about the 125gr Golden Saber being safe I feel a bit confused. So I can shoot modern 125gr .357 bullets safely?

I went ahead and bought a box of .38 Spl Hornady XTP and a box of .357 Magnum Golden Saber(both the Saber and XTP are 125gr). I did this as a way of supporting my local gunstore. I hinted to the owner that I wish I had more of a selection of ammo to choose from...

In a week or two I will be taking wifey to a dentist appointment in Sidney NE. Home of Cabela's! Now when I get there what ammo should I buy?

I have a 66-2 with six-inch barrel.

I want personal protection rounds, hunting rounds, and target rounds.

Any good recommendations for the 66-2 in each category?

Thanks for your time!

Oh and how do you guys feel about MagTech 158gr FMJ .38 Special for range rounds?

Golden Sabres are a managed recoil round. They're not full power .357s, that's why they shouldn't be an issue in a 66. If you're inexperienced with .357 magnum revolvers, I wouldn't be in a hurry to use anything more powerful. Win. 145 gr. Silvertips and Remington 158 gr. SJHPs would also be good heavier bullet loads and on my short list if I carried a K frame. Another managed recoil load that might be worth a try is Speer's 135 gr. short barrel Gold Dot ammo.

What type of game do you intend to hunt?

For practice ammo I would suggest that you save your brass and start handloading. It will save you money and it's quite educational.

If you want a load that you can use for hunting deer and self defense, then i would try Remington 158 gr. SJHPs. One round means no rezeroing.

What can you tell me about the Silvertip. Is this a self-defense round?

I really like the idea of the SJHP 158gr for hunting and self-defense. This pistol will be my backup when I am hunting pronghorn, mule deer, and white tails.

When I say this I mean provided a find a holster and if the laws allow it. I primarily hunt with a rifle.

I intend on shooting this pistol at an open air range out in the country that belongs to the local gun club.

Looking for an economical target round, a self-defense round, and a hunting round.

I live in an apartment so reloading ain't gonna happen anytime soon. The reason I bought a box of each of the .38 XTP and .357 Golden Saber is I want to fire off a box of each at the range to be sure I familiar with the round in case I ever need it.

One thing I am seeing is the huge diffence in velocity and energy of the .357 as compared to the .38 Spl even the +P. Night and Day!

I am thinking I am gonna stick with the Hornady XTP 125gr in .38 Spl for self-defense. I can't imagine needing anything more.

Gonna go and check out Hornady's website and see if they make any .357 rounds similar to the one's flop-shank has listed. Hornady being a Nebraska product I would like to put my money where my mouth is!

Thanks flop-shank for the SilverTip tip! Might have missed out on this round unless I happened to see it at Cabela's!

(just havin' fun... don't take offense)

I agree with flop-shank and others that the 145-gr Silvertip is one of the best .357-Magnum revolver loads available. There are others, of course. Be prepared for a shock when you see that a box of 50 costs between $40 and $50!!!!!

The Model 66 would do very well with the FBI load of a +P 158-gr LSWC-HP made by Remington.

Good luck with your decision, and have some fun with what I think is one of the finest looking revolvers S&W ever made!

But does the Lord sayeth anything about shooting 125gr .357 magnum rounds through the Model 66?

quote:

Originally posted by CamuMahubah:
But does the Lord sayeth anything about shooting 125gr .357 magnum rounds through the Model 66?

See KKG's post above on the subject. He said much of the "light bullet" problem was related to older SuperVel ammo and not modern ammo. In other words, it WAS a problem, but isn't now with modern ammo. Sounds plausible to me, and he has been around the industry long enough that I would listen to his opinion.

Camu, While the 125 gr. .357 is famous as a defensive cartridge, there is no reason to believe it has a huge advantage over the 158 grainers. The .357 is a lot like the .40 S&W, there are so many great cartridges available that it's hard to go wrong. Issue, or no issue, I would just avoid the whole 125 grain issue and run with heavier, deeper penetrating bullets since you expressed an interest in using your 66 for hunting and defense. I would let the gun decide what it likes by putting Hornady (seeing as you are interested in supporting your local economy, I respect that very deeply BTW, I do the same thing) and Remington 158s up against each other. See which one is most accurate in your revolver. A google search might also give you accesss to gelatin testing/penetration results as well as field reports from hunters that might provide useful information towards making a decision. One cartridge (I would suspect the Hornady) might be an overpenetrator for self defense and the other not. If they are both accurate and shoot to the same point of aim (Highly likely), you might want to use one for defense and one for hunting.

If I were buying factory ammo for my 66-2 for defensive loads I would go for the Hornady 140gr. XTP/HP's.