Giles .38 super question

I recently acquired a Giles .38 super.  Or so I thought.  My question is, will a .38 was cutter chamber in a .38 super gun?  The gun was marketed as a super, but while I was waiting on reloading components to come in, I tried a wadcutter and it dropped right in up to the rim. Took to the range and cleaned a 25 yard target.  I know that Giles would mark a .38 super barrel he had converted with a notch in the hood, but this doesn’t have that notch.  I’m fine either way, but don’t want to beat up the gun with hotter super loads of this now a wadcutter gun.

If it was chambered for a 38Super, the 38 Wadcutter round would not and should not chamber.  So what you have is a 38 Wadcutter pistol.

Greetings,

Sounds like you have a Giles 38 Wad Gun.

Congratulations!!!

Perhaps a photo?

Look at the rear of the barrel. You should be able to see the sleeve brazed into the chamber if the barrel hood is marked "38 Super".

Cheers,

Dave

The Giles pistols I’ve seen have not had a notch cut in the barrel.
Jon

Great!  I appreciate the help!  And now I have to find a .38 super so I can use all the components I have !

My Giles .38 Special conversion does not have a notch in the barrel............

If you should decide to sell it, let me know..........

Ric

hamdenman wrote:Great!  I appreciate the help!  And now I have to find a .38 super so I can use all the components I have !

An inexpensive way is a 9mm 1911, like a SA range officer, and one of those $40 sig 1911 .38 super barrels.

If a 38 special slides behind the extractor, then it is a 38 special wad gun.  A 38spl rim is .440" while a super is .400".  If the 1.155" 38spl case fit in the 38super .895" chamber, I would also be surprised.

I thought that the 357 and 38 special are tapered case and 38 super and 9mm are straight case, so a super or 9 will fit only quarter way into special and 357 chamber. At the same time 38 special and 357 are longer and would not fit depth wise into super and 9mm chambers. This makes 38 special and 357 nterchangeable in 357 (longer) cut chamber. By same token 9mm and 38 super interchangeable in 38 super cut chamber (9mm held by extractor, actually works fine).

9mm is tapered.

I have a mint 9MM range officer with trigger work done and five or six Mags.
I do want a 38 Special 1911.
Possibly we can work out a deal if your not attached to the Giles gun?

G

.38 special and .357 mag are straight wall also

I’m actually glad it’s a .38 special.  I already have loads worked up for it.  It shoots so nicely, I’ve got to play with it some more!  I’ve been collecting the guns made by the masters in the 60’s and 70’s. Such skill. No CNC, just time and ingenuity!

I don't know about what's tapered or not, but you can't put 9mm or 38 super into the special or 357 chamber more than quarter way. Must be more (?) tapered. I sure tried ))

Tripscape wrote:I thought that the 357 and 38 special are tapered case and 38 super and 9mm are straight case, so a super or 9 will fit only quarter way into special and 357 chamber. At the same time 38 special and 357 are longer and would not fit depth wise into super and 9mm chambers. This makes 38 special and 357 nterchangeable in 357 (longer) cut chamber. By same token 9mm and 38 super interchangeable in 38 super cut chamber (9mm held by extractor, actually works fine).

38 Special, 38 super and 357 mag are all strait wall cases. 9mm is the odd man out here, being tapered.  

Of these four, they should all only be chambered in their own respective cartridges' barrels or cylinders, with the (general) exception of 38spl in 357mag.

The use of 9mm in 38 super is not something I would advise. Perhaps you are thinking of 40sw&w in 10mm - those at least have same dimensions and are strait cases but for the case length. The 38 super rim is different than 9mm, so the "headspace off the extractor" approach I don't believe is valid or advisable even if the 9mm happens to fit in a particular 38super barrel.

For clarification I have 38 super comp, which should be same as super except for the same rim as 9mm. 9mm para shoots beautifully out of it, cycles ok even with a native super spring. Accuracy is exactly the same with hardly any noticeable ballistic difference at 25 yards. No barrel ring erosion, no terrible build up. I use both calibers quite interchangeably. 

I don't understand how 38 special and 357 can be straight walled when both 38 super and 9mm fit only part way. They either would or not, unless there is a taper.

Just for clarification, your shooting 9mm para in a .38 super comp barrel???

38/357 and 9mm are about the same diameter at case mouth. The 9mm is bigger at the rim end. So that is why it goes part way in a 38/357 chamber but not all the way.

james r chapman wrote:Just for clarification, your shooting 9mm para in a .38 super comp barrel???

Correct. Very successfully

toddcfii wrote:38/357 and 9mm are about the same diameter at case mouth. The 9mm is bigger at the rim end. So that is why it goes part way in a 38/357 chamber but not all the way.

Ahhh, that makes sense.

To add, I really really do need to get a digital caliper ))

I once bought a Floyd’s Aikman 1911 in 38 super( or so the auctioneer thought it was) for a rock bottom price, he just saw it marked as a 38 super with Bomar sights and tiger tooth stippling, I knew it was a 38 special before I won it at 500 dollars, it pays to be informed.