Super Vel Ammo..........

[medxam]

As the Deputy Chef Medical Examiner for Dade County (Miami) Florida in the early seventy's, before anyone ever called us "CSI Miami", I can assure you that SuperVel was the ammo of choice, usually shot from a Walther PPK .380 by the locals, especially by a group known then as the "Cuban Mafia", with due respects to all Cubans on this site.

I will never forget that on a Sunday night, at a wedding reception at one of the Sheraton Four Ambassador's Hotels, an altercation broke out over a cigarette, taken from the groom, and all hell broke loose. When the cops arrived, all was quiet, but a search of the hall, especially behind the drapes, yielded an assortment of Walthers, all loaded with SuperVels. The total take of contraband was several bushel baskets!

Ahh, for the good old days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[KEN L]

FACTOID

I'm suprised no one has mentioned this yet, but the term "flying ashtray" was originally applied to the Super Vel 185gr .45ACP round. By the way, to this day, one of the baddest .45 rounds ever developed, and the cases were nickle plated!

 

[bettis1]

Buddy,

Perhaps the "Cuban Mafia" discarded their armament because they had heard of my failed encounter with the armadillo which I related back in post #18. If I hadn't had so much regard for James Bond I would have discarded my PPK after the event too.

Bob

PS. Now that we know more about the terminal ballistics of hollow points, I think it is all together possible that the "ashtray" was plugged by the animals external shell and the expansion never occurred so most of the energy was expended after it exited. I didn't do a PM on the armadillo but, retrospectively, it might have have been instructive.
B.

 

[ImprovedModel56Fan]

I probably already posted this a while back in some other thread, but in December 1998, I chrono'ed some .38 Spl 110 gr SuperVel, almost surely Shelbyville vintage, in my 4" Model 10 and 6" Official Police. Average velocity for ten shots at a few yards was 1181 fps for 4", 1251 fps for 6". SD was 36 and 42 respectively, a bit wilder than some other ammo.

I recall firing 110 gr .357 Mag Supervel in my 6" Model 19 many years ago, probably in the very early 70's, and I was impressed mostly with the lack of recoil, which makes sense considering the light bullet. Sorry, no chronograph back then.

 

[max]

I thought flying ashtray was originally a Speer bullet.

 

[medxam]

Bob,

As the new boy on the block, I decided that I should be armed like the competition. So, I went out to the Hialea Gun Shop and got me a Walther .380 and a box of SuperVels. That pistol is in my safe with most of the box of SuperVels, 37 years later, having shot one mag.

It was too snappy for me, plus I am a revolver man.

May SuperVels rest in peace. I dug out many a one from bodies. They did a good job on the ones that I got. But, I am sure that there were many more non-fatals, just as you describe.

Sorry I missed your post # 18. Tell me how I can find it!

Buddy

 

[bettis1]

Buddy,

My post #18 is back on page 2 of this thread.

Bob

 

[bigtubby]

Anyone heard of super vel's being loaded in sako head stamped brass. I got a box of .357 looks like super vel in sako brass.

 

[sheriff54]

this thread brings back memories... last box of 357's I had went through a dan wesson with a 6" barrel. about 28 years ago. the 110 gr hp's were fast (no crono though) BUT they left a copper dust on the outside of the barrel. my buddy had the gun, I had the left over super vel's. he thought the ammo had rusted the outside of the gun. I had a colt trooper mk lll and had a problem with flame cutting the top strap. those fast super vel's, smith and wesson 110's and the later remington 125's were a bit rough on a mid size gun. Lee made a good high performance ammo. I got to thank him once. he started a movement in ammo making where the big guys had to get off dead center and catch up to him. that is neat to know and to have lived through. kinda like cor bon, grizzly and buffalo bore of today.

 

[JC4013]

As a newly minted rookie I carried a Model 19 with a six inch barrel in a Jordan holster with a night stick made of walnut. Does that make me an ol' timer? I couldn't afford Super Vels, but we were limited to department issue 158 grn mags, but some of the guys carried them in O/D or backups.

