Old 38 Special Ammo

T

turp_dog

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Looking for some information on this box of 50 38 Special rounds. I picked it up on a whim at the Tulsa gun show this weekend, and I know nothing about it. Specifically looking for when it was produced, who would have used it, if it has a place in a WWII collection, and approximate value. In case you can't see it, the base reads "F C 5 8", and all rounds have the same marking. Thanks!

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s&wchad said:
It's just what it says... It was produced for the military by Federal Cartridge in 1958.
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That is what I suspected, but wanted to confirm my assumptions. Any idea what it is valued at? Gunbroker does not seem to have any listed.
 
It is fairly common, with no particular desirability to collectors. It may well be the low powered loading intended for use in the alloy-frame USAF air crew revolvers. There was another heavier loading for use in steel frame revolvers, primarily the Combat Masterpiece. I believe the box labeling was a little different but I would have to do some research to find out.
 
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I'd bet every round will work even though it looks to be stored in a rough environment! Yup - as they fellas above said and as it is marked, 1958.

I too agree - not worth much as they made them by the ton!
 
I tested that same M41 ammo some years ago in two different 6" revolvers (Colt and S&W). MV averaged a little over 800 ft/sec, basically about like commercial .38 Special standard velocity loads. I still have several boxes of it somewhere. At one time when the USAF was using Combat Masterpieces as sidearms, there was a special USAF-only cartridge that was essentially the .38-44. MV was about 1150 ft/sec. It was tough on those CMs. I could tell some interesting stories about how it came to be but it would take too long.
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Somewhat strangely, there were two different military .38 Special rounds designated as the M41. The first one used a 130 grain FMJ bullet and was loaded to a pressure of 13,000 psi. It was intended primarily for use in USAF flight crew revolvers having alloy frames and cylinders. While the MV was given as 750 ft/sec, just how that was measured was not specified. Those alloy revolvers were withdrawn from USAF service early in the 1960s, and thereafter the M41 round was uploaded to 16,000 psi using the same 130 grain FMJ bullet. The MV of the higher pressure M41 is given as 950 ft/sec, but again, the conditions under which that MV measurement was made are unspecified. As I earlier stated, my personal muzzle velocity measurement of the low pressure M41 round in two different 6” barreled revolvers gave an average MV of slightly more than 800 ft/sec with a SD of about 25 ft/sec.
 
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I am pretty sure the M41 was all loaded with 158 grain bullets, only the later high pressure Air Force load ( pug-12/b) had the lighter bullet.
 
I believe if you look into the wording on the top of the box you will find that your box of ammo is the early low pressure load for the aluminum cylinder revolvers as it says 38 M41 and not 38 special M41. I could be wrong on this as I am frequently wrong about nearly everything.......

I'm speaking of the box in pharmer's post #9. The box in the OP is the later loading as DWalt posted as it has .38 special in the title or description on top of the box.
 
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