Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns What is the attraction to wadcutters?

School me here a bit. I hear alot of people talking about using wadcutters in the PD handgun, and was wondering what advantage if any they have over hollowpoints. Is it reduced recoil of is it the effect they have on the target?

I ask because I may be getting my wife a 38 for days she works at the office alone.

When seated backwards (revolvers only) a hollowbase wadcutter is a nasty hole maker. For the typical 10' gunfight, they are plenty accurate enough. A 158 WC in a 38/357 will not reduce kick at all if loaded hot. Given the legal implications, one is probably best to stick with factory SD ammo as some freako D.A. could claim you were using "evil sadistic ammo" to hurt the bad guy. Then there are the lawsuits from the "victim's" relatives sure to follow.
Just be sure the "victim" of your evil wife, is very, very dead.
Has she tried the Ruger LCR with the Laser sight? Wonderful rig!

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think you've actually read/heard others mentioning the use of semi wadcutters. Full wadcutters are a full caliber cylinder of lead---------like a tiny soup can. A semi wadcutter has a smaller nose section than the rest of the body behind it. Google should show you examples of each.

The concept with a semi wadcutter vs. a hollow point, is the former will give deep, straight, penetration while punching a clean hole through tissue, bone, organs and arteries. A hollow point may disrupt more tissue initially, but the bullet might then slow down, come apart, tumble or otherwise stop before reaching all of incapacitating opportunities that lie beyond. The semi wadcutter advocates would rather err on the side of maximum penetration at the expense of would channel that's initially narrower.

RugerM77270,
Are you planning on using reloads or factory ammo?
Factory loaded wadcutters are low velocity for paper target shooting and not known for tremendous power. (LOW RECOIL)
I got ahold of an old Lyman bullet mold and started casting wadcutters with #2 alloy which is much harder than pure lead and I load them to a higher velocity as well. This should give them better penetration than the target loads and the flat sharp nose should raise heck with soft tissue IMO. Haven't shot any bad guys with this load yet though and hope I never have too.
whelennut

I plan on using factory for the carry loads (because of the lawyer reason) probably cheap handloads for the range.

My wife is quite small and doesn't need alot of recoil and I was just wondering if there was and advantage to the wadcutter with lower velocity.

My favorite site for general PD handgun information.

Lots of good articles on .38 special ammo for defense.


http://www.hipowersandhandguns.com/OtherHandguns.htm

For range use hard to beat Seilers & Beloit 38 spec fmj.
Cheap and no lead dust issues.

Yep.

Wadcutters were designed for target shooting, they cut a very clean, full diameter hole, making it easier to score the targets, and now and then, the larger hole will cut the line of the "next higher ring", and give you an extra point.
That's the reasoning behind full wadcutter bullets. As for defense purposes, they aren't the best choice by a long shot, my cousin's husband shot a couple guys with them, and still had to knock them down with his fists.(he was a cop).

If your wife can't, or won't, handle a bit heavier recoil, then they'd work, but they sure aren't the best choice.

Cool you guys answered my question. I think I will get her some 125 xtp hp for carry and call it a day.

One of the things I've noticed is many/most women have a much harder time shooting a 2 inch .38 than a heavier, 4 inch gun. So, you might consider this.
The other thing I've noticed is that the lighter kicking, cheap practice ammo often doesn't shoot very close to the same POI as the hotter, lighter bullet loads.
In my book, these guns have very limited usefulness and not for the beginner or the recoil shy. E