38 S&W

[Lucky Scott]

That is actually a very pleasant round to shoot. Almost feels like a 22 magnum round. Leave it as it is, and just pick up some ammo, you will like it.

[smle-man]

Not advocating it but in a WW2 or more recent Smith or Colt Official Police the .38 SW can be loaded to near .38 special velocities with safety. I don't recommend those hot loads for Webleys, Enfields, and especially not the old pre war top break revolvers.

[toblerra]

Just picked up a Webley in the same caliber and had no problem finding ammo, try sgammo.com, also reloading is always an option. If you are looking for hot loads you may want to try buffalo bore as they make a hot 38s&w hard cast round pushing 1100fps that is safe to use in even my Webley break top, they're pricey but effective.

[pterrell]

Just picked up a Webley in the same caliber and had no problem finding ammo, try sgammo.com, also reloading is always an option. If you are looking for hot loads you may want to try buffalo bore as they make a hot 38s&w hard cast round pushing 1100fps that is safe to use in even my Webley break top, they're pricey but effective.

I've started looking and have found lots of Privi available. I also was notice the fact that there are Webley revolvers out there that share the round. Perhaps this is an excuse to buy another gun

[nothingextra]

There's a whole new world of guns to enjoy in this caliber that is largely undiscovered by the masses.

I'd just go with it an enjoy it.

You might end up with a stable of affordable c&r's.

[pterrell]

There's a whole new world of guns to enjoy in this caliber that is largely undiscovered by the masses.

I'd just go with it an enjoy it.

You might end up with a stable of affordable c&r's.

Have any suggestions to fill my list with?

[pacrat]

My mother found an H&R top break underneath the bottom drawer of a built in linen cupboard of a house she bought. And I have a S&W Safety lemon squeezer that was my FIL's before he passed.

I was already casting before aquiring these. But didn't want to invest in another set of moulds/dies and accoutrements. For what little shooting they would get.

I made a couple of flat plates for my Rockchucker and smashed the crap out of a bunch of soft cast 150 gr .358 wad cutters. Picked up another .358" H&I die for my Lachmiller cheap at an estate sale, and reamed them to .360". Sized using 38 spl die and hand made an expander. Because of overworking the mouths with the 38 spl die, cases only lasted 4/5 loadings using trimmed down 38 spl cases. But back then I had a lot of time and not much money.

[mj1]

S&G Ammo $18.95 for a box of 50 all in the 140g range shipped to your door. Please no drilling the cylinder to .38.

[gun toting monkeyboy]

Okay, if the collecting bug gets you on this, there are a few things you need to be aware of.

First, the older top break revolvers, excluding the British Webleys and Enfields are fragile. They work just fine, but should be confined to factory loads and light hand loads. All of the factory ammo aside from the Buffalo Bore stuff is loaded down to safe levels for them.

The Enfields, Webleys, and the solid-frame guns are usually safe for the stronger loads. Both Colt and Smith & Wesson offered much stouter loads that were called "New Police" and "Super Police" respectively, that used a 200 grain bullet moving at 620-650 fps. They were more or less the same as the British .30/200 military loads. These were meant to help maintain their share of the police market. The .38 S&W was one of the main police cartridges used during the first half of the 20th century. However the 146 gr LRN bullets had poor terminal performance. Going with a load that was considered to be much more of a "man stopper" in the revolvers they already had sold allowed both companies to keep contracts with departments across the country.

Colt .38 S&W revolvers tend to have tighter bores and chambers. A .357-358" bullet works just fine in them. In fact, a .360" bullet may not easily fit in their chambers. S&W used slightly looser tolerances. However, I believe the Victory Revolvers used a regular .38 Special barrel. The only change was the cylinder chambers. All told, most .38 S&W revolvers can use the .357-.358" lead bullets reasonable well. So tracking down .360 bullets is rarely necessary.

Drilling the cylinder on Victory Models to accept .38 Special has been done in the past, but it doesn't work well. The base of the chamber is larger than a regular .38 Special, and the cases bulge. Swapping out the cylinder is possible, but it costs a lot. So truthfully, why bother?

Ken Waters did a really, really good article on .38 S&W years ago, and it had loads for both the weak top break pistols and the stronger ones. Personally, I tend to go with either 150 grain wadcutters or 205 grain flat-nosed bullets. The recoil on both is next to nothing. And according to the Box'o'truth, the 200 grain bullets get more than 36" of penetration through test media. Expansion at the low velocities of this cartridge is inconsistent, so unless you are using a really soft lead bullet, I wouldn't count on anything expanding. For SD or popping small game, go with something that has a flat point to transfer the energy and punch holes.

-Mb

[Gutter]

S&G Ammo $18.95 for a box of 50 all in the 140g range shipped to your door. Please no drilling the cylinder to .38.

I second that. If you're going to go that route, I'll buy it off you just to save the gun from being ruined.

[GlockN'Roll]

I remember when a ton of these dumped on to the market in the late 80's.

They are actually decent guns and with a little effort factory ammo is still available.

Buy factory ammo while it is still available and save the brass to reload.

Don't alter it to .38 special, just sell it to someone who would love and enjoy as it is...

[pterrell]

I can absolutely promise that there will be no cutting or drilling occurring on this revolver while it remains in my care. I was only curious about changing the cylinder to accept 38 special which seems to not be possible. 38 s&w bulk buy it is!

I don't ruin old guns, don't worry

[mycrstuff]

I have one and it is a great shooter. The cheapest place for ammo is SGammo and Aim Surplus. Aim is out right now but SGammo has it in stock for less than $20 a box.

A warning if you are planning on reloading. The cases are the same size as 9mm except that they are a rimmed case. They look almost the same. Be very careful about keeping them separate as they can get easily mixed up and cause a major headache while reloading.

[mj1]

[QUOTE=pterrell;17639453]Thanks! Just won it. I'm not unhappy with it especially since it's in such good shape, it just isn't what I actually wanted

Why is that ? Are you just have temporary buyers remorse ?

[pterrell]

Why is that ? Are you just have temporary buyers remorse ?

I guess that's a good way of putting it. I was really wanting to get a 38 Special Victory Model rather than a 38 S&W. One of those learning experiences though and I think it will work out in the end.