The .38 Smith & Wesson 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, and was also a common sidearm
cartridge used by soldiers in World War I. In other parts of the world, it is known by
its metric designation of 9×29.5mmR or 9.1x29mmR. Noted for its fine accuracy and manageable
recoil, it remains the most popular revolver cartridge in the world more than a century
after its introduction. It is used for target shooting, formal target competition, personal
defense, and for hunting small game.
Characteristics Despite its name, the caliber of the .38 Special
cartridge is actually .357–.358 inches, with the ".38" referring to the approximate
diameter of the loaded brass case. This came about because the original .38-caliber cartridge,
the .38 Short Colt, was designed for use in converted .36-caliber cap-and-ball Navy revolvers,
which had cylindrical firing chambers of approximately 0.374-inch diameter, requiring heeled bullets,
the exposed portion of which was the same diameter as the cartridge case.
Except for case length, the .38 Special is identical to that of the .38 Short Colt, .38
Long Colt, and the .357 Magnum. This allows the .38 Special round to be safely fired in
revolvers chambered for the .357 Magnum, and the .38 Long Colt to be fired in revolvers
chambered for .38 Special, and the .38 Short Colt to fire in revolvers chambered for .38
Long Colt, increasing the versatility of this cartridge. However, the longer and more powerful
.357 Magnum cartridge will usually not chamber and fire in weapons rated specifically for
.38 Special, which are not designed for the greatly increased pressure of the magnum rounds.
Both .38 Special and .357 Magnum will chamber in Colt New Army revolvers in .38 Long Colt,
due to the straight walled chambers, but this should not be done under any circumstances,
due to dangerous pressure levels, up to three times what the New Army is designed for.
History
The .38 Special was introduced in 1898 as an improvement over the .38 Long Colt which,
as a military service cartridge, was found to have inadequate stopping power against
the frenzied charges of Moro warriors during the Philippine-American War.
Upon its introduction, the .38 Special was originally loaded with black powder, but the
cartridge's popularity caused manufacturers to offer smokeless powder loadings within
a year of its introduction. During the late 1920s, and in response to
demands for a more effective law enforcement version of the cartridge, a new standard-velocity
loading for the .38 Special was developed by Western Cartridge Company. This .38 Special
variant incorporated a 200 grains round-nosed lead 'Lubaloy' bullet, the .38 Super Police.
Remington-Peters also introduced a similar loading. Testing revealed that the longer,
heavier 200 grains .38-calibre bullet fired at low velocity tended to 'keyhole' or tumble
upon impact, providing more shock effect against unprotected personnel. At the same time, authorities
in Great Britain, who had decided to adopt the .38 caliber revolver as a replacement
for their existing .455 service cartridge, also tested the same 200 grains bullet in
the smaller .38 S&W cartridge. This cartridge was called the .38 S&W Super Police or the
.38/200. Britain would later adopt the .38/200 as its standard military handgun cartridge.
In 1930, Smith & Wesson introduced a large frame .38 Special revolver with a 5 inch barrel
and fixed sights intended for police use, the Smith & Wesson .38/44 Heavy Duty. The
following year, a new high-power loading called the .38 Special Hi-Speed with a 158 grains
metal-tip bullet was developed for these revolvers in response to requests from law enforcement
agencies for a handgun bullet that could penetrate auto bodies and body armor. That same year,
Colt Firearms announced that their Colt Official Police would also handle 'high-speed' .38
Special loadings. The .38/44 high-speed cartridge came in three bullet weights: 158 grains,
150 and 110 grains, with either coated lead or steel jacket, metal-piercing bullets. The
media attention gathered by the .38/44 and its ammunition eventually led Smith & Wesson
to develop a completely new cartridge with a longer case length in 1934—the .357 Magnum.
During World War II, some U.S. aircrew were issued .38 Special S&W Victory revolvers as
sidearms in the event of a forced landing. In May 1943, a new .38 Special cartridge with
a 158 grains, full-steel-jacketed, copper flash-coated bullet meeting the requirements
of the rules of land warfare was developed at Springfield Armory and adopted for the
Smith & Wesson revolvers. The new military .38 Special loading propelled its 158 grains
bullet at a standard 850 ft/s from a 4-inch revolver barrel. During the war, many U.S.
naval and marine aircrew were also issued red-tipped .38 Special tracer rounds using
either a 120 or 158 gr bullet for emergency signaling purposes.
In 1956, the U.S. Air Force adopted the Cartridge, Caliber .38, Ball M41, a military variant
of the .38 Special cartridge designed to conform to the rules of land warfare. The original
.38 M41 ball cartridge used a 130-grain full-metal-jacketed bullet, and was loaded to an average pressure
of only 13,000 pounds per square inch, giving a muzzle velocity of approximately 725 ft/s
from a 4-inch barrel. This ammunition was intended to prolong the life of S&W M12 and
Colt Aircrewman revolvers equipped with aluminum cylinders and frames, which were prone to
stress fractures when fired with standard .38 ammunition. By 1961, a slightly revised
M41 .38 cartridge specification known as the Cartridge, Caliber .38 Ball, Special, M41
had been adopted for U.S. armed forces using .38 Special caliber handguns. The new M41
Special cartridge used a 130-grain FMJ bullet loaded to a maximum allowable pressure of
16,000 psi for a velocity of approximately 950 ft/s in a solid 6-inch test barrel, and
about 750 ft/s from a 4-inch revolver barrel. The M41 ball cartridge was first used in .38
revolvers carried by USAF aircrew and Strategic Air Command security police, and by 1961 was
in use by the U.S. Army for security police, dog handlers, and other personnel equipped
with .38 Special caliber revolvers. A variant of the standard M41 cartridge with a semi-pointed,
unjacketed lead bullet was later adopted for CONUS police and security personnel.
