.357magnum and .38 compatible?

[biku324]

Welcome to my world! Surrounded by firearms limited in their accuracy by their owner.

 

[444 Magnum]

Hey Greg,
Welcome to the forum. You've gotten good information already.
Just to clarify, however, your pistol is rated for and can safely shoot:

.38 short Colt
.38 long Colt
.38 S&W Special
.38 S&W Special +p
.38 S&W Special +p+
.357 S&W Magnum

NOT .38 S&W. That is another cartridge for the older models and shouldn't be able to chamber.

 

[gwpercle]

In theory a 38 special fired in the longer 357 magnum chamber will be less accurate ... but we all know about Theory and Practice ...

In practice you must be a very very good target shot to tell the difference and in practice ... there is so very little difference ...
I wouldn't worry about it ... Choot dem 38 Specials !

Be sure and clean the cylinders with a brass brush and solvent of any/all fouling ... you will be just fine .
Gary

 

[BE Mike]

I have a 686 that I have only shot 38 Specials in for the last 20 years. In a Ransom Rest it will shoot 3/8" groups at 25 yards and a little over an inch at 50 yards. I fail to see how 38s in a 357 chamber is not accurate enough, or less accurate than 357s. I doubt if any 357 ammo could do any better.

Sadly, I can't shoot it like that holding the gun, but I know for sure any misses are all me.

I totally agree based upon my experience over the years. As a side note, the U.S. Border Patrol pistol team, way back in the day, used S&W model 19's (.357 magnum) to win many Police Pistol Combat matches. It seems like shooting .38 Special ammo in their revolvers didn't handicap them.

 

[Jim Watson]

Old catalogs and leaflets listed the different cartridges that would fire in a .357 Magnum. And the different cartridges that would fire in a .38 Special, just not including .357 Magnum.

Why say that .357 Magnum is 1/8" longer than .38 Special, or .100"? The nominal difference in case length is .135".

 

[22hipower]

As it's going to be a tad cheaper to use at the range, can anybody validate why using 38 may be less accurate tan 357 magnum?

Greg

For all practical purposes you will see no difference in accuracy. The other variables affecting accuracy, our inability to hold steady being the most important one, are far more impacting than is the difference in the "jump" to the barrel. Enjoy, and lose no sleep over the "loss" in accuracy. . . .which you won't be able to detect.

Jeff
SWCA #1457

 

[ispcapt]

A friend shot this to win the National Police Campionship a few years ago. That's shot from 50 yards standing. No machine rest.
Note he's shooting a Colt Python .357. Ammo was .38 Spl. Think his accuracy was affected? It's not likely you'll ever shoot as many rounds as this guy has fired. He's Distinguished Rifle and Pistol and President's 100.
Don't worry about the accuracy loss shooting .38 out of .357. You'll never notice it. I've heard people give that claim when they blow rounds all over the target even at short ranges. "Shooting .38 out of my .357 the accuracy is off and won't hit the target." They couldn't hit anything no matter what they were shooting.

 

[oink]

I've put untold numbers of lead .38s through my 357s. After enough smokey dirty lead your cylinder will need cleaning. If not cleaned when appropriate, 357s may be difficult to seat in the cylinder and more difficult to extract. Copper choreboy chunks forced through the chambers will square you away for more blasting. There will be no accuracy difference you can notice between the 38's and 357s. Jacketed ammo will allow much greater time intervals between cleaning but will also lighten your wallet a lot quicker. If somebody tells you you can't shoot 38s in a 357 then consider any firearm advice they give as likely worthless or worse.

There came a point that I had accumulated enough 357 mag and 44 mag brass that I use it exclusively for my light loads. But that is a luxury.

 

[GypsmJim]

My second handgun ever was a .357. I shot it for 30 years using 100% .38 Spl ammo. Then, since I came across a huge supply of .357 brass, I switched over. Now all my .38 ammo is reserved for .38 guns.

I always cleaned the gun like normal - no special treatment. I'm sure I have a .38 ring in the chambers, but I have never had an issue with case sticking.

I always had excellent accuracy with the .38s. Now my accuracy with the .357s is poor. But I attribute that to bifocals and arthritis.

 

[Sevens]

There are other gentlemen also who believe that there is no discernible "accuracy loss" when shooting .38 Special from a .357 Magnum chambered revolver. Their names are Ron Power and Bill Davis and they were standouts in their field as custom competition revolver craftsmen.

They sold countless custom built revolvers intended for top level competition where all the competitors were running .38 Special ammunition regardless of whether the revolver was .38 or .357 chambered.

