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Old 09-05-2020, 04:12 PM
James K James K is online now
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32 and 38 S&W Ammo 32 and 38 S&W Ammo 32 and 38 S&W Ammo 32 and 38 S&W Ammo 32 and 38 S&W Ammo  
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Default 32 and 38 S&W Ammo

I picked up a 38 Perfected Model from an auction and they sold me one box of 50 Western antique cartridges for $25. The box was falling apart so I tossed it but the ammo was fine and I shot about half.
I know MagTech says they make both 38 and 32 S&W ammo(also have a 3rd Model Top-Break in 32) but can't find it anywhere.
I live in CA so shipping makes it expensive with new rules but I'd really like to get a few boxes of each.
Any leads?
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Old 09-05-2020, 05:03 PM
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Buffalo ammo or Graf and Son, perhaps.
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Old 09-05-2020, 05:21 PM
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Remington, Fiocchi, and Privi Partisan make .38 S&W.
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Old 09-05-2020, 05:23 PM
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SG ammo has a both calibers in stock

EDIT: Disregard, they dont ship to California
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Old 09-05-2020, 07:59 PM
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Best thing to do is load your own .38 S&W. Not many retailers stock it, and it is expensive to get from internet sources in small quantities (if that is even an option for you.) You could probably get by with one of the cheaper Lee Loaders if they have it in .38 S&W. If not, use .38 Super if reloading speed is not necessary. While .38 Short Colt is usually as difficult to find as .38 S&W, if you run across some, it can be used in .38 S&W revolvers even though it's slightly undersized.

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Old 09-05-2020, 09:19 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DWalt View Post
Best thing to do is load your own .38 S&W. Not many retailers stock it, and it is expensive to get from internet sources in small quantities (if that is even an option for you.) You could probably get by with one of the cheaper Lee Loaders if they have it in .38 S&W. If not, use .38 Super if reloading speed is not necessary. While .38 Short Colt is usually as difficult to find as .38 S&W, if you run across some, it can be used in .38 S&W revolvers even though it's slightly undersized.
38 S&W is a 0.361 diameter round so try and do as I did, find a local bullet caster and have them run off a thousand or so bullets. Dave-N
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Old 09-05-2020, 09:32 PM
J. R. WEEMS J. R. WEEMS is offline
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Lightbulb 38S&W AMMO

Winchester also is supposed to make them but I sure havent seen any lately. Theirs list for $41.00 a box -- others $35. and a bit lower last time I checked but good luck finding it. Might be better travling to out of state to find some. I would say load your own, but with the way things are right now even that would be a challenge. I do have a set of like new Lee dies I can spare but with things the way they are buying dies alone wont get you much.
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Old 09-05-2020, 09:48 PM
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I've shot the Fiocchi FMJ 38 loads and they're a bit on the hot side. Might want to stay away from them for a Perfected. Remington lead and Fiocchi waddcutter would be fine.

I've been reloading 38 S&W for many years now and haven't bought factory loads in quite a while.

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Old 09-06-2020, 10:45 AM
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38 S&W is a 0.361 diameter round so try and do as I did, find a local bullet caster and have them run off a thousand or so bullets. Dave-N
.357-.358 lead bullets will work fine in .38 S&W for most purposes. Larger diameter bullets (.360-.361) are preferred but are far from essential. Some reloading manuals specify .358 bullets. Actually, SAAMI spec for .38 S&W lead bullet diameter goes down to .355". Look it up. Some like using hollow base wadcutter bullets seated about halfway into the case as they expand under pressure to fill the bore. But if all you can find are .357-.358, use them and don't worry about it. My favorite .38 S&W load uses 125 grain truncated cone .358 lead bullets. I once pulled bullets from some very old .38 S&W dud cartridges. They measured .357".

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Old 09-06-2020, 11:01 AM
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I have several 38 Perfected revolvers and have bought Remington and Winchester in the past and have reloaded for a long time. Since I cast lead for 38 Special, started reloading with standard .357" 38 Special round nosed lead and they shoot about the same as .361", but I think the smaller bullets limit accuracyslightly. What I do know is that the 38 Perfected is not a tack driver, so not sure how much difference it makes. I now buy Missouri 145g .361" LRN and they are a good price and perform well.
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Old 09-06-2020, 02:22 PM
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Remington, Fiocchi, and Privi Partisan make .38 S&W. They are .357 or .358. DWalt has the same result as I after many years of experimenting.
It is important to slug the barrel. My Webley does not like .361, but the Enfield does. They both do fine with .358
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Old 09-06-2020, 04:30 PM
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Being you live in Ca., why can't you go to a local dealer and have him order some for you. That might be the easiest way to jump thru the hoops. If you live close to Reno or Oregon, try a store there, but I doubt you will find it in a store the way things are now. I have ordered both those calibers from Natchez.
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Old 09-11-2020, 12:04 AM
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You might try Load-X out of Santa Rosa, CA.
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