Is the .38 Special still relevent as a carry round?

[okie john]

Picked up a Ruger Service Six in .38 spl. with a 2.75 inch barrel and dearly love it. Looking for opinions given today's bullet technology. Thanks in advance.

Relevant? Yep. The cartridge does everything the 9mm can do, plus a little. The typical 38 revolver is a little behind the times, but only a little. A good shooter armed with a 38 is a very serious opponent.


Okie John

[theJanitor]

I sure hope it is. My only snubby is a 2" colt, and doesn't rate +P, so I'm using the 110gr Hornady Critical Defense

[KevH]

Relevant? Very

I've shot and own a bucket of autos, but I'm still very comfortable with 38 Special and 357 Magnum revolvers. The S&W M12 remains one of my all-time favorite guns.

[Chuck Haggard]

I carry one or two 642s daily, as BUGs typically.

In my old Security and Speed Sixes I used to carry magnum ammo, because magnum, but my reloads were normally .38 +P because my BUG was a Colt Cobra or DS.

I wouldn't cry in my sleep and wet the bed if suddenly I had to carry Gold Dots or one of my other prefered loads and go without a semi-auto.

[Tamara]

Science fact: Ruger Six-series guns make women's clothes fall off.

Blind women, maybe.

[jetfire]

Blind women, maybe.

I prefer the term "sturdy" women.

[LHS]

Science fact: Ruger Six-series guns make women's clothes fall off.

I think the technical term for that is "aggravated sexual assault"...

#stoprapeculture

[TR675]

I think the technical term for that is "aggravated sexual assault"...

#stoprapeculture

Perfect.

[Stephanie B]

I sure hope it is. My only snubby is a 2" colt, and doesn't rate +P, so I'm using the 110gr Hornady Critical Defense

Lots of discussion elsewhere that what is now +P is equivalent to what was .38 Special before the cartridge was downrated for fear of blowing up pre-Great War guns. I don't know how true that really is. Supposedly the Colt Detective Specials are OK for +P, but not a steady diet of them.

There's a guy who does a lot of testing of short-barreled guns into ballistic gel. If I remember right, the Winchester Ranger/PDX1 round is pretty impressive in his tests. The Critical Defense +P a little less so. The FBI load HPLSWCs just sort of zipped right through the blocks.

Either way, I wouldn't want to get shot with any of them.....

[Haraise]

The cartridge does everything the 9mm can do, plus a little.

I'd really like to see where you got your data on the above. .38 special compared to HST or Ranger T, especially.