I am looking at a Colt 1911 in .38 Super. I no nothing about the round so educate me. How does it stack up against todays 9MM, 10MM, 357 SIG, .40 SW and . 45 ACP. Thx I have heard it is very powerful and flat shooting a'la 10 MM. I remember hearing an interview w/some gangster, Pretty Boy Floyd I think that said the .38 Super was his round of choice for knocking down G Men in one shot haha. Whats the availability and cost generally ?
.38 Super is my favorite caliber. Modern factory ammunition is pretty watered down, barely edging out 9mm,except for a couple Cor Bon loads. It's a great cartridge for the handloader though. You can easily and safely load some serious heat. If you're not a handloader, I would look around your area and see if anyone actually stocks it, and look at the online prices before you buy one. I would not have bought one if I weren't a handloader. Take a look around this website for more info.
Others mentioned are better. Would not get one unless you are a collector. Best bang for the dollar is .45gap in Glocks.
A good round. Same caliber but not as fast as 357SIG. More rounds per magazine than 357SIG or .40S&W.
I could be wrong, but I think it's roughly similar to the 357 Sig, but maybe not quite as powerful. I think one can also use actual .357" diameter bullets in the old 38 Super.
I like the .38 Super. My Colt Special Combat Government in .38 Super is one of my most accurate shooters. FMJ ammo costs me about the same as .357 SIG - around .34 cents a round. For self-defense, I like CorBon 125 gr. JHP at 1325 fps and 487ft/lbs of energy. There's some great information about the round here. http://38super.net/index.html
Thanks for the info. I just got back from the gun store (where the guy shot himself in the parking lot two days ago btw). The sales guy told me the round sucks, like a hopped up .380 and for target only. Of course they dont have the 1911 in 38 I wanted in stock, surprise surprise. The guy says there is very little interest in the round as well. Now true story, the next two guys that came in when I was standing in line(got a CMC Mag for my 1911) both asked for a .38 Super 1911 I just looked at the sales guy and said wow no interest you say haha.
Not as powerful as the 357 Sig, but moreso than the 9mm. As others have said, it really is a handloaders round anymore.
From what I can tell it's almost a twin of the .357sig. I have never seen any .38 Super ammo at local gun shops so I think it's more practical for someone who handloads. The GT members who handload and own them say a lot of good things about the caliber.
The .38 Super is a handloader's dream, brass costs about the same as 9mm and a lot cheaper and easier to load than the .357SIG. Double Tap now makes self defense ammo for the Super .38, as does Corbon et al. Accurate Arms designed their AA #7 powder for the .38 Super; Hornady HAP bullets were first designed in .356 cal for the .38 Super; Vast selection of bullets in .355, .356 and .357 cal. Top 125gr Gold Dot was loaded for my G17, running high 1200s found in bottom of #4 one gallon water bottle, Well expanded 125gr Gold Dot running mid 1400s found in bottom of #5 water bottle, very explosive; 140gr Sierra .357cal, very accurate and fragged, jacket separation #4 bottle, lead core found between #4 and #5 bottle; 1/10" hard steel barrier plus five one gallon bottles, 147gr Winchester notched @1288fps was not recovered. The 1/2" pressed wood support had this large, gaping hole; Since there has been a reference to gangsters carrying the .38 Super, so did lawmen of the era. In reference to Bonnie and Clyde in the article The Guns of Frank Hamer written by Rick Cartledge; With modern bullet designs, the .38 Super is a very formidable personal defense caliber. Bob
I love the .38 Super. My handloads are with 10.4g VVN105 Powder, Small Pistol Magnum Primers, Starline Brass and 124g Gold Dots.....1,425 fps out of a 5" and 1,360 out of my 4" Wilson. Quite a bit more pop than a 9mm and getting close to 357 Sig numbers.....and accurate as hell!
