Speer Gold Dot Short Barrel 135 Grain +P

[mscampbell2734]

Gold Dot is also the LAPD duty/issued load for revolvers, both duty and off duty/back up guns.

Before it was the 125 gr Remington half jacket HP. The issue with the Remington load was over time motor cops would mushroom flat the tips of their bullets because of vibration and the hard bottom of their speed loader pouches. The exposed lead was dead soft, great for expansion, not ideal for carrying on a motor.

 

[ec fan]

I would not fire a Smith & Wesson 642 Airweight - mine blew up in my hand firing .38 specials and S&W would not do anything about it! I will never buy a new weapon from Smith & Wesson!

Fwiw, I've used Speer Gold Dot 135 gr +P SB rounds in my S&W .38 spl 642 and Bodyguard .38 over the course of years without any problems. Also American Eagle and Lawman fmj rounds with no problems whatsoever. They don't have thousands of rounds through them but they do have hundreds each.

I'm not doubting your word that your handgun blew up, but to do that with .38 spl rounds, something is very, very strange, as others have also noted. What were S&W's reasons for not replacing your firearm?

The 442/642 is a very popular .38 spl snubby and I've never read of one blowing up with factory ammo before. I trust mine, as I also trust my similar BG .38.

I forgot to mention, here's a good write-up on the Deep. And a few key quotes from the article.

The .38 Special Hydra-Shok Deep Journey

Very interesting reading; thanks!

I've looked for the Hydra-Shok Deep in .380 but haven't caught any in stock yet. I want to try it and the .38 spl.

 

[Dump1567]

Very interesting reading; thanks!

I've looked for the Hydra-Shok Deep in .380 but haven't caught any in stock yet. I want to try it and the .38 spl.

You can order direct from Federal if you can't find it cheaper elsewhere.

Personal Defense Hydra-Shok Deep

 

[SHODriver]

If you bothered to go to the manual that came along with the firearm, under the ammunition section, there are numerous warnings pertaining to proper ammunition. Smith and Wesson cannot possibly see the ammunition you were using, nor did you mention anything about the ammunition you were using, nor the circumstances when the firearm, as you said, "Blew up in my hand firing 38 specials." Factory ammunition is loaded below any pressure limits because manufacturers do not have any control over what firearm you will be shooting it in. S&W also specifically states not to shoot reloaded ammunition in their firearms. The fact that the ammo you were using blew up your 642 indicates that you were not shooting ammunition that was in accordance with their guidance or warranty. Thus you did not follow the guidance in the firearms manual so there was no reason for them to do anything about your issue. That made the issue entirely yours, not theirs.

Every manual says to only use commercially loaded ammo. It's generally considered impossible to warranty a gun that blew up unless you use commercial ammo. Even then they'll probably tell you to take up your grievance with the ammo maker since it isn't the gun manufacturer's fault. It's entirely possible that they shot a squib that lodged in the barrel and the next shot blew up the gun. Commercial ammo isn't perfect so it could have been a commercially loaded squib rather than a reload. Hard to tell without more info on what let up to the events and how the gun blew up.

 

[C-5 Mike]

Worked 35+ years for KY Fish @ Wildlife as a gamewarden . Carried a "snub" for back up Model 37 loaded with 148 grain hollow based wadcutters loaded backwards. Had to put down injured deer. This load literally blew both eyeballs out. We carried Model 66s loaded with 125 grain Remington semi-jacketed HPs, the best for self- defense, but the wc out performed on injured deer that were immobile. This was in the 70s and 80s.

 

[Autonomous]

Thanks for the real-life report.

 

[shawn mccarver]

What do you guys recommend for self-defense in a Smith & Wesson 642 Airweight — Buffalo Bore 150 grain standard pressure wadcutters or Speer Gold Dot 135 grain +P? I’ve been carrying the Gold Dots for years, but I recently saw a few review videos claiming they don’t expand reliably out of a snub-nose.

Speer GDSB

 

[HARLEY0]

Fwiw, I've used Speer Gold Dot 135 gr +P SB rounds in my S&W .38 spl 642 and Bodyguard .38 over the course of years without any problems. Also American Eagle and Lawman fmj rounds with no problems whatsoever. They don't have thousands of rounds through them but they do have hundreds each.

I'm not doubting your word that your handgun blew up, but to do that with .38 spl rounds, something is very, very strange, as others have also noted. What were S&W's reasons for not replacing your firearm?

The 442/642 is a very popular .38 spl snubby and I've never read of one blowing up with factory ammo before. I trust mine, as I also trust my similar BG .38.






Very interesting reading; thanks!

I've looked for the Hydra-Shok Deep in .380 but haven't caught any in stock yet. I want to try it and the .38 spl.

EC - It has been a while since that happened and I what I can remember is They offered to sell me to a new one. I have never dealt with S&W again and will not! (I do own a WW2 S&W .38 special Victory Model) Ruger is a completely different story. I broke a Ruger rifle sent it to them and they sent me a new one no charge! The same with Taurus I dropped my Taurus revolver on cement and broke the sight, sent it to them and Taurus fixed it and sent it back to me, no charge!