38 Special +P in 357 Magnum?

[TnShooter83]

I know this may seem like a "dumb" question.
Is it safe to shoot .38 Special +P in a .357Mag.

SAAMI pressure in 38 Spl. +P is 18,500psi
SAAMI pressure in 357 Magnum is 35,000psi

Pressure wise is seems it is more than safe,
but I figured I'd ask?

The pistol is a Ruger Police Service in .357 Magnum

 

[Sir Aardvark]

Yes - it is OK to shoot .38 special +P in your .357mag handgun.

 

[Sport45]

Yes, it's perfectly safe. The only real concern with shooting .38's in a .357 is that crud can build up in the chamber ahead of the cartridge making it hard to load .357's later. Just drop test a .357 round in each chamber after cleaning so you know it's not building up. A factory .357 round should drop in without any help.

 

[TnShooter83]

I figured it wa

I figured it was fine.
Never hurts to ask.

 

[DWARREN123]

Yes it is safe but because the 38spl cases are slightly shorter they may leave a crud ring where the case mouth ends and could cause some problems when going to 357mag rounds. Just check and clean between firings of 38spl and 357mag.

 

[TnShooter83]

I almost hesitated to ask the question.
As the last time I asked about Bi-Pods I was told my synthetic stock was a POS. I'll try not to ask any more questions around here.

As I was 99.9% sure the answer was YES, but than again I've read a few manuals that clearly said to shoot only ammunition marked on the barrel or receiver of you firearm. There for if you go off that statement than, you shouldn't shoot .38 Spl in a .357.

But people have done it for years.

 

[boalex207]

Yeah let 'er rip with the .38 Special ammo in a revolver chambered for .357 Magnum.


And . . . don't sweat it. There's a lot more helpful, cool folks on here than uncool, "what a stupid question" people.

 

[velojym]

Better to ask if you don't know. It's what we're supposed to be all about.
Of course, there's lots of info on the web about it as well.

My wife's GP100 is usually loaded with .38 +p SJHP, until she's comfortable stepping it up a notch. Then I'll carefully clean and check it for deposits in the chambers before we stoke it with the magnums. There's also the danger of increased pressure even if you do get the .357 rounds in OK, IIRC.
Either way, I'd rather check.

 

[sargenv]

It's even ok to fire 38 Short and long colt in that 357 magnum.. I know, why would you? I know a few gamers in the ICORE game that like the shorter cartridge since they eject faster..

 

[polekitty]

38spcl+P in .357mag? Sure. That’s about all I shoot in mine. Have a little S&W model 65 2-½” barrel. Never carry it cause can’t find a holster I like (main carry is 1911.) The little jewel shoots better than I can with spcl+P, only problem is I have to clean out the goop left in cylinder holes from the short case! For self defense? Sure---my 65 is an “in your face” piece, more than sufficient accuracy for that! Safe!

 

[Hunter0924]

TnShooter, don't let some folks get you down. Remember this is the internet where many practice "if you can't say something nice say something anyway".
That is a good question (and be sure you are not the only one who has wondered it).

 

[Jomax]

Yes, it's perfectly safe. The only real concern with shooting .38's in a .357 is that crud can build up in the chamber ahead of the cartridge making it hard to load .357's later. Just drop test a .357 round in each chamber after cleaning so you know it's not building up. A factory .357 round should drop in without any help.

Whenever I shoot my Ruger SP101, I follow every 15 or 20 .38 Spl rounds with 5 .357 full loads to blow the crud out and to keep it from building up. I learned my lesson after I spent several hours trying to clean it out by hand.

 

[Sport45]

Whenever I shoot my Ruger SP101, I follow every 15 or 20 .38 Spl rounds with 5 .357 full loads to blow the crud out and to keep it from building up. I learned my lesson after I spent several hours trying to clean it out by hand.

??? How is that going to blow the crud out? The crud I'm thinking of would be between the brass and the cylinder wall when you load a .357. It might get ironed in, but I don't think it would be blown out. I've yet to find an alternative to brushing or scraping to get this out.

 

[GigaBuist]

I know this may seem like a "dumb" question.

There's no such thing as a dumb question when it comes to ammo compatibility.

I once brought a K-31 that I had just purchased to the range/gun shop looking to buy some more 7.5 Swiss to fiddle with. The shop said they didn't have any, whereupon I replied that that's OK, I've still got 20 rounds to burn up. The gentleman behind the counter asked me where that ammo was loaded and I said, "Portugal." I could see the gears turning in his head, and he said, "I don't think anybody in Portugal loads that," and asked to see the box. I showed it to him. The ammo was 7.5 French (7.5x54mm) and not 7.5 Swiss (7.5x55mm). When I left the shop he wasn't even sure I had the wrong ammo, but I set out to look into the matter and determined that I did have the wrong ammo. The ammo was sold to me with the gun. The clerk actually "pushed" the ammo on me. I just wanted the rifle, but he offered up some ammo for it, so I said yes... and got the wrong stuff.

