That just about says it. How many +P rounds have you put though your J frame. How are they holdin up? Will they take a steady diet of +P? Also how many 38 specials? Just wondering how they would hold up over the long haul?

On last thing. Are there aftermarket grips that would help with the recoil of +P rounds. I understand the J's can get a but uncomfortable to shoot.

than

I don't know why anyone would go through the expense and punishment with a steady diet of +p ammo. There's no reason to.

When I bought my 642 I shot 100 rounds of fmj to break it in and get familiar with it. Then I shot 10 rounds of Corbon DPX to see how accurate it was. Works fine.

I have a 640 with the CEN serial number prefix and "tested for +P+" (as discussed in a recent thread). I usually shoot 15-20 rounds of 158 gr. semi-wadcutters on each range trip just to stay in practice with it. I expect the gun to last forever. The discontinued Uncle Mike's Combat grips are slightly longer than boot grips, but offer much greater comfort/control IMO, and they still conceal fine in my Lobo pocket holster.

Your right I wouldn't shoot only +p either. I just wanted to know how they hold up under the worst scenario. I was wondering if anyone noticed anything problems over a long period of time using the +P. I know it's rated for them but what does the real world say?

thanks guys

The ALL STEEL Jaybirds will eat more +Ps than YOU wanna feed 'em.

Trust me!

+P.. not too many. Enough to get a feel for the rounds. In the 13 months I've had my 642, I've put 375 +P rounds through it. Since it's seen a lot a carry time, I like to take it out twice a month and put 15+P rounds though each time. I've put about 800 rounds of standard .38s through in the same amount of time. It's still holding up fine.

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- The Federalist #46 -

Had a Model 37 years ago that I put close to 2000 thru over several years
and that was WW +P+ ammo. Had a LEO conection and it was cheaper than over the counter ammo. Gun was still going strong when my buddy talked me out of it.

All +P 38 Spl is not created equal. As far as I can tell, the term means that some point, for some duration, the maximum pressure goes into the red zone. Flop-shank or one of those guys who actually knows this stuff might be able to give a more precise definition. The SAAMI website is nearly useless, IMO. Most, not all, of the ammo companies treat this sort of information as a trade secret, for good reasons.

Up until the Great Ammo Crunch, I could buy WW white box 125gr 38 SPL +P more cheaply than I could reload with jacketed bullets. The only problem with the stuff was that my ammo guy wouldn't keep it in stock, because no one would buy it. Last time I ordered it I paid $138.78 OTD, per K. I ran two different lots over the machine and got ten shot averages of 818fps on one and 862fps on another. This was from a 642-2. The last CorBon 125 gr +P I tested gave 1027fps fron the same gun. Big difference. And while the CorBon may be using a "Wonder Powder", I find it hard to believe that there is not a substantial pressure difference between the two.

FWIW, the 642-2 in question, which lives in my pocket, lost it's ejector rod locking bolt, pin, and spring some where around round 920. I don't know exactly where, because I was shooting the Texas CHL course (for laughs, I have a semiauto license), and I didn't notice the missing parts until I got home. Of those 920 rounds, just over 700 were WW white box +Ps.

I returned the gun to Smith and got it back 18 days later. All on their dime. The packing slip noted the replaced locking bolt assembly and stated that they had replaced the firing pin spring.

Was the loss of the front locking bolt a function of the +P round count, or just one of these things? Don't know, but that particular load seems rather mild to me, based on recoil and MV. My guess is that the failure would have occured at some point, no matter what I was shooting.

Charles

I guess all my reloaded cast lead stuff is in the +P range...

Several thousand, but they have been all cast lead 145 to 160 grain loads.

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Lost it all in a boat accident

There is a pressure limit for +P ammo. In the case of the Winchester ammo, because ammo makers load to pressure and not velocity, I'll guess that both loads are operating at about the same pressure, but the powder has been changed, has a slightly different burn rate (which could very well vary from lot to lot), or other factors such as the tightness of the crimp may be at play. It stands to reason that any two lots of ammo when compared side by side won't behave exactly the same.

As far as the difference in velocity between the Corbon and Winchester loads, Corbon may be using a powder that is a little better suited to the task (velocity-wise, perhaps the Winchester load is more accurate in more guns?), and I'll guess Corbon is willing to make ammo that operates closer to the +P pressure ceiling. A thinner jacketed bullet could perhaps help velocity, and many Sierra JHPs have thin jackets.

I agree. My guess is that the pin that holds the whole assembly together was undersize, or the hole it goes in oversize. Short of a kaboom, pressure damage to a gun would likely cause issues such as timing and endshake problems as well as a stretched frame.

As far as the difference in velocity between the Corbon and Winchester loads, Corbon may be using a powder that is a little better suited to the task (velocity-wise, perhaps the Winchester load is more accurate in more guns?), and I'll guess Corbon is willing to make ammo that operates closer to the +P pressure ceiling. A thinner jacketed bullet could perhaps help velocity, and many Sierra JHPs have thin jackets.

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Good points. I should have thought of the difference in bullet construction myself. About ten years ago, I locked up a rather nice 358 Winchester when I switched from a cup and core to a heavy jacket bonded. Same weight, pretty much same profile, and I dropped the charge 10%. Wasn't enough. Of course, there were many witnesses.

I've got a 642 with over 1000. For range shooting grips, the rubber Uncle Mike's three finger grips work best for me.

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Centennial Every Day