[jc77]

i bought an op built in 1940 in 38-200. its been reblued, but not too chewed up. it locks up tight and the bore's good. i've learned it is the same as .38 s&w, but they dont fit in the cylinder. however, .38 special slip in nicely. what gives? any advice/ ideas? i'll take it to a gunsmith, but its really bothering me. has the cylinder been changed out? if so, will this thing be safe/ accurate? any input would be appreciated. thanks.

[Jim Watson]

If it is indeed marked .38-200 but will not chamber a .38 S&W and will take a .38 Special, then the cylinder has been replaced. There are a lot of these guns that have been rechambered from .38-200/.38 S&W to .38 Special, but they will still accept the S&W rounds.

Assuming the cylinder was properly installed, with good timing and reasonable cylinder gap, it will be safe to shoot. Accuracy is a question. The .38-200 barrel is around .360" - .361" groove diameter which is a little sloppy on the .358" .38 Special lead bullet. The smaller .38 Special bullets might shoot pretty well, they might not. No way to know except shoot the gun.

[Anyname]

38-200 is the heavy bullet 38 S&W load the British developed to replace the 455 Webley. Sounds like an old Victory model.

[RON in PA]

Should work Ok with HBWC.

[SaxonPig]

I agree with Jim's diagnosis meaning the gun is messed up and will likely never shoot particularly well due to undersized bullets. Sorry.

1. Try the gun. It might shoot OK. I have a Enfield in 38 S&W in which I shoot lead .357" bullets and it does pretty well.

2. Usually we see 38 S&W cylinders reamed for the longer but thinner 38 Special. You could do just the opposite of what most people do and have a smith chamber the cylinder for the fatter 38 S&W. But consider this only after trying #1. A gun in 38 Special is more useful than one in 38 S&W due to ammo cost and availability. I would do this only if the gun was badly inaccurate.

[Old Fuff]

I would have a gunsmith check and see if the cylinder was originally chambered in .38 Special or .38 S&W (.38-200). If the cylinder was not rechambered from, .38 S&W to .38 Special there is no reason you can't shoot it. It is possible that the revolver came out of the factory as a .38 Special, but someone replaced the barrel with a surplus .38-200 one. Years ago .38-200 barrels, left over from World War Two, were very inexpensive. I suspect that a barrel switch might have been made at the same time the gun was refinished.

[Jim Watson]

Barrel change instead of cylinder change? Sure, why not.

[jc77]

how would either of these things effect value? any idea of what this frankenstein is worth?

[Trebor]

Yeah, the barrel change would affect value, and not in the good way.

I have no guess as to what it's worth. Pictures and a better description would help as even the Colt experts on the board would be trying to value a "pig in a poke" without more info.

[Old Fuff]

It this point it's hard to place a value on it because it isn't clear exactly what you have. Reaming the cylinder from .38 S&W (.38-200) to .38 Special would have a greater effect then changing the barrel. Refinishing may also be a factor, depending on how well it was done.

Have a gunsmith determine if the cylinder was monkeyed with, and then come back with your questions. :)