ArchAngelCD
Moderator, SWCA Member, Absent Comrade
The 350 Legend has nothing to do with the .38 Special. Not even in the the same state lol.
38 Special SD ammo
- Thread starter Drm50
- Start date
The 350 Legend has nothing to do with the .38 Special. Not even in the the same state lol.
Norton 750
Member
Remember the context. Most of the old 20's to 50's stuff that was advocating the 200 grain were comparing it to the 158 grain round nose that was common police issue. They were both poor performers. A lead semi wad cutter hollow point is a much better choice. The jacketed bullets struggle to get enough velocity to overcome the jacket. The semi wad cutter is a good bullet design, and if anything is going to expand at two inch BBL .38 Special velocity that is it. And if it does not expand, it cuts better than a round nose. So the LSWCHP is my choice, not plus P for a vintage Colt Cobra, plus p for J frames.
You are fighting against physics with that load, and physics usually wins.
P = MV (Momentum = Mass x Velocity)
You certainly have the mass there, but I cannot see any way that the velocity could reach a point that justifies it out of a 38 snub. This coming from a guy who loves bigger bullets and routinely shoot 180-200 grain hard cast bullets out of my 686. I even use 145 grain Silvertips instead of the vaunted 125 grain loads of some makers because I do like a bigger, beefier bullet.
All that being said, you must realize that there are diminishing returns at a certain point, if not, outright decrease in effectiveness. I think the biggest I would go out of your particular gun is 158 grains otherwise you just lose too much velocity in a round that already lacks it.
You do whatever you like, I just do not think you are going to get the terminal ballistics you think you will with a round such as this.
P = MV (Momentum = Mass x Velocity)
You certainly have the mass there, but I cannot see any way that the velocity could reach a point that justifies it out of a 38 snub. This coming from a guy who loves bigger bullets and routinely shoot 180-200 grain hard cast bullets out of my 686. I even use 145 grain Silvertips instead of the vaunted 125 grain loads of some makers because I do like a bigger, beefier bullet.
All that being said, you must realize that there are diminishing returns at a certain point, if not, outright decrease in effectiveness. I think the biggest I would go out of your particular gun is 158 grains otherwise you just lose too much velocity in a round that already lacks it.
You do whatever you like, I just do not think you are going to get the terminal ballistics you think you will with a round such as this.
The primary reason I went with an S&W 940 in 9mm when I decided to get a J-Frame for pocket carry is because the .38 Spl is generally not a great performer in the 2" barrel, and I'm not "he-man" enough to shoot .357 in that platform.
When looking at the Lucky Gunner tests HERE, you see that the age-old 158gr LSWCHP is generally a lousy round. The bullet just isn't moving fast enough out of a snub to fold back the lead. The Remington and Winchester +P examples did fine in the testing, but the other brands pretty much stank.
With a 2" barrel, you need as much speed as you can get. The Federal HST Micro and the Hornady Critical Defense both look like good options.
When looking at the Lucky Gunner tests HERE, you see that the age-old 158gr LSWCHP is generally a lousy round. The bullet just isn't moving fast enough out of a snub to fold back the lead. The Remington and Winchester +P examples did fine in the testing, but the other brands pretty much stank.
With a 2" barrel, you need as much speed as you can get. The Federal HST Micro and the Hornady Critical Defense both look like good options.
OP
I'm not worried, for normal humans this load will suffice. If not you can kick them in the head while they are down.
