Posted on 02/16/2003 7:49:45 PM PST by rudy45
I had always believed that the caliber of a gun was the inside diameter of the barrel. Assuming I am correct (am I?) then shouldn't .38 and .380 be "close"? If I remember from high school math, the latter simply implies a greater degree of precision. IOW, a .38 caliber really could be anything from .376 to .384, while .380 caliber has smaller variance--.3796 to .3804?
However, the attendant at a local range said that .38 refers to revolvers while .380 refers to pistols (?)
Thanks.
No. Semi-auto, rimless cartridges depend on having the case mouth (where the bullet is crimped into the brass) settle on a rim at the end of the firing chamber. This places the case head (where the primer is placed) in exactly the correct spacing for the firing pin to strike. A .380 ACP (9mm kurz) will slide down into the chamber and stop at the rim. The firing pin can't possible reach the primer. The 9mm, if placed in a .380 ACP chamber will protrude a great distance. The slide will not close and (hopefully) a safety mechanism will block the hammer from striking the firing pin.
This same technique of setting the headspace using the case mouth is also employed in the .45 ACP.
You should never put any ammo into a firearm unless is is specifically designed to handle that ammo. It is dangerous to do so. At the minimum, you may be disappointed when it doesn't fire. The worst case is obvious.
Bullet weights for the .380 ACP range from 85 gr to 110 gr. The .380 ACP uses a .354 caliber bullet. Same as the 9mm. The .38SPL uses a .357 caliber bullet in weight ranges from 125 gr to 180 gr.
That turns out to not be the case, in my experience.
/john
No, they are not REALLY named for their actual bullet diammeter- they got these names for historical reasons, not mathematical ones, and you cannot treat the last digit as a "significant digit" at all. For example, as pointed out above, the .38 Special and the .357 bullet are the same diameter - the difference is in the length of the cartridge case, primarily.
Glad you were not hurt.
It was the first round in the magazine. And I was much more tentative about racking the slide back then. If it had fed from the middle of the magazine, there would be a different story told. And probably typed by someone with fingers.
Always check ammo. Always.
I did luck out. I am glad also.
/john
I have several 9mmP cases that look like little mushrooms. They were fired in a pistol chambered for 40 S&W. I was watching a fella at the local range show his wife how to shoot. His S&W pistol was acting like a single shot. He would have to cycle the slide after every shot and the bullets were hitting the target sideways. I asked him what the problem was, and he said that his gun was broken as it would not cycle properly. He asked if I could take a look at it. The pistol was clearly marked as 40 S&W, but the box of ammo he was using was clearly marked 9mm. I showed him the fired cases and what he was doing wrong.
He walked off grumbling something about letting the wife pack the ammo in his bag!!!
They must have switched back as I've seen pictures of Rangers, plus local cops and sherrifs, from the late 1910's and the 1920s with 1911 type pistols. I've seen some of the pistols themselves in the Ranger Museum in Waco. If you like guns, and cops and robbers too, try to stop in there sometime. It's on I-35 the first exit south of the Brazos river, (exit 335-B) on the east side of the highway. It's also a working Ranger station, so be on your best behavior, "..cause that's were the Ranger's gonna be" :)
Meant to say "back again", assuming they had switched to .357 from .45 ACP in the first place. Actually I believe the Rangers have considerable leeway in their choice of carry weapons, with not all Rangers carrying the same caliber or even type.
The .380 has a muzzle energy of 180 foot-pounds, while the .38 Special has a muzzle energy of 251 foot-pounds.
The .38 has almost 50% more energy.
