SmallCaliberCentral

Hi all, I have been working on the wife about purchasing a handgun and I am ready to suggest a fathers day present here in the near future. I enjoy reading the forum and there is always a load of great advice. Thanks in advance

So... I am looking into a do all handgun; night stand, trail gun, and cc. I have decided to go with a revolver, since I will be using it for cc and the point of buying it is reliability. My uncle let me borrow his Taurus .38 2", which I really liked. The gun fit my hand well, as I have a smaller build and seems easy to conceal. After reading the many conversation on this forum I am thinking of staying away from the .38 and going with the .357. I like the extra punch and I can always chamber the .38's if my wife can't handle the .357 recoil, or even reload with a lighter recipe.

The one topic I have not heard much comment on is 2" barrel. I thought the 2" barrel would be nice for cc but am not sure about recoil?? I have seen that many of you have the 4" and 6" barrels.

Is there any reason I should stay away from the 2" barrel? Is the recoil going to be unbearable ( I think I can handle as much as the average shooter). The follow up question to the recoil, is to what degree will this effect my follow up shot and accuracy? I know this questions is very dependant on my ability, but planning on practicing quite a bit. Your $.02 is appreciated.

Thank you all for your opinions

i own a 357 with a 4 in barrel and the recoil isn't bad at all.i would imaging that the 2 jn barrel would be a little more but manageable. i would be more concerned about the noise when firing it. i did a stupid thing one day when i shot 3 rounds out of mine with no hearing protection,couldn't hear for 4 days, and i promised myself i would never do that again. once you damage your hearing there is no repairing it. just my 2 cents

RL: I'd look at the S&W Model 60 in 3" (or Taurus equivilent) for both carry and night stand (all stainless, adj. sights, full underlug), but in the .38+P configuration. It is NOT a plesant experience to torch off a .357 in a short barrel, especially indoors and at night....trust me on this one. For both you and your wife, the .38+P is more than adequate in stopping power, without the nasty blast, flame and recoil of factory .357 loads.

You will shoot it better, like it better, and shoot it more than a .357 Mag. I have both....guess which one I carry?



For CCW only, look at one of these.....S&W Model 642 Airweight .38 Spl +P. With the new Speer Short Barrel Ammunition using their 135gr Gold Dot HP +P, this is one bad actor (1,000 fps! in a 2"!), and no need for punishing 357 loads either. This is the combination many NYC Detectives among other LE types favor. Check out this ammo no matter which revolver you choose....very, very good stuff.

I have to agree with RIO. I own both a 357 mag and a 38spcl. +p 2" CC revolver. The 357 is a model 686 S&W, 6" barrel. I don't really enjoy shooting "full power" magnum loads, even with this revolver. In fact I mainly shoot a 38spcl load that is a very light load. 158 gr copper plated bullet over 3.5 grs titegroup. My 686 is heavy and a real joy to shoot with these light loads. I also shoot the same load in my 637 S&W snubby. I have some +P factory loads loads that I keep just for self protection. They are not too much fun shooting thru the snubby. But I have them for just in case! Even my light loads in the snubby, take their toll on me if I shoot too many thru the snubby. By the way too many 38's is over 100 rds, but I will shoot more than that thru the 686 on some days!

I spent a fair amount of time and money on finding a small, easily concealable, self-defense type revolver. Years ago I settled on these:

.357 mag S&W #19, 2.5" barrel, six-shot:


.38 spl S&W #36, 2" barrel, five-shot:


The .357 gets carried a lot while hiking, fly fishing, X-C skiing and mountain biking. The little .38 is small enough to carry concealed in a jeans pocket... I like the power of the .357, particularly when I'm out in the boonies, which is often. Winter before last I was fly fishing on the Methow River here in Washington State - and had a cougar show up about 40 yards away. Awesome. Was glad I was packing a handgun. Even though cougar attacks are rare, they're not unheard of, only a few miles up the road from my house a man was attacked and bitten by a young cougar several years ago. His dog chased the cat away.

I did have one of the little stainless 2" 5-shot .357 S&W revolvers, very nice. Power was of course vastly better than the .38 special, and recoil was of course much worse! Could have just kept that revolver but ended up with the .38 for concealed carry instead. Am happy with it. I'm usually carrying a .45 1911 anyway, but it's nice to be able to tuck the little revolver in a pocket. Hammerless, like Rick's photo, is the way to go for an easy draw from a pocket w/o snagging on anything. For extremely good concealment, take a look at some of the very flat, small semi-auto .380's and 9mm's on the market today. Amazing little guns.

I ran some ammo from my 2" .357 mag over the chronograph a few years back:

.38 spl Federal Hydrashock 129 gr +P = 850 fps
.357 mag Win 145 gr Silvertip = 1100 fps!

Big difference in power and recoil & muzzle blast.

More important by far than a particular cartridge, is your ability to use the gun quickly and decisively.

