Lucky Gunner by Chris Baker 4/4/17
Revolver fans rejoice! It’s been a long time coming, but we’re finally ready to show you the results of our ballistics gelatin tests for .38 Special and .357 Magnum self-defense ammo.
For this batch, we tested 38 loads total — 20 are .357 Magnum and 18 are .38 Special. The post for our previous ballistic gelatin tests outlines all of the detailed specifics of our test protocol and explains both the value and limitations of gel testing. If you are unfamiliar with how these tests work, I highly recommend looking over that article before moving on to the results here. You will also be able to see the results of 146 semi-auto loads that we tested covering popular self-defense ammo in .380 ACP, 9mm, .40 S&W, and .45 ACP.
Test Procedure Overview
We followed all of the same protocols for our .38/.357 tests that we used in our semi-auto tests. All shots were fired from a distance of 10 feet from the gel blocks. The front of each block was covered with a four-layer heavy fabric barrier (denim, fleece, and two layers of cotton) to simulate clothing. To accommodate loads that penetrated beyond the full 16 inches of the gel block’s length, we positioned a second block behind the first one, giving us a total of 32 inches to capture the fired bullets.
We fired five rounds of each load into the gel block and measured the penetration depth of each bullet. The bullets were then recovered from the gel (that is, dug out with a big knife), so we could measure their expanded diameter. The velocity of each load was measured with a chronograph.
There is one aspect of this batch of testing that is a little different from our previous tests. This time, we tested each load with two different barrel lengths: a 2-inch Kimber K6s and a 4.2-inch Ruger GP100 Match Champion. The velocity of .38 Special and .357 Magnum can be highly dependent on barrel length, so we wanted to test the two most common barrel lengths for defensive revolvers.
More:
http://www.luckygunner.com/labs/revolver-ballistics-test/
