38 S&W

[Tom-ADC]

Good new brass here: https://www.starlinebrass.com/brass-...8-SandW-Brass/

[Killer Bee]

don't know how much y'all shoot your 75 year old revolvers or for what purpose other than fun, but elcheapo boxed rem ammo works great for me

accuracy is passable for 7-10 yds and everything went bang and ejected smoothly..

fairly confident I could tighten them up a bit but I really was enjoying a relaxing afternoon by myself..

and definitely not concerned with concentrating too much on anything but the delicious ham in the back seat of my truck

from revolver thread before Easter;

stopped by the range on my way home from the dentist.. picked up a honeybaked too

I thought the '43 Webley .38 s&w was a real decent shooter considering I wasn't really trying that hard.. just enjoying a day off


couldn't leave out the '42 Navy Victory in .38 spc..


even the '39 Defender .38 s&w did ok for me..

[sigfan91]

I picked up a Webley Mk IV from a fellow calgunner a few years ago. Notice the safety on the top of the grip. This is a Singapore police contract gun. Not sure how valuable it is but it certainly is uncommon.

I bought some new brass and handloaded a batch of ammo using 158gr 38/357 cal bullets. I forgot the charge I used in these. Probably very light as I don't know what the thing is capable of handling.

[Killer Bee]

I picked up a Webley Mk IV from a fellow calgunner a few years ago. Notice the safety on the top of the grip. This is a Singapore police contract gun. Not sure how valuable it is but it certainly is uncommon.

I bought some new brass and handloaded a batch of ammo using 158gr 38/357 cal bullets. I forgot the charge I used in these. Probably very light as I don't know what the thing is capable of handling.

^ definitely cool gun, I like it, but still not too difficult to find..

I was stumbling across them occasionally over the years I was casually shopping for a war finish..

Webley Mark IV Singapore Police Force sold with 1 bid for $350 after multiple re-listings..

so let's see some targets from the handloads y'all talking about..

I reckon I shoulda been keeping my brass for you guys too

[gun toting monkeyboy]

don't know how much y'all shoot your 75 year old revolvers or for what purpose other than fun, but elcheapo boxed rem ammo works great for me

The cheap, store-bought stuff works just fine for casual plinking. But for anything else, it is useless. The round-nosed lead bullets had a horrible reputation for stopping anything larger than an anemic rat. And they are loaded down to a pressure that is safe for the weakest top-break pot-metal gun produced more than a century ago. For playing around it is fine. And it is better than a pointy stick. But there is a reason both Colt and S&W came out with their flat-nosed police loads with 200 grain bullets. Even simply going to wadcutters would make these more useful. I have also have decent luck in terms of accuracy with a 130 grain LSWCHP, that is nothing more than a regular 158 gr LSWC with a big hollowpoint cast into it. If I don't feel like using a 200-215 grain lead bullet because of the age of the firearm, I use that one, or a 148 gr WC, seated slightly above the mouth of the case. I avoid the 146 grain LRN bullets like the plague if I have a choice.

-MB

[Killer Bee]

The cheap, store-bought stuff works just fine for casual plinking. But for anything else, it is useless. The round-nosed lead bullets had a horrible reputation for stopping anything larger than an anemic rat. And they are loaded down to a pressure that is safe for the weakest top-break pot-metal gun produced more than a century ago. For playing around it is fine. And it is better than a pointy stick. But there is a reason both Colt and S&W came out with their flat-nosed police loads with 200 grain bullets. Even simply going to wadcutters would make these more useful. I have also have decent luck in terms of accuracy with a 130 grain LSWCHP, that is nothing more than a regular 158 gr LSWC with a big hollowpoint cast into it. If I don't feel like using a 200-215 grain lead bullet because of the age of the firearm, I use that one, or a 148 gr WC, seated slightly above the mouth of the case. I avoid the 146 grain LRN bullets like the plague if I have a choice.

-MB

I fully understand your statement and agree with the original purposes of yesteryear..

however, my point is, for anything 'else' these old guns are just about equally as useless today..

these are hobby / collector guns, not ideal ccw, home defense, or target guns by today's standards..

and in my opinion, not worth wearing out or destroying to prove a point of their utility..

an occasional cylinder or two of gentle factory loads for the big grin and happily put them away unscathed..

hopefully in tact and fully functional for my children and future generations beyond them to enjoy..

