A S&W MP in .40
A Taurus PT-145 in .45 ACP
All have 3" or shorter barrels, excellent reliability and plenty of power.
Posted on 06/27/2010 1:03:02 AM PDT by bkopto
You need to carry defensive ammo a .38+P or .380 with hydra shok or Speer gold dot will stop a thug. If you can handle the .357 you could carry a .38.
The firearm gives you options. If you want check out nutnfancy on YouTube "Obligation of Carry" by Nutnfancy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gIHDHZf1TA&playnext_from=TL&videos=5H0wQnbFEJU
It is a Colt .357 Magnum, I believe it is the Python and not the Cobra version. It has a 6” barrel so it is pretty big. I guess I could always get another similar but go with a 4”.
He should have shot center mass 3,4,5 times. If you have to shoot the perp 9 times you do, and when they ask you why you shot 9 times, it is because 8 was not enough and I thought 10 was to much.
He took a bullet to the throat. He did not have time and the perp was running.
OK, I was picturing a small revolver with a shorter barrel. Your .357 is going to feel a lot different when you fire it than a lighter pistol with a shorter barrel. I have a Ruger sp101 .357 mag and it’s quite a handful. Maybe the .38 is better if you’ve never fired one of the smaller, lighter magnums.
Absolutely! My friend is a crack shot. And if a 45 is good enough for Jeff Cooper it is good enough for me. Anyone can do the first round. It is the second one that counts.
I’ve seen them small that fit in your palm. Isn’t that the best weapon to have on you concealed?
From the article: “The goal when shooting to save your life is to incapacitate your opponent, meaning your hits immediately stop a dedicated opponent’s ability to continue to fight. In most cases, a .380 will not do that.”
The reality is that the only certain way to stop a fight immediately is to hit the brain or CNS. You can shoot a man in the heart with a 44 magnum and, if he is determined, he’ll have 5-15 seconds of useful consciousness left to shoot you - and if his bullet hits your heart, aorta, brain, etc, then you will die a few seconds after him.
There was a pizza delivery guy in Indiana a few years back that shot a robber 10-15 times in the chest with a 9mm (the coroner couldn’t determine the exact number). The guy was still standing and trying to shoot back when the pizza guy finished his 15 shots. A few seconds later, the robber fell over and died. The pizza guy lived because the robber didn’t know he had to rack the slide to chamber a round BEFORE pulling the trigger...
Brain shots are tough because the head is hard to hit at all, the skull is tough. A shot that doesn’t hit front on - even if a big bullet - may well just slide around to the side. It has happened with rifle bullets as well.
FBI comments on wounding can be found at the link below:
http://www.firearmstactical.com/pdf/fbi-hwfe.pdf
A S&W MP in .40
A Taurus PT-145 in .45 ACP
All have 3" or shorter barrels, excellent reliability and plenty of power.
and I don’t want to get caught in the trap again of not being able to buy ammo for next gun. I’ve been able to buy ammo for it only TWICE since I bought it. My sister bought me 100 rounds x 2 for it in TX but shipping is a pain so we’re going to visit them next week and I’ll pick it up in person. Still can’t find .380 locally. Was on waiting list where I bought the pistol, had to order pistol so didn’t realize when I bought and paid for it . . . otherwise I probably would have bought something else at the time.
I have a S&W Model 60 LadySmith, and it doesn’t shoot bad with 357 ammo - at least, not for 5 rounds.
Recoil is in the mind (mostly). It helps to sometimes go out and just shoot the gun fairly quick, without caring if you hit anything. Do that a couple dozen times, and you begin to realize it isn’t bad. And when I shoot with a 357 or 44, I try to get each shot off in less than 1 second. More than that, I worry about recoil. Less than that, I just focus on getting the shot.
Not being there I can’t truly judge the situation. However center mass is a much easier shot then a head shot. But taking a round to the neck is a big deal. All my respect to your LEO friend. I hope he never finds himself in a situation like that again.
Some 380 ammo here:
http://www.midwayusa.com/ammunition
I live in AZ, and they normally ship ammo to me in about a week. Good prices if you buy enough that the shipping charge (about $15 IIRC) doesn’t kill you.
Anyone have any experience with the new Ruger LCR-357. I imagine it is a handful considering how light it is.
If that is all you have the 380 suto is a pretty week round, but it will still make little round holes in just about anybody it hits. Just keep pulling the trigger.
Works for me!
ANY gun is better than NO gun- but, at short range, a shotgun is best of all. A pump-action shotgun has the added benefit of the sound it makes when the action is ‘racked’.
Thanks, I may have to start buying it online as I really want to practice more with it but have been conserving ammo and plinking with my little Browning .22 pistol but I NEED more experience with my .380.
not exactly ... a .38 special cartridge is not truly .38 caliber but somewhat smaller .... that's why you can shoot .38 special ammo in a .357 magnum revolver (saves big money at the range)
... the .380 auto is truly .38 cal which is virutually the same as 9mm ... in fact .380 auto is often referred to 9mm short ... the .38 special is, however, more powerful
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