.355 9mm bullets in a .38 special??

[Encoreman]

Okay, I know this may sound dumb. But I have some .355 9mm bullets and I don't own or load for 9mm. Can I load them, shoot them in a .38 special? Anyone tried this before? Thanks for the comments. Mac

 

[ReloaderFred]

They will load and shoot in your .38 special, but the accuracy will depend on your individual handgun and the load. Some .38 revolvers will shoot them very accurately, but some others won't. You'll know which way yours shoot once you try them.

A lot of Colt Pythons were barrelled with .356" diameter barrels in the 1970's and '80's, and some other .38's run on the tight side.

If your question concerns safety, then the answer is "yes" it's safe to shoot 9mm bullets in a .38 Special case. Ruger used to make a combination gun with two cylinders, one for .38/.357, and one for 9mm Luger. They shot pretty well, as I remember.

Hope this helps.

Fred

 

[Jim Watson]

The trick is getting them snug in the case necks. If your sizing die and expander plug do not leave them tight in the brass, you are not making good ammunition. Ed Harris once did an article on 9mms in .38s (also .38s in 9mm) and had to have a special order undersize sizing die made up to get good results.

 

[Encoreman]

Thanks guys, that's the kind of info I was looking for. But thought I would ask the "experts" that have tried it or know someone who has. God Bless! Mac

 

[bill larry]

Are these lead bullets? If so then yes. They would work if jacketed, but not as well as the lead ones will.

Here's a trick...

My dad bought a box of 500 lead 125 grain .355 bullets for me by mistake (he thought they were .38 special).

I took them one at a time and mashed them ever so slightly in a vise attached to my workbench (made them into flat points!). This slightly shortened the bullets and increased their outside diameter. They loaded and shot extremely well in my revolvers.

Good luck.

 

[Linear Thinker]

This is safe to do.
The 1 or 2 thou difference in nominal bullet diameter between 38/357 and 9mm is inconsequential, especially with lead bullets.
I was short on 357 bullets once, and used 9mm 124gr FMJs out of a 357Mag Smith revolver. There were no issues, and I did not observe any accuracy degradation (well, it was a 3" barrel gun with fixed sights). It shot better than I could hold it, as is the case with me usually
LT

 

[NuJudge]

If they are Lead bullets, you may get a lot of gas blow-by, which may cause Leading to beat the band. If the bullets 'slug up' on firing, which is more likely to happen if the bullets are really soft and the powder is really fast, you should get a decent gas seal and should not see Leading. When the bullet metal is a low melting point metal like Lead, blow by gasses act just like a cutting torch, then the cut Lead is deposited in the bore.

If jacketed, you'll still get blow by, but not a significant problem.

 

[KI.W.]

.355 in 357

I have T/C Contender witch 9mm Luger and .357 Rem maximum barrels. .357 bullets is ok in 9mm, but 9mm in .357 no good. Bullets are copperpladed resitzed cast-. Loads are mild and mellow.