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With the exception of Speer Gold Dot's "short barrel" load, most (almost all) .38 special loads, when fired from platforms like the J Frame have proven to be very inconsistent when it comes to expansion, and penetration

Due to this, the recommended practice is to shoot standard wadcutters. The standard wadcutters, not hollowbase or +p have an excellent track record for penetration. They get recommended also for the fact that they tend to shoot to the sights of most guns, and they are easy to shoot well, which is extremely important for the smaller guns, where the sharp vicious recoil or hot +p type loads tends to make people not want to practice otherwise.

Wadcutters from companies like Federal Winchester and Remington all are recommended. Wadcutters from Buffalo Bore are not, if they are going to be used in a J Frame. The additional recoil of the BB loads is not conducive to effective accuracy in a timely manner.

In your case, where you have bought 1K cases, I would pick up a few thousand 148 grain hard cast WCs and use those both in practice and in actual carry, or to put back for future use/"rainy day". Maybe load 500, and practice with 500 once you have established that a load hoots to POA/POI.

Now with that said, if you are carrying a reload for your snubby I would do the following: Carry wadcutters in the gun. Then carry a jhp or similar factory ammo for your reload. The reason is simple. Wadcutters, due to their profile are not easy to reload under stress. The rounded ogive of a typical HP makes it much more conducive to a successful reload. I keep WCs in my J Frame, and HPs on my speed strip. This is a standard practice for a number of guys I know.


148s will shoot to POA in most J Frames with a typical load.