Am I the only one still using 158gr SWCHP+Ps in snubbies?

It's my load of choice in my 2.25 inch S&W 640-1 .357, 2 inch S&W model 49 .38, 2 inch Taurus model 85 .38, 2 inch S&W model 64 .38, 4 inch S&W model 10 .38, and my 4 inch S&W model 19 .357.

For me, expansion from snubbies has been iffy using the Winchester and CCI Blazer versions with the Winchester having a slight edge. From a four inch expansion has been 100% with both versions. From the longer barrel I actually prefer the CCI version because it expands a little less and penetrates a little more.
 
Great thread. Very helpful. I realized I had been relying on testing I did out of a six inch barrel into water and needed to test using my snubbie.

Federal Nyclad 158 +p SWCHP - barely expanded at all. Lead bullet intact and still cylindrical. Tried two more just to confirm - same results.

Federal 110 Hydra Shol JHP - kept jacket, good expansion, ragged edges

Smith and Wesson 125 +p JHP, kept jacket good expansion, smooth edges.
 
m e c

I've shot these into various forms of grocery store meat from several 2" barrels. They will expand a bit unless you shoot through a high-loft garment first.
A local policeman- one who is not prone to making up stories, has killed two deer with these. One was froma 4" and the other was a close-range doe which he shot through both lungs with his Smith 36.
 
One of our officers shot a guy with a Winchester LHP back in 1989. It was out of a Smith 4 inch Model 64. Entered under armpit, through lung, heart. Killed outright. The bullet was superbly mushroomed. Before that we had a guy shoot a fellow in the face with a round nose 38 load out of a 2 inch. The guy spit the bullet out...He was subdued with a baton after he dropped his gun. He had just shot his wife in the lobby of the police dept...The little 357s need a factory LHP 357 load running about 1000 fps out of a 2 inch. That would be excellent!
 
Another Okie: your results with the Federal 158+P Nyclad HP from a 2" tube are exactly what I'd expect due to Federal's lamentable tendency to wimp out on the powder charge.

Somebody tested the Federal 110 "personal defense" Hydrashock .38 (standard pressure) with a chrono, found they were barely drifting past 800fps from a 2", despite being advertized as "tuned for snubbies".

Try the same test with the Winchester LSWC-HP 158+P and you'll get a different story. The Remington is a bit better yet.

Also, with this sort of "marginal expansion envelope", a .002" cylinder gap could help a lot. My snub with such a gap is probably going to get as much as 50fps over the more common .005/.006 gaps seen on most new guns. I sure hope so anyways, because so far I can't find Remington 158+P, and load Winchesters. Which are still better than Federals.

One more item to file under "Federal is a pack of idiots": the new E-FMJ has serious potential as a revolver round, as it appears to offer reliable expansion at speeds as low as 900fps or a bit under, to a high of God only knows what. There's no reason the same projectile at 124grain sized .357 could be used in .38+P and .357, but based on the round's easy feeding in slideguns, they're treating it as an "auto caliber projectile only".

:rolleyes:

Even if they did load it in .38+P, odds are they'd wimp on the powder :barf:.
 
Ok, I've been reading about this load from the beginning. I decided it was the one for me for all my .38 needs, snubbie or otherwise. Problem is, I can't find it anywhere! I prowl gunshows regularly, and run by stores on occaision. So far, no dice. Can someone point to where I can order it? I'd like to buy a case.

Thanks.
 
Well the guy at the gun range convinced me to buy these Corbon +P 110GR JHP's. What do you folks think of these? Velocity is supposedly 1225FPS.

Thanks!

Steve
 
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