S&W 340PD - a super lightweight defensive machine

[Old_Dog]

Just picked up a gently used, or as I like to call them, broken in, S&W 340PD for $800 with fairly new CT laser grips. Guy who owned it shot it a few times and never shot it again. He was not what I call a Shootist. Finally decided to sell it to get something he could shoot at the range. Gun is like new but then again I find a lot of guns like that in my retirement community. People with guns die, ammo is too expensive on a fixed income and old age makes shooting difficult. This gun is the 11.4 ounce J-frame that is made of Scandium and Titanium.

For some reason people buy this gun and insist on shooting hard recoiling .357 magnums in them and when they cannot take the recoil they trash the gun. I do not even load my heavy Ruger Gp100 with hot .357 loads. No need to unless you hunt or may come across some wild animals. There are many good .38 spl +P loads out there that do a fine job and in fact, some regular .38 spl pass the FBI Denim protocol.

First off, the gun is light. Feels like a toy, even when loaded. It is a dream to carry in your pocket or on belt. Has the typical back notch sight and mine uses a fiber optic front which I prefer. Mine came with CT laser grips which I promptly removed as it stays light late these days and I rarely am out when it is dark. If I go out in the dark I usually take one of my 9mm Sigs with night sights. Quite frankly if you need something to see where you are aiming, it is too dark to be shooting anyway. Carry a penlight flashlight. I do.

Trigger is typical S&W J-Frame although mine has been smoothed out by the former owner. I replaced the CT grips with Hogue Bantam mono grips which tend to reduce felt recoil. It seems to direct it to the sides of my hands rather than into the web. I started off with some Golden Saber .357 magums. I already know that they are mild recoiling as I have used them throughout the years in my .357 revolvers. I shot two cylinders full and while they did make their presence known, it was far from what I read on gun forums about it taking off your hand or refusing to shoot more than one round, etc. I can understand though how it would not be pleasant to shoot a lot of them. I did not want to shoot more than two cylinders full myself but it was no deal breaker. If I wanted to shoot .357 magnums in a J-frame I just use a heavier J-frame. Apparently a lot of gun owners do not know about the effects of recoil in relation to weight. So many keep buying lightweight guns and then act surprised when the recoil is stout.

I liken the recoil of a .357 in this light J-frame to be about the same as slapping the helmet of the offensive tackle opposite me when I used to play football. It stings but nothing you cannot suck up and do again the next play. The mild pain is not really the problem because in defense you are not going to be shooting more than a cylinder full of .357, unless you carry .357 as reloads which I do not advise. The .357 rounds were very accurate but the problem was that the muzzle flip made follow up shots take longer than I like. The muzzle flash was there but only a problem indoors in confined areas. I fought a war and was in the artillery and between my m16, 1911 and the big 175mm guns, there was a lot of muzzle flash at night and we were not blinded and were able to see and shoot the enemy attacking us. A .357 for indoor home defense may be a problem as would the deafening noise of most guns but typical ccw outdoors defensive use should not be a problem at all. Also remember that if you are blinded by the muzzle flash just think how the guy who has the fire ball heading his way is affected. At least you are prepared for it.

Next up were Golden Saber .38 +P. Very mild round in this gun and from what I have seen, penetrate deeper than similar short barrel Gold Dots on most gel tests. No problem shooting a few cylinders of these. After that I put 50 rounds of practice .38 spl through the gun and was very happy with the groups when I shot groups. I shot mostly one handed and some left handed. Before I left the range I shot the Hornady 110 gr. FTX loads. They penetrate 12" through 4 layers of denim into ballistic gel. They will penetrate as well as many +P rounds without the flash and recoil and are *****cats in the 340PD.

I was very impressed with this gun. Having shot close to 100 rounds I did not notice any soreness in my hands. Heck, after 25 rounds of .45 in my XDs my hands are shaking from being battered by the recoil and I am not recoil shy at all. I do not enjoy shooting small calibers because there is not enough recoil to satisfy me. With a proper grip recoil should not be much of a problem. Jeff Copper once said that recoil is 80% mental and I tend to agree with that. If you think it will hurt; it will.

I bought this gun because I was looking for a sub 12 oz. gun for pocket carry in the summer. There were no good choices other than the LCP and its ilk and I consider those guns as BUGS or as guns for those times when you cannot carry you regular defensive handgun. I went into this knowing full well that I would not be shooting .357 magnums. I considered it a great lightweight .38 spl that I could also shoot .38 +P for defense, type of gun. However I still read a lot of post by people who insist on putting wooden grips on their gun and load it up with 158 gr. .357 magnum loads and then complain about the recoil.

In short, I recommend this gun for non recoil sensitive experienced shooters who understand how to make this kind of gun work for them. It is not for the person who thinks they can have their cake and eat it too.

[Nathan]

I have the 640, but want/wanted the 340. I carry 38 +P, but should be CCWing 125gr 357's. I have shot full power 125 gr'rs in both guns and found them acceptable.

You did good.

It is really price that keeps me from going from my 640 to a 340.

[Old_Dog]

I traded in 3 guns to get mine. I figured that a gun I would carry daily was worth 3 in the safe.