Biggfoot44
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Whole lotta things in one Opening Post here .
In the Universe of Ammunition , between various Medium , Tactical , " Lite" , etc .357 and hot and extra hot .38 Spl , they overlap in the middle .
What are qualities sought in Defensive Ammo generally , or additionally for Home Defensive ? :
Be reasonably effective in stopping Bad Guys .
Be reasonably controllable by the shooter , especially under stressful conditions .
Don't be massively overpenetrative inside dwelling places .
Don't be massively excessive in noise/ muzzle blast .
Starting with the second item first - Yes it is good idea to test various * catagories * of ammo , in your gun , to judge how well you can shoot/ contol them in your gun . i.e. standard pressure .38 vs .38 +P of different bullet weight vs reduced .357 .
You ( hypothetical anyone ) could be neophyte , middling , or very experienced shooter . You could be basically healthy & fit , or various combinations of physical handicaps .
A 4 inch GP-100 is a substantial gun , heavy enough to soak up good bit of recoil ( high school Physics 101 ) . As a broad simplification , said GP-100 with .38 +P will kick less than majority of duty guns & loads from the Revolver Era . But figure out that Parameter for yourself .
There actually are handgun rounds that are stopped within a single common interior wall . ( Yes , I speak from first hand .) But they are very specialized, very exotic ,very expensive , and have major trade offs , and are usually recommend against , unless you have very unique environment.
Any vaguely conventional firearm load will go thru at least one wall , they differences are a matter of degree . i.e. be worried about adjacent room vs 5 sucuessive rooms , plus exterior wall , plus neighbors.
( Essentially) Any centerfire handgun indoors is Loud . There are degrees of loud , and people could have actual medical issues with their ears .
Some guns are stupid loud - Under 3 inch .44Magnum inside a vehicle , .45-70 Contender with muzzle break , 10.5 inch bbl 5.56 , will all shake your body with the physical blast wave , and downright hurt w/o ear protection . Mainstream defensive handgun ammo is within a certain band of variation .
( I almost hesitate to mention , I have personal experience in shooting two examples pretty much at either end of typical , inside a small horse barn , kinda equivalent to large rooms in a house . A 9mm +P+ , and std pressure .45 Colt . Neither was debilitating , but after once decided 9mm +P+ was no fun w/o protection , and .45 Colt went on to account for numerous Trophy Sized Rats .)
Wadcutters ! Most Wadcutter Legands arrive from sucuessive generations of shooters rediscovering stories from ( usually LEO ) from back in Golden Age .
Specifically , back when for vast majority of non- handloaders , there were EXACTLY Two different types of .38 Spl ammunition - 158gr RNL , and 148gr midrange Wadcutters . Numerous shooters independently discovered -* Hey these Wadcutters are more pleasant to shoot than 158 RNL , and these Wadcutters seem to be at least as effective on Bad Guys or Game as 158 RNL .*
But being at least as good as 158gr RNL is a pretty low bar , exceeded by most modern defensive ammo . And if recoil is paramount , there are other .38 rounds that kick less .
******************
After all that pontificating , some bottom line for people in OP's circumstance -
Unless your domestic circumstances are very unique , or you have substantial physical and medical issues - Your starting point in large 4 inch revolver should be .38 +P , in whichever of 6 or 10 best regarded Defense / Duty ammo . Take care to be aware of locations of your family members , try not to miss the BG . If you are really , really concerned about noise or absolute minimum wall penetration , are you concerned enough to get a different gun instead ?
In the Universe of Ammunition , between various Medium , Tactical , " Lite" , etc .357 and hot and extra hot .38 Spl , they overlap in the middle .
What are qualities sought in Defensive Ammo generally , or additionally for Home Defensive ? :
Be reasonably effective in stopping Bad Guys .
Be reasonably controllable by the shooter , especially under stressful conditions .
Don't be massively overpenetrative inside dwelling places .
Don't be massively excessive in noise/ muzzle blast .
Starting with the second item first - Yes it is good idea to test various * catagories * of ammo , in your gun , to judge how well you can shoot/ contol them in your gun . i.e. standard pressure .38 vs .38 +P of different bullet weight vs reduced .357 .
You ( hypothetical anyone ) could be neophyte , middling , or very experienced shooter . You could be basically healthy & fit , or various combinations of physical handicaps .
A 4 inch GP-100 is a substantial gun , heavy enough to soak up good bit of recoil ( high school Physics 101 ) . As a broad simplification , said GP-100 with .38 +P will kick less than majority of duty guns & loads from the Revolver Era . But figure out that Parameter for yourself .
There actually are handgun rounds that are stopped within a single common interior wall . ( Yes , I speak from first hand .) But they are very specialized, very exotic ,very expensive , and have major trade offs , and are usually recommend against , unless you have very unique environment.
Any vaguely conventional firearm load will go thru at least one wall , they differences are a matter of degree . i.e. be worried about adjacent room vs 5 sucuessive rooms , plus exterior wall , plus neighbors.
( Essentially) Any centerfire handgun indoors is Loud . There are degrees of loud , and people could have actual medical issues with their ears .
Some guns are stupid loud - Under 3 inch .44Magnum inside a vehicle , .45-70 Contender with muzzle break , 10.5 inch bbl 5.56 , will all shake your body with the physical blast wave , and downright hurt w/o ear protection . Mainstream defensive handgun ammo is within a certain band of variation .
( I almost hesitate to mention , I have personal experience in shooting two examples pretty much at either end of typical , inside a small horse barn , kinda equivalent to large rooms in a house . A 9mm +P+ , and std pressure .45 Colt . Neither was debilitating , but after once decided 9mm +P+ was no fun w/o protection , and .45 Colt went on to account for numerous Trophy Sized Rats .)
Wadcutters ! Most Wadcutter Legands arrive from sucuessive generations of shooters rediscovering stories from ( usually LEO ) from back in Golden Age .
Specifically , back when for vast majority of non- handloaders , there were EXACTLY Two different types of .38 Spl ammunition - 158gr RNL , and 148gr midrange Wadcutters . Numerous shooters independently discovered -* Hey these Wadcutters are more pleasant to shoot than 158 RNL , and these Wadcutters seem to be at least as effective on Bad Guys or Game as 158 RNL .*
But being at least as good as 158gr RNL is a pretty low bar , exceeded by most modern defensive ammo . And if recoil is paramount , there are other .38 rounds that kick less .
******************
After all that pontificating , some bottom line for people in OP's circumstance -
Unless your domestic circumstances are very unique , or you have substantial physical and medical issues - Your starting point in large 4 inch revolver should be .38 +P , in whichever of 6 or 10 best regarded Defense / Duty ammo . Take care to be aware of locations of your family members , try not to miss the BG . If you are really , really concerned about noise or absolute minimum wall penetration , are you concerned enough to get a different gun instead ?
