Anyone use a 38special?

[tanoose]

I have been shooting my S&W model 28 357 alot latley with 38 special loads, great fun and the low recoil has been good for the young ones i've been training. It got me to thinking about using the 38 special for some small game and was wondering how many of you do this. I have also seen some realy hot 38 special +P loads out there that i wanted to try .

[Mikey]

The 38 Special makes an excellent small game round and used in a N-Frame S&W it is an excellent tool for teaching younger shooters.  The target wadcutter load works very well on small game and recoil is minimal.  The standard weight semiwadcutter is adequate as are some of the heavier loads from the loading manuals.  

+Ps?? - You're shooting a 357 magnum there buddy, if you want a +P level load throw in some 357s.  The 357 Magnum is an excellent small to medium game cartridge and many use it for big game - I do with clear shots under 50 yds.  JMHO.  Mikey.

[Gonzo Joe]

The K-framed S&W model 28 Highway Patrolman 6"  is a great gun, my father and I shoot his quite often using .38 specials loaded with semi-wadcutters. It's a lot cheaper to practice with .38 specials and step up to .357 for hunting purposes. As far as +P .38's, unless there is some great bargain price on them, I'd just go with .357's instead.

As for small game hunting, .38's will work on game up to hog-sized, but I've seen a few hogs get mad and charge after being bonked with a .38, where the .357 load would usually put them down on the first shot.

I've been trying for years to get him to sell me that revolver, but he absolutely refuses, insisting that the only way I get it is through inheritance. He loves that gun more than any of the others.

Good shooting, great hunting.

[Gregory]

The K-framed S&W model 28 Highway Patrolman 6"  is a great gun,

 
The model 28 is a no frill version of the Model 27, these are N frame guns.
 
The Model 19/66 are 357 K frames.
 
http://world.guns.ru/handguns/hg77-e.htm

[Gonzo Joe]

The K-framed S&W model 28 Highway Patrolman 6"  is a great gun,

 
The model 28 is a no frill version of the Model 27, these are N frame guns.
 
The Model 19/66 are 357 K frames.
 
http://world.guns.ru/handguns/hg77-e.htm

You know, it's funny I've been doing that for years and years, everytime I think N-frame the 29/629 .44 Mags come to mind, and I automatically place the .357's in the K-frame category even though, as you pointed out, not all of them are. One of these days I'll get my letters right.

The only difference I am aware of between the model 28 Highway Patrolman and the model 27 is the 28 has a matte (satin) blue finish, while the 27 has a "bright" blueing. That and the fact that the model 28 did indeed cost less than the 27. My guess is it cost more to produce the finish on the 27. Both models are fine guns, regardless.

[Jerry Lester]

I have been shooting my S&W model 28 357 alot latley with 38 special loads, great fun and the low recoil has been good for the young ones i've been training. It got me to thinking about using the 38 special for some small game and was wondering how many of you do this. I have also seen some realy hot 38 special +P loads out there that i wanted to try .

The 38 special with standard loads makes an exellent small game round. If you handload, try a 125g-158g SP loaded up to around 900 fps or so, and you've got an outstanding combination for everything from squirrels to coons.

[Questor]

I tried it for small game, but went back to the .22 LR. It's just as effective as the .38 and it's not nearly as loud.

[longwalker]

May I suggest the biggest hollow points you can get. When confronting racoons and skunks in the middle of the day you may need just a little bit more than lead round nose bullets. Experience has proven to me that some critters just don't know they are suppose to drop when you hit them.

I have had one experience where a skunk would not stop coming at me after being hit three times with 38 special LRN bullets. One shot with a 158 JHP did the trick, at about 15 feet. You could hear every bullet hit and the skunk just kept on coming at me.

Then there was the racoon middle of the day. Running across a field toward three of us was a racoon. First shot to hit the racoon was a 357 158 JHP. Kept coming at us. A good solid hit in the front with a 30-30 150 SP rolled him over. He turned over and kept on coming. I placed a 44 mag. 240 JHP into the chest between the front shoulders. Knocked it over kicking. When I walked up, the little guy was very angry.

So, will a 38 special work? I bet it will but when it doesn't you will be the first to know.

longwalker

[Questor]

longwalker:

Thou knowest of what you speak. I've had less than stellar results with 38s. I've found the 45ACP to be even more disappointing when using target loads.  They will kill a charging woodchuck, but they won't stop it.

[hankbrass]

Ihave a nice K-38 with an 8 3/8" barrel that is sweet shooting. But for handi- carry duty my J-frame with a 3" barrel and adjustable sights is the ticket. Round butt and stainless it carries in the pocket easy enough. It is my centerfire "kit" gun. All it is fed is Hollow base wadcutters which pack a mighty wallup. Though I have no desire to take on a Hawg with it I won't lose any sleep fearing a rogue coon attack!

[Win 73]

I once shot a groundhog with a wadcutter out of my 4" heavy barrel Model 10.  The bullet went in one front shoulder and exited the opposite front shoulder.  That groundhog flipped over, four feet in the air, graveyard dead in the same spot he had been standing when I shot him.  It was about a 10 yard shot.

I wish I still had that Model 10.

[S.B.]

.38 or .357 with 148 gr. wad cuter and 2.7 gr. of bullseye has worked good for me on small game for decades (rabbits, squirrels, even coon at close ranges). You have to remember that the full flat faced wad cutter has the biggest meplat of anything, in a given caliber?

[tanoose]

Thanks guys i was just curious as to how many of you maybe used the 38 for small game. And yes Mikey it is an excellent tool for trianing youngsters , the n frame is big and heavy which allows next to nothing recoil. And i know what you guys mean by stopping power but i think its a matter of bullet placement my friend ran out side the cabin one night to stop a porky from chewing the side if the cabin, he shot it twice with his freedom arms 454 and it didn't stop until i hit it once with a 357 mag load out of that model 28. The difference between the model 28 and 27 are the no glare finish different front sight and i beleive they may have had different grips . I purchased mine back in 1980. Mine is the 4" model Later Tanoose

[spinafish]

I use a S&W 586 with 6" barrel and 148 wadcutter to thin the local crow population..I have 14 pecan trees literally in my yard and boy, are crows a hassle when the pecans first come in!  But a 148 grainer to the breast of the bird will drop it like a rock each and every time..not so with 22LR.  I have had several to fly off with feathers flying everywhere, to die elsewhere I hope.

[S.B.]

I use a S&W 586 with 6" barrel and 148 wadcutter to thin the local crow population..I have 14 pecan trees literally in my yard and boy, are crows a hassle when the pecans first come in!  But a 148 grainer to the breast of the bird will drop it like a rock each and every time..not so with 22LR.  I have had several to fly off with feathers flying everywhere, to die elsewhere I hope.

I agree, I've shot crows with .22 LR's and heard the bullet  hit them only to see them fly off? They're tougher than most think.