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.38 caliber is a frequently used name for the caliber of firearms and firearm cartridges.
The .38 is a large firearm cartridge (anything larger than .32 is considered a large caliber). [1] : 42 Before 1990, the standard sidearms of police in the United States were revolvers that fired the .38 Special cartridge, seconded by revolvers firing the .357 Magnum, a lengthened version of the .38 Special. [1] : 68
| Cartridge name | Bullet diameter | Case length | Cartridge length | Type | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| .380 ACP | .355 in (9.0 mm) | .680 in (17.3 mm) | .980 in (24.9 mm) | Rimless | Barnes[ who? ] 1997, p. 274 |
| .38 Casull | .356 in (9.0 mm) | .933 in (23.7 mm) | – | Rimless | [2] |
| .38 Short Colt | .357 in (9.1 mm) | .762 in (19.4 mm) | 1.052 in (26.7 mm) | Rimmed | Barnes 1997, p. 274 |
| .38 Long Colt | .357 in (9.1 mm) | 1.030 in (26.2 mm) | 1.320 in (33.5 mm) | Rimmed | Barnes 1997, p. 274 |
| .38 Special | .357 in (9.1 mm) | 1.15 in (29 mm) | 1.550 in (39.4 mm) | Rimmed | Barnes 1997, p. 274 |
| .38 ACP | .358 in (9.1 mm) | .900 in (22.9 mm) | 1.280 in (32.5 mm) | Semi-rimmed | Barnes 1997, p. 274 |
| .38 Super | .358 in (9.1 mm) | .900 in (22.9 mm) | 1.280 in (32.5 mm) | Semi-rimmed | Barnes 1997, p. 274 |
| .38 Super Comp | .355 in (9.0 mm) | .896 in (22.8 mm) | 1.280 in (32.5 mm) | Rimless | Starline cartridge dimensions |
| .38 S&W | .361 in (9.2 mm) | .780 in (19.8 mm) | 1.200 in (30.5 mm) | Rimmed | Barnes 1997, p. 274 |
| .380 Revolver Short | .375 in (9.5 mm) | 0.700 in (17.8 mm) | 1.100 in (27.9 mm) | Rimmed | Barnes 1997, p. 274 |
| .380 Revolver Long | .375 in (9.5 mm) | 1.000 in (25.4 mm) | 1.400 in (35.6 mm) | Rimmed | Barnes 1997, p. 274 |
| .38-40 Winchester | .401 in (10.2 mm) | 1.300 in (33.0 mm) | 1.590 in (40.4 mm) | Rimmed | Barnes 1997, p. 92 |
A revolver is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers for firing. Because most revolver models hold up to six cartridges, before needing to be reloaded, revolvers are commonly called six shooters.
The .38 Special, also commonly known as .38 S&W Special, .38 Smith & Wesson Special, .38 Spl, .38 Spc, or 9x29mmR is a rimmed, centerfire cartridge designed by Smith & Wesson.
The Colt Single Action Army is a single-action revolver handgun. It was designed for the U.S. government service revolver trials of 1872 by Colt's Patent Firearms Manufacturing Company and was adopted as the standard-issued pistol of the U.S. Army from 1873 until 1892.
The .40 S&W (10.2x21mm) is a rimless pistol cartridge developed jointly by American firearms manufacturers Smith & Wesson and Winchester in 1990. The .40 S&W was developed as a law enforcement cartridge designed to duplicate performance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) reduced-velocity 10mm Auto cartridge which could be retrofitted into medium-frame semi-automatic handguns. It uses 0.40-inch (10 mm) diameter bullets ranging in weight from 105 to 200 grains.
The .357 Smith & Wesson Magnum, .357 S&W Magnum, .357 Magnum, or 9×33mmR is a smokeless powder cartridge with a 0.357 in (9.07 mm) bullet diameter. It was created by Elmer Keith, Phillip B. Sharpe, and Douglas B. Wesson of firearm manufacturers Smith & Wesson and Winchester. The .357 Magnum cartridge is notable for its highly effective terminal ballistics.
A rim-fire is a type of metallic cartridge used in firearms, where the primer is located within a hollow circumferential rim protruding from the base of its casing. When fired, the gun's firing pin will strike and crush the rim against the edge of the barrel breech, sparking the primer compound within the rim, and in turn ignite the propellant within the case. Invented in 1845, by Louis-Nicolas Flobert, the first rimfire metallic cartridge was the .22 BB Cap cartridge, which consisted of a percussion cap with a bullet attached to the top. While many other different cartridge priming methods have been tried since the early 19th century, such as teat-fire and pinfire, only small caliber rimfire and centerfire cartridges have survived to the present day with regular use. The .22 Long Rifle rimfire cartridge, introduced in 1887, is by far the most common ammunition found in the world today in terms of units manufactured and sold.
