Poor response to the OP. He's asking about ammo, not your personal opinion on the weapon. It's like posting a Camaro question on a Mustang forum! I purchased one for my son for Christmas about 2 years ago. Not only can he use it as a home defense gun, but a snake shot gun (which I understand some other popular guns don't do well with). It's a .45 caliber handgun! Geeze! With a 3 inch barrel, why would I even remotely consider trading it for a 1.7 inch barrel .38 Special (except for the price of the ammo)? If it was just a Taurus oddity, maybe you could poo-poo the gun, but Smith makes essentially the same thing! I don't carry it every day, but it's loaded, in my night stand safe and if you come in to my house uninvited, I'll greet you with it in one hand and my SD9VE in the other. "If the right one don't get you, the left one will."