Handgun Ballistics |
|||||||||||||
PROPERTIES |
ENERGY |
VELOCITY (feet/second) |
BULLET PATH |
||||||||||
Caliber |
Item No. |
Bullet Type |
Weight |
FT. LBS. |
MUZZLE |
25 Yds. |
50 Yds. |
75 Yds. |
100 Yds. |
25 Yds. |
50 Yds. |
75 Yds. |
100 Yds. |
25 Auto |
25A |
FMJ |
50 |
62 |
750 |
722 |
695 |
670 |
645 |
1.83 |
0 |
-6.33 |
-17.50 |
|
|||||||||||||
32 Auto |
32A |
FMJ |
71 |
126 |
900 |
869 |
838 |
809 |
781 |
1.19 |
0 |
-4.28 |
-11.89 |
|
|||||||||||||
32 Auto |
32B |
JHP |
60 |
117 |
980 |
849 |
820 |
791 |
763 |
1.26 |
0 |
-4.49 |
-12.46 |
|
|||||||||||||
32 S&W Long |
32SWLA |
LRN |
98 |
132 |
780 |
758 |
737 |
717 |
697 |
1.64 |
0 |
-5.64 |
-15.50 |
|
|||||||||||||
32 S&W Long |
32SWLB |
LWC |
100 |
103 |
680 |
655 |
630 |
607 |
584 |
2.28 |
0 |
-7.75 |
-21.40 |
|
|||||||||||||
380 Auto |
380SFA |
SFHP |
95 |
180 |
925 |
884 |
847 |
813 |
783 |
1.14 |
0 |
-4.12 |
-11.49 |
|
|||||||||||||
380 Auto |
380A |
FMJ |
90 |
169 |
920 |
886 |
853 |
822 |
791 |
1.13 |
0 |
-4.12 |
-11.46 |
|
|||||||||||||
380 Auto |
380B |
JHP |
90 |
169 |
920 |
886 |
853 |
822 |
791 |
1.13 |
0 |
-4.12 |
-11.46 |
|
|||||||||||||
38 Special+P |
38SFA |
SFHP |
125 |
251 |
950 |
918 |
889 |
863 |
838 |
1.06 |
0 |
-3.77 |
-10.45 |
|
|||||||||||||
38 Special |
38A |
LRN |
158 |
235 |
820 |
801 |
783 |
765 |
749 |
1.43 |
0 |
-5 |
-13.74 |
|
|||||||||||||
38 Special |
38C |
LWC |
148 |
175 |
730 |
703 |
677 |
652 |
628 |
1.95 |
0 |
-6.69 |
-18.50 |
|
|||||||||||||
38 Special +P |
38D |
JHP |
125 |
250 |
950 |
920 |
892 |
864 |
837 |
1.03 |
0 |
-3.77 |
-10.44 |
|
|||||||||||||
38 Special |
38G |
FMJ |
132 |
207 |
840 |
817 |
795 |
773 |
752 |
1.38 |
0 |
-4.82 |
-13.27 |
|
|||||||||||||
38 Special |
38N |
JSP |
158 |
225 |
800 |
780 |
760 |
741 |
722 |
1.54 |
0 |
-5.29 |
-14.55 |
|
|||||||||||||
38 Super Auto+P |
38SA |
FMJ |
130 |
343 |
1090 |
1041 |
1000 |
965 |
934 |
0.75 |
0 |
-2.92 |
-8.16 |
|
|||||||||||||
38 Super Auto+P |
38SB |
JHP |
115 |
320 |
1120 |
1061 |
1013 |
972 |
937 |
0.71 |
0 |
-2.83 |
-7.95 |
|
|||||||||||||
9mm Luger |
9SFL |
SFHP |
95 |
330 |
1250 |
1239 |
1228 |
1217 |
1207 |
.46 |
0 |
-1.90 |
-5.26 |
|
|||||||||||||
9mm Luger |
9SFB |
SFHP |
124 |
327 |
1090 |
1043 |
1003 |
969 |
939 |
0.75 |
0 |
-2.89 |
-8.03 |
|
|||||||||||||
9mm Luger |
9A |
FMJ |
115 |
338 |
1150 |
1099 |
1057 |
1020 |
988 |
0.65 |
0 |
-2.59 |
-7.26 |
|
|||||||||||||
9mm Luger |
9B |
JHP |
115 |
344 |
1160 |
1099 |
1049 |
1007 |
971 |
0.65 |
0 |
-2.62 |
-7.37 |
|
|||||||||||||
9mm Luger |
9G |
FMJ |
124 |
339 |
1110 |
1059 |
1017 |
980 |
949 |
0.71 |
0 |
