Has there ever been a "wadcutter only" revolver?

[Snowdog]

I get a kick out of wadcutters and see Federal has a HST .38 special that has the profile of a wadcutter (from the side, of course).

Recently, this had me wondering... has there ever been a revolver (say within the past 50 years) that had a cylinder that could only accommodate wadcutters?

 

[Col. Harrumph]

Well, it wasn't a revolver, but there was this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smith_&_Wesson_Model_52

 

[ArchAngelCD]

I'm no expert but I never heard if one. I don't think you could call a revolver .38 Special if it can't fit SAAMI length ammo.

The semi-auto linked to above is a cool gun.

 

[bannockburn]

There was also the Colt Gold Cup National Match .38 Special Mid-Range. I think a lot of revolvers customized for the Police Pistol Competition matches (PPC), were chambered for the .38 Special wadcutter round.

 

[CajunBass]

There used to be a gunsmith in Mechanicsvile, Va, Fred Schmidt, who made a custom PPC revolver that had the cylinder cut for only 38 Special, wadcutters. It was called, oddly enough, a "Short Cylinder Conversion." The barrel, almost always a heavy PPC barrel, was set back the appropriate distance also.

You can find pictures and more information here.

http://smith-wessonforum.com/guns-s...-schmidt-41-250-triple-lock-10-8-750-obo.html

I think there is someone on this forum who has one. I know I've discussed them with someone before, but the name slips me. I've never actually seen one, but Mr. Schmidt is from the same hometown I am, and I remember seeing his flyers in all the local gun shops.

 

[ThomasT]

IIRC someone was doing a 5 shot cylinder for the 38 WC in the Ruger Single Six revolver. But I read that many years ago and have never seen one.

 

[AJumbo]

The Russian 1895 Nagant used a special round with the bullet set well back into the case; the cylinder would be pushed forward when the piece was cocked, forcing the mouth of the case over the forcing cone. The idea was to eliminate the barrel/cylinder gap and recover some otherwise lost velocity. I only mention the Nagant because I've seen both ball and wadcutter ammo for it, but I don't know which was originally issued.

 

[ThomasT]

Maybe so but it is not a "Wadcutter Only" gun like the OP asked for.

 

[Ohen Cepel]

When Federal came out with that new round it also made me think about this option. I would want the frame to be made to fit though, could be easy for Ruger with their polymer LCR maybe, with the short cylinder and smaller frame you could get weight down as well as make it a little smaller. Yes, wadcutter only but I think it could sell, and I think it would simply be neat

 

[SwampWolf]

Yes, wadcutter only but I think it could sell, and I think it would simply be neat

As a confirmed, long time Bullseye shooter, I'd be interested.

 

[JeffG]

The S&W K-38 came pretty close.

 

[mcb]

When Federal came out with that new round it also made me think about this option. I would want the frame to be made to fit though, could be easy for Ruger with their polymer LCR maybe, with the short cylinder and smaller frame you could get weight down as well as make it a little smaller. Yes, wadcutter only but I think it could sell, and I think it would simply be neat

If your going to shorten the cylinder and the frame too why bother with 38 Special full wade cutter. Chamber it in 9mm and have more performance in a small lighter less bulky package. Like the old S&W Terriers that were chambered in 38S&W but chamber in a modern high pressure cartridge, 9mm

 

[Jim Watson]

Like the Charter Arms 9mm Federal? Except they used a Special length cylinder, probably didn't want to retool for an experiment... that failed.

Taurus makes a short cylinder .380 revolver. Probably TOO short for a .38 wadcutter version.

