What's the future of 38 Special

[Mannlicher]

I don't see the .38 going anywhere.

 

[golden]

A 357 Revolver, a supply of ammo from 38 shot loads to 357 hardcast , what's not to like? Very versatile.
Granted, in a street fight reloads may be required, there is an accessory known as a speed loader for that.
Hand loaders, brass is at your feet, not scattered in the weeds.

Mule,

I must disagree with you about speedloaders. If you are Jerry Miculek, then yes you will not have a problem with speedloading. Not so for most people. Competition shooters do it all the time. When I started in law enforcement, we were still using revolvers and speed loaders were optional. I used them and practiced. They are MUCH slower than a mag reload on a BERETTA 92, except if you are doing it constantly and have reached the competition level of skill.
I an not saying they are bad or useless, I carry them when carrying a revolver, but it is a huge difference for the average shooter and people should understand that.

Jim

 

[ThomasT]

All this talk of the 38 Special and I saw this posted on the internet today - Elmer Keith on the 38 Special. Maybe some readers will find it interesting.

An Official Journal Of The NRA | Elmer Keith & The Evolution Of The .38 Special

Elmer Keith considered the .38 Special to be "too small for a man-stopper or service cartridge," but his work improved the capabilities of the round, and today's offerings are even more capable.

www.americanrifleman.org

Sorry if it's too off topic.

Thanks for posting and fun to read but the data and opinion is dated. And from the way Elmer Keith used guns I can sure see why he wouldn't care much for a 38 Special as a defense round. But with modern bullet designs as pointed out in the article it changes how well the 38 Special performs as a SD round for those of us who still like it and carry it. And I do.

I have 6 38 Special (not 357 that will shoot 38SP) guns and am buying a 7th in a few days. I have thousands of cases and several bullet molds and love shooting the round. I think something like a 4" model 10 or 4" model 15 is one of the best revolvers a person can own if they want a 38SP chambered gun. Its just so easy to shoot. And it used to be cheap to shoot but I admit that has changed. Thats why I started reloading it back around 1983 and it was also my first round to cast for starting around 1985.

And I do like 9mm guns. To my way of thinking they are just a Hi Cap 38 Special. I just bought a Lee 140gr SWC Mold that is labeled that its for 9mm but cast a .358 bullet that can be used in both rounds. I am going to load some 9mm rounds with it to around 950fps and it will be a 38SP duplication load. And it will have nearly 3 times the capacity with a quick reload. That should be fun.

I don't see the 38 Special going away anytime soon. Its going to stick around just like the 45 Colt, 45-70, 9mm, 30-30 and 30-06 all from around the same time period. They were good rounds back then and are still useful rounds today. New 38 Special revolvers are being made with Taurus and S&W cranking them out. Not everyone wants an auto as a carry or HD gun.

 

[tactikel]

It’ll be around for another 100 years. It is super easy to reload, is accurate, fine for SD/HD even in a novice’s hands, and there are literally millions of fine guns chambered for it.
i shoot my cast bullet reloads in scrounged brass for “ powder and primers“. It’ll put six in the black at 50 feet all day long.

 

[ThomasT]

I don't think there is the variety of 38 Special loads like there was in the 1980s and 1990s and up until the cops started switching to Autos. And there wasn't the high dollar premium SD loads like there is now. But the loads are out there and yes they do seem to cost a lot more. IIRC I used to buy 158gr lead bullet loads in the mid 1980s for around $10 a box. Today, per the inflation calculator that same box of ammo should cost around $32. So pretty close to todays prices. My first box of 357 was around $15 in 1983. Now it should cost $47.84. I think thats pretty close to what it sells for from what I remember when I looked at Academy a few weeks ago

I don't think that todays 38/357 ammo is so much over priced, it just looks expensive when you compare it the $15 a box 9mm ammo. Using the inflation calculator again for 9mm ammo the be priced the same in 1985 as it is today, 9mm ammo would have had to of sold for $5 a box in 1985. And it didn't. 9mm benefits from the economy of scale. Its being reloaded by everyone and their dogs. Right now its so cheap its really not worth reloading.