 

[Moonman]

I've got 2 boxes of which 1 is half full. Jurras munitions corp. yellow box, Shelbyville, Indiana FACTORY REMANUFACTURED AMMUNITION 38 special 158 grain S.W.C.

 

[keithpip]

Super Vel Ammo

Checkman: my dad is one of those cops that you described so well. He was sworn in in 1950 and retired in 1980. He was (and still is even though he's mellowed at age 82) a no-nonsense guy. He considered his night stick, not his Colt 38 special, his first line of defense. The night stick got used all the time. As he taught me many years ago, "If you pull your gun out of the holster use it. But you'd better make sure you're right." Still good advice. He told me not too long ago (I thought I had heard all the stories) about his encounter with two guys having a knife fight. When my dad arrived on the scene one guy ran but the other stuck around (no pun intended). This guy refused to drop his knife when "asked". One broken arm later from the night stick, the knife was on the ground and this guy was on his way to the hospital. In the '70s dad was on the job but wearing jacket and tie and carrying his Chief Special Airweight 38. Someone had given him a box of Super Vel ammo which he promptly loaded into that J frame. He had that ammo for many years, even up to retirement. Thank God he never dropped the hammer on any of those rounds! The whole thing would probably have come apart. About a year ago he was rummaging around in his gun box and handed me that box of Super Vels. I don't intend on shooting them. Thanks for the memories.

 

[REM 3200]

I thought flying ashtray was originally a Speer bullet.

You are correct.

 

[Elmer]

I thought flying ashtray was originally a Speer bullet.

You are correct.

The Super Vel .45 190 grain JHP, with it's wide mouth hollowpoint, pre-dates the Speer .45.

Don't remember anyone calling it that at the time, but I can see where they might have.....

 

[Deputy]

I would love a stash of Super Vel ammo.
I fired two of the calibers....45 ACP and 110 grain .357 mag. The .45ACP produced a nice, large blue flame out of the barrel of a Colt 1911A1. Recoil wasn't bad at all. I fired the .357 magnum out of a Colt 2 inch Lawman Mark 3. The flame and noise produced by that ammo was truly spectacular. The whole indoor range stopped shooting as I touched off each round. I'm surprised all the hair on my hand wasn't burnt off. If you didn't kill the bad guy with the bullet, the flame would be like tossing gasoline in his face.

 

[Eagles6]

I've noticed some Super Vel .357 Mag popping up as I've cleaned cases and reloaded. I continually find .357 mag brass from when I first started shooting 35 yrs ago, in a coffee can in the basement or garage, an old box full of "stuff" in the barn. I have no idea when or where I got it but I've quarantined those cases (about a box of 50).
May trade them for something if I find someone has an interest. Interesting to read the stories.

 

[41 fan]

Super Vel bullets were sold as reloading components. I still have a partial box of the .38 110gr left from the old days. The diameter marked on the box is .3565.
I have chronoed CorBon .38 spl 110 gr hp ammo. One box was marked 1300fps and did make 1300fpr from a 3 inch model 65. The other box was marked 1250fps and made 1200fps from the same gun. Dean

 

[ColColt]

I never tried Super Vel but still love the old 200 gr Flying Ashtray. I have some left and in fact, 7 rounds of CorBon loaded with it resting in a magazine inside a 4506 neatly tucked under my pillow. This is one of those bullets from CorBon shot into wet phone books at about 15 feet from a Commander.

 

[bettis1]

ColColt,

I'd say that if a wet phone book sneaks into your bedroom in the middle of the night, it's dead meat!.

Bob

 

[ColColt]

ColColt,

I'd say that if a wet phone book sneaks into your bedroom in the middle of the night, it's dead meat!.

Bob

It was-and, there was no retribution from his kin folks either.