You could make a mathematical argument that a 1964 Pontiac GTO would be more svelte, more aerodynamic and thus record a quicker 1/4 mile ET if you removed the radio antenna before you ran it on the dragstrip and you might even be mathematically correct, but you could never hope to prove it and you might be questioned if you campaigned for it.

On this same subject, there is one thing you might actually be able to see yourself when swapping between light .38 loads and full-nuts .357 loads, and that is a difference in point of impact vertically.

This is even easier to show when you have a larger gap in velocity. My 460XVR can launch a .460 S&W Magnum round with a 240 grain jacketed bullet at 2,000 fps, but it can also safely shoot light .45 Colt load with a 250 grain bullet going 700 fps. Shoot them interchangeably and they are going to land in different places on the target.

 

[ISCS Yoda]

Literally millions of 38 specials have been fired from 357 revolvers during the revolver era in policing. No troubles at all.

What he said!!!!

As a rule, unless I am literally woods walking, I never load anything but .38 Specials in my revolvers chambered for .357 Magnum. That includes the several.357 Magnums that I keep hidden around the house for home defense. IMHO, Magnum cartridges are fun at the range, mandatory in the woods, and a very bad idea for home defense for a variety of reasons, not the least of which being over-penetration.

Welcome to the campfire!

And to evidence just one of these home defense .357s which fits into your question:

3" 686+:

Moreover, as to this:

I am getting conflicting information as to whether I can shoot .38 Specials through it as well. Some say "of course", some say "no".

Anyone who says no is NOT at all knowledgeable about these cartridges and their interchangeability in guns chambered for .357 Magnum (the reverse is, of course, not true).

And in that monster Performance Center M686 you purchased you will never have a problem, except I guess you will not be carrying that around in the woods.

 

[Jack Flash]

Hello,
I recently purchased a S&W 686 .357 magnum Performance Center (https://www.smith-wesson.com/product/l-frame-170319) but I cam getting conflicting information as to whehter I can shoot .38 Specials through it as well. Some say "of course", some say "no".
Can I get your opinion please so I don't ruin the firearm.
Thanks,
Greg

Hi Greg:
Did you get a manual with your 686?
All my manuals for .357 S&Ws say they can safely fire both .357 Magnums and .38 Specials. See if yours says the same.
If you didn't get a manual, S&W will probably send you one.
Or you should be able to download and electronic copy from the S&W website.

 

[mikerjf]

In theory a 38 special fired in the longer 357 magnum chamber will be less accurate ... but we all know about Theory and Practice ...

A friend was taking a test (in electronics) and, aware of the difference, asked the professor “Should this question be answered from a theoretical standpoint or assuming real-world components?”

The prof said “Go with theory.”

My friend answered the question and was irritated to find it marked wrong. He complained and was told “In theory, there are no perfect components.”

 

[SGT ROCK 11B]

I'm an older pistol shooter (40 years shooting or so now), mostly 9mm, but new to revolvers ...

Also, I like to keep my firearms clean, so I wont be shooting hundreds of different rounds through it without cleaning it first - another good tip thankyou.

Greg

Greg, welcome to the S&W Forum.

Most of the old timers here have been shooting revolvers 50+ years.

Lot of people learned to clean the revolver in the Police Academy that requires 110% clean. But others who have no training only clean the barrel (bore) and do not realize the cylinder needs to be cleaned. I see that a lot today when I look at used revolvers in the Consignment (Used Gun) Area at the Gun Stores.

Sarge

 

[SWFan27]

I have shot plenty of 38spl out of my S&W 686+. Accuracy is just fine. I shoot them out of my S&W 66-8 also. Most 357 Magnum owners shot a majority of 38spl out of their revolvers. Usually cheaper to shoot than magnum loads, less recoil and easier on the firearm. Vintage smaller framed S&W 357 Magnums were rumored to be vulnerable to forcing cone cracks after a lot of hot 357 Mag loads were used.

 

[Pisgah]

I am going to keep this as simple as possible. Anyone who tells you that .38's will ruin your .357 revolver is an idiot.

 

[Hawg Rider]

Hello Greg, and welcome to the Forum! As a relatively new Forum member, you need to understand that pictures are a must...LOL! We always enjoy seeing photos of fellow members' handguns (not just links to S&W catalog pics), so please post one or two of your new Model 686. I assume that you purchased your Competitor brand new, and it should be an amazingly accurate shooter with either .38 Specials or .357 Magnums. Enjoy!

 

[Lou_the_welder]

I shot alot of 38 shorts out of 357 magnums throughout the years. And shorts are even shorter than specials. Around the size of a rimmed 9mm. And have a fast load and reload.

Definitely, it's definitely the Indian and not the arrow , when it comes to shooting them.
I wouldn't worry about shooting specials. Enjoy!