Lead Round Nose bullets for S.D.?

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deerslayer303

New member
I was recalling someones signature, that said something to the effect of "The plain lead bullet is the most reliable projectile, it mushrooms consistently, and never breaks up". So with that said. What do you guys think of having them in the wheel gun for self defense? I'm sure the bullets that are loaded in commercial lead RN rounds are pretty hard to prevent leading. Or better yet the bullets that, we cast up and load. That way we can control the hardness. The lead bullet has killed many a man in the past, so I really can't see why it wouldn't work today. Why pay over 2 bucks a round for "Self Defense" ammo. Does that 2 bucks a round give us warm and fuzzies? Lets discuss.
 
Bullet shape is important and a Keith type is best !! There are many copies but the original is they one to use .A complete discription can be found in " Sixguns" by Elmer Keith ,A book well worth getting.
 
I think a lead round nose would have the same (in)effectiveness as FMJ. Good penetration, but little else.

They didn't call 'em widow makers for nothing. ;)

But better than having no ammo in your gun...
 
If lead RN is what is what I have it's what I would use. Soft lead HP SWC bullets are available for reloading as well as in factory loads and would probably be better for self defense. We're talking handguns so bullet placement is the most important thing to be concerned with. 2 or 3 hits for best results.
 
Lots of better choices for self-defense, especially in a revolver where bullet profile has essentially no effect on reliability.

If FMJ ball or lead roundnose is what you've got, use it. If you can get something else--practically anything else will be better for self defense.
 
Oh without a doubt, I use them 2+ dollar a round SD ammo (I guess I get the warm and fuzzies :D). I was just wanting to open up the discussion of the effectiveness of the lead projectile.
 
There's nothing wrong with lead, it's the profile of the bullet that makes the LRN bullets a poor choice for self-defense.

You don't have to move up to the high-dollar SD rounds to make a huge improvement. You can stick with a lead projectile, just use something besides LRN. Flat nose, semi-wadcutter or wadcutter lead bullets are far better choices for self-defense than LRN. The old semi-wadcutter hollowpoint bullet was quite effective, and that bullet can still be found in a few loadings. I believe Winchester offers it in .38Spl +P.
 
38 Special ammo is still available in most of my FLGS. Two weeks ago, I picked up a box of Winchester LSWC-HP +P for $35 for a box of 50.
Save the LRN for the range.
 
I'm sure the bullets that are loaded in commercial lead RN rounds are pretty hard to prevent leading.
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Actually in my experience commercial LRN bullets seem to be pretty soft. They don't lead barrels because they're not being pushed very hard.

LRN are on the list of acceptable bullet profiles, but there isn't much below them.
 
CajunBass said:
Actually in my experience commercial LRN bullets seem to be pretty soft. They don't lead barrels because they're not being pushed very hard.
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That's my experience too. Generally those bullets are just about pure dead-soft lead. They don't get pushed very hard, so they're okay for general pistol work. They generally don't lead barrels if the pistol is set up correctly. With lead bullets, fit is everything and you don't need to worry about hardness if they fit correctly and you're not pushing them too fast. When you get into the higher ranges of speed and pressure, fit becomes extremely important, as does lubrication and hardness.

I'm not a fan of LRN bullets except in very limited circumstances. However, I shoot a lot of Keith-type, semi-wadcutter, and wide meplat bullets. When you consider that jacketed bullets were invented in the late 1800s, everything prior to that was lead bullets and simple lead bullets had killed everything on the planet.
 
Thanks for all the replies guys. Lots of good info here. I haven't really seen ANY lead projectile round available commercially around here. Or maybe I'm not looking hard enough.
 
"The plain lead bullet is the most reliable projectile, it mushrooms consistently, and never breaks up"
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I'm not sure what the speaker means by "plain lead bullet", but I don't think that a lead round-nose will "mushroom" much at all, much less "consistently".
 
Terrible choice, the only thing worse being FMJ or no gun at all. You need something that doesn't have to travel through several inches of flesh before it becomes destructive. The old FBI load (lead SWC/HP) is a vastly superior stopper.
 
I've just cast 250 dead soft 358156 HPs and will work up a load for my smaller shooters. I have a 454190 HP I use in a '73 win. copy that I intend to try in my SAAs with a softer alloy in a reduced load. I like Keith style bullets in my larger .44 spec.

Currently using a turn of the century, 1900 not 1999, design round nose about 200grs at approximately 750fps in my 396 mountain lite. its very accurate in all of my .44 spec. and wont rip your hand off in the 396 and do carry for sd on occasion.

I do carry round nose bullets in speed loaders for my sd shooters.
 
I think shot placement and penetration are among the best determiners of how well a bullet will work. That being said, not all lead round nose bullets are created equal. I carry the blunt RN Lyman 358430 bullets over a small charge of powder in my .38 when I'm out around the farm. In my experience, the bullet invariably tumbles creating a really large wound; and is consistently very effective against varmints.
 
IMO, using FMJ's and LRN's is like stepping down in power and/or caliber. Using a LRN .357 as an example.............. .Is it now on par with a .38sp? How bout 9mm? .380? .32 H&R? I don't think any of will ever have enough info to make the call and know for sure how much worse it is. But one thing for sure, you do step down in effectiveness but retain ANY and ALL negatives that come with more recoil and bigger guns.

Actually in my experience commercial LRN bullets seem to be pretty soft. They don't lead barrels because they're not being pushed very hard.
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My experience is the exact opposite. You can order lead bullets in many different hardness's but most off the shelf stuff you find at gun stores, box stores and gun shows are hard. Very hard and too hard in fact. Check the hardness of many of the common cast stuff and you'll see why it's referred too as "hard cast". Also, lead that is the right hardness and sized right can be pushed plenty fast. In many cases as fast as jacketed bullets. But most of the "hard cast" stuff (even sized right) will tend to lead a barrel faster than many softer lead alloys. Lead will indeed mushroom/deform if it's the right alloy. As a matter of fact if your lead isn't deforming some it's probably too hard.
 
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I've read, both on here and a couple of police history books, that the 158 grn LRN loading was oft referred to as the "widow maker".

However, this was due to the belief that it resulted in more dead police officers than dead bad guys.

However, the 158grn LRN and like 92 grn FMJ are generally the only non- +P loading for .38 Spl comercially available in my area.
 
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