38 S&W BOOLIT Question??

[Terryrm1-03]

Hi guys, I have just purchased a (S&W 38) S&W Victory revolver, (WWII).
I don't have the gun yet, so no Slugging of the barrel has been done.
Lyman book says .361 dia.
Anyone got some tips on buying boolits for this thing, or am I gonna have to buy a mold?
Any helpful tips would be greatly appreciated.
I would prefer to just buy some boolits. Not a whole bunch of shooting will be done with it, butttt, I do wanna shoot it!
thanks TerryR
tr-br1@hotmail.com

[leebuilder]

I use lees 158 TL, beagled. I just wanted a slightly larger boolit than normal, never measured them. I did it as an experiment and to see my old No2mk1* shoot. Only got minute of man groups at 15m.
Good fun
be safe

[pworley1]

I shoot the Lyman 358242 120g in mine.

[longranger]

Remington 148gr. HBWC,the dirty ones with the dry lube have been a favorite of mine in 38 S&W for punching holes in paper. Missouri Bullet Co. makes a proper SWC for the 38 S&W.

[salpal48]

I don't have that particular Model. But the one's i have i use a .358 Round nose . all i have used works fine. as well as a swc

[dubber123]

.38 S&W, (not Special) will likely have .362" or so throats, and will shoot much better with a boolit that fits. Dedicated molds for this caliber exist, but many of Ideal/Lymans designs will cast at .361+". Often used molds sold here will have a note of their diameter in the ad. I believe as cast boolits of this diameter are available, but I'm sorry I don't have any links as I cast my own. Have fun with the new toy!

[bob208]

I use 358429 unsized in my victory. I use the data for the 200 gr. bullet. a lot of victory models had smaller bores mine goes .359.

[gnoahhh]

Wait until you get the gun before making a decision. I owned three of those things over the years and the throat and groove diameters were all over the map.

[Outpost75]

+1 on waiting until you measure the gun. Don't concern yourself with barrel dimensions, the only one which is important is the cylinder throat or "ball seat" in front of the chambers in the cylinder. In the .38 S&W .362-.363 is typical.

If you want to buy bullets rather than cast them, any of the soft, swaged, hollowbased 148-grain target wadcutter bullets for the .38 Special will upset to fill the chambers nicely, are accurate, and will give better terminal performance than round-nosed bullets. In .38 S&W brass these must not be flush seated, as they would be in longer .38 Special cases, but they should be seated well out, to a minimum overall cartridge length of 1.20", and a charge of 2.1 grains of TiteGroup, 2.5 grains of Bullseye, 2.7 grains of W231 or 3 grains of Unique will safely approximate factory ballistics.

[Terryrm1-03]

+1 on waiting until you measure the gun. Don't concern yourself with barrel dimensions, the only one which is important is the cylinder throat or "ball seat" in front of the chambers in the cylinder. In the .38 S&W .362-.363 is typical.

If you want to buy bullets rather than cast them, any of the soft, swaged, hollowbased 148-grain target wadcutter bullets for the .38 Special will upset to fill the chambers nicely, are accurate, and will give better terminal performance than round-nosed bullets. In .38 S&W brass these must not be flush seated, as they would be in longer .38 Special cases, but they should be seated well out, to a minimum overall cartridge length of 1.20", and a charge of 2.1 grains of TiteGroup, 2.5 grains of Bullseye, 2.7 grains of W231 or 3 grains of Unique will safely approximate factory ballistics.
Thanks for the info. As soon as I get it I'll slug her, then determine what mold I want to get. As usual for me, my old 73 Winchesters and old trapdoors all have real big oversize bores. So I had to get molds made for them. Sure makes a difference when you get the right diameter! Makes it all fun!
Take care Terry

[jugulater]

i have a S&W victory model as well, and my gun slugged out to .362. i decided that this was the perfect opportunity to buy my first non-lee/lyman mould. i got a pleasant surprise when I discovered that NOE moulds makes a mould that replicates the 38/200 Mk1 boolit. it casts a .363 to .364 size 200grn round nose boolit.

the NOE mould works great in my gun and shoots dead on to the sights. It also will put down any backyard pest very quickly.

[bedbugbilly]

Keep your eyes open for a vintage Ideal .360 mold. I purchased two from two members here in the past couple of weeks - one is a 360-72 which is supposed to cast a 115 gr RN and the other is a 360-345 which is supposed to cast a 115 SWC. I haven't cast with either yet but I'm guessing they will probably drop a little larger that .360. The 360-72 is described in an early Ideal catalog as being for the 38 S & W cartridge (not 38 Special) but that it can be sized down for use in a 38 Special (.358). The lube grooves look substantial enough that it would work fine sized to .358. The .360-345 reminds me a lot of the Lee 358-105 SWC - just 10 grains heavier.

The older molds are out there - you just have to keep your eyes open for them. Or, one from NOE, etc. in the correct diameter/design would also be a good choice. If the lube grooves are such that it can be sized down and still have a sufficient lube groove - the mold could serve double duty for your 38 S & W as well as your 38 Specials. If you order one though - slug your bore first so you know what size mold will work best. God luck and have fun!

[Terryrm1-03]

Finally got it! Excellent LIL Pistol. US Property GHD Stamped. It has all the British Proofs being Lend Lease. 1944 Smooth grips. Blue phosphate finish. 5" barrel. Action is awesome! Bore is a mirror!
It shoots FANTASTIC with a Lee 158gr SWC .362 cast from my lee mold. Liquid alox lube. Shoots great with green dot powder. 2.6 grs. Any other pet load? How about 231 powder?
I also just recvd from Missouri Bullets a 147 gr RN. I bought em unsized and unlubed. they are .362-.363.
I just coated them with Alox. Will shoot tomorrow.
Thanks for all the help! I love this 670fps pistol. what FUN it is!
Terry
Thanks Terry

[Terryrm1-03]

Just read some other interesting news on the Smith & Wesson forum. I can load 38 special velocities for my victory model. Gonna try some more speed.

[leebuilder]

Ken Waters has a great write up on 38S&W most were up to 380/200 specs for enfields and Indian rugers.
be safe

[elk hunter]

I have two of them, one pre war finish the second a war time parkerized one. Unfortunately both have been reamed out to 38 special. The early one shoots 38 spl ammo very well, the other not so good. I also have a Webley in 38 S&W that has been shortened by the "Good Old Boys Gun and Butcher Shop" to a 2 inch barrel length. I guess that makes it easier to hide. I'd like to return the favor by shortening their barrel.