View source for .38 Long Colt

{{Short description|Revolver cartridge}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2013}}
{{Infobox firearm cartridge
|name= .38 Long Colt
|image=38 long colt.jpg | image_size = 200px
|caption=
|origin= United States
|type= Revolver
<!-- Service history -->
|service= 1892–1909
|used_by=[[United States Army]]
|wars=
<!-- Production history -->
|designer= Colt
|design_date=
|manufacturer=Colt
|production_date=1875
|number=
|variants=
<!-- Specifications -->
|is_SI_specs=
|parent = [[.38 Short Colt]]
|case_type = Rimmed, straight
|bullet=.357
|neck=.381
|shoulder=
|base=.381
|rim_dia=.445
|rim_thick=.060
|case_length=1.031
|length=1.360 in (34.54 mm)
|rifling=
|primer=
|max_pressure = 13000
|pressure_method = CIP
<!-- Ballistic performance -->
|is_SI_ballistics=
|bw1=125
|btype1=LRN
|vel1=772
|en1=165
|bw2=150
|btype2=LRN
|vel2=777
|en2=201
|bw3=
|btype3=
|vel3=
|en3=
|bw4=
|btype4=
|vel4=
|en4=
|bw5=
|btype5=
|vel5=
|en5=
|test_barrel_length=
|balsrc= Hodgdon Reloading Data Center<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.hodgdonreloading.com/data/pistol |title=Hodgdon Reloading Data Center |access-date=February 17, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190218081829/http://www.hodgdonreloading.com/data/pistol |archive-date=February 18, 2019 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> 
}}
The '''.38 Long Colt''', also known as '''.38 LC''', is a [[black powder]] centerfire [[Cartridge (firearms)|cartridge]] introduced by [[Colt's Manufacturing Company]] in 1875. In 1892, it was adopted as a standard military pistol cartridge by the [[United States Army]] for the [[Colt M1892]] revolver.  The metric designation for the .38 Long Colt is 9.1×26mm. It is slightly more powerful than the [[.38 Short Colt]], also known as .38 SC. The original .38 SC and .38 LC differ in case length, bullet diameter, weight, and design and are not interchangeable; however, modern production .38 SC ammunition is now loaded with a smaller, internally-lubricated bullet which can be fired from firearms chambered in .38 LC or [[.38 Special]]. The ''modern'' .38 LC can be fired from a .38 Special firearm, but not from a firearm designed for the .38 SC, since the case length is too long.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Other .38's: Short, Long and Everything in Between|url=https://www.guns.com/news/2011/08/25/the-other-38s-short-long-and-everything-in-between|access-date=2020-11-25|website=Guns.com|language=en}}</ref>

==Design and ballistics==
[[File:.38 Long Colt U.S. Army ball cartridge diagram.jpg|thumb|left|Diagram of .38 Long Colt U.S. Army "ball cartridge", with dimensions in inches.]]
The .38 Long Colt's predecessor, the [[.38 Short Colt]], used a [[heeled bullet]] of {{convert|130|gr|g}} at a nominal {{convert|770|ft/s|m/s|abbr=on}}, producing {{convert|165|ft·lbf|J|abbr=on}} [[muzzle energy]]. The cylindrical "shank" or "bearing surface" of the bullet, just in front of the cartridge case mouth, was {{convert|.374|or|.375|in|mm|2|abbr=on}} in diameter, the same as the outside diameter of the cartridge case (as in [[.22 Long Rifle|.22 rimfire]] cartridges). A smaller-diameter portion of the bullet, the "heel", was crimped inside the case mouth, and the lubricant was outside the case, and exposed.{{efn|This practice evolved as a way to convert cap-and-ball .36 caliber [[Colt 1851 Navy Revolver|Navy revolvers]], which had cylindrical or single-diameter "charge holes", or firing chambers, into cartridge arms.}}

In contrast, the .38 Long Colt uses a bullet which on the outside of the cartridge case is only {{convert|.357|–|.358|in|mm|2|abbr=on}}, the bearing surface and lubricant being entirely contained within the case. This kept the waxy lubricant from collecting grit which can damage the revolver's barrel. Colt, however, retained the single-diameter charge hole, resulting in the bullet failing to form a seal as it traveled through the chamber throat. This seal was expected to cause the bullet to expand in the throat and be "[[Swaging#Firearms|swaged down]]", or reduced again in diameter, as it entered the barrel, but uneven expansion produced poor accuracy.