Good luck with whatever handgun you select! Regards, Guy

Thank you guys for the information,

I like the .38 because I know my wife and I can easily handle the recoil and with the small barrell I will be able to conceal. The only draw back that sticks in my mind is on the trail. All the country I hunt has cougars, as well as where we vacation. Last summer at our lake cabin, I was golfing and I got a frantic call from my wife. Our small dog was outside barking, so she went to yell at him and noticed a cougar about 30 yards away. She brought the dog in and then my cousins went out to look at the couger. The cougar ran off and 2 cubs followed it. Later we found out that the cougar had built a den underneath a trailer up the road.

Any other suggestions? I guess I am leaning toward the .38, so what other loads should I look into?

Hopefully it wont be to long into the future when I can purchasing another handgun.
Thanks again

RL: Consider this in regard to the .38: If personal defense ammunition in +P configuration is entirely suitable for "human predators", it should also serve well to defend you or your loved ones lives against a cat. Let's face it....any kitty encounter will be up close, usually inside 15 yards, so a quality revolver rated for +P ammunition would easily suffice.

The guns rated for .357 are always a tad heavier, but do offer the option of much more powerful ammo options, but at the expense of that dreaded blast, flash and recoil that your wife may not tolerate and thereby affect her shooting and possibly induce a flinch. The Speer Gold Dot .38+P ammo I mentioned previously was designed especially for short barreled revolvers at the request of the NYC Detectives to Speer. It is a rip-roarin' load that would ruin any kitty's day and is about the best personal defense ammunition designed for short barreled .38 Spl +P revolvers that I'm aware of. The stuff is just this side of .357 performance out of the .38 Spl case, but without the blast and recoil associated with the magnum loadings.



The Gold Dot HP was designed specifically for PP, and expands to very large diameter upon striking flesh:



Just something to ponder, but you want to do it right the first time.

Agree. That's The Ammo for snub nose .38's!

BTW - we had a woman kill a cougar on her back porch a few years back, with a .38 special. It was trying to eat her dog! A husky or malamute as I recall.

RIO and GuyM

Thanks for the info. I feel much more at ease knowing the .38 will get the job done with the kitties in close quarters. I will be sure to purchase the Gold Dot ammunition. I think my mind is made up, I can't wait to go shopping.

Sorry for all the questions, but you guys are a great source of information. Are there certain brands of speed loaders that you guys use?

Also, I live in Eastern Washington with hot summers, what is the best way to for concealed cary in the summer seasons. Due to the warm summers, shorts and t-shirts, I assume inside the belt, would be best? is there a certain holster you recomend?

Thanks

RL: For speedloaders, look at the HKS. I've used them in all three frame sizes for S&W's for about 30 years now without a single failure. You can see a partial pic of mine for the S&W J-Frame in the photo of the ammo above.

As for holsters.....a very personal area of preference. For ready-to-wear, look at Galco, Bianchi, Safariland. For more upscale rigs, look at Milt Sparks (long lead time). I've got quite a few Glaco rigs, and would suggest looking there first. Their catalog is huge, they offer about every type of carry option, and the catalog is a great source of reference even if you don't purchase one of their holsters. HTH

Same recommendations on speed loaders here.

For carry, an inside the waistband holster is good. I prefer either one of the elastic nylon belly bands or a little inside-the-pocket holster with the J-frame. No muss, no fuss. Easy packing in warm weather.

Guy

RL: Agree with Guy...try a DeSantis pocket holster if you end up with a J-Frame. I carry one alot in the front pocket of my jeans or summer shorts; it's invisible to the untrained eye, and almost to the trained eye. They're made from "sticky" rubber/synthetic substance, so that when you draw the revolver, the holster stays put in the pocket.

The best inside the waisband (IWB) holsters I've seen come from Milt Sparks. Spendy, but the best available. Mitch Rosen and Galco also make good ones, a bit less expensive. HTH

My wife has the Taurus Titanium Model 617 .357 snubby. When we go to the range everyone is amazed how well she shoots it. It's ported and has the ribbed grip which really controls recoil. Yes, she shoots full house .357's.

Ahab: I'm wondering if your wife has ever practiced with her .357 and full house loads in that ported revolver in low light situations. I've shot ported revolvers in low light, and the flash with full house loads is virtually blinding because of the porting. Just wondering how your Mrs. does with that gun in that environment.

As most "social encounters" when you need a handgun occur at night or in low light, it's something to seriously consider.

Rick in Oregon wrote:Ahab: I'm wondering if your wife has ever practiced with her .357 and full house loads in that ported revolver in low light situations. I've shot ported revolvers in low light, and the flash with full house loads is virtually blinding because of the porting. Just wondering how your Mrs. does with that gun in that environment.
As most "social encounters" when you need a handgun occur at night or in low light, it's something to seriously consider.

Rick, no she hasn't. I did have her set one round off in our back yard on a moonless night, (we live in a rural area) so she could experience the dynamics of low light conditions.