There are several good older auto pistols out there in .380 like the old Colt 1903 design, some of the early Brownings, and I had an old Browning 1903 (bigger version of the Colt 1903) that was pretty reliable even though it was nearly 100 years old. As far as .38 S & W revolvers go I have had two and I did alot of testing before I did an article on the caliber for an article in Gun Digest. I had an old metal kids sled that was nothing more than cheap sheet metal, only one round even went through it and if I recall that was the faster Fiocchi. Most of the revolvers out there for it are the break open relics that were iffy at best for reliability, you can find a Smith Terrier but really for the price you might as well get a Smith 36 or other J frame snubbie.

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