Power Pistol Std Velocity 38 Spl???

[alwslate]

Most gun savvy owners today would probably not choose the old 158 gr
factory RN lead bullet load as their SD ammo in a 38 spl revolver. But
I'll bet that there are many new and old .38 spl revolvers kept in
homes for "just in case" loaded with that type of ammo. There are
better 38 spl rounds available for SD no doubt. But if the .32 ACP and
.380 ACP FMJ rounds that give deep penetration are effective for SD
how can the old .38 load not be also. Years ago it was probably the
std load for LEOs who carried .38 spl revolvers. I saw an old black
and white news film clip from long ago on tv one night. It was a
uniform LEO shooting a bad guy with his revolver from no more than
about ten feet. The cop had both hands on the gun held at eye level
and fired all six rounds double action at the perp. The bad guy went
straight down like the proverbial rag doll. I would bet his gun held
the old RN lead load. That one incident proves nothing but it was
impressive to see.

 

[moxie]

I carried a S&W Model 15 Combat Masterpiece quite often in the Air Force, along with an M16. The Mod. 15 was a great gun, but issue ammo was an anemic M41 that had a 130 gr. FMJ bullet driven to ~700 fps downhill with a tailwind. Didn't make many rag dolls with that rig. Pathetic.

 

[M3Stuart]

To the OP's point;

It is one of the more robust propellant choices available for 158gr lead .38 bullets.

If it won't make the magical 'police service' specs, then I doubt any other powder would...unless the specs are a lot slower.

Re: the discussion about .38 being a substandard option...well, I think it's a great round. In fact, it is my favorite all around caliber/round/etc. 'Mild to Wild' as they say...

 

[Clovishound]

Just read about an 80 yr old great grandma who took out the perp who broke in and stabbed her husband. Shot 4 rounds with the .38 her husband bought her a couple years ago. Missed with one, 3 center mass. He was DOA, husband survived. No idea what kind of ammo she used.

 

[bronco45]

Lee Jurras set the Police ammo world on fire in the early 70s with Super Vel ammo in 38s. Super Vel was a hot 110 grain JHP in 38 Spl. Emergency room MDs were asking the cops what they were shooting perps with as the ballistic charactaristics of the JHP at high velocity was "new world" compared to the old lead rounds.

Problem with RN bullets is many times they disable but do not put down a chemically infused aggressive attacker. They will absorb a lot of lead before they stop their aggression.