FWIW, quite a few older time lawmen elected to carry the 148 grain full wadcutters in their duty revolvers. They tried to find the brand that listed those loads at the highest level among what was available. They used the same type of ammo at qualification time, knew where it hit from their revolvers, and most could shoot it pretty well. It was their thought that the same bullet that cut those nice round holes in paper would also cut the same kind of hole in flesh. I am aware of a few incidences where miscreants were shot with these "regular" wadcutter loads. All these incidences involved revolvers with 4" barrels, which no doubt gave the rounds a bit more velocity than a 2" barrel would have done. However, each case I know of resulted in the desired results. One of the results of some of these incidents was that the detectives/plain clothes officers on their departments who carried snubbies also began to load them with wadcutters. One thing was proven after this. These men could shoot their duty revolvers much better, much more accurately, at speed with this ammunition. A hit with anything sure does beat a miss with anything!
I have shot jack rabbits with these regular wadcutter loads just for practice. Where I lived and worked, jack rabbits ate the same grass as range cattle, so they were considered to be an undesirable pest on the range. Walking a pasture and shooting jack rabbits where and when you found them was great practice, whether with your duty revolver or the rifle you took deer hunting. I can tell you that when one of these wadcutters hit a tough old jackrabbit, it sounded like a fast pitch softball hitting the catcher's mitt! And the results were immediately obvious!
Now I know none of this is scientific, and a jack rabbit is a long way from a human. If these rounds can be handled by these ladies in question, and if they can shoot their revolver well with them, then they will do for the purpose intended. And if they hurt in the lightweight J Frames, then trade for a steel framed one. I'll bet they can handle them there just fine, and they can accommodate the heavier revolver for carry much easier than trying to accommodate shooting something that hurts!
You can purchase full wadcutters from Buffalo Bore that are loaded to about 900 fps out of a snubby. They ain't bad at all in a steel framed J with the right grips. They are what I carry for my first five shots. I carry either the 158 grain standard pressure LSWCHP or the Speer 135 grain short barrel loads for my reloads, since those bullets make reloading faster and easier than do the blunt nosed full wadcutters. All I can tell you is I do not feel inadequately armed when loaded out in this manner.
