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Not a caliber discussion, but a look at the .38 SW

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Most stories begin at the beginning. To tell the story of the .38 Smith & Wesson Special cartridge, however, it's necessary to go quite a ways back, before the beginning, back before metallic cartridge firearms entirely.


The comments at Lucky Gunner may prove of some interest, too.




pt 1
Cartridge of the Century: A History of the 38 Special
Perhaps in anticipation of future sales success, Smith dubbed the new K-frame Hand Ejector the "Military & Police". Although nobody knew it when the first M&Ps hit store shelves in the closing year of the 19thCentury, the most prolific service and defense handgun/cartridge combination of the next century had arrived. For most of the next eight decades, the medium-frame .38 Special Smith would be the iconic Good Guy gun.





pt 2 Includes a look at the "Miami Shootout"
Cartridge of the Cenutry Part 2: 38 Special, The Golden Years
"Attention was paid by the Bureau to the 9mm bullet that failed to reach the robber's heart. While this is often simplified as being an issue of caliber, what the FBI focused on was adequate penetration."




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some time ago i read an article showing the correlation of high number of shots taken by LEO and the transition to automatics. The assertions was the 38 SPL / 357 had a much higher one-shot-stop than did the 9mm so the 9 had many more follow up shots. It also touched upon the fact that semi autos were more prone to repeat shots than were revolvers...

I'm not sure I agree with all that but I do feel there's some truth in there, somewhere.
 
Love the cartridge, hate the old 158gr RNL (etc.).. save for paper and faster reloads than semi or wadcutters during competition.
The game changer was/is the Keith 170gr SWC.. it turns it into a real killer without even having to hot it up.. but you can if you want to, given the proper gun.

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About 2 years ago I bought 500 rounds of surplus .38 spl police ammo that was HBWC with the hollow base pointing forward. It was supposedly from the 70's.
Do you remember if they were reloads or?
Here's something on a current factory offering..

38 Special +P Atomic Ammo 148 Grain HBWC Loaded Backward

I gather that they reliably tumble in the air at close range so probably not so good for 50 yard competition.. as normal WC's are used for.
 
Not too accurate. They were reloads. I bought them mainly to pull and reload them with the HB the right way to shoot in my 1858 Remington .36 with a conversion cylinder. Still haven't gotten around to that yet. For the $40.00 a box they want for the Atomic I bought over 4 boxes of the one's I have.
 
Do you remember if they were reloads or?
Here's something on a current factory offering..

38 Special +P Atomic Ammo 148 Grain HBWC Loaded Backward

I gather that they reliably tumble in the air at close range so probably not so good for 50 yard competition.. as normal WC's are used for.

Thanks for the .38 cartridge information.

In my very,very,very humble opinion there is nothing wrong .38 special. I kind of like the following quote, "And if you think center-punching a miscreant through the sternum with a 158-grain lead round nose is an inconsequential wound, you've been watching too many vampire movies."
Should We Bring Back the .38 Special Cartridge? - Handguns

I was looking at the Atomic HBWC rounds until I read the link from RicinOR a while back, along with some other reviews. Decided to go with Buffalo Bore .38 special standard pressure 150gr hard cast WC rounds and their 158gr soft lead SWCHP as my reloads. Both shoot well out of my Ruger LCR and SP101. My wife carries Hornady 110gr standard pressure in her 442 and SP101 as they shoot well for her and not too harsh on the recoil.

I have other stuff as well, that are probably more capable, but I like .38 special too and try to use decent loads.
 
Thanks for the .38 cartridge information.

In my very,very,very humble opinion there is nothing wrong .38 special. I kind of like the following quote, "And if you think center-punching a miscreant through the sternum with a 158-grain lead round nose is an inconsequential wound, you've been watching too many vampire movies."
Should We Bring Back the .38 Special Cartridge? - Handguns

I was looking at the Atomic HBWC rounds until I read the link from RicinOR a while back, along with some other reviews. Decided to go with Buffalo Bore .38 special standard pressure 150gr hard cast WC rounds and their 158gr soft lead SWCHP as my reloads. Both shoot well out of my Ruger LCR and SP101. My wife carries Hornady 110gr standard pressure in her 442 and SP101 as they shoot well for her and not too harsh on the recoil.

I have other stuff as well, that are probably more capable, but I like .38 special too and try to use decent loads.
Those sound like great loads.. classic. Much better than the old LRN. I've shot quite a few animals with the caliber (9mm, .38 and .357) and have seen how poorly any RN bullet behaves.. unless it's long and tumbles.. but that's problematic (doesn't happen instantly etc.) and why bother.. SWC's or WC's, do so much more damage every time reliably.
doh, I just peeked at the top pic and saw the dreaded fmjrn (probably a 130.. the old Air Force load).. lol. didn't see that before..
 
Do you remember if they were reloads or?
Here's something on a current factory offering..

38 Special +P Atomic Ammo 148 Grain HBWC Loaded Backward

I gather that they reliably tumble in the air at close range so probably not so good for 50 yard competition.. as normal WC's are used for.

Yeaaah, I think these are for belly gun ranges!

Not much good for 50yrds, I would think! What a stupid idea!
I think I'm going to buy a box!!! :D

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Back in the day, one of the best combos to carry was the .38 special, and it wasn't until the infux of non 1911 guns did the .38 start to fall off in popularity. It is still a very useful and versatile combo of gun and cartridge as evidenced by all the new compact and sub compact wheel guns to hit the market! I have never owned a .38 my self preferring the mighty .357 mag, but the ability of these to use the .38 that makes an even more versatile combo possible! Give me a 5in Colt Python in .357 any day!
Great read!
 
Lol. I finally read the articles.. and realized I have a few boxes of the +P 95gr Silvertips and a few boxes of the +P+ Treasury loads I've been meaning to sell.. and some target wadcutters.
 
I've never jumped off of the .38spl paddle wheeler! Yep, it's that old! :D
I've been a revolver guy for a long time, though less these days. My habit back then was to have one, hopefully substantial, .357 to shoot heavy loads in and whatever else got nice, gental, .38spc WC's. Never had much worry about having to fight with the wad cutters. That's probably over confidence, after all I regularly beheaded grey diggers with handguns, why be afraid? Glad it never came to the test.
For quite some time now I've depended on autoloaders for defensive purposes, but since I still have some revolvers I still stock some defensive ammo for them. I have some hot .357's, but I most often buy .38spl +P+. My .38's are rated for them and, obviously, the .357's will handle them easily! Just more versatility doing it that way! :cool:
 
No doubt I have loaded and shot more .38 Special than anything else and continue to do so. I am currently trying to finish the last of a bottle of 700X on .38s but at 4 grain per the level in the measure ain't going down very fast - especially when I have to short measure them and bring up with a powder trickler - 700X is GREAT .38 powder but does not meter well at all!
 

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