After reading this I say hell yes the old timer 38 is plenty good. Even if it did take a couple of shots.
Man shoots mammoth 820 pound wild hog in his front yard | AL.com
Man shoots mammoth 820 pound wild hog in his front yard | AL.com
Is the 38 good enough for defense??
- Thread starter patrickd
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[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rPTk8raXdo[/ame] Has some great info for you
The .38 Special has served Americans well for over 100 years. Nobody likes getting shot, not with a BB gun and not with a .22 and definitely not with a .38 Special. Shot placement is the key. A .22 in the heart works a far deadlier magic than a .38 in the shoulder. But if what you are going for is a fight/threat stopper, which is really all anyone ever needs from a technical perspective, then the .38 Special is more than good enough to do the job. The only reason I am presently carrying a 9mm and not a .38 is for the flatness and concealment capability. I have carried a .38 with me daily for many years and never felt under gunned. 
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If you do your job, your .38 Special will do its.
Triggernosis
Member
What 9mm gun do you carry, Yoda?The .38 Special has served Americans well for over 100 years. Nobody likes getting shot, not with a BB gun and not with a .22 and definitely not with a .38 Special. Shot placement is the key. A .22 in the heart works a far deadlier magic than a .38 in the shoulder. But if what you are going for is a fight/threat stopper, which is really all anyone ever needs from a technical perspective, then the .38 Special is more than good enough to do the job. The only reason I am presently carrying a 9mm and not a .38 is for the flatness and concealment capability. I have carried a .38 with me daily for many years and never felt under gunned.
bmcgilvray
Member
The .38 Special is good enough. When used with good 158 grain lead semi-wadcutters at adequate velocities it is highly effective, assuming good hits.
No cartridge and no "trick" bullet is highly effective with bad hits.
No cartridge and no "trick" bullet is highly effective with bad hits.
Shot placement is requirement number one. If you can hit what you are shooting at any REASONABLE caliber will do the job, including a .38.
Scorpion520AZ
Member
In a word, yes. I was a working cop for 30 years and had the misfortune to be drawn into three on duty shootings, each w/my issued thirty-eight. It dropped the bad guy and I made it to retirement, still carrying a J frame loaded w/Speer Gold Dot 135 grain +P. Even though there are more modern weapons it's a platform I'm comfortable with in retirement. UPDATE: Went to the range today (8/9) w/my 340PD and ran a couple of cylinders of +P and as well as around 100 rounds of range fodder. Shot paper plates @ three, five, seven & ten yards. This little gun is amazing.
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kthom
Member
Yes it is ... with decent cartridges that you can deliver to the right place to get the job done. I tend to prefer 158 grain bullets, either the lead semi wadcutter hollowpoints like the old FBI load , or a good lead or jacketed semi wadcutter style. The jacketed loads will be called soft points and will have a flat point above the jacket. It's even better if your handgun will handle +P loadings but the standard loads will also work. It will be your level of accuracy with the gun and cartridge regardless of caliber or platform you use that will make the difference. You should use whatever you can handle and shoot the best!
To steal a quote...(maybe from this site?):
"the only place the .38spl is not an effective defense round is on the internet"
I trust it...mostly because I shoot them reasonably well and guys with way more experience than me carry .38's daily.
"the only place the .38spl is not an effective defense round is on the internet"
I trust it...mostly because I shoot them reasonably well and guys with way more experience than me carry .38's daily.
joeintexas
US Veteran
More times than not I am carrying a 38 spec+p and I don't feel unsafe with it. Carry it with confidence.
Bill In Texas
Member
I'm good with .38 special. As other have said, you do your job and the cartridge will do it's job just fine!
