.38 special popularity

I have a Bersa Thunder .380, a CZ 82 and 83. For some reason I always carry my Colt DS or Cobra. I also have two 9MM's that are full size . I just like my .38's.
 
I was carrying a .38 Spec. S&W M36. but lately I have found myself grabbing my .45 ACP XDm for EDC. Its full size but 14 rounds makes sense sometimes.
 
Please stop saying 1 & 7/8. You like the extra typing or what? The manufacturers round it up to 2" for brevity and that makes sense to me.

As for a 38/380 comparison in factory ammo they are close. My 38s are clearly more powerful (125@1,100 clocked from a 2" revolver) but my TCP is lighter and more compact than any of my 38s so it goes with me.

The purpose of any SD pistol is make holes in a criminal attacker. Most any caliber will do that. The Brits fought WW II with their 38 S&Ws, a caliber soundly denounced as puny by most folks today.
 
I'd go with the .38 Spl

Ammunition is far better than it was when people thought it lacked performance and jumped to the .357 or 9mm.

Choose a premium, modern HD loading and you'll be good to go.
 
the 38 special can put a whole slew of bullet weights and profiles downrange at the same boring unevently velocity range. and pressure range. to such an extent that most semi autos would be relegated to single shot status if you tried.

oh wait, oops. thats not a bad thing.
 
For those of you that carry and love the old and venerable .38 Special, here are some pics of bullet expansion and chronographed velocities from my wife's S&W M637. The medium was our swimming pool at 15 feet and yeah I know and appreciate that water is not the same as flesh and bone. Based on these tests we both carry the Golden Saber round. Her's in the afore mentioned 637 and mine in either a 3" M36 Smith or more recently a M60 3" .357 Magnum. Best Regards, Rod

Bullet performance in water.

My guns: M36 and M60

Her gun with BBQ grips, since replaced with Crimson Trace Lasers.
 
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First off the 38spl is one of the most field proven round in existence ,if not in fact #1. Even with those stubbie barrels.

I have had several and own a chronograph . I know that these guys are right about the velocities out of the 4" barrels. Cops used to carry the longer barrels years ago. The magic number is around 3 inches . There is a significant increase in velocity from 2" to 3" barrels with both . Like about 150fps .wow. I own a older Charter arms with a 3" barrel and a newer one with a 3" barrel..I have others including a 20" H&R rifle. The increase per inch on average is about 50fps. But nothing like the 2-3" difference.

But still ,the FBI did extensive studies and can up with the 125gr bullet being the best perpetrator. Don't remember the FPS on that .But here's what i know .A 158gr LSWC loaded to +p speed will penetrate 3 osmost 2X6s at 6 feet coming out of a 2" barrel. Not to shabby. Good enough for me. And it being a revolver that doesn't have a chance of jamming..even better.:D

N0MJP
 
45long, I know what you mean...I'm especially fond of that old M36 with it's early flat black finish...I've cruised a lot of miles wearing it, and fished some pretty rough water as well. It's killed a cpl of snakes, put down a doe that was hit by a car, and still shoots great groups...but that M60 caught my eye and it's off to the races all over again. For pocket use, they're just too heavy (the M60 as shown, loaded, weighs 27 oz. on my postal scale), a pretty big sag in anyone's pocket, but real comfy in a well fitted OWB holster. Best Regards, and thanks for the sentiment. Rod
 
My .38 Special's are S&W : Model 60 - Model 36 - Model 64. all are great shooters.

Being as I was born in 1938 guess I'm a 38 special myself.:D
 
I have a S&W model ten my grandpa gave me. In my opinion it great carry pistol and range gun lotta fun with this ole girl
 
I shoot the Speer 135-gr. Gold Dot +P HP out of my S&W 042.
Click to expand...

^^ That's the ammo I have in my 686 3" for home defense ^^

I only have one .38 Special gun - a Smith model 60 from 1984. Good little piece. I'm a good shot. But accuracy with the little guy escapes me (it's me, not the gun).

But I digress:

I like the .38 Special round - whether being shot from a 38 or 357. On paper, it's ballistically inferior to the 9mm, but in reality, it's superior. One thing that is rarely factored in is bullet profile. 38 designs don't have to compromise a reliable expansion profile to ensure reliable feeding, like with 9mm's.

I'm not knocking the 9mm. I'm just saying that what's on paper, doesn't tell the whole story.
 
Ballistics aside, I find myself to be more accurate with a DAO .38 special than with a DAO .380 ACP. And that counts for something IMHO.
 
I have a model 15-2 I bought from the original owner in about 1965. He just had to have a Colt Python. He got rid of the Python years ago, I still have the Smith.
 
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