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Posted: 10/12/2014 4:05:55 PM EDT
[#1]
All things being equal material cost. Takes a lot of lead and brass to make.
Other than that? No clue. Mark ups at big stores have been pretty high for a long time too, so that doesn't help. |
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Posted: 10/12/2014 6:31:25 PM EDT
[#2]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
All things being equal material cost. Takes a lot of lead and brass to make. Other than that? No clue. Mark ups at big stores have been pretty high for a long time too, so that doesn't help. Material cost and demand. 9mm is cheap (or at least 'cheaper') for a reason |
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Posted: 10/12/2014 6:38:17 PM EDT
[#3]
I wonder how much economy of scale counts as well? .38 special USED to be cheap, when revolvers were more plentiful, and there were less shooters.
Now, the number of shooters has increased dramatically, and 9mm handguns are MUCH more common. |
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Posted: 10/12/2014 10:11:49 PM EDT
[#4]
Quoted:
Why is plain old 38 spl leadnose ammo so expensive these days?... A - because it's ammunition, and most all ammunition prices are still stupid high B - because a lot of people are apparently willing to pay it, which leads right back to 'A'. |
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Posted: 10/13/2014 10:08:18 AM EDT
[#5]
Comparatively speaking no one shoots the 38, but lots buy em. Tons of barely used j-frames with ammo up for trade in my area right now. Complaints about inaccuracies or I never shoot mine, etc. anecdotal, but that's my theory. Just more materials and less of a market.
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Posted: 10/14/2014 7:45:15 AM EDT
[#6]
Ive tried RNL a couple times and hate the accuracy when compared to 148WC and 158SWC.
for some reason I cant get tight groups using 38spl LRN. Although I have with 9mm LRN LOL |
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Posted: 10/14/2014 9:02:12 AM EDT
[#7]
Got to be lack of volume that is driving up the price. The components are pretty cheap for 38 Special LRN. Very very few LEO/security are carrying revolvers any more and even fewer of them are using 38 Specials. The only sport currently involving a lot of revolver shooters is SASS and most of them that are serious about the sport are likely reloading. ICORE is all revolver but small in comparison to SASS. IDPA SSR is a pretty small percentage of IDPA. 38cal/9mm revolvers are the new hotness in USPSA Revolver division but that is also a really small percentage of that sport and most of those guys are using 38 Short Colt or some shorted 38 Special or 9mm/38Super so are reloading for it.
Have you considered reloading? 38 Special brass last a long time and since it s a revolver you get it back most of the time. You can reload that stuff cheap. I am loading 160gr coated LRN for ~$6.25 a box (assuming I am using brass I already have). |
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Posted: 10/14/2014 3:04:39 PM EDT
[#8]
noticed that too
I load it on my 550B for pennies on the dollar
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Posted: 10/14/2014 6:12:26 PM EDT
[#9]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
I wonder how much economy of scale counts as well? .38 special USED to be cheap, when revolvers were more plentiful, and there were less shooters. Now, the number of shooters has increased dramatically, and 9mm handguns are MUCH more common. Yup. .38/.357 revolvers make up around 10% of total handgun production. In today's ammo market, they aren't a priority. |
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Posted: 10/14/2014 6:35:28 PM EDT
[#10]
Why would you buy factory .38 ammo ?????
 
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Posted: 10/14/2014 6:45:00 PM EDT
[#11]
I shoot gobs of .38.
Dillon Square Deal B to the rescue! 
OP, me thinks its because 38 is slowly becoming an obsolescent round. No where near the demand for lead bullet ammo there was 30 years ago. I can't even remember the last time I saw wadcutter target ammo for sale in a store. The CAS guys run tons of it still but they all pretty much roll their own. Some ranges don't even allow it. |
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Posted: 10/14/2014 7:13:10 PM EDT
[#12]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
I wonder how much economy of scale counts as well? .38 special USED to be cheap, when revolvers were more plentiful, and there were less shooters. Now, the number of shooters has increased dramatically, and 9mm handguns are MUCH more common. That would be my bet |
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Posted: 2/5/2015 5:47:12 PM EDT
[#13]
As a new LEO in the early '80s, I could reload .38 SWC loads for about $3/box of 50. Can do it now for about $5.50 by buying components in bulk. Will never buy practice .38 factory ammo again if I can help it.