-2.83 |
-7.86 |
|
|||||||||||||
357 Magnum |
357SFA |
SFHP |
150 |
480 |
1200 |
1131 |
1076 |
1031 |
992 |
0.60 |
0 |
-2.47 |
-6.97 |
|
|||||||||||||
357 Magnum |
357A |
JSP |
158 |
505 |
1200 |
1132 |
1078 |
1033 |
994 |
0.60 |
0 |
-2.46 |
-6.95 |
|
|||||||||||||
357 Magnum |
357B |
JHP |
125 |
584 |
1450 |
1337 |
1235 |
1155 |
1093 |
0.36 |
0 |
-1.78 |
-5.19 |
|
|||||||||||||
357 Magnum |
357C |
JHP |
150 |
504 |
1230 |
1158 |
1100 |
1053 |
1012 |
0.56 |
0 |
-2.35 |
-6.65 |
|
|||||||||||||
357 Sig |
357Sig-SFB |
SFHP |
124 |
502 |
1350 |
1263 |
1190 |
1132 |
1083 |
0.43 |
0 |
-1.96 |
-5.62 |
|
|||||||||||||
357 Sig |
357Sig-A |
FMJ/FP |
124 |
512 |
1350 |
1242 |
1158 |
1093 |
1040 |
0.45 |
0 |
-2.07 |
-5.95 |
|
|||||||||||||
40 S&W |
40SFA |
SFHP |
180 |
388 |
985 |
958 |
933 |
910 |
889 |
0.93 |
0 |
-3.45 |
-9.58 |
|
|||||||||||||
40 S&W |
40SFB |
SFHP |
155 |
463 |
1160 |
1092 |
1039 |
994 |
957 |
0.65 |
0 |
-2.66 |
-7.47 |
|
|||||||||||||
40 S&W |
40B |
JHP |
156 |
396 |
1040 |
1002 |
970 |
941 |
915 |
0.83 |
0 |
-3.14 |
-8.75 |
|
|||||||||||||
40 S&W |
40D |
FMJ |
165 |
355 |
985 |
955 |
928 |
903 |
879 |
0.94 |
0 |
-3.46 |
-9.59 |
|
|||||||||||||
40 S&W |
40E |
FMJ/FP |
180 |
388 |
985 |
957 |
931 |
908 |
885 |
0.94 |
0 |
-3.44 |
-9.52 |
|
|||||||||||||
10mm Auto |
10SFA |
SFHP |
180 |
361 |
950 |
926 |
903 |
882 |
862 |
1.04 |
0 |
-3.7 |
-10.16 |
|
|||||||||||||
10mm Auto |
10A |
TC-FMJ |
200 |
490 |
1050 |
1008 |
972 |
941 |
912 |
0.82 |
0 |
-3.08 |
-8.63 |
|
|||||||||||||
10 mm Auto |
10B |
JHP |
170 |
543 |
1200 |
1117 |
1052 |
1000 |
958 |
0.62 |
0 |
-2.55 |
-7.21 |
|
|||||||||||||
41 Rem Mag |
41C |
TCSP |
210 |
788 |
1300 |
1210 |
1141 |
1065 |
1038 |
0.49 |
0 |
-2.16 |
-6.15 |
|
|||||||||||||
44 S&W Special |
44SA |
SWC-CP |
240 |
308 |
760 |
737 |
714 |
692 |
671 |
1.75 |
0 |
-6.01 |
-16.56 |
|
|||||||||||||
44 S&W Special |
44SB |
JHP |
180 |
383 |
980 |
938 |
902 |
869 |
839 |
1 |
0 |
-3.67 |
-10.14 |
|
|||||||||||||
44 Rem. Mag |
44SFA |
SFHP |
240 |
900 |
1300 |
1212 |
1138 |
1079 |
1030 |
0.49 |
0 |
-2.13 |
-6.08 |
|
|||||||||||||
44 Rem. Mag |
44A |
LSWC-GCK |
240 |
833 |
1250 |
1168 |
1103 |
1051 |
1008 |
0.55 |
0 |
-2.32 |
-6.60 |
|
|||||||||||||
44 Rem. Mag |
44B |
JHP |
180 |
783 |
1400 |
1270 |
1167 |
1091 |
1032 |
0.42 |
0 |
-2.01 |
-5.84 |
|
|||||||||||||
44 Rem. Mag |
44C |
JHP |
240 |
901 |
1300 |
1217 |
1151 |
1098 |
1053 |
0.48 |
0 |
-2.12 |
-6.03 |
|
|||||||||||||
44 Rem. Mag |
44D |
TC-SP |
240 |
900 |
1300 |
1216 |
1144 |
1086 |
1038 |
0.49 |
0 |
-2.11 |
-6 |
|
|||||||||||||
45 Auto |
45SFA |
