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Handgun Ammo

.38 Special Ammo

In stock from $0.50 / round · 13 of 20 products available now

Mild, accurate and made by everyone, and safe in every .357 Magnum ever built, which makes it the cheapest way to practise with a magnum revolver.

In stock today

Cost per round
$0.50 to $1.62
9 Brands
CCI, DoubleTap, Federal, Fiocchi, Hornady, PMC, Remington, Speer, Underwood
Bullet weights
90, 110, 125, 130, 132, 158 grain
Pack sizes
20, 25, 50, 200, 500, 1,000 rounds
Learn more about .38 Special

At a glance

Also known as
.38 Spl, .38 S&W Special, 9x29mmR
Common bullet weights
110, 125, 148 and 158 grain
Typical use
Revolver practice, snub-nose carry, bullseye and cowboy action
Before you buy
+P is fine in modern guns. Check the manual before feeding it to an alloy airweight or a pre-war revolver
Age to purchase
21+ (the federal licensed-dealer minimum for ammunition suitable for a handgun, applied as TAS policy)

.38 Special has been in continuous production since 1898 and is still the round most people mean when they say "revolver". It is mild, it is accurate, it is made by everyone, and it shoots comfortably in guns ranging from a twelve-ounce airweight snub to a heavy target revolver. It is also the practice ammunition for every .357 Magnum ever built, since a .357 chamber will safely take a .38 Special cartridge, a piece of built-in flexibility that no other common handgun pairing offers.

What to know before buyingCommon questions

.38 Special loads compared

Manufacturer-published figures for the .38 Special we stock, each with the page it was read from. Muzzle velocity is measured in a test barrel and differs from what your firearm produces. Ordered by published velocity, highest first. These are not measured the same way. Some of these manufacturers publish the test barrel and some do not, so two velocities here can come from different barrel lengths. Compare rows with the same stated barrel and treat the rest as approximate.

LoadGrainMuzzle velocityMuzzle energyTest barrelPriceSource
Hornady HORNADY CRITICAL DEFENSE LITE 38 SPECIAL AMMO 90GR FTX 25RD BOX901,200 fps288 ft-lb4 infrom $1.17/rdhornady.com
Hornady HORNADY CRITICAL DEFENSE 38 SPECIAL +P AMMO 110GR FTX 25RD BOX1101,090 fps290 ft-lb4 in ventedfrom $1.18/rdhornady.com
Remington REMINGTON HTP 38 SPECIAL +P AMMO 125GR SJHP 20RD BOX125945 fps248 ft-lbnot publishedfrom $0.96/rdremington.com
PMC PMC 38 SPECIAL AMMO 132GR FMJ BRASS CASED 50RD BOX132917 fps232 ft-lbnot publishedfrom $0.50/rdpmcammo.com
Hornady HORNADY AMERICAN GUNNER 38 SPECIAL AMMO 125GR XTP 25RD BOX125900 fps225 ft-lb4 in ventedfrom $0.85/rdhornady.com
Magtech Magtech 38 Special +P AMMO 158 gr Semi-Jacketed Hollow Point (SJHP) 38H 50RD BOX158886 fps275 ft-lb4 in ventedout of stockmagtechammunition.com
Speer 38 Special - Speer Lawman 125 Grain Total Metal Jacket Ammo (53733)- 50 Round Box125865 fps208 ft-lbnot publishedfrom $0.50/rdspeer.com
CCI CCI BLAZER 38 SPECIAL AMMO 125GR PLATED FMJ BRASS CASED 50RD BOX125865 fps208 ft-lbnot publishedfrom $0.52/rdcci-ammunition.com
Federal FEDERAL TRAIN+PROTECT 38 SPECIAL AMMO 158GR LHP BRASS CASED 50RD BOX158830 fps242 ft-lb4 in ventedout of stockfederalpremium.com

Only loads whose figures we have read from the manufacturer appear here. A load we stock but have not sourced is absent rather than shown blank, because an empty row reads as a worse product rather than an unfinished one.

