38 Special wadcutters?

[Joezilla]

I bought a new box of ammo the other day for my 642. It is a box of 38 special wadcutters. Just glancing at the rounds, there is no bullet protrusion. I have not heard of these before and have not been to the range to shoot any of them yet either.

Are these just range quality rounds? Are they self defense type stuff? Looking for some guidance here.

Thanks,
Joe

 

[Valmet]

Wadcutters have been traditionally used for target shooting as they tend to cut a clean hole that, in theory, is easier to see when you’re spotting your shots. In the past, lots of folks have carried them in their snub-nosed revolvers as the idea is, since the cartridge only attains 650-800ish feet per sec, one can’t rely on consistent expansion, so they opt for a wide, deep path “cut” by the wadcutter bullet.

 

[Model 15-4ever]

I bought a new box of ammo the other day for my 642. It is a box of 38 special wadcutters. Just glancing at the rounds, there is no bullet protrusion. I have not heard of these before and have not been to the range to shoot any of them yet either.

Are these just range quality rounds? Are they self defense type stuff? Looking for some guidance here.

Thanks,
Joe

Now I know I'm old, when a shooter has never heard of a wadcutter.

9mm has ruined everything...

 

[glenwolde]

They were (are) popular for bullseye (now called "precision") shooting, where the full caliber clean-cut hole gave you a slight advantage sometimes in scoring. The full-caliber hole might just cut a scoring ring that a hit in the exact same spot with a round nose bullet would not.

They are well-known for their accuracy which is primarily due to the bore contact along their entire length.

 

[glenwolde]

Now I know I'm old, when a shooter has never heard of a wadcutter.

9mm has ruined everything...

LOL I'm with you on that. I guess we shouldn't be surprised, since they are only used in revolvers (OK and the Model 52) and Bullseye/Precision is waning in popularity (I'm being kind).

 

[pasound]

38 wadcutters have always been my favorite target round. Back in the "old days" when I could afford to buy one, my distorted logic turned it down because S&W didn't make optional 7 or 8 round mags, just the professional 5 round target type.

 

[Model 15-4ever]

I'm surprised the OP even found a box of wadcutter for sale...

Back in the day (40 years ago), you could walk into any store that sold the slightest amount of ammo, and find a box of factory .38 Special wadcutter.

About 98% of police agencies used the .38 Special or .357 magnum revolver, and most of them trained and qualified with .38 Special wadcutter or RNL rounds. My agency issued the Model 13-3 .357 Magnum, and we shot over 2000 rounds of .38 Special wadcutter in training at the academy, including qualification. We shot about 100 rounds total of .38 Special +P LHP ammo in combat courses for "familiarization". At that time, that ONE agency purchased nearly 10 MILLION rounds of .38 Special wadcutter ANNUALLY for training and qualification at the academy and throughout the field.

Today, I did a quick scan of ammoseek.com and not a single round of .38 Special wadcutter was shown from Federal, Speer, Blazer, Remington or Winchester. Major factory ammo was limited to Magtech (Brazil) and Fiocchi (USA/Italy).

Whither 9mm...

 

[DWalt]

Back during the time when three-gun (.22, any CF, and .45) competitive Bullseye target shooting was about the only handgun shooting game in town, nearly every shooter used Colt or S&W .38 target revolvers for any CF, and mild wadcutter bullet loads. Then many shooters quit using revolvers altogether, and switched to semiautos in .22 and .45 ACP for all three stages. A three-gun 2700 point match could easily take a full long afternoon. It took some stamina to get through a match on a hot day.
There is nothing wrong about using full wadcutter loads in a .38 Special personal defense revolver as they were as effective against the BGs as any other .38 Special load of the time, maybe even more so. And that is still true.

 

[LittleAugieMo]

Vaguely remember reading some "Skeeter" stories about loading the bullet in the case upside down for "defense" ammo?

 

[Sevens]

LOL I'm with you on that. I guess we shouldn't be surprised, since they are only used in revolvers (OK and the Model 52) and Bullseye/Precision is waning in popularity (I'm being kind).

It's not that I feel the need to "one up" your post, that's not at all my thought behind this, it's simply that there is a little-known sect of enthusiasts that enjoy odd stuff and it's fun to share your passion with others.