SFHP |
230 |
369 |
850 |
830 |
811 |
792 |
775 |
1.32 |
0 |
-4.63 |
-12.67 |
|
|||||||||||||
45 Auto |
45A |
FMJ |
230 |
352 |
830 |
809 |
789 |
769 |
749 |
1.41 |
0 |
-4.90 |
-13.48 |
|
|||||||||||||
45 Auto |
45B |
JHP |
185 |
333 |
900 |
867 |
836 |
805 |
776 |
1.19 |
0 |
-4.30 |
-11.96 |
|
|||||||||||||
45 Auto |
45C |
FMJ-SWC |
200 |
321 |
850 |
818 |
788 |
761 |
734 |
1.36 |
0 |
-4.84 |
-13.48 |
|
|||||||||||||
45 Colt |
45LB |
FMJ-FP |
250 |
355 |
800 |
783 |
766 |
750 |
733 |
1.52 |
0 |
-5.22 |
-14.31 |
|
|||||||||||||
*45 Colt+P+ |
45HA |
JSP |
300 |
1041 |
1250 |
1192 |
1144 |
1102 |
1066 |
.51 |
0 |
-2.17 |
-6.13 |
*WARNING: This ammunition is loaded to higher pressures and is, therefor, not intended for use in firearms of weaker receiver/frame strength such as the Colt Single Action Army revolver. Please consult the firearms manufacturer for compatibility and use. CC - Copper Coated This Ballistics Table was calculated by using current data for each load. Velocity figures are from test barrels; user velocities may vary from those listed. The data in the table represents the approximate behavior of each loading under the following conditions: 59ºF, barometric pressure of 29.52 inches, sea level altitude. |
I've taught my wife the same principles and trust the quality of ammo she loads as well. Our firearms vary in value from $400 to $1000 each. We NEVER allow anything but first quality ammo in them. We also don't offer our reloaded ammo to others. We don't carry the necessary insurance nor federal ammunition manufacturing licenses that would make such an action legal or advisable.
Eye and ear protection is a must. Always. I've had a 44 mag splashback from a 25 yard range and clip the top of my ear. The immediate stinging in my left ear was complemented with blood all over my fingers. A few inches the other direction would surely have caused eye damage...except I always wear shooting glasses. I was wearing 32 dB foam ear plugs, thus my bare ears were exposed to the splashback. I add muffs to the foam ear plugs when shooting the .454 Casull. Bone jarring and fun.
Sure. Gauge is the number of lead balls of a diameter which would fit into the barrel, which weigh one pound. Since the density of lead is fixed, the only variable is the diameter of the lead ball.
So, a 12 gauge shotgun has a barrel with a diameter such that a lead ball which would just fit through, would weigh 1/12 of a pound. A 20 gauge's barrel diameter, each ball would weigh 0.05 pounds. And so forth.
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