My law enforcement career ran from the very early 1970's through the late 1990's. Revolvers were the most common handguns, and many agencies required them. I carried a 2.5" Model 19 for many years, but have also used Models 10, 12, 13, and 64 quite a bit.
In my opinion, the 3" Model 10, 13, 64, and 65 are probably the most practical defensive revolvers ever made. Simple, rugged, and reliable.
Personally, I find very little difference in comfort or concealability between the square butt and round butt versions. If I had to choose just one I would probably opt for the 10 or 13 in 3" heavy barrel with round butt, fitted with factory magna grips and Tyler T-grip adapter.
Personally, I avoid the use of magnum ammunition in the short-barreled revolvers. The enormous increases in muzzle blast, muzzle flash, and recoil are (in my opinion) unacceptable, especially in light of the relatively small increases in terminal performance of ammunition fired in the shorter barrels. A good .38 Spl.+P load is much more controllable. I especially like the Federal 158-grain SWC-HP load (so-called "FBI" load).
A good pancake holster design worn just behind the strong-side hip on a sturdy belt is hard to beat for comfort and concealability. Add a 6-round SpeedStrip pouch, or the old 2X2X2 pouch, and your carry rig is complete.
A couple of years ago I came across a bunch of local police department trade-in guns including several 4" Model 28's and 4 Model 64 2" RB's. Price was right so I bought them all. Kept a pair of the 64's for my personal use.