In the [[United States Army]]'s original black-powder cartridge used by the [[Colt M1892]] revolver, muzzle velocity from the revolver's {{convert|6|in|mm|adj=mid|-long}} barrel with bore diameter {{convert|.363|in|mm|abbr=on}} ({{convert|.369|in|mm|abbr=on}} groove diameter) was {{convert|708|ft/s|m/s|abbr=on}} with a bullet weighing {{convert|150|gr|g}},<ref>U.S. Army Ordnance Department (1893), pp. [https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015035036824&view=1up&seq=278 236] and 241</ref> resulting in a muzzle energy of {{convert|167|ft.lbf|J|abbr=on}}. In 1903, the Army changed its cartridge to [[smokeless powder]] and slightly tightened the revolver's [[Gauge (firearms)|bore]] to {{convert|.357|in|mm|abbr=on}} ({{convert|.363|in|mm|abbr=on}} groove diameter); the new muzzle velocity was {{convert|750|ft/s|m/s|abbr=on}} with a bullet of {{convert|148|gr|g}},<ref>U.S. Army Ordnance Department (1917), pp. [https://archive.org/details/descriptionofcol00unitrich/page/11/mode/1up 11]–12</ref> giving a muzzle energy of {{convert|185|ft.lbf|J|abbr=on}}.

==History and usage==
The cartridge's relatively poor ballistics were highlighted during the [[Philippine–American War]] of 1899–1902, when reports from U.S. Army officers were received regarding the .38 bullet's inability to stop charges of frenzied [[Moro people|Moro]] ''[[juramentado]]s'' during the [[Moro Rebellion]], even at extremely close ranges.<ref name="DK2006">{{cite book|author=DK|title=Weapon: A Visual History of Arms and Armor|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Px5E3EIF5jQC&pg=PA290|date=October 2, 2006|publisher=DK Publishing|isbn=978-0-7566-4219-8|page=290}}</ref><ref name="The2008">{{cite book|author=Green Muse Writers Collective, The|title=Keep Calm Carry on: A Survival Guide|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=auxpWQox1j8C&pg=PA138|date=December 2008|publisher=iUniverse|isbn=978-1-4401-0249-3|page=138}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.manilatimes.net/juramentados-and-the-development-of-the-colt-45-caliber-model-1911/107609/|title=Juramentados and the development of the Colt .45 caliber Model 1911|website=[[The Manila Times]] |date=June 29, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.bagongkasaysayan.org/saliksik/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/13-Artikulo-Lasco.pdf |title=Ang "Kalibre 45" At Ang Pakikibaka Ng Mga Mandirigmang Pilipino |language=tl |access-date=August 26, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161009151138/http://www.bagongkasaysayan.org/saliksik/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/13-Artikulo-Lasco.pdf |archive-date=October 9, 2016 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref> A typical instance occurred in 1905 and was later recounted by Colonel Louis A. LaGarde:

<blockquote>Antonio Caspi, a prisoner on the island of Samar, P.I. attempted escape on Oct. 26, 1905. He was shot four times at close range in a hand-to-hand encounter by a .38 Colt's revolver loaded with U.S. Army regulation ammunition. He was finally stunned by a blow on the forehead from the butt end of a [[Springfield Model 1892–99|Springfield carbine]].<ref>James, Garry, [http://www.handgunsmag.com/featured_handguns/hg_coltrev_200803/index2.html Colt New Army & Navy Revolver] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100704100901/http://www.handgunsmag.com/featured_handguns/hg_coltrev_200803/index2.html |date=July 4, 2010}}, ''Handguns Magazine''</ref></blockquote>

Col. LaGarde noted Caspi's wounds were fairly well-placed: three bullets entered the chest, perforating the lungs. One passed through the body, one lodged near the back and the other lodged in subcutaneous tissue. The fourth round went through the right hand and exited through the forearm.<ref>James, Garry. ''Colt New Army & Navy Revolver''<!--publisher, place, & year?--></ref>

As an emergency response to the round's unexpectedly dismal performance, the U.S. Army authorized officers to carry M1873 [[Colt Single Action Army]] revolvers, chambered in [[.45 Colt]], and issued from reserve stocks. Army Ordnance also purchased a number of M1902 revolvers (the M1902 was an improved version of Colt's Double Action Army [[Colt M1878|Model 1878]], a .45-caliber rod-ejector double-action revolver) for issue to officers deploying overseas.

