best caliber for a snub nose revolver?

.38 special has about the most power you can put in a small package and still remain controllable. Yes they do make the same size guns in .357 magnum, but they are not at all fun to shoot, and some are downright painful. Remember, a hit with a .22 short beats a miss with a .44 magnum.

Believe it or not, a good .38 snub with the right ammo has the same stopping power as a .45 with hardball ammo in real life gunfights. You could also try Charter Arms .44 special snub. although in real life street use, it really offers no advantage whatsoever over the .38, and is a little bigger than the 5 shot .38's, or about the same size as a 6 shot Colt Detective special.

38 special +p preferably hornady critical defense 110 gr a 357 will have 200 or 300 more feet per Second but u sacrifice controlabilty of the gun for follow up shots the lower grain weight of a bullet in a snub will give more velocity for reliable expansion of hollow point although that is why i say use the hornady with the ftx bullet because it is a mechanical expansion not a hydraulic

In a 2'' aluminum frame snub such as my Taurus 851 UL I will take .38 Special +P, thank you. It's controllable and has reasonable power.

Out of my 3'' S&W Model 60 with steel frame? .357 Magnum is fairly controllable from this and has plenty of power.

38

327 Federal Magnum isn't a bad round; but, it's best suited for those shooters who are, 'recoil challenged'. My personal choice (many times over) would be 357 Remington Magnum. Proper training is everything.

My very gentle wife handles her 357 Mag. snub-nose better than most men I watch shoot on public firing lines. (While I was training her I completely forgot to mention that: (1) hot cereal doesn't taste good, and (2) 357 magnum is a tough round to handle and shoot straight.)

.38 special. It's a nice blend of effectiveness, reliability and controllability in a small and easy to use package.

I have carried concealed for over 20 years. The one time I have had to fire in self defense I was armed with a Taurus model 85 SS. It worked as required.

Its the 3 inch 357 Magnum.*

I would have to agree with the .38. It is a good round that packs a good punch in a small package.

No, almost all latest revolvers are double action, that means which you could pull the set off and the revolver cocks itself after each round fired . That you can nonetheless cock the hammer for every circular, if you want, that is the single action mode of the double action revolver.

.327 Federal Magnum. Six shots instead of five