.38 vs .357 accuracy

K

Kvon2

New member
Alright so potentially a silly question but help me out here.

My next purchase will likely be a revolver. This will pretty much exclusively be a range gun so I'm not worried about any type of defensive scenario.

I'm debating on whether I should get something chambered in .357 or .38. Either way I would likely be shooting .38 most or all of the time because it's cheaper and less recoil. So is shooting .38 out of a .357 as accurate as shooting .38 out of a .38?

I understand this will heavily depend on the gun and more heavily on the shooter but if all things were equal with the exception of the caliber the gun was chambered in, is there any difference?
 
I don't think so. It may depend on barrel length. A longer barrel would give the 38 a little more time to engage the rifling. Hope that make sense.
 
In my .357's (one model 66 and one model 686) I found that the shorter .38's did not shoot as accurately as full length .357's with comparable loads. However, little in the way of load development was done, just a few grains more powder in the .357's. Others have reported that there is no difference in accuracy...however, there was an apparent bias in mine so I use .38's in my .38's and .357 cases in my .357's. Furthermore, as a hand-loader and bullet caster who loads both, I have no compelling reason to shoot .38's in my .357's.
 
I don't know that your accuracy will suffer from shooting a 38 Special in a revolver chambered for .357 Mag. However, if that's what you want to shoot, why not just get a 38? There are many very nice revolvers out there at reasonable prices. I am not a brand slave. I like Ruger, S&W, Colt, but in my opinion there is no better shooting revolver just for fun at the range than a vintage 38 K-Frame. I had a Model 64 that I gave my brother (yes, proper transfer and all). Great gun, and he loves it. I have since acquired a Model 14, and I would choose it every time for punching paper. Yep, I have a 357. Like it. Different animal.
 
"...as accurate as..." Yep. No difference at all. What you will see using .38's in a .357 is a ring of lube gunk in the cylinders. Nuisance only as it comes out easily with a 45 cal. brush. Does have to come out if you shoot .38's before .357's.
Bought my GP because it fits my hand. Bought a .357 for the versatility of being able to shoot either on my say so.
"...defensive scenario..." A .38 will do nicely for that too.
"...a little more time to engage the rifling..." Nothing to do with barrel length as that's already happened as much as it's going as soon as the bullet enters the barrel.
 
Barrel length?

It has long been held that, overall, a dedicated .38 will TEND to be more accurate with .38s than firing .38s through a .357 revolver.

How much may be very minor, or entirely un-noticeable, depending on load & your own abilities.

The carbon buildup from extensively shooting .38s in a magnum is very real.
Denis
 
DPris said:
It has long been held that, overall, a dedicated .38 will TEND to be more accurate with .38s than firing .38s through a .357 revolver.

How much may be very minor, or entirely un-noticeable, depending on load & your own abilities.
Click to expand...

That's my understanding. I've had excellent results shooting .38s through my 4" model 686 (a .357mag) - at least as good as shooting .38s through my 6" K38 (a target .38). And PPC greats of yore often shot .38s through a .357mag revolver.

The jump to the throat is minor, compared to the quality of the barrel & crown, how well the chambers line up with the barrel, and how well the throat stabilizes the bullet going in and coming out.
 
I don't think so. It may depend on barrel length. A longer barrel would give the 38 a little more time to engage the rifling.
Click to expand...

I am NOT accusing the poster of this comment of the following. I do NOT want to put words in their mouth or interpret what they said.

All that said, TWO different best selling authors of murder mysteries have confused the CYLINDER and the BARREL of a revolver in their books. One talks about loading the revolver by putting six bullets [sic] into the barrel and then spinning it and snapping it shut, the other talks about taking out the base pin and removing the barrel from the revolver leaving a big open window in the frame.

I realize that I like most folk on this site revel in finding minute, arcane errors in gun terminology but I'm at a loss as to how TWO different BEST SELLING authors could not know the difference between the barrel and the cylinder of a revolver. Sheesh!
 
I'm a pretty good shot with the revolver, and I haven't been able to discern any difference between shooting .38 Special vs. .357 Magnum cartridges out of a .357 Magnum revolver. That is, provided the ranges are kept within close ranges.

As the range increases the .357 (provided it is loaded to magnum velocities) will out pace the Specials. This is pretty much true of any cartridge where there is a difference in the maximum velocity. Simply put, the quicker the bullet gets to the target, the less time natural forces have to act on it.

But then, there is that crud that builds up when shorter cases are used.

Bob Wright
 
If you're buying new you might as well get a .357. Today most dedicated 38's are small carry guns and not the best dedicated "range" guns. S&W used to make some great 38's like the model 14 and 15 but I think it has been quite a while since either of those was available new. If your open to used guns I suggest including those in your search.

As far as accuracy goes you will never notice the difference between .357 and 38 special assuming everything else is equal.
 
I recommend getting the 357. Even if you choose to shoot only 38s in it a 357 is going to be stronger and last longer than a gun chambered in 38. I am assuming the guns are made to handle the pressures and recoil of the round they are chambered in. I have witnessed 38 target guns go "out of time" in as little as a couple of thousand rounds. My 357 has well over 50000 rounds and has never needed a tune up.
The fact that you may likely decide to shoot some 357 later as your experience grows you will not have to buy a new gun to give it a try.
My 357s are both Ruger Security-Six with different barrel lengths. Both will shoot to 1 inch groups at 25 yards, even after very hard lives using only heavy magnum loads. (by some standards over maximum listed loads)
 
I shot competition for many years using 357mag revolvers and loaded the cases to 38Spl power levels. I've had guns that would shoot one ragged hole at 25yds doing this and I won many, many shoots over the years. If you reload there is absolutely no sense at all in using 38SPl cases in a 357mag revolver. Use the longer 357mag cases and avoid any issues with using the shorter case such as crud ring in cylinder, accuracy (fantasy mostly)issues, etc. You don't have to keep two different cases on hand either.
 
My gut tells me most shooters would never be able to tell the difference.

Now the important question; what revolver(s) are you considering?
 
Likely a taurus or used S&W...I would imagine most people here are going to push me toward the S&W but that's a can of worms we don't need to open and a decision I'll have to make
 
the difference in the specs for max case length between the .357 and the .38 Special is 0.135"

The difference in the max overall loaded length of the rounds in 0.04"

SO, the .38 bullet isn't even clear of the case, before it reaches the length of the .357.

It is possible that individual guns could show a preference for one, or the other, for overall accuracy. I know for a fact that there are individual guns that show a marked difference in point of impact. Many do not, at close range, but there are some that do. The very worst one I ever saw was over a foot low and left with magnums, but spot on with Specials. (and no, it wasn't me, several different shooters tried it, the gun (an older SAA clone) was just weird that way.
 
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