Before you buy

What to know about .38 Special

What people buy it for

  • Snub-nose concealed carry
  • Bullseye and precision revolver competition
  • Low-recoil practice in a .357 Magnum revolver
  • New shooters learning a double-action trigger
  • Cowboy action and vintage revolvers

Wadcutters are not just a target curiosity

A full wadcutter is a flush-seated cylinder of lead that punches clean round holes in paper, and it is the traditional bullseye load for good reason: very low recoil and excellent accuracy. It has a second life in lightweight snub-nose revolvers, where its mildness and full-diameter frontal area make it a serious option for people who cannot manage +P recoil. Some revolvers with tight chamber throats can be fussy about seating them; try a box.

+P and light-frame revolvers

.38 Special +P is a defined higher-pressure loading and most modern steel-framed revolvers handle it without complaint. Very light alloy and scandium-framed guns, and any older revolver of uncertain vintage, deserve a look at the manual first. Even where +P is permitted, it is punishing to shoot in a twelve-ounce gun, which is an argument for practising with standard-pressure ammunition.

Lead bullets, and keeping the cylinder clean

A great deal of cheap .38 is plain lead round nose, which is why it is cheap. It shoots fine and it fouls more than jacketed ammunition, particularly in the barrel throat. Some indoor ranges restrict unjacketed lead for air quality. Plated and jacketed loads cost a little more and keep things tidier.

Barrel length changes everything

The same box of .38 behaves quite differently from a two-inch snub and a six-inch target barrel: noticeably less velocity, much more muzzle flash and blast from the short gun. Defensive ammunition designed for short barrels is a real category, not marketing, and it is worth buying deliberately if you carry a snub.

Questions

Common questions

Can I shoot .38 Special in a .357 Magnum revolver?

Yes, and it is one of the most useful facts in handgunning: the .357 Magnum is a lengthened .38 Special case, so the shorter round chambers and fires safely. The reverse is not true: .357 Magnum must never be fired in a .38 Special revolver. One caution: shooting a lot of short .38 cases in a longer .357 chamber leaves a carbon ring ahead of the case mouth, and if you do not scrub it out, .357 cases can become hard to seat. Clean the chambers properly.

Is +P .38 Special safe in my revolver?

In a modern steel-framed revolver, almost always. In an alloy or scandium airweight, check the manual: some are rated for it and some are rated for a limited quantity of it. In any revolver made before the +P designation existed, or of unknown history, have a gunsmith look at it. When the manual is silent, standard pressure is the safe default.

What is a wadcutter, and why would I want one?

A flat-fronted bullet seated flush with the case mouth so it cuts a clean, easily scored hole in a paper target. It is loaded very mildly, which makes it superbly accurate and extremely pleasant to shoot: the traditional choice for bullseye competition, and a genuine option for anyone who finds full-power .38 hard to control.

Is .38 Special the same as .38 S&W or .38 Super?

No. .38 S&W is a shorter, fatter, much older cartridge for top-break revolvers and is not interchangeable. .38 Super is a semi-automatic pistol cartridge entirely. If a revolver is marked .38 S&W, .38 Special will not chamber correctly in it. Check the barrel marking, not the box.

How much does .38 Special cost per round?

.38 Special runs from $0.50 to $1.62 per round in stock right now. Every price on the page carries its cost per round beside it, so the comparison is one glance rather than arithmetic.

Is it cheaper to buy .38 Special by the case?

Usually, yes. We stock .38 Special from 20 rounds up to 1,000, and the cost per round beside each price is what shows whether a particular case actually beats the box. It is not automatic: a discounted box sometimes wins.

Which brands of .38 Special do you stock?

CCI, DoubleTap, Federal, Fiocchi, Hornady, PMC, Remington, Speer and Underwood are in stock in .38 Special today. Stock changes as the feed runs, so the list on the page is the current one.

What bullet weights does .38 Special come in?

The .38 Special in stock runs 90, 110, 125, 130, 132, 158 grain. Weight changes how the round feels and where it prints more than most shooters expect, so it is worth matching what you already shoot.

How much energy does .38 Special carry?

The .38 Special loads we have manufacturer figures for run 208 to 290 ft-lb at the muzzle. Those are the manufacturers' own published numbers, each linked to the page it was read from, and they are measured in test barrels that are not always the same length.

Is .38 Special in stock?

13 of the 20 .38 Special products we list are in stock right now. Out of stock items stay on the page rather than disappearing, so a link you saved still works and you can see what normally sits here.

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