TTH wrote:My gun of choice S & W model 19 since it shoots .38 or .357 mag. bullets
Its a beautiful gun.
However, functionally, its defensive purpose is to save your life
from human or animal predators; ( I 've been attacked by both ).
The bore diameter is the same for .357 mag. or .38 special.
At defensive ranges, the magnum will overpenetrate,
failing to deliver an optimal energy dump into the target.
The smaller diameter ( caliber ) of a .357 or .38 slug,
is less likely to
break a charge from a bad guy
( or animal who is angry or hungry ) than a larger caliber ( bore diameter ).
Size ( of the slug ) matters.
A bulkier slug (e.g., a .44 ) is more likely to have the desired effect,
of
knocking him back, regardless of his emotions, or his momentum.
Of course, a .44 special is less likely to overpenetrate,
than is a .44 magnum; magna carry energy away from the target,
after overpenetration, and waste it.
Q.E.D.:
a .44 special round, hollowpointed to deform within the target,
and
put on the brakes , dumping maximal energy into the target
( preferably from a heavier .44 magnum revolver, to absorb some recoil ) is the optimal way to go.
David
