38 Short Colt… Anyone shoot this?

Saluki91

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I’m going to begin loading for 38 short colt this winter.

I’m looking for a target load that will provide me with enough accuracy to be fun. I am not a competitor, so don’t need to get very deep into the weeds… Just something that will provide me with an economical plinker.

Anyone care to share their favorite bullet that meets these criteria?

Anything else I should know as I get into this quirky chambering?

Thanks!
 
I don't load that, but I do load .38 S&W, which is similar in size capacity. Fast pistol powders like Bullseye, WST, Competition, N-320 work well with 158s of any kind.

Nothing hot, just slow fun accurate plinker loads. 675/700ish FPS.
 
I almost got into 38 Short Colt through a Pietta 1851 Navy conversion. The brass is easy enough to track down online. However, the heeled bullets are not. I didn't want to get involved with casting my own either, I'm too lazy for that. That's when I decided to pass up on it. I still think it's a cool round with some neat history through. I'll be following along anyway, maybe if there is a good source for heeled bullets I'll reconsider.
 
Yes, I was deeply into the cartridge for a while, for use in percussion revolver conversions.

It really is a specialty cartridge for handloaders and bullet casters, in my opinion. I believe it may be possible to order bullets, but am not completely sure. If I recall correctly, all of the equipment I use - mold, sizer, and loading/crimping dies, which are unusual - came from Old West Moulds.

As for loads, real blackpowder is the best bet. After that, Trail Boss, which of course is not currently available and may never be again. I also have used Bullseye, which is slightly more available than TB but not by much. 2.2 grains is a good place to start, and maybe finish. Beyond that, Hodgdon has, oddly enough, several loads listed at their "reloading data center", including powders that are pretty available - Titegroup and HP-38, for example. I haven't used any of those loads, but expect they would all work just fine - in my experience, you can't expect fantastic performance out of the cartridge under any circumstance...
 
WOW... I just went through 7 reloading manuals and came up with absolutely Nothing on reloading the 38 Short Colt . If it were me I would see how the 38 S&W cases compare in length ... if close , maybe the starting Loads for 38 S&W would be a place to start ... I hate not having published data for reloading ...
Try an internet Reloading Data search and see what turns up .
Good Luck and Load Safe,
Gary
 
To echo what '.38 Special' said above, I think black powder loadings are you best bet in the cartridge. It would be authentic, and in my personal opinion the most fun (I love shooting black powder, the big fireball and smoke cloud is a whole new level of excitement - Then again, I'm easily amused, I think 4th of July dollar store smoke bombs are fun!).

Black powder would have been my original intent with 38 Short Colt, had I not been scared away by the scarcity of heeled bullets in the caliber.

What firearm will you be using for your 38 Short Colt?
 
The only folks I know who regularly load for the .38 Short Colt, shoot it in competition using a S&W M-929

I've casually looked into it and was told that they load using mid-range 9x19mm data and then adjust to get the velocity they want. Most folks I talked to use N310/N320
 
To echo what '.38 Special' said above, I think black powder loadings are you best bet in the cartridge. It would be authentic, and in my personal opinion the most fun (I love shooting black powder, the big fireball and smoke cloud is a whole new level of excitement - Then again, I'm easily amused, I think 4th of July dollar store smoke bombs are fun!).

Black powder would have been my original intent with 38 Short Colt, had I not been scared away by the scarcity of heeled bullets in the caliber.

What firearm will you be using for your 38 Short Colt?
It looks like Old West does offer finished bullets, presumably from their own molds.


You'll need their crimp die as well, which is truly unusual.
 
To echo what '.38 Special' said above, I think black powder loadings are you best bet in the cartridge. It would be authentic, and in my personal opinion the most fun (I love shooting black powder, the big fireball and smoke cloud is a whole new level of excitement - Then again, I'm easily amused, I think 4th of July dollar store smoke bombs are fun!).

