.38 Special for Self Defense

[SHOOTALL]

a few years ago i took a self defence class and one point made is there is a trend in some areas that if you carry a gun you should also carry a less lethal means also . It would be better to do as little damage in stopping an attack as possible . The instructor suggested a spray . I gathered from the class it would look as if you were concerned only to stop an attack and not shoot someone IE, it would look better in court .
Seemed like a bit of a dog and pony show to me .

[Mohawk]

  Simple escalation of force, verbal through deadly. If you want to stop an attack from a person with a shotgun then it will take more than pepper spray, etc. No scenario is alike. This thread was picked up by someone who knows know better. Don't give him the time. Most persons can conjugate a sentence, he can not......

[SHOOTALL]

i agree about the poster . Just thouht it was interesting that some instructors are including it .

[papajohn428]

I'm already loaded down with what I consider the necessities without adding pepper spray to the mix.  My first tactic is avoidance, and if I can't extricate myself from a situation I'll go to plan B, which is Verbal Judo.  If that doesn't work and I still can't extricate, the weapon comes into play.  When I'm at work I carry a gun, spare ammo, a flashlight, a knife, and handcuffs.  Off duty I carry a different gun, but I still have a flashlight, a knife, spare ammo, and there's a spare set of cuffs in my car.  Some of the folks in my area have been pepper-sprayed so many times it no longer bothers them.  If there's time to deploy pepper spray and see if it works, there's time to un-ass the area!

Back to the topic at hand.......out of a two or three-inch revolver, a Plus-P 38 will do the same thing a 357 will do, without as much fuss.  New bullet designs are better than anything we've ever had, and if those aren't available, the old reliable Metro Load, a 158-grain lead Hollowpoint at 800 fps, still does the job.

Papajohn

[gstewart44]

GB's view of  Rosssmith coming from India would be consistent with his use of the letter "c" in spelling "defence".   This spelling is a product of the British Empire of yore.    the substitution of "c" for "s" is common in UK, Australia, New Zealand, and India.  Heck if you look at some of our own Colonial era manuscripts you will see it used.   I guess when we gained Independence from Britain we chose a different way of spelling as well.    God Bless the USA!

[dawei]

I'm already loaded down with what I consider the necessities without adding pepper spray to the mix.  My first tactic is avoidance, and if I can't extricate myself from a situation I'll go to plan B, which is Verbal Judo.  If that doesn't work and I still can't extricate, the weapon comes into play.  When I'm at work I carry a gun, spare ammo, a flashlight, a knife, and handcuffs.  Off duty I carry a different gun, but I still have a flashlight, a knife, spare ammo, and there's a spare set of cuffs in my car.  Some of the folks in my area have been pepper-sprayed so many times it no longer bothers them.  If there's time to deploy pepper spray and see if it works, there's time to un-ass the area!

Back to the topic at hand.......out of a two or three-inch revolver, a Plus-P 38 will do the same thing a 357 will do, without as much fuss.  New bullet designs are better than anything we've ever had, and if those aren't available, the old reliable Metro Load, a 158-grain lead Hollowpoint at 800 fps, still does the job.

Papajohn

http://www.thehighroad.us/showthread.php?t=405027

[Mohawk]

papa, I love ya' but the .357 Mag outclasses the .38 +P in any barrel length.

I'm already loaded down with what I consider the necessities without adding pepper spray to the mix.  My first tactic is avoidance, and if I can't extricate myself from a situation I'll go to plan B, which is Verbal Judo.  If that doesn't work and I still can't extricate, the weapon comes into play.  When I'm at work I carry a gun, spare ammo, a flashlight, a knife, and handcuffs.  Off duty I carry a different gun, but I still have a flashlight, a knife, spare ammo, and there's a spare set of cuffs in my car.  Some of the folks in my area have been pepper-sprayed so many times it no longer bothers them.  If there's time to deploy pepper spray and see if it works, there's time to un-ass the area!

Back to the topic at hand.......out of a two or three-inch revolver, a Plus-P 38 will do the same thing a 357 will do, without as much fuss.  New bullet designs are better than anything we've ever had, and if those aren't available, the old reliable Metro Load, a 158-grain lead Hollowpoint at 800 fps, still does the job.

Papajohn

http://www.thehighroad.us/showthread.php?t=405027

[dawei]

papa, I love ya' but the .357 Mag outclasses the .38 +P in any barrel length.

That is the ABSOLUTE GOSPEL TRUTH! http://www.hipowersandhandguns.com/38vs357snub.htm

[SHOOTALL]

but in a 2 inch or less bbl. the difference in many loads is not worth the extra flash and noise as both can be more hurtful than helpful.

[Mohawk]

but in a 2 inch or less bbl. the difference in many loads is not worth the extra flash and noise as both can be more hurtful than helpful.

  It's worth it. And the noise and flash won't be remembered.

[SHOOTALL]

it will if a second shot is needed !

[Mohawk]

  You won't know how many shots you fired either.

[SHOOTALL]

Guess that depends on the situation .
Don't get me wrong there is a difference but with some loads the power spread is not as great as some think. And some people are sensitive to noise and flash more than others .

[Mohawk]

  Just glad to see the .38 125gr standard pressure Nyclad reintroduced by Federal. Should be great in the J-frames for those who are recoil sensitive. All I was saying, is that if you create distance, obtain concealment, solid cover while maintaining continued movement, and still have the ability to even aquire the sights, at that point, noise and flash is irrelivant, you are driving in 6th gear with a 5 gear transmission. Never underestimate your training, because you will always fall back on it. My first armed confrontation was me against 4 subjects, dressed in BDU's, all black, and in a parking garage(not much cover there). All 4 were arrested without a shot fired/ and trespassed by the owner agent. Presence, observation, and gaining distance and verbal commands made the difference, not any bullet, caliber, or ballistic information. Here's the kicker...  they had about 20 (firearms) in their possession. The only reason I hesitated in firing was that the third guy down the stairwell had an orange tip on one of the guns(toy of a Smith J-frame). I ordered them to the ground, they complied and begged me not to shoot them. Out of about 20 guns my .357 mag was the only real one. They spent a fortune for replica Sig 226's, Beretta 92's, etc. all pellet guns. They were having a "fun, realistic" gunfight. And to be honest, if it wasn't for the orange tip, I would have been front page news, nationally. But, I continued on and the real stuff happended later. But, in short, the .38 is enough. The type of load, everyone has there favorites. And I don't blame them. All I ask is look beyond, far beyond, the load or bullet. Look at surviving and living to live another day. That's all..


Mohawk.

[user]

All my carry revolvers are 4" S&W's in .38 special, except the one I'd like to sell that's in .357.  I think you get lots of flash, bang, and recoil with a .357, and the incremental improvement in ballistics and delivery of kinetic energy is not worth what it takes to launch 'em from a small gun.  I'm also a fan of 9mm semiautomatics.  Like Frank Zappa said, "anything over a mouthful is wasted."  More important to be able to put the bullet in the place where it'll do the most good.  And as others have said, the most significant factor there is how the gun fits you.

Deleted by Graybeard. This IS NOT a classified forum.