What a better target pistol

Status
Not open for further replies.
Thomasss

Thomasss

Member
Joined
Aug 3, 2020
Messages
1,591
Location
Wisconsin
What's a better target pistol, a 6 inch, 1948 S&W K-38
.38 Special or a 1952 Colt Trooper, Mark III, 4 inch in .357 Mag?

The K-38 has been shot a lot but looks exceptional for its age. The Trooper has been shot very little, but I think the extra weight could be beneficial in rapid fire competition.

At the moment, I shoot 7 to 10 yd. targets and will be graduating to 25 yard targets. I only shoot .38 Special target loads and would do only that in the .357 for now.
 
I'd go for the extra length and the K-38. By "shot alot"....that's almost a non factor for older Smiths. Before his death, my father and I were shooting and I asked how many rounds he had through his Model 19-3 which he used extensively in competition for decades. He said at LEAST 250k. Still looks and fires like new, but it's always been well cared for. Also, depending on powder, some of the Colts are a little more prone to locking up due to their tighter internal tolerances. I know that was an issue with some of the Pythons running "Bullseye" powder...
 
243winxb said:
Longer sight radius, a plus for target shooting.

Had a Trooper 357 mag. Plain barrel, no rib. Metal soft as butter, compared to a Smith.

Do yourself a favor, buy a new Smith. Much better then the old junk.
Click to expand...
Whoa....thems fightin words! And probably a discussion beyond the scope of the OPs question about choosing between those two guns. :)
 
I picked one. 6" bbl. :) My New Trooper 1970s, 357 got a big crack in the forcing cone. Hot day, rapid fire. Looked like charred metal.
Sent back to Colt. Told cylinder timing was off, caused the crack. Guncomes back with a new barrel & 8 lb trigger.

The rifling in the barrel went half way down, stopped, turned & started again. Back to Colt it goes. 2nd new barrel put on, still 8 lb trigger.
Returned with damage to the frame, like from jaws of a vise.

SOLD the piece of ^~=&$. Bought a S&W M28, that i still have.

Why do you think Colt went bankrupt so many times? Hope CZ makes them better.
 
The S&W model 14 could be ordered with full target features, TH, TT, Patridge front sight and target grips. The wider TT makes the trigger pull appear much lighter and helps with a more controlled trigger pull.

By the way, a blued S&W revolver will always reveal a high round count to someone who knows what to look for.
 
7 to 10 yards a 4" barrel just feels better in my hands but You need to shoot them and see what works best for you
 
PzGren said:
By the way, a blued S&W revolver will always reveal a high round count to someone who knows what to look for.
Click to expand...

Well this one has the aforementioned >250k through it. He built it while going through the S&W Armorers course at the factory back in the mid 70's. I'm not really a good pistol shooter and can still punch fist sized groups standing at 25 yards with it! He always told me their triggers are like wine, they get better with age....and use! 20210926_134346.jpg
 
Thomasss

Depending somewhat on what you're planning on using it for, I would go with the vintage S&W K38. Nothing against Colt revolvers, I have had a number of them over the years with only one troublesome gun to speak of (a late production Agent with the matte blued finish). The K38 has probably had a fairly steady diet of light target loads and could keep right on going for some time to come.

On the other hand you have no way of knowing the number of full house .357 rounds that may have been run through the Trooper or that it could hold up to whatever you have in mind with your "rapid fire competition" interests. That plus the fact that the Trooper has been out of production for over 50 years and finding parts or a gunsmith who knows how to work on older Colt revolvers, can make things a bit more problematic with the Trooper.
 
Thomasss said:
What's a better target pistol, a 6 inch, 1948 S&W K-38
.38 Special or a 1952 Colt Trooper, Mark III, 4 inch in .357 Mag?

The K-38 has been shot a lot but looks exceptional for its age. The Trooper has been shot very little, but I think the extra weight could be beneficial in rapid fire competition.

At the moment, I shoot 7 to 10 yd. targets and will be graduating to 25 yard targets. I only shoot .38 Special target loads and would do only that in the .357 for now.
Click to expand...

Normally, I would say it depends on what competition you intend to try but it sounds like you are starting out. The S&W will have a better trigger action than the Colt. Get used to the double action and you have the finest revolver for competition.


Kevin
 
Thanks to everyone who replied. I appreciate the info. If interested, I am starting out in pistol target shooting. I chose the Trooper because I knew the previous owner and no full loads were ever shot with it; only a couple boxes of .38s ever went through it. On the other hand the K38 was shot a lot. The seller was asking top dollar for it. It had small cheap custom grips(and I have large hands) and I found lots of leading in the cylinder chambers and the bore was so filthy, I couldn't see the lands or grooves(and no they didn't want to clean it up). So I am going to watch for another and in the meantime and quoting "Iittle sure shot" I will practice, practice, practice with what I got.
 
