[Farmer Dean]

Somehow,folks have come to consider the .38 as ineffective.It will do a lot more damage than a 9mm.

[yarddog]

No, it won’t.

Maybe the obsolete .38/44 would.

[riverrunner]

.2000 of an inch .357 to .355 isn’t going make a bit of different it is all about vel and bullet type,

Given bullets of the same weight, type, vel. The 9mm and .38spl are equal

so is any thing else in with the same bullet type and vel.

[Tijeras_Slim]

Some of the folks on the S&W Forum years ago duplicated the .38 Special loads of the 30’s and found them surprisingly hot. The limitation of those days was clearly the 158 grain round nose bullet.

The .38/44 was a good round. One particular .38 Special variant that I’ve found curious was the .38 Super Police, a .38 Special with a 200 grain bullet under 700 fps.

[ought-six]

.38 Spl is certainly effective, but a 9mm does have a bit more “oomph.” Now, a .38+P is another story. Out of a snubbie a .357 magnum has pretty much the same ballistics as a .38+P (in order for the .357 to rise to its full potential it needs at least a 4” barrel).

I have .38, .38+P. .357 magnum, and 9mm. I do not feel under-gunned with any of them.

[husky ed]

I've seen the damage that a .38 and a 9mm does to the human head. Both seemed pretty effective to me.

On the other hand, I also saw a .38+P round that couldn't penetrate the side (about one inch thick) of a wooden chair. Makes one think.

Ed

[wally_bert]

Maybe from too many early cop and PI shows where the 38 snubnose was prevalent. Just my theory.

[trebb]

.38 special is a decent round, but don’t discount the 9mm - at close range, a regular round can go through one or two people. Put a decent hollow point in it and it has plenty of stopping power if you can hit anywhere near center mass.