New to me 38/44 She's home! ** updated photos added**

[stansdds]

Grips are numbered by the way, I count that as a win!

Big win! Clean it, oil or wax it, shoot it!

 

[Muley Gil]

Erock:

What a beauty!!! Congrats - you now own one of the finest revolvers ever created. I love them and have a bunch. This is one of my more recent 38/44 OD acquisitions and I would never think of refinishing it - the wear on it is one of the very things that attracted me to it...













I look forward to you posting some more photos when you get it home.

All the best and thanks for sharing,

I don't understand porting a heavy .38 revolver, even using .38/44 level loads. Back in the '70s, a friend owned a ported M19. There was little, if any, difference between it and a non-ported M19, using .357 ammo.

 

[Erocksmash]

I think she cleaned up pretty nice, now I just have to make some proper loads for her and shoot it.

Looks to have factory internals, but has an amazingly soft zero stacking trigger

 

[Casual Smith Nut]

Well done! Cleaned up to be a solid outdoorsman shooter!

38-only N frames are similar to 44 spl-only N frames. If you have to ask “why be limited to no magnums” no explanation will suffice. You’ll have a hard time not smiling when putting rounds down the tube.

 

[moosedog]

Great job of cleaning it up.
My favorite for my 38/44s is 12gr of 2400 under a 160gr cast SWC in 38 Special cases. Favorite bullet is the 358156 in either HP or solid with a gas check. Chrono graphed at slightly over 1150 FPS in most of my 6.5 inch guns.

 

[Narragansett]

Erock, That is a nice looking 38/44. Glad to see that you are off the refinish wagon.

Below is mine with Culina grips. I have the serial matching diamond magna too

 

[wbraswell]

That's a sweet old OD, but then all of them that are still shooting and still look nice are sweet. I have one, too, that I got from a forum member, and it has a W mainspring. Here's a pic of it, along with it's pre-war brother.

 

[Casual Smith Nut]

That's a sweet old OD, but then all of them that are still shooting and still look nice are sweet. I have one, too, that I got from a forum member, and it has a W mainspring. Here's a pic of it, along with it's pre-war brother.

Wayne how do you like the W mainspring on your OD? I had one on an old 1955 Target that someone had dropped in a 357 cylinder opened up to 45 colt. I found that particular W mainspring to be quite heavy though smooth. Not light as Elmer Keith described in his book Six Guns. I swapped it out for a standard mainspring for a much better (lighter) pull. No longer have the gun unfortunately but I do have that W mainspring in the parts collection.

 

[Erocksmash]

Set up for loading 158s over 12 of 2400, I shot 1 at 25yds SHES A LAZER!

Casing was incredibly sticky but no flattened primer or signs of over pressure ill have to give her another clean try again.

 

[Narragansett]

Set up for loading 158s over 12 of 2400, I shot 1 at 25yds SHES A LAZER!

Casing was incredibly sticky but no flattened primer or signs of over pressure ill have to give her another clean try again.

I think I just fired a box of 357 that I loaded in 1976 with 158 grain SWC and 10 grains of 2400. I usually loaded right around the max

 

[Erocksmash]

I think I just fired a box of 357 that I loaded in 1976 with 158 grain SWC and 10 grains of 2400. I usually loaded right around the max

Im seeing max 2400 14.8 per current website for a 158... speer #11 is showing 15.9 for a 158gr pill in 357

 

[wbraswell]

Wayne how do you like the W mainspring on your OD? I had one on an old 1955 Target that someone had dropped in a 357 cylinder opened up to 45 colt. I found that particular W mainspring to be quite heavy though smooth. Not light as Elmer Keith described in his book Six Guns. I swapped it out for a standard mainspring for a much better (lighter) pull. No longer have the gun unfortunately but I do have that W mainspring in the parts collection.

Honestly, if I didn't know it was there, I couldn't tell the difference. A very knowledgeable friend of mine, looked at it and he believed it came with the W.

 

[stansdds]

Erock:

~sigh~ I doubt the Swiss cheesed barrel made much, if any, difference in muzzle rise with a .38-44 load, but back in the 80's and 90's, Magn-a-port was super popular and a lot of gunsmiths and DIYer's were drilling holes into barrels.