38/357 Snubby Advice

[JCook5003]

Ok Guys-

My wife decided to get her concealed carry permit also, and she wants a snubby for ease of carry and for simplicity (pull trigger, repeat as needed) she is a fairly seasoned shooter and has shot many of my handguns including my Vaquero 44 Mag.

She isnt what I would call recoil sensitive.....

I would rather her have a .357 over a .38 special but am concerned about the recoil of a snubby with magnum loads.......

What do you guys recommend ammo wise (with ballistic info) for 38 special rounds as a compromise.....

Or what are your expierences with snub nose .357's I think the 640-1 may be the lightest recoiling of the J frames since it's steel and a little heavier.......I don’t think the SP101 would be suitable for pocket carry (to big)

At the very least I can buy her one and then I have a nice BUG if she doesn’t like it, but I would like your expierences also......I would like to take her to the range to try them first and make a decision on her own but the range here doesn’t have snub nose revolvers to rent, so it's up to research and some gun store searching.

Thanks in Advance.
Josh

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[pgrass101]

I use to carry a Taurus 605 until my wife claimed it.

All steel .357 snubnose. I found .357 recoil a little stout in it and routinely carry .38 spl +P's or +P+. I found that controlibilty and follow up shoots are much better with .38's than .357's

I would go with the .357 because of the versitility of ammo choices 38/357

I have carried 180gr Hardcast Buffalo Bores in it when backpacking in bear country. I've only shot 3 of these rounds out of it and boy was the recoil something.

[Pitmaster]

Considere a .357 for carry and using .38 for practice? I think the recoil would be less of an issue during the stress of a defensive shooting situation. Running a few rounds of .357 occasionally should provide some expectation of the amount of recoil.

[dom]

I'm in the same boat, although my wife IS recoil sensitive...

J-frames are just about the only thing we've tried that she can get a good grip on with her small hands.
She didn't like how the recoil hurt the web of her thumb, however, on any of the revolvers we tried (3" Model 65, 4" Model 10 (I think), and a borrowed steel .38 snubby). All had small wood grips that she didn't care for.

I'm also leaning towards a 640 for her use. I think the extra weight plus a good rubber grip that covers the backstrap will be the best option for her...Even if she's only willing to carry standard pressure .38's, it still better than a .22, right?

[mslaughtertx]

I love my Colt Magnum Carry in .357. It is small enough to carry pocket, and can shoot either .38 or .357 of course. They are hard to find, but worth the wait and money.

[riverkeeper]

A few guys on the board are jealous of your 'problem'.

What can she shoot reliably and controlled and fast followups with ONE HAND?

Spousette can shoot the crap out of my SW44 mag (even 300gr loads) and 357 with 2 hands ... but combat shooting suffers with these loads and weapons...

SO her bedroom arsnel is the 44 mag and a snub SW696 with specials .....

AND she carries a SW 642 (airlweight 38 spl snub) with +p and sometimes a KelTec P3AT. While the KelTec is debatable with some, good 38 loads will do the job....the 642 weighs about 15 oz and the KT about 11 oz I think.

The bulk and weight of even some of the larger snubs might be a problem for some folks.

WHAT EVER YOU DO, LET HER PICK THE WEAPON!!!! You can get other grips to smooth the recoil and provide a better-tighter grip. I am convinced most difficulty with recoil is grip tightness and attitude.

[JCook5003]

Yeah I am definatley against the pick a gun for my wife threads, what she isnt smart enough to know what she can shoot and control..........

I am just trying to gather some info to relay to her, and I also agree recoil is mostly a brip thing in snubby's I think most people grab to far down on the grip because it seems natural, but getting a high tighter grip will help, or atleast that's what I have noticed

[S3ymour]

My mom has a lady smith and wesson, stainless with rosewood grips in .357 and she practices with .38's. Its a great gun, one that I've tried to borrow on multiple occasions.

[Supertac45]

I use a SP101 snubbie in 357 mag for a BUG. It has some weight to it.

[Creature]

Before any decision making, I would recommend that you have her shot two rounds of .38 Special and two rounds of .357 Magnums in one go around and see if she can comfortably shoot the magnums. Only then should you can go from there.

[bmcgilvray]

My wife who is a bit of a runt likes a S&W Model 642 with older walnut grip panels from a Model 36 installed. She easily handles +P 158 grain .38 Special. In my view the 158 grain +P ammunition is excellent and I wouldn't be interested in a J-Frame .357 Magnum snub. I don't think enough "umph" is gained for all the belt and blast. That Colt Magnum Carry or a 2 1/2-inch S&W Model 19 would be my choices if I was to acquire a .357 Snub.

[Creature]

I actually bled when I shot a snub magnum. I would never think of handing it to my wife to see if she would like to carry it. She would have had to ask me for it.

I second the +P recommendation if she is looking for more power.

[jwhite75]

try the "short barrel specials" from Speer Gold Dot. I think they are 125 grain or 135 grain. good luck.

[ckd]

No free lunch here.

I'm from the school that thinks anything over a pound isn't comfortable for most pocket carry, especially in summer weight clothes, the sag will often print. Having both stainless and alloy j frames in 357, I don't really find that much of a difference in their ability to absorb recoil, granted, there is some but most of the recoil issues seem to be more influenced by grip style and material and ammo selection. Regardless, shooting a 357 from a j frame is too much for some who find larger frames and calibers managable, and therefore I'd encourage you to rent or borrow one at the range before heading into a purchase. Shoot 38 specials and finish up with a cylinder of 357s to evaluate.

I always carry a 357 alloy with Corbon DPX or Speer GDHB short barrels. It has more kick than any of my handguns, but it has never been unmanagable.

[whw]

Ok Guys-

What do you guys recommend ammo wise (with ballistic info) for 38 special rounds as a compromise.....

Or what are your expierences with snub nose .357's I think the 640-1 may be the lightest recoiling of the J frames since it's steel and a little heavier.......I don’t think the SP101 would be suitable for pocket carry (to big)


Thanks in Advance.
Josh

I recommend that you visit Mr. Stephen Camp's web site ---
www.hipowersandhandguns.com. Click on the "other handguns" tab to gain access to the pertinent articles.
He has numerous articles on the .38/.357 ballistics and the snub nose revolver. Mr. Camp's observations are always "on target."

whw