38S&W bored for 38Spec.

[tops]

Every time there's a post about boring .38S&W chambers for .38Spec. somebody always mentions that the cases may or will split. 50 or 60 yrs. ago I shot several of them and never had a split case but I could tell the case swelled.
I always wondered if I could have reloaded the cases so last year I had a chance to buy one. I had 50 assorted used brass that I loaded with 5 grs. of unique and a 158 gr. SWC. I shot them and have reloaded the cases twice and still no split cases.
Has anyone ever had the cases to split? My experience leads me too believe that split cases are an urban myth. If I'm wrong it won't be the first time. Larry

 

[Targets Guy]

It is not the first time, Larry.




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[Targets Guy]

Those occurred when shooting a SW converted to a .38 special.


This happened when shooting a different .38SW to a .38 special.


never heard of baby names


Depends on the quality of the conversion is the lesson I have learned.


Brass casings are like rattlesnakes. Sometimes the casings split and sometimes the rattlesnake doesn't inject venom when biting.

 

[Art Doc]

Seldom do they split on the first firing. If you shoot factory ammo you will likely never see it happen. But guys who reload resize the brass so these are constantly being expanded beyond normal and then squeezed back in shape and that causes the metal to fatigue and finally crack.

 

[StrawHat]

So why not size minimally? Use a 38 S&W die and crimp with a collet crimper of some sort.

Kevin

 

[Targets Guy]

Re posts 2 & 3 above. Both examples were factory reloads. I don't reload.

 

[glowe]

I just replied to another 38 S&W thread, but I have split factory cases as much as reloads. My major gripe is that the 38 Special bullet is too small for many WWII 38 S&W gun barrels. I have owned and shot these guns years ago and while they hit stuff, there was not much accuracy and certainly not what I would expect from a S&W. I finally bought a box of 38 S&W and the size of the pattern on targets were cut in half. I have loaded .361 in once fired 38 Special cases without resizing, but only a couple of guns would chamber them. Some were like Mike's, drilled out to length of a 38 Special the size of that case causing a slight downsizing of the chamber. The front 1/4" or so would not expand, so would not chamber the larger bullet. My best luck was with guns that were reamed to the original chamber diameter, with no step, but then the 38 Special brass would sometimes split right at the case mouth. Try what I suggested in the other thread, take a box of 38 S&W and 38 Special to the range and compare groupings before deciding which case to load for any modified 38 S&W military S&W.

 

[Absalom]

The quality of the conversion is indeed the key.

As we have discussed here before, the actual difference in outside circumference of .38 S&W and Special is so minimal that there are quite a few .38 Special guns out there that will actually chamber .38 S&W unconverted; tolerances weren’t that tight and that old-time craftsmanship is sometimes a bit over-hyped.

When the vast majority of the low-cost conversion were performed on former BSR’s in the 1950/60s, the lack of care frequently resulted in not just lengthening the chamber (which is all that’s needed), but also in further widening it. And the wider the chamber, the bigger the bulge and the greater the risk of split.

So the fate of your cases lies in the hands of the guy who reamed the chambers on your specific gun. Making any general statement isn’t productive.

 

[Targets Guy]

I learned a lot about conversion guns when I bought this one in 2017. It was originally a .38SW with a 5" barrel, shipped in 12/41 as a blue finished, 5" barrel .38SW, Lend Lease. Somewhere along the way it got converted to a .38 Special by reaming out the cylinder and replacing the barrel with a 4" .38 special barrel.



In post's 2 and 3 you saw the results to the casings. Additionally the cylinder would no longer turn after 4 rounds had been fired.


So I went back to the range with .38 SW rounds. The cylinder worked fine but the forcing cone was shaving off lead from the bullets. Here are twelve rounds at 7 yards.





So my dilemma was do I want split/swollen cases or shaved lead. So I bought a 5" .38SW Victory barrel and had it chromed. Now the gun was back to a .38SW, albeit with a reamed cylinder, with a 5" SW barrel. Here are my first six rounds with .38SW 146 gr LRN.





The round in the 8 ring was done with my head down and eyes closed. It was the first bullet through the 5" barrel.


What I bought



What I now have

 

[Art Doc]

People think I'm joking when I say I wouldn't accept a converted Brit VM as a gift.

 

[Troystat]

My dad had a WW-2 M&P or Victory model (5 inch barrel) that started out as a 38 S&W and the cylinder was bored out to fit 38 specials and the cases would bulge and they would often split but not always.

 

[Waveski]

Back when I was naive about firearms I went ga-ga over the proof marks on a "converted" BSR , had to have it. Two weeks and a bunch of split casings later I returned it to the local shop that sold it to me. I was very fortunate in that I knew the owner and he was willing to refund.

Never again.
I'm with Art Doc.

 

[Targets Guy]

I have three converted BSRs and have enjoyed each of them. My latest addition is a Parker Hale conversion. I have yet to fire it; I will this week or next week. I believe they did a very nice job; sleeved the cylinder so I don't expect any problem with shell casings. We will see.


It shipped 5/1941.





The second one I have I covered above in post #9. I enjoy it very much now that I have it back to a .38SW with a 5" SW barrel.

It shipped 12/1941



The 3rd one I own was converted by Cogswell & Harrison in London. It shipped Apr 1942. I emailed the company a couple of years ago and asked them if they had a history on this weapon. They replied and said when MOD shipped them to the company for conversion no historical data accompanied the weapons. They did such a good job reaming the cylinder that only a very slight bulging of the case occurs and they extract easily from the cylinder chambers. Gun is pretty accurate.

 

[Injunbro]

Now just to add spice to the mix: 9mm Luger & 9mm auto rim are close enough to fit a .38 S&W to chamber... .38 S&W & 9mm auto rim w/ their rimmed cases won't chamber in a 9mm Luger. For the record: NOT A GOOD IDEA & NOT SAFE TO SWAP ROUNDS.