Is 38 +P as good a defensive round as 9mil?

[PA Traveler]

and even then that person may have a few seconds of fight left in them.

In fact, physiologically,, even if the heart is totally destroyed there's enough oxygen in the system for the assailant to fight for 14- 15 seconds. How many rounds can you get off in 14 seconds?

If you got shot by a .22lr at any range below 100 yards, you would be on the ground screaming for an ambulance.

Please. The world is full of people with nice neat 9mm holes in their arm who don't even know they got shot til the hollerin' is over. And spare me the thousand bucks routine. Nobody's gonna agree to let you stab them with a 2" pen knife either... if they have two working brain cells. Neither one proves anything.

thinking that a .22 isnt a good enough defense round.

Think what you want. It isn't a "good defensive round". It will be a fluke if it stops a fight. It certainly won't stop the fight before you have major damage done to you. More likely the attacker will be hospitalized in about four days for the infection it causes.

No handgun round is going to stop anyone with any great predictability. A .22 even less so. Comparatively, a handgun is actually a pretty poor defensive weapon.

Most likely it is, however, the best weapon you are likely to have with you.

And I still haven't seen anyone address the OP original question about a .38 +p. Higher muzzle velocity than a .38 special. Higher energy delivery. Not a bad round. Still gonna take several, properly placed, to stop a fight. Just like any other handgun round.

[IronButt]

Given the ballistic info in my load books & considering my Glock carries 15 rounds as opposed to 5 rounds in my wife's 642, I choose the 9mm.

I still wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of the .38 Spl, or a .22LR for that matter.

[PA Traveler]

Do I like my 9mm? Yes. But if I were going to carry a wheelgun (and my wife probably will) I would not feel undergunned with .38 +P s.

Bottom line - carry the largest caliber you can shoot effectively, in a delivery system that meets your needs for accessibility and/or concealment.

Sorry for being off topic before. I got caught up just like everyone else.

[Philbert]

so according to the chart:

a 38spl 125gr JHP shot out of a 4" barreled gun, travels 945 feet per second and creates 248 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle.

a 9mm 115gr JHP shot out of a 4" barreled gun, travels 1225 feet per second and creates 383 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle.

There isn't any reference made as to which guns where used when getting this data.
There is less energy wasted with bullets shot through pistols (bottom feeders) than there is with bullets shot through revolvers due to the gap between the cylinder and the beginning of the barrel. I don't know exactly what percentage of energy is lost.

So to finally answer the OP's question, all other things being equal, 9mm is a more effective round than 38spl

I'd agree with this. Also, .38 velocity is more sensitive to barrel length than 9mm, due to the nature of the cartridges. Check out the differences in velocity in pistol-length barrels:

http://www.ballisticsbytheinch.com/38special.html

http://www.ballisticsbytheinch.com/9mmluger.html

If you are using the .38 in a 2" barrel, the velocity difference between it and 9mm will be larger than if you are shooting .38 out of a 4" barrel (looking at the 124 gr 9mm Hydroshok vs the 125 gr .38 version).

[cdeily]

Just wanted to clarify because I am a 38 guy myself and this is the ballistics for a +p load, not just a regular 38 spl.

a 38spl 125gr JHP shot out of a 4" barreled gun, travels 945 feet per second and creates 248 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle.

a 9mm 115gr JHP shot out of a 4" barreled gun, travels 1225 feet per second and creates 383 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle

I think that bottom line, a projectile traveling at that rate of speed with that much energy is going to do some damage. Obviously the larger the projectile the more damage it will do, but either way it will hurt. Personally when carrying I look at stopping power of the round, ease of use and reliability of the firearm, and concealment.

Just to put things into perspective ... If you have every played paintball, generally a paintball gun shoots at anywhere from 75 to 125 fps. And paintballs are soft and are supposed to splat when they hit. They still sting like crazy and can leave some nasty welts or even break the skin. Multiply that by 9 and instead of a soft paintball make it a lead hollow point or jacketed round. It's going to hurt.

[Dave_n]

For many years the standard FBI load was effectively a 158 grain Lead SWC with a hollow in the tip in 38 special caliber. None of the older FBI agents that I know (knew) had problems with it. The change to 10 mm / 0.40 SW came about because of a variety of problems occurring simultaneously in the Miami shootout, not the least of which was taking on rifles with pistols.

Either will work if the person knows how to shoot under stress. If they do not, then you will have either 6 or up to 18 rounds peppering everywhere except the desired target. For almost any civilian 6 shots is enough, so either will work as about as well under any scenario you care to name that the "average" person will ever encounter. Dave_n

[ungawa]

Ok then. You guys most know alot of people that love to get shot by .22s and keep coming for more. If you got shot by a .22lr at any range below 100 yards, you would be on the ground screaming for an ambulance. Alot of people carry .22 for defense. Its a good concealable weapon. I personally carry a .45 becuase I like the .45. All Im saying is caliber dont mean crap. .22 will do its job very well and leave an attacker cryin like a baby or possible kill him. Wake up people

I know a person shot with .22 LR center of mass (Chest). In his back. I saw the wound. It occurred during a dicey and confusing situation. He felt the impact and thought somebody threw a rock at him. It barely missed his heart and the associated large blood vessels. The doctor gave him the cliche "1/2-inch to the left and you'd be dead right now." Nevertheless, I am working under the assumption the doctor was correct.

The projectile punctured his lung. He realized he was shot about an hour later when he got a chance to notice the blood and had a friend take a look at it for him.

[gnbrotz]

1000 dollars to any of you that will let me shoot you in the gut with a .22lr at 10 yards. Better yet 50 yards. Pm me. cash in hand. Sling shot my ass. I will be using a .22lr in a ruger handgun and you will have to sign a waiver. Ok lets see if we have any takers.

How far are you willing to travel to prove your point, and could you please post the language of the waiver that you will require be signed?

[Philbert]

How far are you willing to travel to prove your point, and could you please post the language of the waiver that you will require be signed?

Does this mean that the OC job-hunting is not going well?

[ungawa]

WTF?
.