I've long believed that from a snub nose 38 special the basic target grade Full Wadcutter can be an effective round for civilian self defense. I decided today to do a bit of a comparison between Winchester SuperX 148 grain Full wadcutter and Winchester Ranger Bonded 130 grain +P. Both rounds were fired from my S&W 642 at 10 feet. My setup consisted of 4 layers of cotton t-shirt covering 3 inches calibrated ballistic gel, a 3/4 inch pine board, then another 18 inches of gel. The results are as follows (all penetration depths include the 3/4in pine board):
148 grain target full wadcutter - 16 3/4 in penetration - .40 inches expanded diameter
Ranger Bonded 130 grain +p - 11 inches penetration - .56 inches expanded diameter
I have done quite a bit of gel testing with the Ranger +p load and found it to be a very reliable expander through bare gel and heavy clothing from the snub nose. My primary concern with this load is that it tends to penetrate to the shallow end of the spectrum. Usually in the 12 inch range. Though often maligned as being too weak, target wadcutters, in my experience, usually show excellent penetration in gel (usually in the 16-20 inch range). I understand that my setup is in no way in alignment with FBI protocols but I thought it would be interesting to compare these two loads head to head having to penetrate a hard barrier after encountering "soft tissue" first.
Given the performance of these two loads, which would you prefer - shallower penetration with larger expansion or deeper penetration with very limited expansion?
148 grain target full wadcutter - 16 3/4 in penetration - .40 inches expanded diameter
Ranger Bonded 130 grain +p - 11 inches penetration - .56 inches expanded diameter
I have done quite a bit of gel testing with the Ranger +p load and found it to be a very reliable expander through bare gel and heavy clothing from the snub nose. My primary concern with this load is that it tends to penetrate to the shallow end of the spectrum. Usually in the 12 inch range. Though often maligned as being too weak, target wadcutters, in my experience, usually show excellent penetration in gel (usually in the 16-20 inch range). I understand that my setup is in no way in alignment with FBI protocols but I thought it would be interesting to compare these two loads head to head having to penetrate a hard barrier after encountering "soft tissue" first.
Given the performance of these two loads, which would you prefer - shallower penetration with larger expansion or deeper penetration with very limited expansion?