Colt produced some .38 Wadcutter guns in the National Match 1911. Sig produced one that looks much like a P210 though I cannot recall the model number. Slick, scarce and expensive, I would love to have one.

In the .32cal, Pardini makes fantastic wadcutter semiautos and I think they have recently started to move from .32 S&W Long to a .32 ACP based gun but these are popular in Europe for Bullseye-style competition. As well, Walther makes a great .32cal wadcutter gun called the GSP. I have one of those and they are extremely accurate.

One other bit about the swaged hollow-base wadcutter bullet that may not be obvious is that the hollow cavity in the rear of the bullet expands under pressure and the lightly constructed soft lead bullet obturates to the bore which also (theoretically?) aids in accuracy.

Indeed, these bullets make short work of scoring targets for match officials.

 

[SGT ROCK 11B]

Are these just range quality rounds? Are they self defense type stuff? Looking for some guidance here.

They are good quality rounds for competitive shooting. All bullets are capable of killing. They are commonly recommended for revolvers for Senior Citizens and those with arthritis.

You are good to go.

 

[SGT ROCK 11B]

Vaguely remember reading some "Skeeter" stories about loading the bullet in the case upside down for "defense" ammo?

I am a reloader and did that 50 years ago. Actually Dean Grennel the writer of, The ABCs of Reloading should be credited with that.

 

[SGT ROCK 11B]

Colt produced some .38 Wadcutter guns in the National Match 1911.

I had one and I believe it was made in 1964. Colt made them from 1960 to 1973. (The best ones were made before 1970)

 

[M29since14]

Sevens, you’re probably thinking of the P240.

Back to the OP’s question, long ago two types of wadcutters were common. There was a type that exposed maybe 3/32”or 1/8” of the bullet, commonly referred to as button-type, around here, and the flush-seated type used in autoloaders. The Colt NM .38 may have been able to use both types, but I can’t recall with certainty.

Is this what you refer to? If so, the flush-seated wadcutters were, as far as I can recall, the equal of the button-type in every way, as far as accuracy and velocity. Different individuals favored different types, based on their gun and personal preference, if they were revolver shooters. I always preferred the flush-seated version, but probably was never a good enough shot to tell the difference.

 

[Eric300]

As mentioned, wadcutters (and semi-wad cutters - there is a difference), were/are mostly used in competition because their design punches perfect holes in paper targets as opposed to FMJ ammo, making scoring easier. Wad Cutters do not protrude past the case as Semi Wadcutters do. Both make clean holes in paper.

Semi Wadcutter

Wadcutter

 

[DWalt]

At least from my observations, factory full WC loads have bullets loaded flush with the case mouths. But some bullets made for use by handloaders may protrude slightly above the case mouth. Then there are double ended WC bullets, flat on both ends, and hollow base WC bullets which are loaded with the cavity down inside the case. They can expand under pressure to fully fill the bore. They all typically weigh 148 grains.

Long ago when most cops wore .38 revolvers, I would see some of them having full WC loads in their gunbelt leather cartridge loops.

At one time, I used full WC bullets in nearly all of my .38 Special handloads, loaded over three grains of Bullseye or similar propellants. For most of my shooting I didn't need anything else.

 

[Greyman50]

Colt 1911 National Match Mid Range shot wadcutters as did the S&W 52. Very, very accurate Colt, just sold mine.

 

[Sgt. Buzzard]

I haven't been able to find wadcutters on any store shelf in years. It's my favorite load for my favorite guns, S&W .38's K and J frames. A couple of months back I got a 1,000 round case of Fiocchi which is a very light recoiling load. I'm saving them for my LEOSA qualifications. Twice the price of 9mm ammo.

Before I went on the job and got free bullets I would buy wadcutter reloads. Cost $2. a box with trade in empties. Those were the days. And yeah I reloaded too. Upside down wads were very popular then.

 

[rockquarry]

Don't assume the cast WC will always provide best accuracy. Lots of changeable factors involved including bore twist rate. A cast SWC may outshoot it. It's best to do accuracy comparisons benchrested at 25 yards using a variety of loads.

 

[otis24]

Here Is a thread I started recently. Let’s see if I can get this to work:

Wadcutters still relevant?