The .38 Long Colt remained the Army's primary revolver cartridge until 1909, when the .45 M1909 cartridge{{efn|This was essentially a military variant of the .45 Colt cartridge with a slightly enlarged case rim designed to aid extraction over that of the .45 [[.45 Schofield|M1877 Military Ball Cartridge]] previously issued by the Army.}} was issued along with the .45 [[Colt New Service]] revolver as the new standard military sidearm for the U.S. Army. However, some of the old .38 Long Colt revolvers and ammunition remained in reserve stocks, and when the U.S. entered World War I in 1917, the need for sidearms was such that even these low-performing weapons were brought out of storage for usage away from the front lines.

In civilian use, the .38 LC was chambered in a number of Colt revolvers and saw some use among target shooters. Various U.S. police forces also adopted the cartridge. However, the cartridge became nearly extinct after [[Smith & Wesson]]'s more powerful [[.38 Special]] cartridge became widely popular as a civilian and police service cartridge. By 1908, even Colt was chambering their new [[Colt Police Positive|Police Positive]] and [[Colt Army Special|Army Special]]<!--the Shooting Times article called it a New Army, which is in error; see coltfever source--> revolvers in ".38 Colt Special", which was just a standard .38 Smith & Wesson Special with a different headstamp.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.shootingtimes.com/editorial/handgun_reviews_coltp_083106/99264 |title=Colt's Official Police Revolver |first=Paul |last=Scarlata |website=Shooting Times |date=January 3, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.coltfever.com/Army_Special.html |title=Army Special |website=coltfever.com |access-date=May 22, 2020 |archive-date=June 12, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200612172258/http://www.coltfever.com/Army_Special.html |url-status=dead}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[9 mm caliber]]
*[[Table of handgun and rifle cartridges]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==Sources==
*{{cite book |author1=U.S. Army Ordnance Department |author-link1=United States Army Ordnance Corps |title=Annual Report of the Chief of Ordnance to the Secretary of War for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1893 |chapter=Appendix 13: Description of Colt's Double-Action Revolver, Army Model 1892, with Rules for Management, Memoranda of Trajectory, and Description of Ammunition |date=1893 |publisher=[[United States Government Publishing Office|U.S. Government Printing Office]] |location=Washington |hdl=2027/uc1.b2979331 |chapter-url=https://hdl.handle.net/2027/uc1.b2979331?urlappend=%3Bseq=243}} Official U.S. Army description of the original [[Colt M1892|Army Model 1892]] revolver, including its .38 Long Colt ammunition.
*{{cite book |author1=U.S. Army Ordnance Department |author-link1=United States Army Ordnance Corps |title=Description of the Colt's Double-Action Revolver, Caliber .38, with Rules for Management, Memoranda of Trajectory, and Description of Ammunition |date=1917 |publisher=[[United States Government Publishing Office|U.S. Government Printing Office]] |location=Washington |hdl=2027/uc2.ark:/13960/t0js9k657}} Revised U.S. Army description of the M1892 series of revolvers and their .38 Long Colt ammunition. (Note this description has an updated cartridge and higher muzzle velocity, but the other ballistics and trajectory data values are ''unchanged'' from the 1893 description and must be considered as only approximate for the newer revolvers and cartridges.)

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{commonscat}}
*[http://www.ballisticsbytheinch.com/blackhills1.html Ballistics By The Inch .38 Long Colt Results.]
{{Colt's Manufacturing Company}}
{{38SCderivatives}}
{{.38 Calibre}}

[[Category:Pistol and rifle cartridges|38 Long Colt]]
[[Category:Colt cartridges]]