At the same time, .38 tracer cartridges were reintroduced by the US Navy, Marines, and
Air Force to provide a means of emergency signaling by downed aircrew. Tracer cartridges
in .38 Special caliber of different colors were issued, generally as part of a standard
aircrew survival vest kit. A request for more powerful .38 Special ammunition
for use by Air Police and security personnel resulted in the Caliber .38 Special, Ball,
PGU-12/B High Velocity cartridge. Issued only by the U.S. Air Force, the PGU-12/B had a
greatly increased maximum allowable pressure rating of 20,000 psi, sufficient to propel
a 130-grain FMJ bullet at 1,125 ft/s from a solid 6-inch test barrel, and about 950–980 ft/s
from a 4-inch revolver barrel. The PGU-12/B High Velocity cartridge differs from M41 Special
ammunition in two important respects—the PGU-12/B is a much higher-pressure cartridge,
with a bullet deeply set and crimped into the cartridge case.
In response to continued complaints over ineffectiveness of the standard .38 Special 158-grain cartridge
in stopping assailants in numerous armed confrontations during the 1950s and 1960s, ammunition manufacturers
began to experiment with higher-pressure loadings of the .38 Special cartridge, known as .38
Special +P. In 1972, the Federal Bureau of Investigation introduced a new .38 +P loading
that became known as the "FBI Load". The FBI Load combined a more powerful powder charge
with an 158-grain unjacketed soft lead semi-wadcutter hollow-point bullet designed to readily expand
at typical .38 Special velocities obtained in revolvers commonly used by law enforcement.
The FBI Load proved very satisfactory in effectively stopping adversaries in numerous documented
shootings using 2- to 4-inch barreled revolvers. The FBI Load was later adopted by the Chicago
Police Department and numerous other law enforcement agencies.
Demand for a .38 cartridge with even greater performance for law enforcement led to the
introduction of the +P+ .38 Special cartridge, first introduced by Federal and Winchester.
Originally labeled "For Law Enforcement Only", +P+ ammunition is intended for heavier-duty
.38 Special and .357 Magnum revolvers, as the increased pressure levels can result in
accelerated wear and significant damage to firearms rated for lower-pressure .38 Special
loadings. Performance
Due to its black powder heritage, the .38 Special is a low pressure cartridge, one of
the lowest in common use today at 17,000 PSI. By modern standards, the .38 Special fires
a medium-sized bullet at rather low speeds. The closest comparisons are the .380 ACP,
which fires much lighter bullets slightly faster than most .38 Special loads; the 9×19mm
Parabellum, which fires a somewhat lighter bullet significantly faster; and the .38 Colt
Super, which fires a comparable bullet significantly faster. All three of these are usually found
in semi-automatic pistols. The higher-pressure .38 +P loads at 20,000
PSI offer about 20% more muzzle energy than standard-pressure loads and places between
the .380 ACP and the 9 mm Parabellum; similar to that of the 9×18mm Makarov. A few specialty
manufacturers' +P loads for this cartridge can attain even higher energies that, especially
when fired from longer barrels, produce energies in the range of the 9mm Parabellum. It should
be noted these loads are generally not recommend for older revolvers or ones not specifically
"+P" rated. It is important to recognize that SAAMI changed
the specifications for the .38 Special in 1972. Prior to that time the standard .38
Special was very close to today's "+P" cartridges. All of the above specifications for .38 loadings,
and the .357 Magnum, are applicable when fired from a 6-inch barreled revolver. The velocity
is reduced when using the more standard 4-inch barreled guns. Power will, of course, decrease
accordingly. Although only a few US police departments
now issue or authorize use of the .38 Special revolver as a standard duty weapon, the caliber
remains popular with some police officers for use in short-barreled revolvers carried
when off-duty or for undercover police investigations. It is also widely used in revolvers purchased
for civilian home defense or for concealed carry by individuals with a CCW permit.
Terminal performance and expansion
There are many companies that manufacture .38 Special ammunition. It can range from
light target loads to more powerful defensive ammunition. Because of the relatively low
pressure that the .38 Special cartridge and even its more powerful +P version can be loaded
to, most 38 Special bullets do not expand reliably, even when using hollow-point designs,
especially if fired from a short-barreled or 'snub-nose' revolver. In 2004, Speer Bullets
introduced the Gold Dot jacketed hollow-point .38 Special cartridge in an attempt to solve
this very problem. Another solution is to use an unjacketed soft lead hollow-point bullet
as found in the FBI Load. The latter's 158-grain soft lead hollow point is loaded to +P pressures
and velocity, which ensures more reliable expansion in unprotected flesh, even when
fired in a 2-inch short-barreled revolver. Handloading
The .38 Special is particularly popular among handloaders. The cartridge's straight walls,
headspacing on the rim, ready availability of previously-fired cases, and ability to
be fired in .357 Magnum firearms, all contribute to this popularity. Additionally, the .38
Special's heritage as a black powder cartridge gives it a case size capable of accommodating
many types of powders, from slower-burning to fast-burning. This flexibility in powders
translates directly to versatility in muzzle energy that a handloader can achieve. Thus,
with proper care, a suitably-strong revolver, and adherence to safe handloading practices,
the .38 Special can accommodate ammunition ranging from light-recoiling target loads
to +P+ self-defense rounds. See also
List of handgun cartridges Table of handgun and rifle cartridges
Smith & Wesson Bodyguard References
External links The Snubnose Files
Ballistics By The Inch .38 special results.