The gent that spotted the issue suffered severe eye damage ($20k in repair work, and he still wears some really thick glasses) due to putting the wrong ammo into a gun.

It never hurts to err on the side of caution.

 

[ArfinGreebly]

Just for clarity

Somewhere floating around THR there are some extensive discussions of actual diameters for the different calibres.

The actual diameter of .38 special is (yup) .357 inches, just like the, uh, .357 magnum, whose case is, what, a tenth of an inch longer?

Like the man said, just take care to clean out any deposits left from shooting the shorter cartridge in a longer chamber and you'll be fine.

(And if anyone is wondering why some changes occurred above . . . well, it's just noise removal.)​

 

[SaxonPig]

"Is it safe to shoot .38 Special +P in a .357Mag."





,

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

Sometimes, too, the .357 can drop into the chamber after the "crud ring" has built up, but once fired will not extract. Again, just keep the chambers clean and it will not be a problem.

Some individual specimens may not be as accurate with the shorter case, but this can only be determined through careful bench testing. Even if you have a gun like this, it will still be accurate enough.

 

[gunsmith]

the "crud" is a real pita!

I shot a lot of .38's out of my lil sp101 .357, and I though
I had cleaned it pretty well.
I was out practicing and the cylinder stopped turning!
I hadn't cleaned the crud out and the empty brass was expanding and causing cylinder bind.
Now I never shoot anything but .357 out of it.
Does anyone have good advice for getting that crud out?

 

[Jomax]

??? How is that going to blow the crud out? The crud I'm thinking of would be between the brass and the cylinder wall when you load a .357. It might get ironed in, but I don't think it would be blown out. I've yet to find an alternative to brushing or scraping to get this out.

Of course I have to regularly clean my gun, just like everyone else. I'm talking about buildup in the front of each chamber in the cylinder after too many .38Spl rounds during a range session. If I let it get too far along during a session, the .357 round either will not fully seat in the chamber or the spent casing will get stuck as a result. After around 50 combined rounds, I stop for a few minutes to give the chambers and barrel a quick brushing with some cleaner, a wiping and then resume my session. I find that this makes keeping it whistle clean much easier afterwards.

EDIT: I've found that certain brands of .38 Spl ammo are significantly "dirtier" than others in my SP101. I do not shoot reloads, only brand new factory ammo. MagTech seems to be very good as well as CCI Blazer (aluminum case). The "white box", Remington, Federal American and generic ammo don't perform as well for me in my SP101. So, whenever possible, I bite the bullet (pun intended) and buy the MagTech or CCI. I find that I spend much less time cleaning away lead and other deposits after each session and since my time is valuable to me, less cleaning time lowers the cost of the ammo to me IMO. Not knocking any manufacturer's ammo here for sure, just going with what works best for me in my revolver.

 

[boalex207]

(And if anyone is wondering why some changes occurred above . . . well, it's just noise removal.)

Well the original noise is back at # 16.

 

[Cosmoline]

Never hurts to ask, and there are no stupid questions. Sometimes the answers surprise even experienced shooters.

Personally, I avoid shooting specials from my magnum. I find it builds up a lot of crudola and invariably makes chambering slower and is a serious PINA to get out, as gunsmith notes. I stick with the cheap Fiochi .357's for my own Ruger Six and cleanup and function are better. There's no real reason to use .38's in a .357. If recoil is too much with the magnums, the best bet is to get a heavier revolver (though that's not a problem with your excellent revolver) or to get different grips or stocks.

 

[Slugless]

manuals that clearly said to shoot only ammunition marked on the barrel or receiver of you firearm

That's all the reason you need to ask the question.

I avoid shooting specials from my magnum

Last time I put it through it's paces I found my model 66 was wicked accurate with .357, ho hum with .38s. Reason enough to shoot .357.

I was told one time that with a 4" bbl .38 +P is a better HD load than .357 because the muzzle flash from a .357 will mess up your night vision pretty badly.

No idea if it's true, sounded good at the time.

 

[Z_Infidel]

For pretty much all the reasons listed above, plus these days .357 Mags bother my ears even with good protection, I have purchased a couple of good dedicated .38 Special revolvers. The 158 gr LSWCHP+P round is a good defensive cartridge and they shoot to POA in these guns, so I'm pretty content with the combination. If I owned a .357 Magnum revolver today I would shoot only magnums in it.

 

[Jomax]

I'll have to scout out some Fiocchi .357's and give them a try.

UPDATE: The only Fiocchi .357's I've come across are actually more than what I pay for MagTech's. Is there some place in particular that has very good prices?