Exactly mine thoughts. I cut my teeth on revolvers, carried a model 15 as my duty weapon for many years. I now carry a Kahr PM9 for the same flatness, even though it's not big increase in round count (5 vs 6 or 7 depending on magazine). Reason of the Kahr is the trigger pull, to me, is as close as any slider has come to a true DA revolver feel.The .38 Special has served Americans well for over 100 years. Nobody likes getting shot, not with a BB gun and not with a .22 and definitely not with a .38 Special. Shot placement is the key. A .22 in the heart works a far deadlier magic than a .38 in the shoulder. But if what you are going for is a fight/threat stopper, which is really all anyone ever needs from a technical perspective, then the .38 Special is more than good enough to do the job. The only reason I am presently carrying a 9mm and not a .38 is for the flatness and concealment capability. I have carried a .38 with me daily for many years and never felt under gunned.
john14_18
Member
In answer to your question, let me show you what happens when a 125 gr .38 hollowpoint fired from a S&W 586 with 6" barrel hits something (also shows you what happens when you do something stupid like pulling a trigger before checking to see if the gun is loaded.).
I was standing about 5 feet from the mirror when gun was fired.
1st pic shows where it entered the mirror frame.
2nd pic shows exit hole on other side of wall in hall bathroom.
3rd pic shows what happened when it hit the sink.
4th pic shows actual hollowpoint bullet after it hit sink.
Didn't take 5th pic but it would have showed me dropping to my knees and thanking God it wasn't my foot.
Hope that answers your question.( There are still small pieces of the sink embedded in bathroom wall)
I was standing about 5 feet from the mirror when gun was fired.
1st pic shows where it entered the mirror frame.
2nd pic shows exit hole on other side of wall in hall bathroom.
3rd pic shows what happened when it hit the sink.
4th pic shows actual hollowpoint bullet after it hit sink.
Didn't take 5th pic but it would have showed me dropping to my knees and thanking God it wasn't my foot.
Hope that answers your question.( There are still small pieces of the sink embedded in bathroom wall)
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The 38 will not only do the job, it will shine in the process. I recently posted a thread about arthritis of the hands making me have to go to a recoilless handgun for SD. I went to a 22 Compact but before I did that I researched the lethality of the 22. After many hours of research I finally was comfortable with the decision. The 38 is an upgrade from the 22LR.
For the doubters, accuracy is the determining factor in a gunfight. A 22 between the BG's eyes is better that a 45 in his arm
Now let's try multiplication. Three 40 gr bullets form a 22 is roughly equal one 115 gr from a 9mm. How about if I can deliver those three rounds as fast and more accurately than the single 9mm round. And I can because I have no recoil to deal with.
Next week, I am going to run a test to see how many gr of 22 lead I can put on target in a five shot burst at 25 feet. I will post the result in a thread here.
With a 38 laying in a couple rounds within a couple seconds the result would be devastating to the BG. Sure and simple.
The kill formula is not hard to understand. The force on target is a multiple of the the weight of the bullet times the velocity. It makes no difference if the weight is distributed over sequential rapid fire rounds or a single round. 120 gr of lead will incapacitate if the hits are rapid sequentially and well grouped. The secret to a small caliber SD gun is accuracy with speed. Combined they are lethal.
For the doubters, accuracy is the determining factor in a gunfight. A 22 between the BG's eyes is better that a 45 in his arm
Now let's try multiplication. Three 40 gr bullets form a 22 is roughly equal one 115 gr from a 9mm. How about if I can deliver those three rounds as fast and more accurately than the single 9mm round. And I can because I have no recoil to deal with.
Next week, I am going to run a test to see how many gr of 22 lead I can put on target in a five shot burst at 25 feet. I will post the result in a thread here.
With a 38 laying in a couple rounds within a couple seconds the result would be devastating to the BG. Sure and simple.
The kill formula is not hard to understand. The force on target is a multiple of the the weight of the bullet times the velocity. It makes no difference if the weight is distributed over sequential rapid fire rounds or a single round. 120 gr of lead will incapacitate if the hits are rapid sequentially and well grouped. The secret to a small caliber SD gun is accuracy with speed. Combined they are lethal.
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nachogrande
Member
IT IS
IF YOU IS.
IF YOU IS.
