You're Gettin' a J Frame....38 or 357...Your Pick??

[BeowulfII]

I carried a titanium 10 ounce j-frame for years. Advancing age coupled with arthritic hands made me finally trade them. I could no longer fire 15 aimed shots without the pain making me flinch. One must know ones limitations. Have gone back to carrying my airweights and steel frame j-frames. Bullet placement and tactics are more important than caliber.

 

[scottr]

I would do exactly what I did: Buy the lightest non-lock internal hammer/DAO/Centennial I could afford. If that is a 442, perfect. If I could afford a 340, then I would buy that. Personally I choose the Gold Dot 135 grain +P .38 Special.

As for the Bodyguard models? Another place to gather crud and cause a malfunction, and a great way to practice wrong (single action) and wind up in a bad place. One post above already mentioned how practice ended up single action. SA capability on a J-frame is bad enough, but try to imagine decocking a Bodyguard in the middle of the night, after waking up, getting an adrenaline dump, and then NOT wanting to shoot. YMMV.

 

[vito]

To BaaBaa: you must be one tough lady! Even with 38 special I find that the 640 has significant recoil. With 357 mag rounds it is downright painful (for me). I still prefer having a stainless steel j-frame, and the 640 seems to be a great carry weapon. But if you plan on carrying in a pocket holster, you might find the 640 a bit heavy at 23 ounces. I recently bought a Remora IWB holster for the 640 and it is very easy to carry concealed.

 

[Budnjax]

If you are going to have a J frame.....

and weight is a factor.....I like the 38 Bodyguard with laser or the 438....both 38 Specials with Spegel bootgrips....if you are able to handle 357 loads, the Pro Series 640-1 is primo. Actually, I prefer the old Colt D frame guns over any J frame...the Agents, Cobra and Dick Specials were all 6 shot and overall slightly larger and easier to shoot accurately, IMHO....their leaf springs as opposed to the S&W coil mainsprings gave them (generally) much smoother trigger pulls than unmodified J frames. If you could find a stainless Colt Magnum Carry 357 you might have the ultimate small carry revolver....

 

[BaaBaa]

To BaaBaa: you must be one tough lady! Even with 38 special I find that the 640 has significant recoil. With 357 mag rounds it is downright painful (for me).

Maybe the grips matter? I have the rounded ones that came with it, sort of rubbery. Seriously, it's not bad at all and I'm a wimp for recoil with other firearms.

 

[5kwkdw3]

I've owned a bunch of J frames over the years ever since I started some 25 years ago with an FFL and trying to get one that my wife liked and could handle. At that time I only had the choice of 38 special as Smith had not yet come out with their 357 J frame. I have a thing for Stainless steel so for me it was 60's, 640's, and 649's and out of the lot I'd personally go with the 649. Nothing to snag out of the pocket, and quick to get off a shot yet still being able to cock and squeeze the trigger at the range. All of the DAO's I've owned have always had a nasty trigger pull and have a lot of stacking, creep and overtravel. Sure some were better than others, but the 649 took the standard Wolff spring kit and then shot like a dream. Smithy.

 

[CTI1USNRET]

Choose a gun that's fun to shoot. Whether it's a 38 or a 357 doesn't matter. Ultra-light revolvers of either caliber are not fun. I have three revolvers: a Ruger LCR 38 Spl snubbie (hurts, hard to control in rapid fire, not fun at all), a steel frame Taurus 85 38 Spl snubbie (better, smaller groups in rapid fire), and a 4" L-frame S&W Model 581 .357 Mag (a joy to shoot with 38 Spls, very small groups in rapid fire). I carry them concealed in Mernickle PS6DA holsters.

Frankly, you can't beat a S&W Model 10 4" heavy barrel 38 Spl. I had one many years ago and wish I still had it. The other guns mentioned above were a learning experience. They taught me I should have kept the Model 10.

 

[ZiggyK]

I picked up a S&W Model 19-2 2" snub 357 recently for $425 which was a steal considering it was like new condition. It still fits in my pocket fine with a pocket holster even being a K-Frame although I had to change which holster I used because the adjustable sights were getting snagged on my Uncle Mikes pocket holster. I prefer a heavier snub nose as the air weights are not very accurate when you try to shoot a 38+p or 357 load. I know they're more of a "belly" gun for many but I prefer to be able to shoot at least 15 yards accurately with a 357 snub nose and that's not going to happen very easily with an airweight. I don't mind the extra weight of a steel frame and have more confidence in their durability than I do with an Aluminum alloy frame. If I was going to go with a J-frame then I'd look for an older S&W Model 49 like I used to have until I moved on to 357 revolvers.

 

[vito]

Maybe grips do make a big difference. I had the original black rubber grips on my 640 until I changed to Crimson Trace laser grips. But as I recall, the recoil with the 640 was significant, even with 38 special. On the other hand, my K-frame 19-3 with a 4 inch barrel has almost no recoil at all with 38's, and a tolerable amount with 357magnum, but it is too large for concealed carry.

 

[jlsmith1000]

I have a Model 60. I also shoot 38 +P. When I carry it versus my Sig 938 SAS I carry it loaded with Hornady CD 357 Mag rounds 125gr. As somebody mentioned they aren't meant to plink with and practicing with that round won't find you putting a 100 rounds down range but you'll still need to practice with the round you plan to shoot.