I wish you good luck and happy and safe shooting

[gun toting monkeyboy]

I dunno... I have a Colt Police Positive with a 2" barrel ( it is pre-Banker's Special) in .38 S&W that I intend to put on my CCW if Peruta ever goes through. I admit that I don't run the 200 grain loads through it often, but loaded with wadcutters of some sort, it is just about as effective as most other snubbie pistols. It it reasonably accurate, in good shape, and a century old this year. How many people get to carry a 100 year old handgun for self defense?

-Mb

[Killer Bee]

^ well, since you put it that way,

[sigfan91]

I dunno... I have a Colt Police Positive with a 2" barrel ( it is pre-Banker's Special) in .38 S&W that I intend to put on my CCW if Peruta ever goes through. I admit that I don't run the 200 grain loads through it often, but loaded with wadcutters of some sort, it is just about as effective as most other snubbie pistols. It it reasonably accurate, in good shape, and a century old this year. How many people get to carry a 100 year old handgun for self defense?

-Mb

Wouldn't it be better if you carried a more modern 38 special snubbie? At least you won't feel too bad if you have to throw it at superman to make him duck....

[Killer Bee]

Wouldn't it be better if you carried a more modern 38 special snubbie? At least you won't feel too bad if you have to throw it at superman to make him duck....

lol.. well, this would be considered a modern snubbie comparatively..

so I reckon I just made Mb's point

'57 detective special


ain't pretty, gaps and end play just within limits, with a bent and warped sight, and still killed 'em at 21 feet

[gun toting monkeyboy]

A modern snubbie wouldn't actually do that much more than the older one. You just don't get that big of a performance boost with a barrel that short. Besides, I already have it, AND a plethora of more modern automatics to go on the CCW license as well. But again, there is just something entertaining about the idea of being licensed to carry around something that was made when Wilson was President.

-Mb

[winchester1]

My 50k cents worth on this: The W&W "Victory" models issued to US military folks were in .38 special caliber; the S&W "Victory" model shipped to England, etc., were .38 S&W caliber. Surplus sales that followed WWII gave the guns a bad rap because of the confusion of the ammo.; European guns did not like the thinner cartridges.

I suggest you take your whippin' like a big kid and handload for it. Brass is readily available in a variety of conditions and modern bullet companies are putting out stuff that spans two hundred years of fixed ammunition. Good luck -

[gun toting monkeyboy]

My 50k cents worth on this: The W&W "Victory" models issued to US military folks were in .38 special caliber; the S&W "Victory" model shipped to England, etc., were .38 S&W caliber. Surplus sales that followed WWII gave the guns a bad rap because of the confusion of the ammo.; European guns did not like the thinner cartridges.

I suggest you take your whippin' like a big kid and handload for it. Brass is readily available in a variety of conditions and modern bullet companies are putting out stuff that spans two hundred years of fixed ammunition. Good luck -

(snicker) Yeah, we established that months ago. The other thing that gave these a bad reputation was that many of the .38 S&W versions were "converted" to .38 Special by simply boring out the cylinders with a .38 Special reamer, and making no other changes. That gave you a functional .38 Special, but the cases tended to bulge or burst towards the base where the chambers were a bit too large for the .38 Special brass. Never a good thing.

-Mb

[CALI-gula]

Sounds like reloading it is. I suppose there are worse things in life. Gives me an excuse to invest in a progressive press now that I'll be reloading something other than rifle rounds.

I find it as new production all the time, on the shelf. Often, you merely have to ask for it at your LGS and they'll have a box or two. A lot of early revolvers were chambered for it, including many, many Colts.

.

[gun toting monkeyboy]

I find it as new production all the time, on the shelf. Often, you merely have to ask for it at your LGS and they'll have a box or two. A lot of early revolvers were chambered for it, including many, many Colts.

.

It is incredibly easy to find online as well. Normally for a fairly low price. Both this and .32 S&W Long seem to have benefited immensely from the internet, as production and availability of both calibers seems to have taken off in the last few years. That is actually impressive, considering that neither caliber has that many new guns produced annually anymore. Outside of .38 S&W revolvers for the Indian police and military, and a very few target automatics for the .32 S&W Long, both chamberings are obsolescent. And yet both now have several new ammunition makers that have picked them up in the last few years. Buffalo Bore even makes self defense ammo for both of them.

-Mb