Modifying 38 specials to 9 Parabellum

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I have read about the conversions of 38 Special Cylinders to accommodate 9mm Parabellum with moon clips. To me this doesn't sound like a wise thing to do because of the much higher pressure of the 9mm. Around 17K psi for 38 Special and 18.5K for +P vs. 35K for 9mm. Those are the SAAMI specs as I remember.

However I don't recall reading about any excessive wear problems with conversions.

Am I missing something?

I have an extra cylinder and yoke laying around and a beater K Frame, it might be a handy conversion since 9mm is less expensive and more available.

 

[chief38]

Other than for S&G's or having tons of 9mm ammo and no .38 spl. ammo on hand I don't see the ballistic advantage being worth the effort. That said, I suppose if you have all the materials on hand and are looking for more versatility, it might turn out to be a fun project. Reliable extraction is always the tough part but Moon clips are a great advantage here. If you do it, consider videoing it or at least take lots of pic's. I'd watch it!

 

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I gave up on the 9mm conversion idea and fit the 10-5 cylinder to an old BSR that had been reamed out to 38 special, a much better use of it I suppose. No more bulged cases.