Help date this .38 short bullet (U.S.C. Co)

[No Quarter]

Hello, I've heard these bullets are pretty rare. I have no idea on the age or value so if any experts on here know please share!

 

Thanks,

Jacob

[No Quarter]

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[USARV72]

Not sure how rare, have half a box of green box Remington .38 short Colt somewhere in shop. When a kid used to shoot them in a Colt Lightening revolver.

[dpast32]

Hi, That's a .38 Short Colt round, probably circa 1920, or so.They're not all that rare, & were indeed quite common up until the the mid 1960's, by which time most of the revolvers they were chambered in had been discontinued. Many folks used to shoot them out of revolvers chambered for the .38 Long Colt ctg. I recall looking through all the various mfgr's ctg catalogs as a young kid in the late 1960's & they, along with many other ctg's which are now considered rare or uncommon were all in abundance. In fact, IIRC Remington used to load it not all that many years ago. USC stands for the 'United States Ctg Company'. If interested, I'll try to dig up my old catalogs & give you their ballistic data. Hope this has helped.

 

Best, dpast32

[No Quarter]

Thank you for the info guys.

 

Jaocb

[collector]

What's the significance if any of the US on the primer?

[dpast32]

Hi, Sorry for the belated reply. That 'U.S.' mkg on the primer is simply a mfgr's mark, as in U.S. Cartridge Company. As far as I'm aware, the .38 Short Colt ctg. was never an US Military issue round. On the other hand, they 'may' have been used by certain, select personnel during the very early years of WW2, as we were trying to arm everyone that needed to be armed. In those early years, the US Govt. made use of many assorted pistols & revolvers of various calibers. As I indicated in an earlier post, the .38 Short Colt can be used in any revolver chambered for the .38 Long Colt ctg., such as the US Army & Navy's .38 caliber 'New Army' & 'New Navy' model of circa 1900 or so. With that being so, it may well have been used if a supply of the 'Long Colt' ammunition wasn't available. In those years, we issued .25 ACP's, .32 Short / Long Colt, .32 S&W's, .38 S&W ( aka ..38-200 ), along with a host of other odd, and or obselete ammo, just as an interim measure until more standard weapons could be manufactured & issued to those who needed them.

 

Best, dpast32

[Woodymyster]

Do you have the box as well as what you have shown? I would say the early .38 short colts made by USC Co would have a stylized U in the primer, not the plain US.

[No Quarter]

Do you have the box as well as what you have shown? I would say the early .38 short colts made by USC Co would have a stylized U in the primer, not the plain US.

I only have this single bullet.

 

Jacob