38 special vs 9mm

The topic of 38 special in a tuned 1911 has been coming up more frequently lately. The 38 and 9mm round are almost identical from my understanding. Is the 38 special superior to 9mm? If so, in what ways?

Lower operating pressure than 9mm, better for lead

In the awld days 38 special wadcutter ammo was very good.  9mm wasn’t much more than blasting ammo.  9mm now is a better than it was and 38 Special isn’t as special as it was.  The market changed.

I have a 1911 38spl wad gun and I have a 1911 38 Super. The 38 Super is more forgiving to shoot then the 38spl and the recoil isn't as sharp as the 9mm. 
The only reason I own the 38spl is it was bought to compare to the 38 Super.
38 Super is also easier to find an accurate load for since the old school 38spl full wad cutter bullets that were used are no longer made since Star bullets closed up and Remington stopped making them. Yes there are other manufactures of the hollow base wadcutter, but none of them are as accurate at 50yds.

When using lead bullets I’ll take the 38 special in 1911. 9mm lead bullets have been hit or miss (mostly miss) and require higher velocities to group at 50. My 38s hbwc have always grouped better than 9mm lead. 9mm is finicky about brass at 50 yds. All Good Hits is only guy on this forum that has gotten 9mm lead to shoot half decent from what I can see.
Here’s a 50 yd target I shot with 4 yr old Winchester Super Match. New ammo shoots well in this 1911.
I’ll take a 38 special 1911 any day over a 9mm.
Jon

38spl 
Pros:
-soft shooting
-old school cool
Cons:
-ammo and component availability can be tricky, and people often struggle getting a load together
-magazines are significantly more costly
-"not as accurate" on paper than 9mm (for most people this is irrelevant)

9mm
Pros:
-In a built gun, extremely accurate. Sub 1" groups from a rest are common (not always the case though)
-Ammo and components can be found fairly easily and match grade factory options are available (economy of scale for 9mm)
Cons:
-Recoil is often described as sharp
-lead loads are more difficult (jacketed loads are more straight foreword)

End of the day either can shoot well if you do your part. Before looking at either option get the best 45 you can.

I shoot a 52-2 with old Winchester 148 wadcutter ammo from the 1980's.  It will hammer a 10 shot group into the X-ring all day long and is not bad at 50 yards.  38 wadcutter is subject to wind and drops more than 45acp or 9mm and requires better follow through to keep the gun on target.  

It is old school cool and fun to shoot.  It will punish you for not paying attention.