I've looked at those airweights by S&W and Taurus but I wouldn't think of carrying +P in them... I'd shop around for the most ruthless looking 38 JHP's that I could find to load that baby up with those...
Alternatively, I've been most happy with CorBon.Item 19G/20-125gr. Jacketed Hollow Point bullet @ 1,225 fps from a 2.5 inch S&W mod. 66 barrel. Designed to mushroom violently, yet hold together and penetrate deeply-roughly 12 to 14 inches in human tissue.
S&W mod. 340PD 1-7/8 inch barrel - 1,109 fps (341 ft. lbs.)
S&W mod. 66 2-1/2-inch barrels -1,225 fps (416 ft. lbs.)
S&W mod. 65 3-inch barrels - 1,322 fps (485 ft. lbs.)
S&W Mt. Gun 4-inch barrel - 1,445 fps (579 ft. lbs.)
Colt Python 6-inch barrel - 1,388 fps (535 ft. lbs.)
As I have learnt from Internet, a small frame revolver (especially light-
wieght) gives cracks in the frame (where a barrel is attached to a frame).
May be S&W model 40 is free from this fault - I don't know.
S&W has addressed that issue in the design, but you still cannot use rounds of less than a certain grain.
\
Can you save me some searching ?
Whats the number on that grain ?
thanks
120 gr. If you use rounds lower grain than that, you run the risk of top strap cutting and/or forcing cone damage. It's really hard to find a .357 mag round that's lower, so it's not an issue there, but I did see some .38 rounds that came in at 115 gr., IIRC.