.38 Spl +P and old standerd .38 spl.
- Thread starter Doug.38PR
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OK, Hercules changed the formulation of Unique slightly back at least 20 years ago. They published notices about this, warning folks about not using old load data.
Now then, CUP vs PSI. The load specs for the .38 Spl are in CUP. Piezo gauges are calibrated with lots of ammunition known to produce acceptable pressures (in CUP). The piezo pressures are higher (at least in numbers), but there's no direct correlation between the two.
Just something that crossed my mind. A gunsmith, and indeed several sources have told m this, told me once when we were discussing a couple of Colt Official Police guns and +P that before those guns ever left the factory, they tested each chamber with something like 5 times more power than anything I would ever put through it which makes any +P round safe to shoot through it. Thought we both agreed that taking a box of 1000 rounds to the range every day with it wouldn't be healthy in the long run for the gun.
Peter M. Eick
Member
WR,
If they changed it (I don't remember that notice myself) it cannot be much because how do you explain the velocity correlation to charge weight over about 80 years of reloads?
Just something to ponder.
If they changed it (I don't remember that notice myself) it cannot be much because how do you explain the velocity correlation to charge weight over about 80 years of reloads?
Just something to ponder.
Look closely at Peter M. Eick's avatar. It clearly shows one of the ".38-44 Spl." headstamps. Not all of the ammunition manufacturers were so careful to stamp the heavily-loaded .38 Special cartridges with its own specific ID. Not even all of REM-UMC were so stamped! Many were simply stamped ".38 Spl." and relied on the intelligence and good sense of the shooter to read the label on the box which clearly identified the ammo as being suitable for appropriate heavy-frame revolvers only!
Standard .38 Special ammo of that era was not loaded to nominal pressures that are very different from nominal pressures of today. If you look at velocity data of old-time .38-44 Spl. loadings and extrapolate pressures, you'll see that they would now be referred to as +P+, and are even higher pressure loadings than modern .38 Spl.+P ammunition.
I believe that there is a great amount of confusion caused by the large number of .38-44 Spl. loadings with a simple .38 Spl. headstamp. Someone's neighbor's cousin's uncle blew up his circa 1910 Iver Johnson revolver with an old .38 Spl. cartridge - reckon he just happened to chamber a few old .38-44 loads without knowing any better? After that, all older .38 Spl. ammo gets the +P+ reputation.
xtm
Standard .38 Special ammo of that era was not loaded to nominal pressures that are very different from nominal pressures of today. If you look at velocity data of old-time .38-44 Spl. loadings and extrapolate pressures, you'll see that they would now be referred to as +P+, and are even higher pressure loadings than modern .38 Spl.+P ammunition.
I believe that there is a great amount of confusion caused by the large number of .38-44 Spl. loadings with a simple .38 Spl. headstamp. Someone's neighbor's cousin's uncle blew up his circa 1910 Iver Johnson revolver with an old .38 Spl. cartridge - reckon he just happened to chamber a few old .38-44 loads without knowing any better? After that, all older .38 Spl. ammo gets the +P+ reputation.
xtm
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