Your favorite non +P 38 special load?

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unlearned69

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My wife has decided that she really likes my new Model 36. That is her code for 'gimme that'. So now that she has a new carry gun, I need to find ammo for it. What do you guys use for non +P ammo?

Maybe I can have my Kahr back now.
 
My favorite non +P is 158 gr semiwadcutters. But my old 1976 36-1 handles +P just fine. I think any steel j-frame would be OK with +P, but the early alloys like the Model 37s should avoid it.
 
For practice, I've been using Magtech 158 gr LRN. It's cheap, and I've never had a misfire, it seems to be quite accurate. It is a little dirty though.
 
Skoro- mine is a 36 no dash. Its not a flat latch, but its an older one. I'm not going to take the chance of damaging it or injuring my wife's hands/eyes/whatever else if it lets go with ammo it's not designed for.

Rugerlvr- that's the ammo that I have been shooting through it thus far.

Treeprof- I'll give the hornady a try.
 
I also like the 158gr lead SWC for practice. And the 125gr Hornady XTP for defense. But all mine are 357 so will handle +P.
 
I have a 1960s Charter Arms Undercover and I use Federal Premium low recoil hydra-shok 38s.
 
I have a 1960s Charter Arms Undercover and I use Federal Premium low recoil hydra-shok 38s.
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I've seen those around and I've been curious about how they shoot. Anything you'd care to expand on? Thanks!
 
Skoro- mine is a 36 no dash. Its not a flat latch, but its an older one. I'm not going to take the chance of damaging it or injuring my wife's hands/eyes/whatever else if it lets go with ammo it's not designed for.
Click to expand...

I fully understand your concern. The steel j-frames are up to the task, but better safe than sorry. And your no-dash would have been made sometime in the late 50s. In my 36-1, I don't feed it a steady diet of +P, but that's what I keep it loaded with JIC. I use standard 38 rounds to practice with. But I've probably shot a couple hundred rounds of +P through it and never had a concern. Most standard 38 rounds these days are loaded well below specifications because of the huge number of pre-war 38 revolvers still in circulation and there's concern about them holding together even under standard pressures after so many years. So, today's "standard" 38 rounds are less potent (in terms of powder) than the ones made in the 30s. But today's bullets are MUCH better than the old lead roundnose they used back then.
 


The old FBI load of 158 grain LDSWHP is a good one, but might be more than she likes. If so, try the Federal 110 grain HydraShoks. It's a shame that Nyclads are no longer available.


​
 
1. Federal Nyclad NON +P 125HP
2. Speer (52733) load LE non +P 125 HP, sold at ammunitiontogo.com
3. Remington 110 SJHP non +P
4. Fiocci 125JHP XTP non +P
5. Hornaday 125jhp & 158jhp XTP Non +P
6. Remington 158SWC Non +P
7. Remington 148 Wadcutter
8. Federal 110 Non +P
9. 158 RNL
10. Winchesters (winpy) 110 silvertip

The best or the best is the 125 Nyclad HP non +P 840 to 850 2 inch S&W gun and does expand.
 
My model 15-4 really likes 125 grain hollow points (Berry's) with 4.0 grains of Red Dot powder. I have some bulk Remington 125 half-jacketed HP bullets that I should try with this load...

My HD gun is kept loaded with 158 grain soft lead SWCHP's and 4.5 grains of Unique, but I may increase the powder a little or switch to Bullseye next time I load some.
 
MY wifes' mdl 36 flat-latch

l_1b16acf4fbd0e16d5ba577d46af71f9d.png
It rarely gets shot, and when it is at the range it only gets 125gr Lead RN up to 158gr Lead SWC's in it. When the wifey has it in her dresser drawer, it is loaded with Remington 125gr +p JHP's.
 
unlearned69 wrote:
Sparkyguy-
That is beautiful. Mine is a lowly blue model with walnut grips, but I sure do like it. So does the wife apparently.
Click to expand...

Well thanx. Whoever owned it before me had it hard-chromed and converted the square butt to round butt. I added the Rosewood combat grips from ebay. It was also rarely shot before I got it because it is tight as a drum and very clean. Not too shabby for a 45 yr old gun.;)
 
FT: I have a 1960s Charter Arms Undercover ....

skoro: I've seen those around and I've been curious about how they shoot.
Click to expand...

I inherited it from my dad when he died - he owned it since new as far as I remember. I think I researched the serial number some time ago and came up with 1964 mfg date.

I don't know what to elaborate on. It's heavy of course, but it shoots great. I pocket carried the Charter for a couple months after I first got my CCW. I bought an M&P340 for a snub that's lighter and can shoot +Ps or .357s.

In my (limited) Charter Arms research, IIRC, the ones from the 60s were pretty good, then sometime later the company changed hands and quality dropped, then they became Charter 2000 or something like that, and again, not great. Somebody told me the current stuff isn't bad.

I'm not really a collector (nor do I know much), but it does seem like a really solid piece. Of course, I don't believe my dad shot it at all, it was just a cabinet gun - he was more of a hunter and trap shooter.
 
Federal 110 Hydra-Shok low recoil, non +P. That's the only round my wife will carry.
 
Has that round been tested and found effective? If so, it would seem to be the solution for non +P users.
 
It has low penetration, however, very very low recoil. I use it in my derringer (back up to a back up :D) with the idea that if I jam it into their gut and fire, penetration is somewhat irregardless. :D
 
My 36-1 is a three-inch, "heavy" barrel.

It likes 4.5 grains of Unique under hard-cast, 158-grain SWCs (any primer; any brass) for practice.

Hornady 140-grain XTPs over 5.7 or 6.0 grains of Power Pistol (again: any primer; any brass) for serious social situations.
 
Skoro- mine is a 36 no dash. Its not a flat latch, but its an older one. I'm not going to take the chance of damaging it or injuring my wife's hands/eyes/whatever else if it lets go with ammo it's not designed for.
Click to expand...
I have virtually the same gun. I got it through my lawyer from a guy who got popped for kiddie porn and was going up the river.

I shoot Federal 158gr. LSWC-HP "FBI" loads through it with no problem at all. They're not painful to shoot with decent grips and quite accurate, even at fifty feet.
 
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