Winter Carry Weapon... .38 Spc, .357, .357 Mag, 10mm?

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jehicks87

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I have a question for you guys. I am in the market for a winter carry weapon. I am weighing my options.

I want, of course, the best terminal performance against heavy, thick winter clothing. This weapon will be carried in a pancake holster, so size isn't as big an issue as it is for my summer carry set-up (Glock 36 carried IWB.)

I am weighing revolver vs auto. I am confident with Semi-Autos and have no issues carrying them. I am considering a revolver due to the affect of the cold (sticking) in particular, but I appreciate the robustness of revolvers in general.

My caliber will be the deciding factor, so the actual pistol in question will not be discussed outside of revolver vs auto as I have selected two candidate calibers from each form-factor.

So, terminal performance against heavy, thick clothing, and I am preparing for thick-bodied BG's. .38 Spc, .357 Magnum, .357 Sig, or 10mm? I am not recoil-sensitive.
 
Carry the same thing all year round. Winter clothes will not have an effect on terminal performance.
 
Carry the same thing all year round. Winter clothes will not have an effect on terminal performance.
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Really? I mean, I know a carhart or leather jacket over a hoodie won't STOP a bullet, but isn't there a reason the FBI adds denim layers and such to their ballistics testing? It suggests to me that clothing does have an affect on performance... or am I missing something?

I ask because I am new to the world of CCW but have been around guns for a pretty good time. So, beyond "hey check out my new (insert model here)" I am more concerned with the knowledge I need to make myself a more dutiful ccp holder.

Thanks for your time!

Jake
 
In .357mag, Remington 125gr SJHPs had a bad rep against winter clothing such as leather and down.

I live in a very rural area and like the .357mag and 10mm for winter time. If I see active mountain lion sign on the property then it's .357mag with at least 140gr XTPs handloaded.

Town carry is a Colt/1911 loaded with bonded Ranger 230gr JHPs, Winchester's +P Ranger is also an excellent carry. :D
 
No it won't stop it or slow it down. It may plug up the HP cavity and allow the bullet to penetrate a bit more. Serious doubts to the bullet exiting the body in my personal experience and observation. Criminals wearing down jackets plus sweatshirt and T-shirt still get killed by 9mm after a few rounds. My time spent working in a morgue says if you shoot someone with a service weapon a few times, they usually end up on a slab.

Cops don't change ammo or calibers for seasons. What makes you think you should?
 
Cops don't change ammo or calibers for seasons. What makes you think you should?
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Cops do and don't do a lot of things I don't and do do, respectively.

I don't really base much on what police officers carry, other than my admiration for the Illinois 9mm load. :)

If it's not an issue, it's not an issue. I still plan on getting a 10mm in the future, but won't feel undergunned between now and then.
 
Yep...what he said....45acp all the time for me (Glock 36)
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Ridgerunner, you carry a Glock 36 too? I love mine, how do you like yours? What holster do you use? I'm having Eric (HBEleatherworks) make me one up.
 
You probably won't have any problems with any of those calibers and winter clothes.

If you're really worried about the extra penetration, go with the 10mm or .357 mag. The difference won't really matter until you get into people wearing ballistic vests, though. As far as wounding potential, who knows. If you're concerned about that extra expansion, take the bigger of the two (10mm)

I would go with 10mm, but that's just what I'm familiar with. I don't have a .38/.357 mag to practice with usually.
 
I think RhinoDefense is right, unless we're talking a pretty lightweight frangible round (like a Glaser) I bet the "worst" that would happen is the HP would clog up and wouldn't expand, but it would still penetrate. But I think many modern JHP designs are pretty good at expanding even with clothing in the way.
 
best terminal performance would be with the 357mag imop. 10mm in second, 357sig third, and the 38spl in fourth.

murf
 
Why would someone change weapon types?? What ever muscle memory you have developed is gone. If you carry a 38 then a 357 could be nothing more than a different model or just an ammo change. If you need a 10mm then carry that all years just move up from a light bullet to a heavier bullet +P type load..

Never change handgun design and fuction. I carry a 9mm year round but could if worried change to a 147gr+P from a 124gr+P if needed for heavier clothing.
 
So, terminal performance against heavy, thick clothing, and I am preparing for thick-bodied BG's. .38 Spc, .357 Magnum, .357 Sig, or 10mm? I am not recoil-sensitive.
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.357 Mag (from at least a 3" barrel) or 10mm.

That said, if I'm limited to 5 or 6 rounds in a revolver, I choose the .44 Spl. loaded a little heavy. My carry load puts a 210 gr. SJHP out of my 2.5" Bulldog at 980 FPS. Of course, when wearing heavy winter clothing, I grab the G20, which is 16 rounds of 180 gr Golden Sabres at 1,400 FPS.

I'm looking into a FN 5.7. Should that be an effective caliber for winter carry?
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Just as effective as it is in the summer. IMO, the 5.7 is not a good choice, regardless of season. Terminal performance from the Five-seveN pistol isn't much better than a rimfire.
 
I'd feel safe enough with the Glock 36. If you just want a new gun go with .357 revolver. I think they are a very fun round and you can go anywhere from mild to wild with that gun.
 
jehicks87 said:
Cops do and don't do a lot of things I don't and do do, respectively.

I don't really base much on what police officers carry, other than my admiration for the Illinois 9mm load. :)

If it's not an issue, it's not an issue. I still plan on getting a 10mm in the future, but won't feel undergunned between now and then.
Click to expand...
Wats an illinois 9mm load??
 
Summer ~ Spring ~ Fall ~ Winter??? I use the same year round. If your looking for justification to buy another gun, I guess this is as good as any.
 
I express no opinion on the need/desirability of a larger/faster caliber for overcoming the "armor" of polarfleece and syn-fil parkas. I will note, however, that winter clothes are certainly better suited to concealing a larger firearm. To the extent that one carries, say, a .380 in the summer because they need something pocketable, cooler weather can offer an opportunity to up-gun to a service pistol.
 
I carried a Beretta 96FS .40 caliber on police patrol in the Pacific Northwest. Our rain and foul weather clothing had slits on the side which allowed our pistols to remain on the exterior of our clothing so it was available to us in an emergency. That said, my pistol was directly exposed to heavy rain/snow/freezing cold for extended periods during patrol activites. I never once encountered a problem with my auto pistol under these conditions. In fact there were times when I'd get home from patrol where I'd field strip my Beretta and use a blowdryer to dry it before I put it away.

(I carried a Smith & Wesson model 28 Highway Patrolman .357 magnum revolver as my duty weapon prior to the Beretta. Likewise it was also exposed to the same extreme weather/temperature conditions and I never had a problem with it.)

9mm Speer Gold Dot 124gr +P has a very good record of terminal performance in officer involved shootings where heavy clothing was encountered by the bullet. Given this information I'd suggest a Glock 19 loaded with this ammunition year round.

Otherwise I suggest a Glock 23 loaded with 180gr .40 S&W, which also has established an excellent reputation in OIS.

Good luck!
 
Summer, my carry revolver 649, 357 S&W with ISWB holster. Winter carry revolver, Ruger 357, GP100 ,4" barrel. I woul'd prefer to carry the GP 100 all year but summer clothing does not conceal it very well.
 
Most people who feel a need to change calibers due to winter wear switch from a smaller caliber to a larger one. Since you already carry a .45, I don't see why you'd want to change to a smaller caliber.
 
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