Advice needed for handgun purchase - home defense, pumpkin blasting

8/04/2008 | GOP_Party_Animal

[GOP_Party_Animal]

Should the Obamanable No-man make it into the White House this Fall, I plan to console myself with my first handgun purchase. I also plan to take a concealed-carry class and, of course, training on using a handgun.

I've used rifles and shotguns for many years but have never even fired a handgun. What caliber and model would you recommend that would be easy and fun to shoot for me, but also my petite wife, who may need to use it to protect the kids if I'm not home.

[MarkL]

FWIW, I'm a big fan of revolvers. For a first handgun, you might want to start out with a 4" .357 revolver. They can be had relatively inexpensively, they're great for training, using .38 special wad-cutters (light target loads), and of course, the .357 Magnum is a substantial weapon for defense.

.38 special wad-cutters aren't intimidating for petite ladies, especially in a handgun with the additional weight of a .357.

Finally, they're about the safest weapon around. When the cylinder is out of battery, they're safe. It's that simple.

Mark

[GOP_Party_Animal]

Again, I know nothing about handguns- How is it you can fit a 38 caliber cartridge in a “.357” handgun? Can you use standard .357 cartridges and magnums in the same gun?

[Vor Lady]

I guess I’m pegged and screwed! LOL. 40+ years old and .380 rounds!

[MarkL]

Again, I know nothing about handguns- How is it you can fit a 38 caliber cartridge in a “.357” handgun? Can you use standard .357 cartridges and magnums in the same gun?

You ask a very good and reasonable question: It can be confusing. The problem is that when they name cartridges, especially in "the old days," they (the manufacturers) could be a bit less than accurate.

First off, there's often a slight difference in bullet diameter in the same caliber between cast and jacketed bullets. For instance, a 9mm should work out to .360". However, depending on the actual bullet used, it will be either .355" or .356".

In the case of the .38 special, it is actually a .357" bore. Don't ask why: I don't know. But it was an "improved" version of an earlier cartridge, as is the .357 Magnum. The key difference between the .38 special and .357 Magnum is that you've got a longer, stronger case, allowing for more powder and a bigger, heavier bullet. The handgun is also going to be larger and heavier, because that extra power means higher pressures. Here's a photo I found of 4 cartridges with roughly the same bullet diameter: The only "interchangable" cartridges are the .38 special and .357; And you can only fire the .38 special in the .357 handgun, NOT the other way around. The .380 is sometimes known as the 9mm short, and it fires the same diameter bullet as the 9mm, .355" or .356".

Another example of "bad naming" is the .44 Magnum. It uses a bullet diameter of .429". And as with the .38 special and .357 magnum, you can fire lighter cartridges through it, like the .44 Russian and .44 special. Interestingly enough, they got the name right on the .41 Magnum: It's got a bore diameter of .410".

Mark

[donna]

When the wife doesn’t listen.....BANG.
http://www.jibjab.com/view/248355

[Old Mountain man]

ROFLOL!

[donna]

LOL, it is a good one.

[Old Mountain man]

If I did that to my wife, my funeral would be 48 hours later.

[Titan Magroyne]

But just think, you’d die laughin!

Ping to #66, Drummie.

[Old Mountain man]

Oh, yeah!

[wastedyears]

That video is awesome.

[donna]

I friend sent it to me. I’ve been waiting for a good gun thread to post it on, LOL.

[wastedyears]

That’s a good way to teach anybody you don’t want playing with a firearm a lesson.

[smokingfrog]