38 Caliber - Super vs. Special

[allingeneral]

Many people don't understand that there is a difference between .38 Super and .38 Special cartridges until they try to use 38 Supers in their .38SPL. Since we don't accept returns on ammunition, this poses a problem when someone orders the wrong ammunition (I had this happen just today with .38 Super).

So, I did a little research to find the specific differences between the two.

.38 Super and .38 Special are NOT interchangeable!

.38 Special
Introduced in 1902 as a revolver cartridge by S&W
- Rimmed Casing
- Longer, thinner cartridge with a wider rim

.38 Super (Auto)
Semi auto cartridge introduced in 1929 by Colt. The .38 super is more powerful than the .38 special, and is mainly used in competitive shooting today chambered in 1911's or custom race guns.
- Rimless (or semi-rimless) Casing
- Higher pressures than .38 Special

Please see images below for specific dimensions.







The images above are linked from Steve's Reloading Pages at http://stevespages.com/page8d.htm.