Well, my family is going on a vacation into blackbear\cougar country, so I bought myself something light to pack around. I decided on this Scandium 340CT.
I bought a box of cheap PMC 158gr jacketed soft point to see how mid level 357 would feel in a 13 ounce gun. I fired the first two rounds and found the recoil very manageable. I decided to some serious technique control to see what the groups look like, and on the third shot I felt a sting on my left cheek.
I turned around and my buddy said I was bleeding. Indeed I was.
This is a second hand gun, but it does not appear to have any issues out of the ordinary. There is almost no endshake, and the timing is perfect. I did find some carbon buildup in the cylinder that looks like the previous owner fired only 38 special loads. However, the carbon came out easily and there was no "burn" in any of the cylinders.
I put on some more protection and fired 30 more rounds with no felt cylinder gap blow by. There is a bunch of unburnt powder after ejection, but no more jackets slicing through my face.
Any suggestions?