 

[GooseGestapo]

I've seen a couple of the Schmidt conversions while shooting PPC back in the late '80's. By mid '90's, few were going to the trouble to create such a specialized gun for the competitions.
Custom line-bored cylinders, properly fitted and cut barrels, and superior trigger jobs are FAR more important than slight improvements possible by reducing the jump across the barrel cylinder gap.
My opinion as well as one of the competitors with the Schmidt conversion, was that the reduction in cylinder rotation inertia availed was more significant than the reduction of the cylinder jump. A properly cut throat will promote accuracy by allowing the bullet to obturate in cylinder and swage down to bore in properly tapered forcing cone.
The increased inertia from cylinder mass is the reason the Smith Mod 10 prevailed in PPC competition in contrast to the S&W M27 and 686 as well as the Colts, and Rugers.

 

[Ohen Cepel]

Excellent point, 9mm would be fine if the weapon was made for it from the start to keep the size down.

 

[Ohen Cepel]

If your going to shorten the cylinder and the frame too why bother with 38 Special full wade cutter. Chamber it in 9mm and have more performance in a small lighter less bulky package. Like the old S&W Terriers that were chambered in 38S&W but chamber in a modern high pressure cartridge, 9mm

Excellent point, 9mm would be fine if the weapon was made for it from the start to keep the size down. S&W's 9mm revolvers simply look silly and is much too large for what they are.

 

[silicosys4]

Korth makes a revolver in 9mm with a short cylinder suited for the 9mm length
I've never heard of a revolver with a wadcutter only cylinder from the factory though.

 

[Iron Sight]

Interesting thought. Both S&W and Colt made automatics specifically for the 38 special hollow base wadcutters. (Why?)

http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/pros-and-cons-of-the-wadcutter-bullet/recreation-leisure

 

[ATLDave]

If your going to shorten the cylinder and the frame too why bother with 38 Special full wade cutter. Chamber it in 9mm and have more performance in a small lighter less bulky package. Like the old S&W Terriers that were chambered in 38S&W but chamber in a modern high pressure cartridge, 9mm

Because power would not in any way be the object of the project?

 

[ATLDave]

Interesting thought. Both S&W and Colt made automatics specifically for the 38 special hollow base wadcutters. (Why?)

http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/pros-and-cons-of-the-wadcutter-bullet/recreation-leisure

For gun games where very accurate ammo at modest power levels is what matters.

 

[Jim Watson]

Why? Because NRA NM calls for smallbore

Interesting thought. Both S&W and Colt made automatics specifically for the 38 special hollow base wadcutters. (Why?)

http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/pros-and-cons-of-the-wadcutter-bullet/recreation-leisure

Why? To serve the NRA NM Centerfire shooter who wanted to get away from the .38 revolver whilst shooting .22 and .45 autos. Most just shoot the .45 twice these days.

The article is not real authoritative, note that the author was in the Army and goes hunting. Doubt he has much experience with wadcutters either place.

A number of posts HTY recommend the wadcutter for self defense because it doesn't kick much. I guess that comes about because of the decline of the .32 revolver.

 

[mcb]

Because power would not in any way be the object of the project?

But if you have power you can always turn it down but if you don't design the power in from the start its a lot harder to add it back in. Chamber and design it for 9mm and you can still load wad cutters at bunny fart velocities.

 

[ATLDave]

I have no particular opinion about this, but many people believe that the straight-wall 38 cartridge is easier to make very, very accurate than the taper-sided 9mm. Not to mention that you would then need either moonclips or some other complicated method for extracting the fired cases - neither of which are necessarily bad for some purposes, but perhaps not ideal for a bullseye or PPC type game.

 

[SwampWolf]

A little off the subject but I'd like to know what you folks think about using "Trail Boss" powder in .38 Special cases with 148 grain wadcutter bullets for Bullseye shooting. I'm wondering if the powder is too "bulky" for the .38 Special case (in terms of getting enough powder into the case to generate sufficient velocity).

 

[ATLDave]

A little off the subject but I'd like to know what you folks think about using "Trail Boss" powder in .38 Special cases with 148 grain wadcutter bullets for Bullseye shooting. I'm wondering if the powder is too "bulky" for the .38 Special case (in terms of getting enough powder into the case to generate sufficient velocity).

Well, Hodgdon lists data for Trail Boss under HBWC in 38 special...