.38 Smith and Wesson

[deafdogdief]

Is .38 Smith and Wesson Special the same as .38 Special?

Edited November 27, 2009 by deafdogdief

[56FordGuy]

No. I believe it is a shorter cartridge.

EDIT- found this article. http://www.chuckhawks.com/forgotten_38SW.htm

[deafdogdief]

No. I believe it is a shorter cartridge.

EDIT- found this article. .38 S&W

Thanks for the info. I do know about the .38 Smith and Wesson. I am talking about the .38 Smith and Wesson SPECIAL. I know someone who purchased a new Smith revolver and .38 Smith and Wesson Special was stamped on it. Is .38 Smith and Wesson SPECIAL the same as .38 Special?

[56FordGuy]

Thanks for the info. I do know about the .38 Smith and Wesson. I am talking about the .38 Smith and Wesson SPECIAL. I know someone who purchased a new Smith revolver and .38 Smith and Wesson Special was stamped on it. Is .38 Smith and Wesson SPECIAL the same as .38 Special?

My poor reading comprehension got me again! Blast!

My S&W 642 is stamped .38 S&W Special. It is .38 Special.

[glockster157]

Is .38 Smith and Wesson Special the same as .38 Special?

The 38 S&W cartridge is shorter and fatter than the 38 S&W Special. If it is marked 38 Special it is probably not a 38 S&W but a 38 Special. The out side cartridge diameter of the 38 Special is .379 and the older 38 S&W is .3855. The length on the 38 Special is 1.155 and the 38 S&W is only .755.

[deafdogdief]

My poor reading comprehension got me again! Blast!

My S&W 642 is stamped .38 S&W Special. It is .38 Special.

Excuse my clarification...you have shot .38 Special from your gun marked .38 Smith and Wesson SPECIAL and everything functioned safely and properly?

I am being meticulous about this because it is a relative with this and I want to be extra careful.

[deafdogdief]

The 38 S&W cartridge is shorter and fatter than the 38 S&W Special. If it is marked 38 Special it is probably not a 38 S&W but a 38 Special. The out side cartridge diameter of the 38 Special is .379 and the older 38 S&W is .3855. The length on the 38 Special is 1.155 and the 38 S&W is only .755.

I just wanted to make it clear that I am talking about .38 Smith and Wesson SPECIAL not .38 Smith and Wesson.

[56FordGuy]

Excuse my clarification...you have shot .38 Special from your gun marked .38 Smith and Wesson SPECIAL and everything functioned safely and properly?

I am being meticulous about this because it is a relative with this and I want to be extra careful.

I bought a S&W 642 brand new from Hero Gear. On the side of the barrel it is stamped ".38 S&W SPL. +P".

From my research in the last few minutes, .38 S&W Special is the full name for regular old .38 Special. I have only shot .38 Special and .38 Special +P out of my gun and have had no issues. Your mileage may vary, be sure the gun is in good shootable condition and you're using good ammunition.

[56FordGuy]

"The .38 Smith & Wesson Special (commonly .38 Special, .38 Spl, or .38 Spc, pronounced "thirty-eight special") is a rimmed, centerfire cartridge designed by Smith & Wesson. It is most commonly used in revolvers, although some semi-automatic pistols and carbines also use this round. The .38 Special was the standard service cartridge of most police departments in the United States from the 1920s to the early 1990s. In other parts of the world, particularly Europe, it is known by its metric designation 9×29mmR."

.38 Special - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[deafdogdief]

I bought a S&W 642 brand new from Hero Gear. On the side of the barrel it is stamped ".38 S&W SPL. +P".

From my research in the last few minutes, .38 S&W Special is the full name for regular old .38 Special. I have only shot .38 Special and .38 Special +P out of my gun and have had no issues. Your mileage may vary, be sure the gun is in good shootable condition and you're using good ammunition.

Thank you. I have seen so much differing info on this. The gun is brand new and in storage. Not worried about functioning condition. Don't want to start feeding it a diet of wrong ammo. When I ask dealers that sell this caliber pistol they get a deer-in-the-headlights look and say,"yeah I THINK it's .38 Special." I'm not the expert on wheel guns. I like semi-autos.

[56FordGuy]

Thank you. I have seen so much differing info on this. The gun is brand new and in storage. Not worried about functioning condition. Don't want to start feeding it a diet of wrong ammo.

What model gun is it?

[deafdogdief]

What model gun is it?

I don't remember now, but I'll ask.

[mdmoseley]

The S&W is just the original designer designation. Just like they made the .40 and like remington designed the 223. If your gun says 38 special whether it has S&W in it or not it shoots a .38 special round. Some also may shoot a +P and your gun would be marked for that also.

[enfield]

.38 Special = .38 S&W Special.

.38 S&W is an entirely different cartridge.

[Guest HexHead]

The S&W is just the original designer designation. Just like they made the .40 and like remington designed the 223. If your gun says 38 special whether it has S&W in it or not it shoots a .38 special round. Some also may shoot a +P and your gun would be marked for that also.

Not necessarily. My Model 10 doesn't say anything about +P on it, but I've read on S&W forums that as long as it's a -hyphenated model, it should be safe to use +P. Mine's a 10-7.

[Okey]

.38 S&W is an entirely different cartridge.

I had never heard of this cartridge before. The last gun I could find that was chambered in it was manufactured around WW2.

Okey

[56FordGuy]

I had never heard of this cartridge before. The last gun I could find that was chambered in it was manufactured around WW2.

Okey

I stumbled over a couple of boxes of .38 S&W ammo in a store sometime last year. The guy couldn't remember anyone ever asking for that caliber ammo, so he sold me both boxes for $8.00. I wound up giving them to a friend who collects antique guns, he had a WW 2 era revolver that would shoot it.

[gregintenn]

Not necessarily. My Model 10 doesn't say anything about +P on it, but I've read on S&W forums that as long as it's a -hyphenated model, it should be safe to use +P. Mine's a 10-7.

A 10-7 would be a 38 Special. I would shoot all the +P ammo in it I could find without worry. The same K frame is also chambered in 357 Magnum. I have a pre model 10 and it shoots +P just fine. Yours should be at least as strong if not stronger than mine. The 38 Smith and Wesson, as others have stated, is a different cartridge as is a 38 Colt. Confusing isn't it?

[enfield]

BUT - you can shoot .38 Long Colt in a .38 S&W Special. What's confusing about that?

[gregintenn]

BUT - you can shoot .38 Long Colt in a .38 S&W Special. What's confusing about that?

But not a 38 Short Colt!!!! They use a larger diameter bullet.

[TNRobocop]

.38 S&W was mainly used in the British Commonwealth areas.

Midway sells it for $21.99 a box, but they are out until Jan 2010.

You could find it on Gunbroker though.