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Cartridge of the Week: The .38 Super

Talyn

SAINT
Founding Member
The .38 Super
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The .38 Super, also known as .38 Superauto, .38 Super Auto, or 9×23mmSR, is a pistol cartridge that fires a 0.356-inch-diameter bullet. It was introduced in the late 1920s as a higher pressure loading of the .38 ACP, also known as .38 Auto. The older .38 ACP cartridge propels a 130-grain bullet at 1,050 ft/s, whereas the .38 Super pushes the same bullet at 1,280 ft/s.

The .38 Super retains the original dimensions of the .38 ACP case. The cartridge was originally designed to headspace on the semi-rimmed case, which worked in the Colt M1900 due to the design of the feed ramp. When the .38 Auto became the .38 Super, in the 1911A1, the feed ramp could no longer be used as rim support. As a result of this, observed accuracy of the .38 Super suffered until Irv Stone of Bar-Sto barrels re-designed the chamber to allow headspacing on the case mouth. Since then, all new production .38 Super pistols headspace on the case mouth, as with other cartridges in this class. The semi-rimmed case is known to cause feeding problems in some magazines, especially double stack magazines, and led to the development of new variants with reduced rims (typically only .003 inch per side).

The cartridge was designed for use in the M1911 pistol and was capable of penetrating automobile bodies of the late 1920s. When the .357 Magnum was introduced in 1934, this advantage of the .38 Super was no longer enough to lure police departments and officers from the traditional double-action revolver.

In 1974, the industry added the +P headstamp to the .38 Super to further distinguish it from the lower-pressure .38 ACP. Most current ammunition manufacturers label ammunition for the Super as .38 Super +P. Since the .38 Super is dimensionally the same as the .38 ACP, an unsafe condition can be caused by firing .38 Super cartridges in a firearm designed for the much lower pressure .38 ACP.

The weakness, in the Colt M1900, Colt M1902, and others derived from that design, comes from the assembly wedge at the front of the slide. If the wedge comes out, or the slide cracks at the wedge, the slide can come off the rear of the frame when fired. The 1911 and 1911A1, having a slide that is solid on front, cannot come off the frame that way.

The .38 Super has gained distinction as the caliber of choice for many top practical shooting competitors; it remains one of the dominant calibers in IPSC competition. The .38 Super has made a comeback in IPSC and USPSA sports shooting raceguns, particularly when equipped with a compensator, because it exceeds the power factor threshold to be considered a "major" charge, while having much more manageable recoil than .45 ACP. The comeback began in the early 1980s, when Robbie Leatham and Brian Enos began experimenting with, and competing with, .38 Super pistols in IPSC.

At the time, single-stack 1911s in .45 ACP were dominant. Their .38 Super pistols held one or two more rounds simply due to the smaller case diameter. However, the biggest advantage was the muzzle brake, allowing for faster follow-up shots, and thus faster stages and subsequent higher scores. Competitors still using .45 ACP pistols attempted to keep pace, both by adding compensators and by reducing bullet weight, quickly reaching the limit at 152-155 grains.

The .38 Super could be loaded with a bullet as light as 115 grains. Use of compensators in competition is limited to the Open Division in IPSC and USPSA. The other divisions there do not permit their use, and the International Defensive Pistol Association (IDPA) does not permit them at all. Lacking a compensator, a .38 Super, running at major, has felt recoil much like that of a .45 ACP, and more than that of a 9mm Parabellum.

The .38 Super round received further publicity through the single-action "Colt Combat Commander" and lightweight aluminum alloy frame "Colt Commander". When Colt switched the inventory's supply of the model from the Series-70s to the Series-80s, the model fell into lesser demand. A small number of .45 ACP submachine guns were also made in .38 Super, such as the Ingram Model 6 and Thompson submachine gun. A machine pistol variant of the M1911 chambered in .38 Super was also produced by Hyman S. Lehman.
 
This past spring my gun shop had a couple of Colt 1911’s in .38Super, both sold in less then half a day while I was contemplating getting one, they were gone….
 
The 38 super is one of my favorites in the 1911. I never download in the super. All handloads are fast. My preferred cast bullet is the Saeco 383. If I want reduced loads, I’ll go to the 9mm. John Dillinger had a full auto 38 super, with an extended magazine. I’d love to shoot that gun.
 
The 38 super is one of my favorites in the 1911. I never download in the super. All handloads are fast. My preferred cast bullet is the Saeco 383. If I want reduced loads, I’ll go to the 9mm. John Dillinger had a full auto 38 super, with an extended magazine. I’d love to shoot that gun.

He worked on his own firearms, modified them and had quite a gun collection too....

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