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Posted: 2/5/2015 6:27:44 PM EDT
[#14]
My reasons:
1. Sadly, wheelguns are looked at as antiquated relics by most post Sandy Hook/Millennial/Gen Y shooters. Thus economy of scale suffers in production. 2. Not a relevant military/leo caliber. High rate production equipment can often be run for mil/leo contracts and when those are fulfilled production can be diverted to civilian sales. Due to the high turnout, prices are driven down. 3. Very easy to reload for. The brass lasts forever and doesn't get ejected out of the gun while firing. I suspect most people that actively shoot a lot of 38/357 reload for it already.....driving demand down. 4. A lot of brass for each casing. 38spec was designed as a black powder cartridge, thus the need to fit a lot of less efficient black powder in the case. Bigger case = more brass = more copper = $$$ 357 Magnum seems even worse. Pedestrian JHP loads without all the new whiz-bang bullet technology seems to upwards of $.80/rnd nowadays. I don't think we'll ever see 38 Spec become obsolete, there's just too many guns chambered in it out there. I suspect it'll just become a lesser and lesser used caliber, kind of like 30-30 Win or 32ACP. |
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Posted: 2/5/2015 11:23:16 PM EDT
[#15]
Look at the prices of 45LC, $40/50. I reload 45ACP and 45LC. May have to get 38SPL dies.
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Posted: 2/5/2015 11:42:18 PM EDT
[#16]
The 130 grain FMJ loads used to be everywhere and cheap, too.
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Posted: 2/6/2015 7:56:00 AM EDT
[#17]
I wonder how often they ramp up production of 38s compared to 9MM, 45ACP, 40 Smith 223 etc, I know I always used to pay more for my 250 Savage, 257 Roberts, 6MM Remington brass than lets say 243 because 243 was all over the place and crazy popular, its roughly the same amount of material.
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Posted: 2/6/2015 3:59:00 PM EDT
[#18]
I've always attributed it to being a less common round as the years go on. Lots of folks own a 38spl snub, few actually shoot them. Best bet is to reload for 38, you can buy bulk packs of lswchp from speer for good money, and just make good plinking loads.
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Posted: 2/6/2015 4:02:02 PM EDT
[#19]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
My reasons: 1. Sadly, wheelguns are looked at as antiquated relics by most post Sandy Hook/Millennial/Gen Y shooters. Thus economy of scale suffers in production. 2. Not a relevant military/leo caliber. High rate production equipment can often be run for mil/leo contracts and when those are fulfilled production can be diverted to civilian sales. Due to the high turnout, prices are driven down. 3. Very easy to reload for. The brass lasts forever and doesn't get ejected out of the gun while firing. I suspect most people that actively shoot a lot of 38/357 reload for it already.....driving demand down. 4. A lot of brass for each casing. 38spec was designed as a black powder cartridge, thus the need to fit a lot of less efficient black powder in the case. Bigger case = more brass = more copper = $$$ 357 Magnum seems even worse. Pedestrian JHP loads without all the new whiz-bang bullet technology seems to upwards of $.80/rnd nowadays. I don't think we'll ever see 38 Spec become obsolete, there's just too many guns chambered in it out there. I suspect it'll just become a lesser and lesser used caliber, kind of like 30-30 Win or 32ACP. I think too many people buy a 38, buy a couple boxes of whatever JHP is on the shelf and the gun sits in a drawer or a holster and that's it. Whenever I see a 642 or a LCR for sale around here, its usually comes with a 25 rd box of ammo with 20 rds left in it. I probably shoot some 38 every range trip, from my snub and my gp100. |
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Posted: 2/7/2015 2:22:58 PM EDT
[#20]
Fiocchi 158Gn SJHP is one of the least expensive .38 loads I can find at $19.63 per 50.
