shooter.177cal wrote:By checking dimensions of .38 Spl and " .380 " I found that .38 Spl weapon especially revolver can very easily fire .380. ( although any aid is not required but spraying some paint in chamber can make the repetitive firing of .380 efficient )
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If you talk about pressures generated in these ammo, then what about .380 low pressure loading, it is technically still a .380 ..
shooter.177cal:
You will need to go back and check the dimensions of .380 and .38 Special again. Please note:
Please note from this, that the .380 (otherwise known as the 38 Smith and Wesson; the designations .380 and 38-200 denote a British adaptation that included loads with different bullet weights. If you want to know more about this, please read the Wikis on these topics.) is shorter and fatter than the .38 Special.
Part of your confusion might be that .380 is ".38 Smith & Wesson," and .38 Special is actually ".38 Smith & Wesson Special." This may lead you to believe that the .38 Special is a suped up or hotter .38 Smith & Wesson. This is not the case.
Part of the confusion is that Colt would name their .38 S&W-derived loadings as a Colt cartridge. Even though the rounds would be interchangeable, with only a bullet of different shape and/or weight, the name of the cartridge would be changed from S&W to Colt.
However, when Smith & Wesson developed the .38 Special, they did not develop it from the .38 S&W. but instead from the .38 Colt Long, which was a cartridge of similar size, but actually smaller in diameter. Also, where the .38 S&W uses a .361" diameter bullet, the .38 Special bullet is .357" in diameter. Look at the two pictures above, and you will see how even though the rim diameters are the same, the bodies of the cases differ.
This is because the US Army used the Colt M1892 DA Revolver chambered in .38 Colt Long to replace the old 45 Colt Single Action Army (or, "Peacemaker") in Army service. However, when fighting the Moro tribesmen in the Philippines at the turn of the century, the Army found the .38 Long Colt lacking in power. Smith & Wesson, hoping to cash in on Army service revolver contracts, modified the .38 Long Colt cartridge, rather than their own .38 S&W, for more power. You can see this from the operating pressures of the two cartridges: the .38 S&W operates at 14,500 psi, where the .38 Special operates at 17,000 psi.
For comparison of the sizes, consult this picture:
Now, for chambering:
The .380 revolver should not chamber a .38 Special cartridge. The .38 Special cartridge will enter the .380 cylinder, but there is a ridge and narrower part of the 380 chamber that is closer to bullet diameter -- which is too small to accept the longer .38 Special case that measures .379" diameter. You may be able to force a .38 Special into a .380 cylinder, but it still is not safe to fire. If you can force it in, either the cylinder is badly worn, or it has been reamed out by someone to accept the .38 Special cartridge. The 380 revolver is not made to accept the higher pressure cartridge, and the case is smaller in diameter and will surely bulge, and perhaps split if fired. So it is unsafe to attempt to shoot a .38 Special in a .380 revolver.
Then, a 380 cartridge should be too large in diameter to chamber in a 38 Special revolver. However, you might find a 38 Special revolver that has a chamber either worn or sloppy that will permit the chambering of the 380 cartridge. This is still unsafe to do! Even though you might be able to push the 380 cartridge into the 28 Special chamber, note that it will be very tight. The chamber has to be cut larger than the cartridge so that, when fired, the cartridge can expand a thousandth or two so the bullet can come out of the crimped end of the cartridge. If the chamber is so tight, the cartridge mouth cannot expand and the pressures will rise very high, because the bullet can't come out of the cartridge easily. This is dangerous, as well.
So, the bottom line is, only someone foolish will try to fire a .38 Special cartridge in a 380 revolver, and only someone foolish will try to fire a 380 cartridge in a 38 Special revolver.
The PB/NPB issue is meant to keep military arms out of the hands of civilians, a policy inherited from the British rule. This subject has been addressed many times here.
Since the 38 Special is not a military round and since you are not supposed to use 380 ammunition in it (because it is unsafe, if it is even possible), this is where your confusion regarding the PB/NPB designations for the 380 and 38 Special lie.
