Models 37&38&12 best ammo

[ischia]

Best to use for minimal wear or damage? Wad cutter, sub sonic,standard 158 gr lead.? These I know have a history of cracked frames. I would not be banging away at the range with 100's of rounds either.

Thanks,
Ischia

 

[kaaskop49]

Took quite a while for a reply! J-frames do their best work with the 158gr lead bullet "service load." A standard pressure round, it is good to go in your guns. And since many "jobs" practiced and qualified with wadcutter target loads, these rounds will also do well in the lightweight snubs of that era. They are rather expensive at the present time, so the LRNs may be a better bet. Can't go wrong with either. Hope this helps.

Kaaskop49
Shield #5103

 

[rincar]

Lead round nosed 158 grain bullet. Is what they are sighted in for. That's what I shoot in mine. Wad cutters are good if you can find them. I hove some Federal Nyclad 125 grain hollow point is what I carry in mine for defensive purposes. The Nyclads are hard to find. I don't think they are manufactured any more. Check your local gun shops you might find some.

 

[Doug M.]

Standard velocity wadcutters and SWC will do virtually anything you need in a defensive .38 that might be hard to shoot or risky to shoot with higher performance stuff, and frankly most of the higher performance stuff is not worth the $$. I don't care for J frames generally; when I carried a J frame .38 (a very limited set of conditions), it had WC in it, and a couple speed loaders of SWC for reloading. Even my M66 is most often carried with .38 SWC.

 

[sheepdawg]

You can find Nyclads on Brokegunner. Federal hasn't made any since 2013