115 FMJ vs 125 JHP in 38SC Open

[mleeber]

Gents,

I am contemplating switching from Zero 125gr JHPs to 115gr FMJs for open. Primary reason is to save a few bucks, 2nd reason is to cut down on the different 9mms I have to stock. I am going to use up about 3lbs of Longshot intially and then switch to 7625. Any reason that 115s will not work as well as 125s? I was thinking that less surface area on the 115 in contact with the barrel may hurt accuracy but logic does not always apply here, especially mine!

The gun is a custom shorty with 2 small (not popple) holes in the barrel and lots of holes in the comp....pic attached (I hope)...

Thanks!

[EZ Bagger]

I use 115g JHP's (Montaga Golds) over about 8.6g 7625 to get 170ish PF out of my shorty with two holes. Only thing I don't like about it is that it's a bear to load because the case is nearly full.

Of course, I prefer snappy loads....

[warpspeed]

In 38 super, I like the lighter bullets. With 38 super, you have plenty of case to get them up to speed.

[G-ManBart]

I started out shooting nothing but 125gr JHP Zeros in my Open gun (38SC) and then bought a couple of cases of the Montana Gold 121gr IFP which is the 115gr JHP with the hollow point filled with lead. I didn't see any loss of accuracy and the IFP might actually be more accurate. My guess is if your gun shoots 125s fine, it'll be okay with the 115s too. The big question is if you'll like the feel better or not and nobody else can decide that for you.

[rishii]

I run a 38sc with a 4 port hybicomp barrel. tried 115's a while ago and didn't like them. I couldn't really tell the difference in how the gun compared to the 125's, but the muzzle blast and pressure wave was bad, like getting hit in your mouth, and loosen your teeth bad.

but one of my buddies has the same barrel setup and loves 115's, but all the RO's hate running him because of he muzzle blast.

before you buy a bunch, i would buy a box or 2 of a 100, and work up a few loads to try out