My wife shoots 158gr jacketed semi wadcutters very well in a 4" barrel Model 15 S&W. These are light recoiling commercial (MBI from Lucky Gunner) reloads at around 760fps. I let her try some +P defensive loads and accuracy went downhill fast, two cylinders was all she wanted of them.

How good a defense load would the semi wadcutters be? Is there a low recoiling commercial defense load that would be considerably better?

I wouldn't want to catch 5 rounds of that load. If she is comfortable and accurate with it then use it.

Hornandy makes a 90 grain lite. I don't know anything about it, other then they claim it to be low recoil.

I'd stick with what she's already doing well with. Minimal recoil, blast and flash.
Cheap to practice.

The load she is using is a lot better than what the police used for a long time.

The Hornady Critical Defense Lite loads and the Federal low recoil loads are both designed for PD in light handguns. Accuracy with both in my Ruger LCRX has been excellent and I prefer them to hot loads.

140 grain Speer JHP over 8 grains of Blue Dot works well in a 4 inch .38 Special.

Ditto

Plenty of power for defense. Good wound channel and penetration for human aggressors.

Confidence is needed.

In the .38 Special where the velocity may or may not open up a jacketed hollow point, I like lead bullets. I reload and my favorite load consists of a 148 grain Hensley & Gibbs wadcutter bullet running around 900 fps. It is very accurate and the recoil is very manageable. I would have no problem using it for defense.

Absolutely. Bufallo Bore makes a couple of them.

+1 on Buffalo Bore!!

3 grains of Clays pushing a 148 grain wadcutter (not semi-wadcutter) is easy enough to shoot in J frames, and works great on small game. I am sure it would serve her purpose fine.

Out of a Model 15, I don't think she would even notice them.


Low recoil, and MOJR (Minute of Jack Rabbit).






I don't know the velocity of these but Hodgdens data shows 2.5 grains (as a max) at 836 FPS. I have had zero issues in shooting a BUNCH of the 3 grain load.

You can get roughly 2,300 rounds of loaded 38 ammo from a single pound of Clays. That is a LOT of practice on the cheap!

I'd suggest some handloads with 110 gr. bullets and fast burning powder.
If it's penetration you want, try the Barnes 110 gr. bullet with 4.1-4.6 grs. of Ramshot ZIP.
Speer lists their 110 gr. HP with 7 grs. of 700-X for 1208 fps from a 6 inch gun. E

What grips does she use ? I cannot fir any S&W revolver with factory grips.
How about WCs. Low recoil and they are better stoppers than
they are credited for.
The "experts" always recommend no reloads for legal reasons.

148 gr plated wadcutters and 3.2 gr of Titegroup in the wife's 640. Buffalo Bore and Double Tap make a similar load.

Used to handgun hunt bunnies with 3 gr of bullseye behind the 148 WC. That is the classic target load for the 38.

Let me add to the 148 wadcutter parade. Nice clean fullcaliber holes in what they hit.

WC ain't my favorite if you should feel the need to reload in a hurry.

Thanks to all for the info. She read this and says thanks too. She's going to stay with the 158 jacketed semiwadcutters. Says she's used to shooting them; wants to use what she practices with, can handle them DA and believes she can hit what she's shooting at more than once if she has to.

blackhawknj, The grips are the S&W wood target grips.