When my wife shoots it she uses Hornady CD Lite 38 Special +P which is 90gr but still 1200fps at the muzzle. She can't stand shooting the 357 round.

 

[Kframerbluvr]

When there's a choice, I always buy the .357 gun. Not to shoot Magnums (in a small/light gun), but because they will last darned near forever on a diet of .38 or +P.

I shot several Model 38's & 642's loose with a lot of rounds and a fair amount of +P.
But my current 340PD is still as tight as the day I bought it, even after about 3,000 rds including a good number of +P and even a very few Magnums.

Excellent point-I had never considered the longevity aspect; just thinking of the recoil from shooting .357 loads in a flyweight revolver has turned me off from them until now. If I could only find a reasonably priced no lock 340 and the cash to work a deal...

 

[Kframerbluvr]

In my world, J frames are pocket and deep concealment weapons, not belt guns. A Glock 23 or 27 or M10 4" goes there for me. My new 442 goes in the right front pants pocket along with at least one speed strip. The M60 that just came back from the armorer will work its way into the rotation, probably in an old Active Arms shoulder rig I found in the attic that someone gave me years ago. These two "J"s may work in cold weather when buttoned up in a heavy coat: 442 in coat pocket and M60 in shoulder rig accessible by "knifing" the shooting hand between the buttons to extract the weapon..Might be a good experiment..

 

[KertP]

How about a Model 640 Pro Series

I recently added a Model 640 Pro Series to my snubbie collection. I am impressed with a number of things about this gun: No lawyer lock; 3-dot tritium sights; can use moon clips; feels really good shooting Hornady .357 Magnum 125 gr Critical Defense rounds - it's easy to control and shoot accurately. Shortly, it will become my primary carry gun, my back-up being a Model 642. Both of those snubbies have Crimson Trace lasergrips, with the 640 getting the full size, and the 642 getting the boot grip. I can drop the 642 into my pants pocket, even for summer carry. Like one previous poster, I own a bunch of snubbies, but these two are my current favorites for daily carry. YMMV FWIW

 

[Freedomfirst]

The S&W J-frame 340 M&P snubbie is for close up work, so a .357 Magnum round is not necessary IMO. The recoil is fierce and it numbs my hand for a second shot. The most i can handle out of mine is a Speer Gold Dot Short barrel .38+P 135gr JHP. I believe that round will do the intended job so I don't see the need for anything more powerful in an everyday carry snubbie.

 

[rehbob50]

rehbob50

I've had an old model 60 for some time. It is the original ss model. I bought an airweight for my wife to carry. I recently found a model 696 for CCW. It might be heavier but I'm looking for knockdown. I carry it whenever I'm out in the woods. We have a lot of wolves around here and I feel the 44 special works for both kinds of preditors. If you're in a jam and need someting reliable and deadly I don't think your foe will care if he is eliminated with a .38 or a .357. He will be eliminated. That's what we care about.

 

[Cruise]

I have a Model 60 Pro series with a 3 inch bbl. It is one fine shooter. I bought a Rossi M-92 lever to go with it and use the 60 for 38 and the M-92 for .357 Mag ammo.

 

[Swengen]

Opinions are like, uh, you know. Anyway, I went with the 340PD. With it you can always step down in power. As it is, .357 is fine. Yea, it kicks but if you need it in a bad situation you can't beat it. I had a new barrel installed and ported so that took some of the snappiness out of it and you only lose about 3% in velocity. Had some trigger work done and it has been my edc for about a year now. Trust me, if your gun is too heavy, you won't carry it. I've seen this too many times. I hardly know this one is in pocket. I did just pick up a 642-1 and it's my wife's edc. She can handle the +P guys. I will say she can shoot the .357 but prefers the .38+P.

 

[phils]

I chose the M638 because I like the idea of having single action if needed (without an exposed hammer) and .38+p is all I'd want in a lw J frame.
I added Hogue cocobolo grips and a little red paint on the front sight.

 

[djenk201]

Well you have indeed made a great pick for a carry or back up weapon. I carried one some 32 years as a back-up and on two occasions it proved its worth. As for which one, I could go with the 357 as its capable of shooting everything of course from the 38 to the +p's and the mags. I went with the full steel type frames simply for the weight when using the mags, as you can use the help during that recoil handling session. I will say the only disadvantage to them, and the older I got the more important it got, was the fixed rear sight. It is obviously little more difficult to pick up on because of the small fixed nature. I will end it by saying S&W did indeed take care of that some with the new model 640 Pro series. ( Maybe the 642 pro, sorry just can't remember now) It is the same size and all plus it comes with Trijicon night sights with the rear dovetailed style, higher profile as on other larger revolvers. Great weapon. ( The Ruger SP 101 is fine piece too) Good Luck and make certain to get plenty of trigger time with whichever you wind up with.

 

[Gunfiter]

My personal is a 940 with state pressure 115 grain. Nyclads, but that's me. You need to find a range that will be let you rent a few J's and see what works for you.
I'd recommend putting a paper plate on a target and backing off about five yards. Starting with the .357, see how fast you can put all five rounds inside the plate. If it seems like it's taking a long time, it probably is, and you should think about trying the .38.
Don't forget there's also .327 mag, .22 mag, etc. Carry what you can shoot accurately enough to save your own life.