+P in 36-1

[roaddog28]

Hi,
I have a model 36 no dash 1 7/8 inch snubbie. I view all snubbies as "belly handguns". Much like a derringer. Most people will not accurately shoot a snubbie beyond 15 feet. The only round I have ever used in mine is the Federal Nyclad. The reason: since by design a snubbie is not accurate a person needs the lightest and most controllable round so he or her has the best chance of stopping a attacker. In a lot of cases it may take almost five shots to stop a attacker.
In my opinion snubbies are better than nothing but not as effective as a good 3 inch or 4 inch revolver.
Regards,
Howard

 

[Revolver-time]

ERICH,
Very good summary of this entire thread. Studies have shown that no handgun can deliver 100% one shot stops. My .45s with the best loads only get into the 80 percentages. On some occasions I find I do not carry my 1911 because of what I am wearing. I wanted to get another carry piece for those occasions and found this 36-1 at the LGS. I shoot every week and concentrate on accuracy.

It seems that where I live in Georgia, crime is getting closer and closer to my home. Just two weeks ago a would-be robber was killed by a fast food manager locally. And, my armed neighbor ran off two men that came into the neighborhood that seemed to be casing homes. These men later robbed a house on another street and were caught by police. Another local business was robbed and the owner was killed. It is a little scary that all these things are going on around me so I decided to be more prepaired. Now I carry all of the time. I hope I never have to use my CCW but I will not become a victim.

 

[redlevel]

. . . . . . I didn't think that there might be a difference in velocity from the published numbers . . . . . . .

As you all know, what I carry has changed over the years due to contemplating what I read in articles, what I hear from hunters, what I see at work, and what I learn from handloading. I thought that it might be worth reflecting on some of these lessons. I'd love to hear if you had similar thoughts.


1. Handgun bullets stop assailants by hitting and damaging vital structures, not by having lots of oomph at the muzzle or by expanding. Obviously, you need a bullet that will penetrate deeply enough and will fly accurately enough to hit that vital structure. A superfast, high energy bullet into a nonvital area may freak out an aggressor enough to stop him, but there's no physiological guarantee that it will. (Killing is different - the person may well die later, but we're concerned with stopping, of course.)

Since precise shot-placement into a vital structure is not a guarantee, it would be helpful to shoot a round that is easily controlled and allows fast follow-up shots by the person shooting it. . . . . . . . . . I'd suggest that knowing your load from your gun is a heck of a lot more important than carrying the load with the most possible oomph, if that means that you have never fired enough rounds to truly familiarize yourself with its performance.


Rather than simply looking at numbers and buying the fastest, heaviest Cor-Buffalo-Tap round that fits the gun and purportedly makes pressure specs, a person would be well served to consider what he's wanting the gun to do. Is this a woods load for which overpenetration isn't an issue, or is it something I'm intending to use for defensive purposes in town? Will this bullet from this loading from this gun penetrate sufficiently to reach the heart/aorta or brain? (Do I even know where those structures are located in a human being?) How would it work in barriers I might encounter - how did the round do from a similar gun in the FBI protocols? Can I control my aluminum J-frame .38 for a follow-up shot with this load? How does it hit from my gun - have I shot enough of it to say for certain? Can I legitimately say that I've practiced with it - given my practice with it, would I be rational to take a ten-yard headshot on someone holding my wife hostage?

Obviously shot placement and penetration are the most important factors (let's see, where did I hear that before?)

Your points about one familiarizing himself with a particular load in his own gun are well taken. I don't have a chronograph, but I am willing to accept the report from the BB company that their load yields somewhere around 1050fps, specifically in a Model 60, especially since those figures have been more or less verified by a couple of well respected members here. Since I started the thread linked below I have pretty much relegated the BB loads to the Model 36 and Model 60, one of which is my carry piece 99% of the time.

I sure would hate to have to make that 30 foot head-shot with any weapon under those circumstances, and especially with a 2" j-frame. I consider the 2" gun to be a ten to fifteen foot proposition.

Since my first experience with the BB loads I have limited my practice with them to about 5 rounds every couple of months, when I refresh the ammo in my carry pieces. I guess I need to order up another hundred rounds and have at it again. I shot enough with them in the initial sight-in to know they shoot to point of aim out to 12-15 feet. My experience is that the 2" j-frames are infinitely more controllable with the BB load than, for instance, a 2.5" Model 19 with 158 grain .357 ammo.

I would like to see some report on how well the soft-lead bullet penetrates when striking an obstacle, like a rib cage.

http://smith-wessonforum.com/ammo/148631-buffalo-bore-heavy-38-special-sight.html

 

[papajohn428]

I've said before that I consider the 2-inch revolver to be a "Professional's Gun", capable of good accuracy in the hands of someone who has shot it extensively, and over a period of many years. I didn't own a snubbie for the first 25 years of my shooting because I didn't feel I shot them well enough to count on one in a defensive situation. I still feel much better armed with a bigger gun and a longer barrel, but I wouldn't say I can't hit with it under duress. Practice, extensive practice, is still the key. I shoot nothing but Plus-P ammo in my 642, because I believe in training with what I carry in it. If I wear the gun out I'll retire it and get another one. Realistic training is important to me, and I shoot my 642 at 20 yards. If I can maintain proficiency with it at that range, anything closer should be a given.

My training regimen with my 4-inch guns involves shooting clay pigeons at 50 yards. I don't hit them all, but I hit enough to feel proficient with that gun and ammo at that range.