I don't know what possesses me to ask this, but anyway...
The thought occurs to me that at any given gun show there's usually a pretty good deal to be had on some old .38 Special wheelguns. I can see someone picking one up for various reasons.
I was just thinking about how much I depend on premium ammunition in my own .38 Spl carry piece. I know there's no guarantee it will expand but it's making the most use of the caliber. It's also a +P load of course.
The thing is though, I'm fortunate enough to have a gun that is +P rated. I realize basically all new guns are, but I personally would not put a +P load in a gun that was conceived of before +P was so widespread.
Now I'm talking about a dedicated .38 Spl here obviously. If it was a .357 Mag you could use a .38 Spl +P load no problem I would think.
So if +P is out the window, my thinking has always been well use the old 158 grain semi wadcutter and be happy because that's as good as it gets.
Am I right? If your .38 wasn't +P rated what defensive load would you use?
The thought occurs to me that at any given gun show there's usually a pretty good deal to be had on some old .38 Special wheelguns. I can see someone picking one up for various reasons.
I was just thinking about how much I depend on premium ammunition in my own .38 Spl carry piece. I know there's no guarantee it will expand but it's making the most use of the caliber. It's also a +P load of course.
The thing is though, I'm fortunate enough to have a gun that is +P rated. I realize basically all new guns are, but I personally would not put a +P load in a gun that was conceived of before +P was so widespread.
Now I'm talking about a dedicated .38 Spl here obviously. If it was a .357 Mag you could use a .38 Spl +P load no problem I would think.
So if +P is out the window, my thinking has always been well use the old 158 grain semi wadcutter and be happy because that's as good as it gets.
Am I right? If your .38 wasn't +P rated what defensive load would you use?