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Mr. Luddite

On 2/22/2014 11:46 AM, wrote:
On Sat, 22 Feb 2014 11:12:25 -0500, F*O*A*D wrote:

I've been thinking of getting a revolver for which ammo is plentiful and
not horrifically expensive. When I checked around yesterday, there
seemed to be good supplies of .357 mag/.38 special available, though the
prices were still too high.

I've shot a S&W 628 in various varieties a few times. It's a truly
wonderful revolver in terms of action and accuracy. For close range
target shooting, a 4" barrel would be fine, I would think, although
there are 5" and 6" barrel varieties out there, too. The 7 shot models
seem a bit odd to me for a "six shooter."

.38 is pretty cheap to shoot if you reload. The trick is finding a
source of cheap cast bullets.
If you have more time than money you could cast your own.
Primers are a couple cents each and a can of Bullseye would last most
shooters a year or more shooting a box or more a week. (~3000
wadcutters)

If you have a .357 you can still get a very capable defense round from
commercial sources and load some devastating stuff.

I get a kick out of all the "stopping power" claims made for various
types of handguns and ammo.

I suspect that in close-range, home defense situations my little S&W
..38P "Chief's Special" would be as effective at stopping an intruder as
a .357 Magnum or .45. I mean, how dead do you have to shoot someone?