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57K · November 3, 2013, 06:01 PM

There is definitely a SAAMI spec for .38 Sp. +P. The Standard pressure Max. was 17,000 PSI last time I checked with +P rated 18,500 PSI. There may have been a change to the +P Max. and Ramshot currently shows data for .38 Sp. +P up to 20,000 PSI.

I agree with Nick_C_S that the main difference between standard .38 Sp. and .38 Sp. +P brass is the headstamp on the case-rim. And of course there are variations in case-wall thickness among different brands of brass, but that's the situation with almost all brands of handgun cartridge brass. Personally, I agree with the wisdom of loading +P loads in .38 Sp. +P brass for easy identification.

I've gone a step further with some experimental loads I called .357 Short Magnum. Some reloaders believe that .357 brass is just elongated .38 Sp. brass, but it's not that simple. Because of having an abundance of Remington 9mm 124 gr. JHPs some years back I made a number of loads with them using .38 Sp., .38 Sp. +P and .357 Magnum brass trimmed to .38 Sp. case-length. The only case that would provide adequate case-neck tension on the 9mm bullets, without taking additional steps in reloading like using an undersized expander, was the .357 Magnum brass trimmed to .38 Sp. length. and I used a sperate REDDING 9mm Taper Crimp die for the crimp. There was no difference between .38 Sp. and .38 Sp. +P brass. So at .38 Sp. length, the .357 Magnum cases are indeed thicker. These loads were only used in .357 MAGNUM reolvers and specifically for S&W short barrelled K-Frames with short ejector rods and 7 shot .357 Magnum revolvers that gave sticky extraction with full length, full power .357 Magum loads, i.e. Taurus Tracker. I liked using the trimmed .357 Magnum brass for the obvious reasons and the fact that they were headstamped .357 Magnum. Later I went back to using Rem. 125 & 140 gr. .357" SJHPs, but accuracy using the 9mm 124 gr. JHPs was pretty decent for defense type loads and it shed some light on the various case-wall thicknesses between .38 Sp., .38 Sp. +P and trimmed down .357 Magnum brass.

November 3, 2013, 06:01 PM	#10
57K Junior member Join Date: March 2, 2013 Location: Heart of Texas Posts: 788	There is definitely a SAAMI spec for .38 Sp. +P. The Standard pressure Max. was 17,000 PSI last time I checked with +P rated 18,500 PSI. There may have been a change to the +P Max. and Ramshot currently shows data for .38 Sp. +P up to 20,000 PSI. I agree with Nick_C_S that the main difference between standard .38 Sp. and .38 Sp. +P brass is the headstamp on the case-rim. And of course there are variations in case-wall thickness among different brands of brass, but that's the situation with almost all brands of handgun cartridge brass. Personally, I agree with the wisdom of loading +P loads in .38 Sp. +P brass for easy identification. I've gone a step further with some experimental loads I called .357 Short Magnum. Some reloaders believe that .357 brass is just elongated .38 Sp. brass, but it's not that simple. Because of having an abundance of Remington 9mm 124 gr. JHPs some years back I made a number of loads with them using .38 Sp., .38 Sp. +P and .357 Magnum brass trimmed to .38 Sp. case-length. The only case that would provide adequate case-neck tension on the 9mm bullets, without taking additional steps in reloading like using an undersized expander, was the .357 Magnum brass trimmed to .38 Sp. length. and I used a sperate REDDING 9mm Taper Crimp die for the crimp. There was no difference between .38 Sp. and .38 Sp. +P brass. So at .38 Sp. length, the .357 Magnum cases are indeed thicker. These loads were only used in .357 MAGNUM reolvers and specifically for S&W short barrelled K-Frames with short ejector rods and 7 shot .357 Magnum revolvers that gave sticky extraction with full length, full power .357 Magum loads, i.e. Taurus Tracker. I liked using the trimmed .357 Magnum brass for the obvious reasons and the fact that they were headstamped .357 Magnum. Later I went back to using Rem. 125 & 140 gr. .357" SJHPs, but accuracy using the 9mm 124 gr. JHPs was pretty decent for defense type loads and it shed some light on the various case-wall thicknesses between .38 Sp., .38 Sp. +P and trimmed down .357 Magnum brass.