Buffalo Bore 38 S&W 125gr Hard Cast – Effective Modern Revolver Load

Description

Read this first: 38 S&W is not 38 Special. They are different cartridges with different case dimensions and different bullet diameters, and they are not interchangeable in either direction. If you came here looking for 38 Special, this is the wrong page. The Buffalo Bore 38 S&W 125gr Hard Cast is a 125 grain hard cast flat nose at 1050 fps, roughly 306 ft-lbs, loaded at the upper end of SAAMI specification for the cartridge. Twenty rounds per box, item 20.5A/20.

• Buffalo Bore 38 S&W 125gr Hard Cast Overview
• 38 S&W Hard Cast Ammo Ballistics
• Why The 125 Grain Flat Nose Defense Bullet Suits This Cartridge
• Specifications
• Which Revolvers This Modern 38 Smith And Wesson Load Suits

Buffalo Bore 38 S&W 125gr Hard Cast Overview

The 38 S&W dates to 1877 and is shorter and fatter than the 38 Special that followed it. Its bullet runs about 0.361 of an inch against the 0.357 used by 38 Special, and the case is wider. A 38 S&W cartridge will not chamber properly in a 38 Special revolver and should never be forced into one.

The bullet here is cast from a hard alloy with a flat nose, so it does not deform on impact. There is no expansion to rely on, which is a sensible design choice in a cartridge with very little velocity to spare, and the flat meplat cuts a full calibre hole rather than sliding through.

Buffalo Bore loads the Buffalo Bore 38 S&W 125gr Hard Cast at the top of the SAAMI specification using modern smokeless powder. That is a meaningful step up from the mild commercial 38 S&W ammunition available elsewhere, and it is also the reason the firearm notes below matter.

38 S&W Hard Cast Ammo Ballistics

1050 fps with a 125 grain bullet works out to roughly 306 ft-lbs. Typical commercial 38 S&W ammunition uses a 145 or 146 grain round nose at around 685 fps, which produces about 151 ft-lbs, so this is roughly double the energy.

That comparison is the reason the load exists. Standard 38 S&W is genuinely feeble by any modern measure, and doubling its energy while keeping inside the published pressure specification is a rare thing to be able to do to an old cartridge.

Here is the part that surprises people. At 306 ft-lbs this actually exceeds Buffalo Bore’s own standard pressure 38 Special loads, which run 241 to 253 ft-lbs. The 38 S&W case is short but it is also fat, and given a modern powder and a hard bullet it is not the poor relation its reputation suggests. 38 S&W hard cast ammo loaded this way is a genuinely capable small cartridge.

Why The 125 Grain Flat Nose Defense Bullet Suits This Cartridge

Hard cast is the right answer in a cartridge like this, and the reasoning is simple. Expansion costs penetration, and at 1050 fps there is not enough velocity in hand to pay for both. A bullet that does not deform keeps all of its weight and all of its frontal area and simply keeps going.

The flat nose is what makes that depth useful rather than merely deep. A round nose of the same weight, which is what almost all commercial 38 S&W uses, tends to push tissue aside and leave a narrow track. A 125 grain flat nose defense bullet crushes and cuts a full calibre hole.

Choosing 125 grains rather than the traditional 145 or 146 is deliberate. The lighter bullet is what allows the velocity, and in a cartridge this small, speed is what turns a 125 grain flat nose defense bullet from a curiosity into something worth carrying.

For the right owner this is a real upgrade. If you have a sound solid frame revolver in 38 S&W and you want it to be more than a range novelty, this solid frame revolver ammunition doubles what the gun produces without stepping outside the published pressure specification.

Specifications

Which Revolvers This Modern 38 Smith And Wesson Load Suits

Do not use this in a top break revolver. Buffalo Bore states plainly that they do not recommend it in Smith and Wesson top break revolvers, and they also exclude Merwin and Hulbert 38 M&H pistols. A great many 38 S&W guns are antique top breaks from the black powder era, and those are not candidates for a load at the top of the modern pressure specification.

Solid frame revolvers in sound condition are what a modern 38 Smith and Wesson load like this is for. If you are not certain which category your gun falls into, or how old it is, have a gunsmith look at it before you shoot anything heavier than mild commercial ammunition through it. That advice is not a formality with guns of this age.

Never try to use 38 S&W in a 38 Special revolver or the reverse. The cases and bullets differ in diameter, and forcing the wrong cartridge into a chamber is a genuine safety problem rather than a fit issue.

Expect more recoil than the mild commercial ammunition you are used to. At double the usual energy this is noticeably livelier in a small old revolver, though still modest by modern standards. Shoot a box of it before you rely on it.

Solid Frame Revolver Ammunition Availability

This solid frame revolver ammunition is in stock and ready to ship from MAG5 Firearms, a family owned FFL dealer in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. Ammunition orders ship to most states, and local customers are welcome to pick up in the shop. If you need case quantities of this modern 38 Smith and Wesson load, or your revolver turns out to be chambered in 38 Special, call us and we will point you at the right box.

Manufacturer details are on the Buffalo Bore site. If your revolver is actually chambered in 38 Special, the loads you want are the 38 Special 150gr wadcutter or the 38 Special 158gr SWC-HC. You can also browse our full ammunition selection.