All things being equal, size, weight, shape of the handgun, and factory loadings; how does the recoil of the 9mm compare to the 38 special and 38 special +P. Maybe a silly question, but I am curious, as I have shot plenty of 9, but not 38 special.

Thanks,

Camp

IMO, i think the 9mm is less than the 38.. But i have only shot 9mm out of my semi auto and 38's out of a revoler. All things being equal, i still say the 9 will have less. But there won't be a drastic diff. When you go up to a .357, then it's noticable.

That's a tough question. Several things come into play on felt recoil. The
operating action of the semi will soften felt recoil a bit. A revolver weighs (usually) more than a semi. I've shot the 9mm in a revolver (remember the S&W revolver with those stinkin' little clips to hold the shells?) and I say that the 38 just barely edges out the 9mm (using 115 grain bullets), and the 9mm is a lot less than the +P. Of course, that's just my opinion. Both revolvers were snub nose w/ comparable grips. Neither were the ultra-light revolvers now being produced with titanium.

What I like about semi-autos is the recoil us usually straight back do to the action of the slide. Revolvers have no place to go except back into your hand, causing the muzzle to flip upwards more.

Hmm don't know.

I've shot my 9mm and my 45 during the same session and can barely tell the difference in the recoil- though the 45 is a bit heavier gun. Haven't shot a .38 in about 15 years but don't remember it recoiling very much.

*shug*They all feel the same to me until up until the magnum sized cartridges.

Last I knew, the .38Spcl standard loads are quite a bit hotter than standard 9mm rounds, neither are hard recoiling, but the .38spcl is stouter...one thing that makes a lot of people feel like the .38spcl is weaker is that it's usually being shot in revolvers, which tend to be heavier and nicer on recoil than autos, they're usually quieter than 9mms (IMHO).

Don't be concerned about shooting a .38spcl, even in +P+ loads it's VERY mild, but then again I'm used to stouter big bore handguns.