[
Thomasss said:
Thanks to everyone who replied. I appreciate the info. If interested, I am starting out in pistol target shooting. I chose the Trooper because I knew the previous owner and no full loads were ever shot with it; only a couple boxes of .38s ever went through it. On the other hand the K38 was shot a lot. The seller was asking top dollar for it. It had small cheap custom grips(and I have large hands) and I found lots of leading in the cylinder chambers and the bore was so filthy, I couldn't see the lands or grooves(and no they didn't want to clean it up). So I am going to watch for another and in the meantime and quoting "Iittle sure shot" I will practice, practice, practice with what I got.
Click to expand...
While maybe not optimized for target shooting, its still a great gun. Congrats!
The first gen (not MK3) Troopers are built on the same frame as the vintage Python and the grips are interchangeable, btw.
 
I have one of these:

VTtDI0h.jpg

and I have one of those:

MoxGoFF.jpg

and I have one of these:

IPF1NO4.jpg

The M27 is an N frame, bigger, heavier, still a fantastically accurate pistol and smooth action. And I have a safe Queen Python.

I prefer the way the S&W trigger stacks for double action. My K38 is a superb target pistol, very smooth action, it was a premium target pistol when a lot of shooters were shooting revolvers. And I have asked some of those old coots, and that's what they remember. These guys were shooting a lot of ammunition and the S&W's lasted longer. Thought the Colts had a reputation for better, tighter, barrels. Some shooters created Smolts, having a Colt barrel installed on a K frame S&W.

I occasionally see a ten times PPC Champ, and two times Bullseye Champion at Regionals and State Championships. He claimed he knew only one shooter who used a Colt. The problem with the Colts is that they lock up as the hammer falls. Colts were know for losing their timing and requiring factory level work on the cylinder star and hand. The Champ had worn out a S&W extractor star, and it was around 200,000 rounds in. He also had a firing pin break. At some round count, both Colts and S&W's require retuning, but based on what I have heard, the S&W's can take orders of magnitude more rounds before getting there.

Try to find a Colt gunsmith. Colt's are complicated, file to fit, revolvers. You have to know where to file on the cylinder hand, and the sequence, to get the things back in time. Kunhausen's book on Colt Revolvers show just where, but it also reveals a pistol mechanism that does not support drop in parts!

For the money, go get a M686 and shoot it forever.

GKPvF84.jpg

WyNBIm6.jpg

LSsUkm8.jpg

and if you don't like lead rings from shooting 38's in 357 cylinders, just use this load in 357 brass

PkVDLQq.jpg
 
Slamfire said:
I have one of these:

View attachment 1029003

and I have one of those:

View attachment 1029004

and I have one of these:

View attachment 1029005

The M27 is an N frame, bigger, heavier, still a fantastically accurate pistol and smooth action. And I have a safe Queen Python.

I prefer the way the S&W trigger stacks for double action. My K38 is a superb target pistol, very smooth action, it was a premium target pistol when a lot of shooters were shooting revolvers. And I have asked some of those old coots, and that's what they remember. These guys were shooting a lot of ammunition and the S&W's lasted longer. Thought the Colts had a reputation for better, tighter, barrels. Some shooters created Smolts, having a Colt barrel installed on a K frame S&W.

I occasionally see a ten times PPC Champ, and two times Bullseye Champion at Regionals and State Championships. He claimed he knew only one shooter who used a Colt. The problem with the Colts is that they lock up as the hammer falls. Colts were know for losing their timing and requiring factory level work on the cylinder star and hand. The Champ had worn out a S&W extractor star, and it was around 200,000 rounds in. He also had a firing pin break. At some round count, both Colts and S&W's require retuning, but based on what I have heard, the S&W's can take orders of magnitude more rounds before getting there.

Try to find a Colt gunsmith. Colt's are complicated, file to fit, revolvers. You have to know where to file on the cylinder hand, and the sequence, to get the things back in time. Kunhausen's book on Colt Revolvers show just where, but it also reveals a pistol mechanism that does not support drop in parts!

For the money, go get a M686 and shoot it forever.

View attachment 1029006

View attachment 1029007

View attachment 1029008

and if you don't like lead rings from shooting 38's in 357 cylinders, just use this load in 357 brass

View attachment 1029009
Click to expand...

That is some beautiful hardware! Just beautiful!
 
When I first got going years ago

After development of Handloads… And getting the most accurate for each

I sandbag bench rested-25 yards

Colt Python 1972 w/6” brl
S&W 586 pre lock- w/6” brl

Colt Diamondback w”6” brl
S&W 17-6 with 6” brl

In my Slow fire single action Test fire results-

The S&W was more accurate

Your experiences may be different.

Sold the Colts- Have multiple S&Ws now
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

C
  • Locked
Picked up a 4" Colt Trooper (.38 Spl) yesterday.
Replies
19
Views
1K
Remllez
R
B
  • Locked
K-38 Target Masterpiece
Replies
16
Views
1K
SwampWolf
S
D
Target Revolver Options
2
Replies
30
Views
870
reddog81
R
MrBorland
  • Locked
S&W K-38 Target or Colt Officers Match?
Replies
9
Views
4K
timothy75
T
B
  • Locked
K-38 range report
Replies
8
Views
706
bluetopper
bluetopper
Back
Top