I have loaded about 100 of the 157 grain wadcutters. I didn’t take any pictures of the targets but if I remember correctly they were pretty spot on for my 4” M64. I have also loaded about 100 of Matt’s 160 grain RF bullets with similar results.
Link to 160 grain RF: https://www.mattsbullets.com/index.p...t5k9f5jncq3g46
Pic of reloads:
I will add here that the customer service at Matt’s bullets is fantastic. I have ordered multiple times from him and all have been good experiences. One order contained bullets that looked to have been damaged I assume during shipping. I emailed him about it, gave an approximate number of damaged bullets, and sent a picture explaining what was going on and he sent me more than enough new bullets to replace the damaged bullets in short order. It’s probably about time to place another order...
Last edited by jws; 12-05-2020 at 02:29 PM. Reason: Spelling
A couple years back i tried several differently slugs over 4.5 grains of Unique out of a 2" Model 15. I really like that 157 WC. I don't have notes on the OAL because I just crimped them all with a healthy roll crimp in the crimp groove. The two Matt's bullets shot better than my home cast Lee. The 178 load is probably a little into +P territory, but I was shooting them in a k-frame so I wasn't worried about that.
- 161 lee rnfp Fps:771.8 Fpe: 213
- 157 Matt's WC Fps: 805 Fpe: 226
- 178 Matt's Keith Fps: 762 Fpe: 229
The first indication a bad guy should have that I'm dangerous is when his
disembodied soul is looking down at his own corpse wondering what happened.
From my Training Journal, 12/7/20: I had not shot my little snubby in quite a while. I took a box of the new S&B 148 gr WC to try out and compare with my carry ammo, Federal Gold Medal Match 158 gr WC.
Perceived recoil between the Federal GMM and this ammo seemed about the same. Smokeyness is about the same. Maybe the S&B has a bit more smoke, but it's nothing like the Magtech I tried that one time. I give up something like 60 fps (660 vs 600) of velocity in the S&B. I haven't priced Federal GMM lately but I can't source it at the moment. So I'm going to use the S&B for practice, and keep the GMM for carry, as they seem to print the same.
Speaking of:
What I was surprised at was how consistently both ammo types printed high and left. Not very common for me lol. Perhaps I had forgotten how to shoot a revolver? I dunno. I did a couple cylinders on a B8, then a 5x5 drill, and my groups were trending about 3" up, and 3" left, using a center dot hold at 5 yards. Weird.
I adjusted my hold to compensate, and shot this group with the S&B at 5 yards, putting the fat Novak Tritium front sight about 3" low and right: (the circle on this custom target I created is an NRA B-8 black 8 ring size, 5.54" in diameter)
@RJ - My 642 shoots about 3" high at 5 yards as well. 125-130-grain ammo shoots to POA, so that's what I carry.
Hadn’t seen this posted anywhere else, some recent gel testing in ballistic gelatin:
https://revolverguy.com/38-snubby-ammo/
I wish he had used the heavy clothing or 4LD instead of bare gel, but it’s better than nothing.
I have been reading through this thread this morning drinking coffee, and just wanted to comment on this.
While I don't have any experience shooting gel blocks, I do shoot a fair bit of game with handguns (as some of you who know me already know) due to where I tend to play. Lead wadcutter type bullets are quite effective, and my experience mirrors Chucks.
I have seen Jacks, both large and small hump up and hop away after being zipped right through with 230 grain FMJ ball ammo (unless you hit something structural). But if you get them with an SWC or wadcutter, its a totally different story, they flop over instantly. .38 Wadcutters are extremely effective on all manner of game. I have used them on lots of critters from skunks to vehicle struck deer, and they work well. Though if given an opportunity, I will usually use a bigger caliber/cartridge on the vehicle struck animals, such as a .45 ACP (but that's not relevant to the conversation).
Wadcutters work well.