Appropriate ammo for .38 S&W airweight

Question
Hi,
This is the revolver that my wife carries for protection. The distance at the shooting range is probably farther than when she might pull the trigger in a real situation, so I'd appreciate an expert opinion on the stopping power of various ammunition available.  For my own, I load with a copper jacketed hollow point.  Would that be appropriate or any other thoughts?
Carl

Answer
Lots of good ammo out there now.  But much more to protection than just bullet type.  Bullet ballistics have varied opinion.  Most old timers believe bigger is better.  Bigger meaning two things.  Circumference basically looking down the barrel of a .22 verses a .45, the bigger the hole of the barrel, the biggie the hole in the target.  The other bigger consideration is weight of bullet.  Most .38 and .357 are about 158 grain bullet which is heavier than a 9mm which is normally 115 grain, compared to a .45 which is about 230 grains.  The heavier the bullet the more energy that is transferred to the target.  Kind like if I hit you with a marble or a bowling ball.  The marble would sting and hurt but the bowling ball might knock you down.  So most people like bigger, biggie hole and bigger weight.  The third major component is bullet speed, here is where opinions vary.  A .223 (M16) bullet is the about the same size as a .22, but it travels at about 3000 feet per second, so when it hits something at that speed it makes a bigger hole from the speed that is knocks things out of it's way (called a secondary cavity).  So if I stuck you with a needle the primary cavity would be the tiny hole that was left when I removed the needle. If that same needle went through your arm at 3000 feet per second, the hole would be much bigger, since at that speed it would push skin and flesh out of the way so fast that it would tear and rip a much bigger hole (secondary cavity).  This would do more damage and create more blood loss.  So some think speed is better than size.  The military uses M16, many think for this reason, but it uses it for carry of lots of ammo and other factors since bigger means heavier and more bulky, not just for the speed theory.

So your .38 shoots faster than a .45, but it is not as big around and does not weigh as much.  A .357 is the same bullet as a .38 but much more damaging than the .38, why.... speed.  The .357 has more powder and that generates much more speed.  A bb gun shoot the same size bb as some shotgun shells, but a shotgun sends them out much faster so they do more damage.

Of course there are many more factors like the heavier the bullet the more the kick, so many woman like the small guns that shoot smaller bullets.  In your .38 if you shoot a 90 grain bullet it will kick and recoil much less than a 158 grain bullet.  Equal force, every action reaction thing.

So when just ask about hollow point or jacketed, there is much more to consider when selecting ammo.

If I carry a .38 I want the fasted and heaviest bullet I can find.  I am not worried about accuracy, distance or other things.  Most gun fights happen within 3 feet, they are fast and violent and reactionary.  If I can stick the gun on the target and pull off as many rounds as I can that is the goal to survive.  If you are training for accuracy at 15 or 20 yards, I think it is not realistic.  It will make you more confident and give you trust in your weapon, but bullet group is never a factor in a life or death encounter, multiple hits on target stops aggression.  And no matter what the bullet if you get multiple hits on target you will survive.  The best bullet in the world only works if it hits the target.

So I would say have some light rounds for shooting practice and then carry heavy rounds.  Remember in an actual encounter, you will not feel kick as much, you will have a large adrenalin rush, your flight or fight instinct will kick in, you will have extra strength and abilities.  I see people pick ammo that is more comfortable to shoot lots of round at the range and I think that is a mistake.  You will not be shooting like that in an actual encounter. With that said, what ever ammo she carries, she should shoot at least 5 or 6 rounds at the range so she knows what to expect and that the ammo functions correctly in the gun.

As for jacketed, ball, hollow point, most all ammo is jacketed nowadays, any hollow point is good, not a fan of ball ammo but ball will penetrate more and of course that is the another chapter, so if you really want to study the ammo, go to each bullet site and read the ballistics info, speed, distance, weight -- all of which change depending on type of gun, barrel length, conditions.

Hopefully I did not confuse you more, but if I did that is good so you will research more and become more aware of the many factors associated with guns, ammo and self defense carry.

Hope it helps

Rick