A lot of good info in this thread. A few questions.
Is there a practical way to seal primers like the .mil does?
Where does one find anhydrous graphite, and is it expensive? Ditto for ultrasonic cleaners, come to that. :)
Jfruser: have you looked at the "hollowpoint with something in the tip" loads like the Powerball? Those seem like a good solution for picky feeding short barrel guns. Also, how do you like your AMT? Those always intrigued me. For that matter, what are your thoughts on the Taurus? I really need to get a snubby, the weight of my XD is killing my back over extended carry periods.
Powerball & OthersI haven't tried that particular round...<research ensues>...hokay, now I recall why I didn't consider it: it is +P.
Recoil is already sporty in the AMT and +P is getting a little
too sporty with a 25oz pocket pistol.
Federal has the EFMJ which also looks like +P at 165gr/1140fps
AMT .45ACP DAO Backup
I like it, but it is not everyone's cup of tea.
First off, some non-trivial number of folks have reported malfunctions or manufacturing defects. I am not sure if it truly significant, but some folks view AMT products as junk. Mine, OTOH, has had no breaks or any other drama.
It is a 25oz all-stainless pocket pistol. You don't have a full grip, so you are getting .45ACP recoil to manage with a smaller area against your palm and without your pinkie to help. IOW, recoil is serious. Not as bad as a small titanium revolver in .357mag, but still stout. Skateboard grip tape helps a lot.
The trigger is hella heavy.
Real effing heavy. Did I mention it is heavy? And long. Once you think you're done, just keep on going... But, it works smooth with dry fire. If I am shooting paper, I can get very good groups by moving through 3/4 of its travel and then re-acquiring and then squeezing through.
Since it has no real sights, I have practiced point shooting with it. Here, it excels. It is the best natural COM point shooter I own and I have no problem using it for CCW for that reason. I stay on a human silhouette torso out to 10 yards without much work, point-shooting. Kinda nice to be able to do this
very quickly and without needing night sights in low-light situations. Using the slide as an index for sighted fire, the same can be done at 25 yards. Sucker is inherently very accurate. If it did have sights, human torso hits could be made at ridiculous "bulls**t!"-inducing ranges for such an abbreviated weapon.
It carries very well, better than its 25oz weight would imply. I think it helps that it came dehorned from the factory. It slips in & out of pocket holsters better & faster than any other pocket pistols I own (and I own several). It rides well in an ankle holster. (Single-stack semi-autos excel in ankle holsters because they are flat, relative to a small revolver, and are less likely to cause discomfort from pressure caused by the cylinder on one's ankle.)
They are also cheap, used. Mine was the worst firearms purchase, depreciation-wise, I ever made. I likely paid close to retail when I bought it new in the early 1990s, something like $400. A few years later I saw new ones going for $250. I have seen used examples in that range for the last few years. A nearby gunshop has one on display for $400. They are smoking crack. A
lot of crack.
The only permanent mods I have made are polishing the feed ramp and the outside bbl in front of the chamber. It feeds real slick. It was OK before, but now it is even better. I have been known to use grip tape on front & back of grip.
Taurus 651SH2 Total Titanium .357mag(see OP for image)
For the money I had at the time for a snubby, the contenders were this and a SW642 .38spl. If I had to do it over again, I'd likely buy the SW642 or 638, as there was a little drama finding a carry load at first for da bull.
I don't know if you can see it, but it has the most ingenious rear snubby sight that is adjustable for
windage. Low-profile, no-snag, and really innovative. Thing is, it has always been near spot-on for windage. Elevation, OTOH, was a b***h.
I won't go through it all again, but believe me when I say that I tried a serious sampling of .357mag social ammo in the 125gr and 158gr class as well as the old-school .38spl+P 158gr LSWCHP FBI Load. I was about to sell the dang thing when I thought, "What the heck? Maybe these 180gr Winchester hunting loads will get POI near POA?"
Well; they did and they grouped so well, were less dramatic than any 125 or 158gr .357mag load, and did 1000fps; so I kept the snubby.
Hmm, what other problems/difficulties? If you think aluminum & steel galls, you ain't seen nothing yet until you've seen titanium & steel gall against one another. This is the first place I ever used grease on a weapon: the center pin/recoil shield interface, soon to follow with the cylander release latch/side of frame. Holster selection is limited. By "limited," I mean that the generic snubby revolver pouches will work, but good luck finding a holster that is fit to exactly this weapon, like a quality custom leather rig or a kydex rig. Hume does have a decent cross-draw and JIT slide that will actually hold the weapon under tension, though. Oh, the manual say, IIRC, to avoid any cartridges with bullets of 110 grains or less. Some gunsmiths don't like the Taurii, as they are not finished internally as well as S&W. That's about it.
The other side of the ledger has its shiny spots, though. I already mentioned the adjustable rear sight. That is some sweet design. The grips help tame recoil, but don't catch on clothing. Sucker is quite consistent with loads it likes, especially the aforementioned Winchester 180gr load. I wish I could justify my old private range membership and see what it would do at 100 yards, with me seated against the side of my truck tire and forearms resting on my knees. It carries well in the pocket and the hammer shroud precludes catching on the inside of the pocket. It had a better stock trigger than the SW642 and smoothed up even more after 1000 dry fires (on snap caps). Its frame is of titanium, so I have worn the sucker against my body while performing manual labor and sports in 100deg/90% humidity all day with no ill-effects.
I also like the ability to carry that Winchester load for use vs 4-legged critters in places where carrying a larger firearm might cause a fuss. Yes, the HP portion is likely to open up, but the rear part of the Partition ought to track through.
It is the lightest snubby I can tolerate shooting .357mag through. Here is a list of the weights I can recall off the top of my head, for the various snubby build materials:
25oz SW640/all-steel small-frame snubby
17oz Taurus 651/Titanium frame & titanium cylinder snubby (mine)
15oz SW642/Aluminum alloy frame & steel cylinder snubby (.38spl only)
12oz SW342/Scandium-aluminum alloy frame & titanium cylinder snubby
12oz SW now-discontinued .38spl-only titanium cylinder/alum-alloy frame snubbies
All .357mag snubbies are "try before you buy" propositions. These and the scandium .44mags were funny to see appear as the proverbial "$XXX for gun & 49 rounds of XXXmag ammo." IOW, find out where you pain-point is on the list above by renting/borrowing and stuffing it with hot ammo. Heck, my Taurus is too much for me with 125gr barn burners. Couldn't get me to shoot hot 125gr .357mag out of a SW342 for love or money, after doing it once already.
If you can tolerate the subjective recoil and financial pain/cost of the SW scandium snubbies, they are impressive. Heck, even if you can only tolerate the FBI Load, but can swing the cash, they are still the lightest ".38spl" out there. But, there is a reason the SW642/638 is so stinking popular. For most folks, they are the ideal compromise.