Black powder would have been my original intent with 38 Short Colt, had I not been scared away by the scarcity of heeled bullets in the caliber.

What firearm will you be using for your 38 Short Colt?
Sorry - should have included that in my original post. I intend to shoot these out of my S&W Mdl 65.

I found data for top-break revolvers (ie. Colt Navy conversions and replicas), as well as some data for using it in modern revolvers like my own. For example, this data cites bullets up to 160gr. RN. The modern stuff is what I'm interested in - specifically bullet choice for soft shooting (kid/wife friendly) target loads.

Thanks!
 
I don't load that, but I do load .38 S&W, which is similar in size capacity. Fast pistol powders like Bullseye, WST, Competition, N-320 work well with 158s of any kind.

Nothing hot, just slow fun accurate plinker loads. 675/700ish FPS.
Thanks - "nothing hot" and accurate fits the bill! The revolver I want to use was passed on to me from my wife's father. I want her to enjoy using it, but that won't happen with .357 coming down the pipe. My hopes are to find a real pussycat of a load... one that can knock soda cans off fence posts or ring steel without intimidating smaller shooters.
 
Thanks - "nothing hot" and accurate fits the bill! The revolver I want to use was passed on to me from my wife's father. I want her to enjoy using it, but that won't happen with .357 coming down the pipe. My hopes are to find a real pussycat of a load... one that can knock soda cans off fence posts or ring steel without intimidating smaller shooters.
Small rifle magnum primer in a .357 case with a wax wadcutter. Pour canning wax into a pan about 1/2” deep and chill. Use cases to cut wax wad.

More than a Red Ryder but fewer chances of putting an eye out.
 
It's popular among competitive shooters because of the short case length.

A web search found an article on loading for competition. Some of the loads are made for a certain power factor, and they do have some very light loads.

 
I almost got into 38 Short Colt through a Pietta 1851 Navy conversion. The brass is easy enough to track down online. However, the heeled bullets are not. I didn't want to get involved with casting my own either, I'm too lazy for that. That's when I decided to pass up on it. I still think it's a cool round with some neat history through. I'll be following along anyway, maybe if there is a good source for heeled bullets I'll reconsider.
Heeled bullets are only for the really old revolvers with big bores. Today's shooters use it in 38 Special and 357 Magnum guns and can use standard 38/357 bullet sizes for those.
 
Heeled bullets are only for the really old revolvers with big bores. Today's shooters use it in 38 Special and 357 Magnum guns and can use standard 38/357 bullet sizes for those.
Interesting, that makes sense. I suppose it's favored as a way to reduce empty case volume for better burn consistency with light loads?
 
I was loading .38 Short Colt with starlike brass and Hornady HBWC with if I remember correctly 2 grains of Bullseye. They were great little plinking loads out of my Ruger 77/357!

As jmorris posted above Hodgdon has load data for the cartridge. The loads they list use a 93 grains projectile. This is available from Matt’s Bullets.


I actually have 500 of these 93 grain bullets as well as their 75 grains wadcutter sitting with my reloading supplies. My plan was to use Titegroup to load them with the data from Hodgdon’s web sight but haven’t gotten around to it yet.


Dan
 
Interesting, that makes sense. I suppose it's favored as a way to reduce empty case volume for better burn consistency with light loads?
It's more because the short cases are easier and faster to eject from, and load into, the gun than longer cases. Any time spent reloading the gun during timed stages when shooting action sports like ICORE and IPSC/USPSA matches that you can save will result in a higher stage score.

Some non-competitors use them for the same reason. They're just easier to use than longer brass like the 38 Special.
 
The only folks I know who regularly load for the .38 Short Colt, shoot it in competition using a S&W M-929

I've casually looked into it and was told that they load using mid-range 9x19mm data and then adjust to get the velocity they want. Most folks I talked to use N310/N320
I was just going to say that. A friend of mine with a 929 uses 38 Short Colt brass in it.
 
I’m going to begin loading for 38 short colt this winter.