But I remember during Covid 19 it was going for $50 a box same as 380 IF you could find any to buy. So it hasn't always been give away cheap like it is now.

As to 38/357 guns S&W and Taurus along with Colt and Kimber are still cranking them out because they are still selling them. Not everyone who is buying revolvers is posting about it on the gun forums. So you don't hear from buyers who are keeping S&W and others making revolvers.

 

[DMW1116]

As a cartridge 38 Special is selling more just because of all the new gun owners and surge in use over the last 4 years. There are plenty of 357 revolvers that get fed 38 Special ammo, mine included. There are also quite a few 357 lever guns running suppressed with 38 ammo.

As far as guns selling in 38 Special, I don’t see many new dedicated 38 Special guns. The snubs are old stand by defensive guns but they’re not nearly as popular as they were.

I do like a good target 38 revolver but if any new ones are being made, I haven’t seen them.

 

[Agsalaska]

It’ll be around for another 100 years. It is super easy to reload, is accurate, fine for SD/HD even in a novice’s hands, and there are literally millions of fine guns chambered for it.
i shoot my cast bullet reloads in scrounged brass for “ powder and primers“. It’ll put six in the black at 50 feet all day long.

Agree

Any 38 revolver in the hands of a decently capable shooter is a very formidable weapon. The difference between no gun, a .38 revolver, and this week‘s black fantastic 9mm is something like

nothing… Baseball bat.. Knife(I’ll take the bat)…………………………………………………………………….. .38. New 9mm

I would have made that gap between knife and .38 longer but I couldn’t and still make my point.

im hoping for 50 more years on this earth. And my guess is they will be about as popular then as they are now.

 

[Miami_JBT]

In all seriousness, there are a bazillion guns so chambered, and I can hardly foresee a time when they won't be in need of ammunition. Much like the .30-'06, there are just so many of them that barring some massive calamity, they'll always be popular by default if nothing else.

.44-40 and .38 S&W was much the same, then after WWII, companies dropped it for the most part.

But .38 Special isn't going anywhere. One of the biggest sellers is the snub nosed J-frame.

And even .44-40 is still around and chambered to this day. .38 S&W died out in the 1960s.

 

[Speedo66]

.44-40 and .38 S&W was much the same, then after WWII, companies dropped it for the most part.
. .38 S&W died out in the 1960s.

AIM Surplus still carries PPU .38 S&W, $27.95 a box.

Aside from older S&W’s and Colts chambered in that round, lots of less expensive old breaktops still around.

 

[Rodfac]

The first one I bought off GB had a bulged barrel about 1.5” from the muzzle, I missed that when I first saw it at the FFL. It shot groups like a .410 patterns, so when I realized the gun was useless as-is I had it cut to 5” by Gary Reeder. Now it shoots like a dream.

I may have said this before, but it bears repeating.....God forbid, but if something happens to you, I'd like to be in the will for that Model 14, 5 incher....just sayin'....hell, I'd even pay for it !!

Best regards and here's to a long and healthy life. Rod

 

[TTv2]

AIM Surplus still carries PPU .38 S&W, $27.95 a box.

Aside from older S&W’s and Colts chambered in that round, lots of less expensive old breaktops still around.

Idk how many people are buying those old budget .38 Iver and H&R revolvers tho in a caliber that hard to get and pricey.

I've stayed away from it because I would rather have the .32 S&W Lg as they have similar ballistics, but lately I've been intrigued with loading 148 HBWC in the .38 S&W to use in some revolvers that do interest me: the I frame Terrier and Webley top breaks.

I have absolutely nothing yet in terms of revolvers, reloading dies, or components related to .38 S&W, so there's always some apprehension if spending the money to get all of it is worth it.