I’ve now added a second revolver chambered in .38 S&W (*not* .38 Special) and I’ve been looking for some dummy loads. It appears that all of the normal suppliers have nothing to offer in this semi-obsolete caliber. Does anyone know of a source? Perhaps in England or one of the Commonwealth lands where it survived longer than in this country? Failing that, I seem to remember reading about people who made up their own dummies, but I can’t recall what material they used to fill the primer pocket to absorb firing pin strikes. Any help? TIA!

Steve

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CHL/NRA Instructor/RSO/Referee

Steve, I've heard of folks trimming a pencil eraser and gluing it in the primer pocket to make a dummy round. You might give that a try.

Another way is to punch out the spent primer , fill the primer pocket with silicone caulk, wipe flush with case head. Allow a day or two for it to dry/cure.
Instant, cheap snap-caps.

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Ret'd LEO
SWCA #2275

A-Zoom sells .38 S&W snap caps and they are available on the MidwayUSA site. (but on backorder right now)
A-ZOOM Action Proving Dummy Round Snap Cap 38 S&W Aluminum Package of 6

A-Zoom is a Lyman company and they are in-stock on the Lyman site although they are a little more expansive than from Midway.
A-Zoom Snap Caps, no other snap caps are more precise or rugged

I'm sure if you look around the NET there are more sites that have them in stock.

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Freedom is never free!!
SWCA #3437

I make dummy cartridges up for a lot of my guns. If I teach a class, my rule is that the only live ammo in the room is the ammo in my gun on my belt.

After resizing the case, I used hot glue from my wife's craft tools to fill the primer hole. It makes a durable pad to catch firing pins. Then I seat a bullet and crimp it. Sometimes I drill small holes through the case sidewalls, sometimes I use permanent marking felt pen to draw black bands around the circumference of the case. I also like to use the felt pne to draw a prominent X across the bottom of the case head.

I think that it's almost as important that the dummies be instantly recognized as dummies as it is important to recognized the live rounds as live.

My thanks to one and all for the assistance. I own A-Zoom dummies in several calibers and they were my first thought when I wanted dummies for my .38 S&W's, but Brownells didn't have a listing for them in that caliber. I foolishly never looked further than that. ("If Brownells doesn't have them, nobody will" was my-- flawed!-- reasoning.) I think I'm also going to try some of the tips presented here to brew up some home-made examples.

Again, thanks to all!

Steve

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CHL/NRA Instructor/RSO/Referee