I'm well aware of the performance of that round. I purchased both my Sig P229 and P239 in 357Sig and 40 S&W.
Every responsible person needs to make their own decision on what works for them & their environment.

I don't carry the JHP to poke holes in people. I carry the FMJ. It will surely penetrate most residential cover and start to expand having done so.

My neighbors are well over 500 yards away. They may hear something, but probably not even raise an eye brow. As for the walls... That's what drywall compound is for... Nuff said.

 

i just carry my 12ga and wear trench coats...

 

Back to the subject, I was in the habit of loading all the handguns in the house with Speer Gold Dots. They have a great reputation for reliable and devastating performance and even the local PD carry them in their .40 S&W Sigs. That is, until a very unfortunate incident a few months ago during a home invasion at my house. I was at work (midnight shift) when I got a call around 1:15AM from the PD saying there had been a break-in at my house and my deaf wife, who was there by herself, had been shot!

This slime-**** busted the window in my front door and unlocked it from the inside to get in. My wife never heard it and was unaware anything was going on till he rushed her. She ran to the bedroom and was able to retrieve her Charter Arms .38 revolver (loaded with 125 grain +P Gold Dots) before he wrapped her up from behind with her arms to her sides. She got 4 rounds off. 2 while he had her wrapped up and 2 more when he dropped her. Unfortunately, the 2nd round she fired while she was struggling with him hit her in the mid-thigh area and exited by her knee. One bullet was found in the back yard after passing through the bedroom wall and the wall of the back porch. The other 2 left with the *******, who was arrested at the ER seeking treatment of gunshot wounds.

The bullet the cops found in the yard DIDN'T EXPAND AT ALL! It acted just like a FMJ! This worried me at first, but figured the Gold Dot failed to open due to the hollow-point being clogged with wall board and fiberglass insulation and what-not. I'm sure you've seen the ads for Hornady Critical Defense claiming "conventional" hollow points can, and will, do just that.

It wasn't until stepping on something in the bedroom carpet just a couple weeks ago that I really took notice. That "something" was the bullet that zipped through Wifey's leg! It was buried in the carpet padding after burrowing it's way through her light pajama bottoms and roughly 6-inches of thigh muscle and the damn thing looked JUST LIKE the one found in the back yard! No expansion. Hell, no damage at all other than the rifling marks in the jacket and the hollow point had a bit of fabric from her PJ's and the carpet embedded inside.

What the hell gives! I guess we're lucky it didn't open up and cause some real damage to her leg, but if the damn thing won't open when presented with a point-blank shot into a chunk of flesh like a thigh, what will it open up on?

Pics below:

 

Very lucky wound! Glad it all came out as "best" as it could. Sucked that happened, I could not imagine. At least she was not willing to just be a statistic!

As for the bullet, We have picked up people that the same thing has happened and others that the bullet has fully expanded. I have no clue what can cause it. My only "guess" would be that fro the picture it does not look as if the bullet passes through any "firm" tissue. Just pentrated the skin rode on the mussle and back out the skin, I wonder if it never met enough resistance to open it up? Did it get actual muscle? If so that blows that theory out the water...

 

Is your wifes Charter Arms a snub nose revolver?

I've read somewhere that the hollow points may not develop the necessary muzzle velocity, to expand correctly, coming out of a snub nose revolver. Don't get me wrong, I carry hollow points in my Ruger SP101. Just something I remember reading somewhere... IDK if that even applies here.

 

Dang dieseldude your wife is ubber lucky in a couple ways, that's great she had the mindset to fight back & shot the bastard...hope he's looked up someplace deep and dark...

The 2" 38 has all kinds of stories from the good, to the great to the sucking ***....at one time the 158gr lead semi wad cutter HP (+P if you could handle the recoil & it's a mule kicking cartridge) was king....don't know if it still is or not...

I've read good things about Speer gold dot short barrel ammo, not so good things about the ammo... and not so good things about the early Hornady critical defense bullets...but have been told Hornady has corrected the perceived/alleged problems and they are good to go..

Thing is no matter what bullet/cartridge combo you load your sidearm with...it's still a gamble.....all we can do is research & learn and then make a edjumacated guess as no 2 bullets will enter the human body the same, hit the same organs, structures, bones....and thus it's a gamble on what we think/feel and what we put our faith in...

I've seen GSW's that you swore would live die...and then some ya knew the person was DRT, but lived....it's all a gamble....

In my S&W 442 I carry the 158gr LSWCHP +P, but it's a hard recoiling pistol...one you would not want to shoot more than a few cylinders of ammo with at one time...


Some people believe these are probably the best performing loads for a 38-caliber revolver. All but the Hornady 110-gr. Critical Defense (far right) are +P. L to R: Remington 158-gr. LHP +P, Corbon 110-gr. DPX +P, Speer 135-gr. Gold Dot +P, and Hornady 110-gr. Critical Defense.

Read this article if ya aint yet...

hi-powers--handguns: Informal Tests: Hornady Critical Defense .380 & .38 Special

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THANK GOD your wife is alive When is the scumbag going to {DEATH ROW}

 

WOW! Lucky is putting it lightly.

On another note, I picked up a box of Magtech 155gr JHP and a box of Winchester white box 180gr JHPs just to have more HPs on hand.

 

Yeah, she's damn lucky. A few inches lower on that exit and the femoral artery could have been involved and it would have been a whole other ball game! Yes, the Charter is a snubby... 2-incher to be exact. Not sure how much muscle involvement (if any) the bullet had. I know it's been about 2 1/2 months now since the incident and she still has some pretty deep aching and bruising, especially with the cold (it's 3 here this morning) but i guess bullets have a tendency to do that.

 

Yeah at least she feels something if ya get my drift.