Are there any acceptable standard pressure .38 Special loads for defensive use?

....When fired out of a snubnose?

I recently acquired a S&W 638 that is intended as a BUG to my VP9 or for carry in very hot weather or in places where I just need a smaller gun. I'm not someone who generally uses +P in any of my guns and I'm curious if there any standard pressure loadings in .38 Special that are acceptable performers. Thus far I haven't been very impressed by the gel test results for standard pressure loads I've been watching on Youtube. Does a decent standard pressure load exist or do I just need to accept that I need to change my usual MO here and go with +P for the 638?

I have 125 gr xtp 's and though not +p they seem like it when fired.

I'm not sure what else to try. When I shoot these up I'll just use +p ammo as there are far more choices and I already have a bunch of Remington 125 gr sjhp +p. They're cheap, and Remington, but I've fired a couple hundred of them with no problems.

I have Ruger LCR'S in .38 and .357.

I use Gold Dot 135grn jhp. They are a +p round but have to be softest shooting defensive .38 ever.

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Originally Posted by Nowski87

I use Gold Dot 135grn jhp. They are a +p round but have to be softest shooting defensive .38 ever.

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Thanks for the tip. I'll look into those.

Buffalo Bore 158gr Semiwadcutters seem to be one of the few standard pressure loads that consistently penetrate to more than 12" but from what I recall they might actually theoretically overpenetrate and expansion wasn't fantastic. I may give them a try though.

I'll second the recommendation for Gold Dot 135g JHP. I think felt recoil is a little lighter than with any defensive 158g load I've fired in a J Frame.

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Originally Posted by T2C

I'll second the recommendation for Gold Dot 135g JHP. I think felt recoil is a little lighter than with any defensive 158g load I've fired in a J Frame.

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The ballistic tests on YouTube look promising. I think I'll probably give them a try.

I load up my airweight with WCs (Federal right now). They offer less recoil, shoot to my sights, with nice tight groups and faster follow up shots than any +P, have good penetration, and cut a full caliber hole.

I don't expect any HP, even a modern +P, to open up from a sub-2" barrel.

The biggest issue I have noticed are slower reloads, even by snub revolver standards. To try an speed things up a bit, I just bought a box of Remington 130gr Defend JHPs. These are a standard pressure round, 1/2 of the new Remington Train/Defend series.

These 130gr rounds are reported to have low recoil, low flash, and POI = POA. I cannot confirm any of this, however, as I have not yet fired any of these rounds. At over $1 per round ($26 for a 20 round box at Gander Mtn) I won't be buying many. They are simply a reload for my BUG.

I expect to test fire some later this week. All I really care about with these will be reliability, speed of reload, speed of follow up shots, and POI vs my WCs. I'm not even considering expansion.

Hornady 110 gr Critical Defense or wadcutters are good for non +p loads.

Federal 38c is a 158gr standard pressure load with a LSWC bullet.

I don't believe it meets the 12 inch standard, but for standard pressure I would recommend federal nyclad if I can still find it

The nose is soft lead which de forms easily rather than requiring a hard jacket to peel back

A trainer I know who is a revolver specialist shot a number of different defensive of rounds into sides of beef

He was very impressed with the damage the federal nyclads did

I am a fan of the gold dots for snubnosed, though they may be plus p

I load the federal nyclad in airweight revolvers

Gold dots in steel/heavier revolvers

Just remember that with any hand gunload, even multiple shots to good targets may not have the desired effect