The .45 Colt (11.43×33mmR), is a rimmed, straight-walled, handgun cartridge dating to 1872. It was originally a black-powder revolver round developed for the Colt Single Action Army revolver. This cartridge was adopted by the U.S. Army in 1873 and served as an official US military handgun cartridge for 19 years, before being replaced by the .38 Long Colt in 1892.
The .38 Long Colt, also known as .38 LC, is a black powder cartridge introduced by Colt's Manufacturing Company in 1875. In 1892, it was adopted as a standard military pistol cartridge by the United States Army for the Colt M1892 revolver. The metric designation for the .38 Long Colt is 9.1×26mm. It is slightly more powerful than the .38 Short Colt, also known as .38 SC. The original .38 SC and .38 LC differ in case length, bullet diameter, weight, and design and are not interchangeable; however, modern production .38 SC ammunition is now loaded with a smaller, internally-lubricated bullet which can be fired from firearms chambered in .38 LC or .38 Special. The modern .38 LC can be fired from .38 Special firearm, but not from a firearm designed for the .38 SC, since the case length is too long.
The .44 Remington Magnum, also known as .44 Magnum or 10.9x33mmR, is a rimmed, large-bore cartridge originally designed for revolvers and quickly adopted for carbines and rifles. Despite the ".44" designation, guns chambered for the .44 Magnum round, its parent case, the .44 Special, and its parent case, the .44 Russian all use 0.429 in (10.9 mm) diameter bullets. The .44 Magnum is based on the .44 Special case but lengthened and loaded to higher pressures for greater velocity and energy.
The .44 Smith & Wesson Special, also commonly known as .44 S&W Special, .44 Special, .44 Spl, .44 Spc, or 10.9×29mmR, is a smokeless powder center fire metallic revolver cartridge developed by Smith & Wesson in 1907 as the standard chambering for their New Century revolver, introduced in 1908.
The .41 Remington Magnum, also known as .41 Magnum or 10.4×33mmR, is a center fire firearms cartridge primarily developed for use in large-frame revolvers, introduced in 1964 by the Remington Arms Company, intended for hunting and law enforcement purposes.
The .32 S&W Long, also known as 7.65x23mm, is a straight-walled, centerfire, rimmed handgun cartridge, based on the earlier .32 S&W cartridge. It was introduced in 1896 for Smith & Wesson's first-model Hand Ejector revolver. Colt called it the .32 Colt New Police in revolvers it made chambered for the cartridge.
A wildcat cartridge, often shortened to wildcat, is a custom cartridge for which ammunition and/or firearms are not mass-produced. These cartridges are often created in order to optimize a certain performance characteristic of an existing commercial cartridge, or may merely be intended as novelty items.
A heeled bullet is a bullet that is necked-down at its base to allow a projectile the full internal diameter of a gun barrel to fit in a cartridge case of the same or narrower dimension. Heeled bullets mostly disappeared with the advent of smokeless powder cartridges, though older rimfire designs, such as the .22 caliber cartridges, still use heeled bullets, and many cartridges that date back to the black powder era still reflect their heeled bullet origins in their caliber designations.
Overpressure ammunition, commonly designated as +P or +P+, is small arms ammunition that has been loaded to produce a higher internal pressure when fired than is standard for ammunition of its caliber, but less than the pressures generated by a proof round. This is done typically to produce ammunition with higher muzzle velocity, muzzle energy, and stopping power, such as ammunition used for security, defensive, or hunting purposes. Because of this, +P ammunition is typically found in handgun calibers which might be used for paramilitary forces, armed security, and defensive purposes.
A snubnosed revolver is a small, medium, or large frame revolver with a short barrel, generally less than 4 inches in length. Smaller such revolvers are often made with "bobbed" or "shrouded" hammers and there are also "hammerless" models ; the point is to allow the gun to be drawn with little risk of it snagging on clothing. Since the external movement of the mechanism is minimal or nil, shrouded and hammerless models may be fired from within clothing. The design of these revolvers compromises range and accuracy at a distance in favor of maneuverability and ease of carry and concealment.
A handgun is a firearm designed to be usable with only one hand. It is distinguished from a long gun which needs to be held by both hands and braced against the shoulder. Handguns have shorter effective ranges compared to long guns, and are much harder to shoot accurately. While most early handguns are single-shot pistols, the two most common types of handguns used in modern times are revolvers and semi-automatic pistols, although other handguns such as derringers and machine pistols also see infrequent usage.
The Colt Police Positive is a small-frame, double-action revolver featuring a six-round cylinder, chambered for either .32 or .38 caliber. A .22 caliber model was also offered. Designed primarily for sale to federal, state, or local law enforcement agencies, the Police Positive was introduced into the firearms market by Colt's Manufacturing Company in 1905.
The Colt New Service is a large frame, large caliber, double-action revolver made by Colt from 1898 until 1941. Made in various calibers, the .45 Colt version with a 5½" barrel, was adopted by the U.S. Armed Forces as the Model 1909.
The Colt New Line was a single action pocket revolver introduced by the Colt's Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing Company in 1873.