As Fluff has pointed out, the original post mentioned snub nosed revolver, NOT
lightweight snub nosed revolver, and he said for carry.
If you holster carry, I strongly suggest a full on stainless steel, at least 25 oz
revolver for carry.
Cuts recoil velocity to HALF of what it is when using little snubs like my 360PD.
Given a decent weight gun, it's possible to move those wadcutters at 125 grains, at over 1100 fps, and, THAT velocity considerably increases wound channel diameter, and, the gun weight soaks up the recoil.
HS-6 will move a 158 grain wadcutter at around 1000 fps, and that would be a GREAT carry load.
The real answer to this question is the reason .38 Wadcutters are not a good carry load is that the ammo industry has spent a few billion dollars telling everyone that will listen, their largest customers being LEO, that hollow points are the answer to their magic bullet dreams, and, that those old cheap, effective, lead bullets you used to buy for .02 cents each
are worthless, and bounce off bad guys. Now, if you pay 2-3 dollars a round, we take that lead, put a copper jacket on it, put a fancy nose cut on it, and call it a magic bullet, and you buy this?:banghead:
Course you can't afford, unless your department is buying your ammo, or you are Obama, to buy enough of these bullets to get used to them, or, hit a target.
I used to carry to guns in shoulder rigs:
A Detonics Mark VI, essentially this gun, in .451 Detonics, .45 Super now days,and, this .45 Colt Seville.
Not your average gun, but, I used to get hard cast Nevada Bullet Works 230 grain hardball, load it over a full case of H110, or a couple grains less, and shoot all day. The bullets, cast around 22 brinnel, didn't lead, didn't need a gas check, and were dirt cheap, and darn accurate. Figured in those days of 10k chronographs the powder companies data, showing around 1800 fps for that load, were pretty accurate. If you think the above 45 caliber hole in a deer heart is impressive, how about near the same bullet, going at rifle velocity? That's 700 fps FASTER then the 1100 fps the colt bullet was doing above, and, that added velocity increases wound channel diameter, not to mention any bones it hits become very fast, secondary projectiles.