The days of $7.00/50 for LRN factory ammo seem long gone. |
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Posted: 2/8/2015 2:11:04 PM EDT
[#21]
I believe economy of scale is the major factor here, as others have stated. There are many times more buyers of 9mm and .40 than there are of .38 Special.
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Posted: 2/8/2015 7:12:11 PM EDT
[#22]
If you are willing to buy in bulk, .38 spl ammo can still be had at good prices.
Precision Delta and Zero both offer new and remanufactured ammo at an excellent price point. |
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Posted: 2/9/2015 5:31:12 PM EDT
[#23]
I have had good luck with Georgia Arms .38 Special 125 gr LRN. $13.50/50 rds. They frequent the gun shows in this area, that's where I first found them. Have shot several hundred rounds of it the last few years and not one problem.
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Posted: 2/9/2015 7:01:00 PM EDT
[#24]
Reload! Buy your supplies in bulk. My current cost is $6.23 for 50 and that is with 160gr polymer coated LRN. You could probably go a little cheaper with cheaper bullets. I am also using Federal Primers and they seem to be slightly more then most other brands.
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Posted: 2/10/2015 8:05:25 AM EDT
[#25]
1) For .38 Special revolvers, there is no need for 500-1000 rounds initially to find out if a gun works. If a S&W or Ruger works for 50 rounds, it will work, probably, until you go broke buying factory ammo.
2) Volume .38 shooters tend to reload because reloading it is so easy. 3) 2.7 grains, 3.0 grains, 3.5 grains of Bullseye with 125, 148, or 158 grain lead bullets reload so cheaply that shooting .38 is less than .22LR these days. 3a) DardasCastBullets: 6 cents http://www.dardascastbullets.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=dardas&Category_Code=38RNFP 3b) Primers on sale now: 2.5 cents, any smalll pistol 3c) Bullseye Pistol Powder: 2.0 cents when you get 1000 rounds at least out of a pound with these .38 loads 3d) Brass: the round just fired saves your brass 4) 10.5 cents, $5.25 per box of 50, why buy cheapo factory. |
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Posted: 2/12/2015 11:45:37 PM EDT
[#26]
Back in the 1990s, there was a company called BK reloads out of San Antonio, Tx.
We shot the crap out the 38 Spl. SWC during Criminal Justice and then in the Academy. We also used it for qualifying. 9MM was way more expensive and usually ran 10.00 a box back then when you could get .38 for 7.00 and those BK reloads for 5.00. Long time ago. 
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Posted: 2/12/2015 11:53:42 PM EDT
[#27]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Back in the 1990s, there was a company called BK reloads out of San Antonio, Tx. We shot the crap out the 38 Spl. SWC during Criminal Justice and then in the Academy. We also used it for qualifying. 9MM was way more expensive and usually ran 10.00 a box back then when you could get .38 for 7.00 and those BK reloads for 5.00. Long time ago. When I was in the academy 5 years ago, we shot M&Ps all the way through, except for 24 rounds for familiarization out of Model 64s. Shame. |
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Posted: 2/13/2015 12:00:17 AM EDT
[#28]
Because there are like 10 guys that shoot 38 special more than once every 5 years that are not reloaders.
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Posted: 2/17/2015 11:35:05 AM EDT
[#29]
I agree reload absolutely - anyone who is a frequent shooter who doesn't reload is either rich or crazy.
There is no way even making a good living I could afford my steady diet of 2-3 hundred rounds a week shooting without reloading. Lots of good points here so far. Another thing to consider as far as volume of use- most people with autoloaders will shoot a few hundred rounds of ball for "break in" then test a couple of boxes of multiple hollow points for function prior to carry. With a revolver you can answer the does it work and where it impacts with a cylinder or two. |
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