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I know the 38 Super is not very popular...but looking at the ballistics, it seems like this would be a hot little round for the 1911 platform. I know that it has a following in Mexico and South America, but what gives with its lack of popularity in the USA? Anybody carry this less than popular round? Also, will the non-ramped Colt barrels in a 1911 handle the +P loads?

I have a Wilson CQB that has the 9mm and 38 Super both. I carry the 38 Super very often. I don't shoot it as much as do the 9mm because of the cost. I have a friend who is still a Trooper in Wood County and his off duty carry is a Colt 38 Super in Commander. The ammo is sometimes hard to come by.

smyrna wrote:I know that it has a following in Mexico and South America, but what gives with its lack of popularity in the USA?

The USA doesn't prohibit free men from carrying firearms chambered in a "military" caliber.

I would have no reservation about carrying a .38 Super. If you look at most reloading manuals, the ballistics are slightly better than .357 Sig and if you use 9X23, you'll pushing a 125gr. JHP between 1450 fps and 1550 fps! That's .357 Mag. numbers.

Chas.

were there some issues, maybe design related, that made the 38 super semi auto problematic due to the OAL of the cartridge. It seems like I read somewhere that there was a very delicate balance that had to be maintained in slide travel distance to power ratio that made the 38 super fall into the same category as the .380 in general design (un)reliability, but for different reasons, obviously.

surv

The early .38 Supers were notoriously inaccurate because they head-spaced on the rim of the cartridge. Since the rims were not uniform, accuracy suffered greatly. When 38 Supers got popular in IPSC shooting decades ago, .38 Super barrels were manufactured to head-space on the mouth of the cartridge and the accuracy is very good now.

I don't know of any particular reliability problems, other than people grossly overloading them and winding up with a case of "Super Face." I don't load mine "hot" although I could since I use a ramped barrel. If I need a hot round, I stoke it with 9X23's. Most but not all .38 Supers will shoot 9X23 just fine.

Chas.

I would have no reservation about carrying a 38 Super! I like the round and might.....just might get a gun chambered in it someday. Chas' is a very nice shooting gun!


If Glock would just chamber a gun for it!

I carry a Sig P220 and a Colt 70 Series in .38 Super on many occasions. Great guns and a great round.

Jungle Work

My old Sierra manual shows a .38 Super pushing a 115 JHP to 1500 ft/sec out of a 5" 1911; other manuals show similarly impressive ballistics. In a reliable pistol - and the few Supers I've seen have been reliable - I'd have no qualms about using/carrying one.

I'd also feel better about handloading maximum loads (uhhh . . . sane maximums, that is!) in .38 Super than .357 Sig; the latter cartridge's stubby neck isn't something that I find comforting.

I hate this thread!

Now I am adding a .38 super to the 10mm on my wish list!

I have a Springfield Mil-spec 38 Super that I have used as a carry pistol. It is very reliable, as in I have never had a malfunction with it, and accuracy is certainly more than good enough for carry. It spends most of its time as a backup gun in my house, loaded with 135 gr bullets that chrony at 1335 fps.

If I need a hot round, I stoke it with 9X23's. Most but not all .38 Supers will shoot 9X23 just fine.

I've heard of the 9x23 but not familiar with it. Is it a wildcat round or commercially available?

How do the Colt non-ramped barrels hold up to the 38 super defense loads which are mostly +p? In browsing 38 super ammo, it seems all the defensive loads are +p.

well, I guess I will also have to add the 38 super to my futures list. I've never shot one, and only seen a half dozen or so at the shows and shops. The ballistics are very appealing.

smyrna wrote:

If I need a hot round, I stoke it with 9X23's. Most but not all .38 Supers will shoot 9X23 just fine.

I've heard of the 9x23 but not familiar with it. Is it a wildcat round or commercially available?

How do the Colt non-ramped barrels hold up to the 38 super defense loads which are mostly +p? In browsing 38 super ammo, it seems all the defensive loads are +p.

9X23 was developed by Winchester and it is commercially available, but in very limited quantities and loads. Winchester still makes it in 125 gr. Silvertips and someone told me CorBon does as well. Non-ramped barrels are fine for 9X23, if you are using Winchester factory ammo, or are reloading with Winchester brass. Starline makes 9X23 brass, but it's not as thick in the base as is Winchester and this is critical. I use some Starline, but only for lighter loads and I load very little of that. When I load 125 gr. Gold Dot HP's to 1450 fps (or more ), I use only Winchester brass. (I don't know anything about CorBon's.) 9X23 is in the rifle pressure territory; i.e. 50,000 CUP, so this isn't someplace to gamble -- use Winchester brass. A recognized expert is Dane Burns, owner of http://www.pistolsmith.com. You can get some good information on his website. I don't agree with everything he says about this caliber (like, "don't use it in any .38 Super barrel), but he is a very good resource.

Chas.

I just purchased 3 boxes of the 9X23 Winchester 125gr Silvertip Hollow Point. Those things are not cheap!