This stirs my memory of one police officer practicing at the downstairs range range at the AMA in Dartmouth about two years back. I was shooting next to a female constable who was using her duty pistol (9mm Sig?) I had my Colt Model 357 with factory wrap around target grips, and at that time I was shooting some older 158 grain +P SWC that I gotten a great deal on the purchase price.
I asked if she would like to shoot it, and I assured her this was 38 special ammunition and not 357 Magnum. She readily agreed and I carefully passed her the open cylinder sixgun and two rounds and showed the latch gate and told her which way the cylinder would turn to index, and to keep her supporting hand behind the cylinder gap. She fired one round with this revolver and put it down, her expression was sour.
I think maybe, she thought I had slippped in 357 Magnum round, and she fully expected to hear laughter from myself. I made a point of showing her the fired headstamp and I said this was once a standard police issue round with a poker face. I don't play that foolish game with any shooters, and certainly not a police officer.
I don't think I made any new friends that day.
Got to admit just about every HRM officer there cleaned thier duty gun before leaving. Thier most confident/proficient shooters that I remember, were a K-9 officer and an undercover detective. (his piece was shorter than the regular duty guns)
It was pretty neat watching them carry out thier reload drills and such.
My brother and I burned off alot of 38 ammo there. Twice a week shooting and sometimes three times a week!