.38 Special

[Tascosa Joe]

Does anyone know when the 38 Special was first available.  Wiki says .38 Special was first Produced in 1898, but there was enough erroneous information in the article to make me suspect of that date.  I have an Army Special from the mid 1920's that is 38 special.  All of the documented 1st Gen SA's in 38 Special, I have seen have been from around 1930 or later.  I have several books, but I dont have one that gives that information.

T-Joe

[yeti76620]

Hello T-Joe,

My Speer Reloading Manual number 13 gives brief histories of each cartridge before the recipes of those caliber-cartridges.

"The 38 Special was introduced by Smith & Wesson in 1902 as a ballistic improvement over the 38 Long Colt cartridge."    I do not know if the 38 Long Colt is the same as the 38 S&W aka: "38 Colt New Police, the 38 Super Police, and 38/200".  This Speer Manual does not recipe the 38 Long Colt.

38 Special +P introduced by S&W in the early 1930's, then 357 Mag in 1935 with S&W's 38 Special +P research and Elmer Kieth with Phil Sharpe inspiring heavy encouragement and development.  {per Speer Reloading Manual number 13}

Yeti76620

[Shotgun Franklin]

I do not know if the 38 Long Colt is the same as the 38 S&W aka: "38 Colt New Police, the 38 Super Police, and 38/200". 

The 38 S&W is shorter and just slightly larger in caliber. The 38 S&W was originally a BP round. The 38 S&W Special, Colt dropped the S&W off on their guns, was developed to use the new Smokeless Powder.

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[Shotgun Franklin]

BTW, while the 38 Special became the American Police Round, in Great Britain the 38 S&W, called there the 38/200 was the Police Round until after WWII.

[yeti76620]

Yep...  everything Shotgun Franklin said too!

Lifted from US-Ammo.com:


However and in addition to:

I have seen { on that "Wickedpedia" } that the only difference between the 38 Long Colt and 38 Special is that the LC is a few hundred-thousandths shorter and a few hundred-thousandths wider......  practically the same and I do not see any reason that the Special was ever started out with the ol' smokey powder when the superior (as a little goes a long way plus less smoke) somkeyless was available....  so I'm guess'n that the "improved Ballistics" would be in bullet flight... as ALL the "38's" around a 150 gr bullet closely have the same energy....  

So as to answer my half-baked question: the 38 Long Colt is NOT the same as the 38 S&W...  

Thanks for the inspiration for me to learn somthing T-Joe!  

Yeti76620

[Tascosa Joe]

Thanks to all.  I have a book that I use quite a bit, because it has a pretty good chronology of when Colt did what on their 1st Gen guns.  But it says nothing about the start of 38 Special production.  It lists 2 versions of the 38 Special, the pistols have thd the same barrel markings, but have different chamber deminsions.  82 or one type and 25 of the other.  39 went to England as lend lease Battle of Britian Guns.  Every pistol I have seen that letters to Colt as a 38 Special has been 1930 or later.  Has anyone seen or know of one earlier?

T-Joe