Buffalo Bore 38 Special 110gr TAC-XP – Reliable Standard Pressure Load

Description

The Buffalo Bore 38 Special 110gr TAC-XP is the standard pressure member of Buffalo Bore’s lead free 38 line, and it exists for guns and shooters that the +P version does not suit. It runs 1000 fps for roughly 244 ft-lbs, uses a flash suppressed powder, and is safe in any 38 Special or 357 Magnum firearm in normal working order. Twenty rounds per box, item 20G/20.

• Buffalo Bore 38 Special 110gr TAC-XP Overview
• Standard Pressure 38 Special Ammo Ballistics
• Why The 110 Grain Barnes TAC-XP Bullet Suits A Light Revolver
• Specifications
• Carry Notes For This Lead Free 38 Spl Carry Load

Buffalo Bore 38 Special 110gr TAC-XP Overview

Same bullet as the +P load, lower pressure. The Barnes TAC-XP is turned from solid copper with a deep hollow cavity and no lead core, and it is designed to expand at the modest velocities a short barrel actually produces rather than at the numbers printed on a test barrel.

That design choice is what makes a standard pressure load viable at all. A conventional 38 Special hollow point at 900 fps very often does not open, and then you have an expensive round nose. Copper petals cut into the bullet during manufacture do not depend on speed the same way.

Buffalo Bore also built a flash suppressed powder charge into this one, exactly as they did with the +P version. Nothing about choosing the Buffalo Bore 38 Special 110gr TAC-XP over its higher pressure sibling costs you the low light advantage.

Standard Pressure 38 Special Ammo Ballistics

The published real gun figures are useful. A two inch Smith and Wesson Model 340 gives 951 fps, a two inch Model 60 gives 989, a 2.5 inch Model 66 gives 1010, a three inch Model 66 gives 1068, a three inch Ruger SP101 gives 1091, a four inch Model 15 gives 1106, and a six inch Ruger GP100 gives 1220 fps.

Buffalo Bore states an expected penetration of 11 to 13 inches depending on impact velocity and what the bullet passes through. That is squarely in the range most people consider adequate for a defensive handgun round, which is a notable result for standard pressure 38 Special ammo.

Compared with the +P version, you are giving up about 125 fps and roughly 65 ft-lbs. What you get back is less recoil, less muzzle blast, and a load you can put through any sound 38 Special revolver, including older guns that carry no +P rating at all.

Why The 110 Grain Barnes TAC-XP Bullet Suits A Light Revolver

Light revolvers are where this load earns its place. An eleven or twelve ounce airweight firing +P ammunition is genuinely punishing, and a gun that hurts to shoot is a gun that does not get practised with. Dropping to standard pressure makes the same revolver something you will actually train with.

It also opens up older guns. Plenty of good 38 Special revolvers were built before +P ratings existed, and their owners are rightly cautious about feeding them modern high pressure ammunition. A lead free 38 Spl carry load at standard pressure lets a sound older revolver run a modern expanding bullet.

The copper bullet is what keeps it from being a compromise. Historically the price of choosing standard pressure was a bullet that would not expand, so people carried wadcutters and accepted it. A 110 grain Barnes TAC-XP bullet opens at these speeds, so you are no longer trading terminal performance for comfort.

Flash suppression matters just as much here. Low recoil 38 Special defense ammunition is most often carried by people who want a simple gun they can shoot well under stress, and preserving night vision fits that priority exactly.

Specifications

Carry Notes For This Lead Free 38 Spl Carry Load

Buffalo Bore says this is safe in any 38 Special or 357 Magnum firearm in normal operating condition. Normal operating condition is doing real work in that sentence. A genuinely antique revolver, a top break, or anything from the black powder era is not a candidate for modern smokeless ammunition of any kind, and if you are unsure about an old gun, have a gunsmith look at it first.

Bullet setback is less of a concern here than with the +P version. Buffalo Bore indicates this load tolerates roughly ten to twelve firings in a twelve ounce revolver before the chambered round should be retired. Rotating your carry ammunition is still the sensible habit.

Check point of impact at your realistic distance. A 110 grain Barnes TAC-XP bullet is light for the calibre and will typically print lower than the 158 grain loads a fixed sight revolver was regulated around. That is easy to work with once you know about it.

Practise with it if you can afford to. This lead free 38 Spl carry load is not expensive by defensive ammunition standards, and the recoil is mild enough that a full box in one session is no hardship. Confidence with the exact ammunition you carry is worth more than a marginal ballistic advantage.

Low Recoil 38 Special Defense Ammunition Availability

This low recoil 38 Special defense ammunition is in stock and ready to ship from MAG5 Firearms, a family owned FFL dealer in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. Ammunition orders ship to most states, and local customers are welcome to pick up in the shop. If you need case quantities or another standard pressure 38 Special ammo option from the Buffalo Bore catalog, call us and we will check what our distributors have on hand.

Manufacturer details are on the Buffalo Bore site. If your revolver is rated for it, the 38 Special +P 110gr TAC-XP gives about 125 fps more. In a 357 chambered gun, compare the 357 Mag 125gr XPB low flash, or browse our full ammunition selection.