I’m looking for a target load that will provide me with enough accuracy to be fun. I am not a competitor, so don’t need to get very deep into the weeds… Just something that will provide me with an economical plinker.

Anyone care to share their favorite bullet that meets these criteria?

Anything else I should know as I get into this quirky chambering?

Thanks!
Sorry - should have included that in my original post. I intend to shoot these out of my S&W Mdl 65.

I found data for top-break revolvers (ie. Colt Navy conversions and replicas), as well as some data for using it in modern revolvers like my own. For example, this data cites bullets up to 160gr. RN. The modern stuff is what I'm interested in - specifically bullet choice for soft shooting (kid/wife friendly) target loads.

Thanks!
Thanks - "nothing hot" and accurate fits the bill! The revolver I want to use was passed on to me from my wife's father. I want her to enjoy using it, but that won't happen with .357 coming down the pipe. My hopes are to find a real pussycat of a load... one that can knock soda cans off fence posts or ring steel without intimidating smaller shooters.
It sounds like you are contemplating the 38 Short Colt for the exact same reasons I did originally. Since you’re loading for a .357 Mag revolver, you should be able to use virtually any published .38 Short Colt data or .38 S&W data safely. The key though is that you want a soft shooting target load. I ran the mill from light to heavy bullets, and even plated and jacketed bullets, and what I eventually landed on was a 125 gr coated bullet like Missouri Bullet Cowboy #2 or #17. You can use Hodgdon’s 38 SC data for 135 gr cast bullets or you can choose from among a variety of published 38 S&W data; check out Speer’s online data for 38 S&W if you want to use jacketed bullets. As for powders, I found Bullseye and 231 to be best for my gun, but yours may like something else. You’ll just have to play around to find the most accurate for your gun, but at 2.5-3 grains a pop, you’ll have enough powder to load a lot of test loads.

You‘ll need special dies to load Short Colt though. Lee sells a decent 38 SC/LC set that I’ve been using for several years without issue.

I didn’t see where you mentioned your barrel length. If it’s a snub nose, you‘ll likely only get about 600 fps or so, so it’s not going to be a barn burner with the suggested loads, but you can get some decent velocity in longer barrels.

I eventually decided to go with 38 Long Colt because the larger cases generally produce less snap in a short barrel, and I like the looks of the medium size cartridge.

I wish you luck and lots of fun loading these older cartridges. Part of the fun of reloading is rediscovering cartridges from the past.
 
It sounds like you are contemplating the 38 Short Colt for the exact same reasons I did originally. Since you’re loading for a .357 Mag revolver, you should be able to use virtually any published .38 Short Colt data or .38 S&W data safely. The key though is that you want a soft shooting target load. I ran the mill from light to heavy bullets, and even plated and jacketed bullets, and what I eventually landed on was a 125 gr coated bullet like Missouri Bullet Cowboy #2 or #17. You can use Hodgdon’s 38 SC data for 135 gr cast bullets or you can choose from among a variety of published 38 S&W data; check out Speer’s online data for 38 S&W if you want to use jacketed bullets. As for powders, I found Bullseye and 231 to be best for my gun, but yours may like something else. You’ll just have to play around to find the most accurate for your gun, but at 2.5-3 grains a pop, you’ll have enough powder to load a lot of test loads.

You‘ll need special dies to load Short Colt though. Lee sells a decent 38 SC/LC set that I’ve been using for several years without issue.

I didn’t see where you mentioned your barrel length. If it’s a snub nose, you‘ll likely only get about 600 fps or so, so it’s not going to be a barn burner with the suggested loads, but you can get some decent velocity in longer barrels.

I eventually decided to go with 38 Long Colt because the larger cases generally produce less snap in a short barrel, and I like the looks of the medium size cartridge.

I wish you luck and lots of fun loading these older cartridges. Part of the fun of reloading is rediscovering cartridges from the past.
Thanks so much for your detailed response!
 
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