Mod 38 S&W airweight shoots low way low
I got a Model 38 S & W Airweight as a trade in on a Motor Home I sold. Now I'm a very good pistol shot. And hunt with one for Antalope here in Colorado. But this gun is geting to me. My Super Blackhawk is Scoped and gets 1 1/4" groups at 100 Yards off the bench. This thing shoots about 2 feet low at 25 yards. AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH can somebody tell whats wrong. Is it to hot of a load, to weak of a load, To heavy a bullet, to light of a bullet.
This is a J-Frame with a round butt. I have put Pacmiers on it and can actual shoot it better from the hip. In the point and shoot stuff I can hit tin cans at 15 feet if I don't aim it. If I aim ata siloet target I make them a alto. H E L P PLEASE
Wolftrao97@aol.com
This is a J-Frame with a round butt. I have put Pacmiers on it and can actual shoot it better from the hip. In the point and shoot stuff I can hit tin cans at 15 feet if I don't aim it. If I aim ata siloet target I make them a alto. H E L P PLEASE
Wolftrao97@aol.com
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My Model 38 shoots horrible with 158 gr. bullets, but outstanding with lighter 125 gr. bullets. Try different ammo and see if that helps. Also, if you are getting tight groups but just shooting low, you might want to (carefully) file a little of the front sight off to raise the point of impact.
Respectfully,
Rafter-S
"What is truth? No wonder jesting Pilate turned away. The truth, it has a thousand faces -- show only one of them, and the whole truth flies away! But how to show the whole? That is the question."
--Thomas Wolfe, "You Can't Go Home Again" (1934)0 -
Rafter
I think you have given me the answer. I checked the sight heigth. the front sight is 1/8 of an inch higher then the back. The sight radius is about 3 3/8". This would be a little less then 3/8" or so a foot. that works out to 24" at 25 yards. Hay thats it thanks.0 -
J frames can throw off the best of shooters. And they really aren't made for shooting at 25 yards without some windage. You probably want to test out 38 Special and 38 Special + Ps.
I think you'll be happier with your gun up to about 50 ft. It's really designed to stick in someone's face, not for target shooting.
Three Precious Metals: Gold, silver and lead0 -
If you decide to file the sights, do it at the range. File a little, then shoot 5 rounds. File a little more, and shoot. Keep doing that until it groups the ammo in the center of the target. Remember: it's easy to take metal off--hard to put it back on, so go slow and easy.
But before you start the filing process, shoot different ammos. You may find one that groups well and higher than others.
Respectfully,
Rafter-S
"What is truth? No wonder jesting Pilate turned away. The truth, it has a thousand faces -- show only one of them, and the whole truth flies away! But how to show the whole? That is the question."
--Thomas Wolfe, "You Can't Go Home Again" (1934)0 -
Rafter
You are right there. The bad part is this pistol is like new and about 30 years old. Send me a E-Mail and i'll send you a scan of it. Wolftrap97@aol.com0 -
Most of the very old Smith & Wesson .38 revolvers were regulated for the old 158 grain round nose load. Try this load and see if it hits closer to point of aim. If it does, then you know that this is the correct load for this gun.
Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on your point of view, there are many much more efficient loads for the .38 Special. If you care to use one of them, some adjustment is in order.
Filing the sight is not a big deal. Just remember that, with that short sight radius, it won't take much filing to make a big difference.
The little fixed-sight gun should be regulated for one load only. Once you get it right, leave it alone and only use the load you sighted for. A little cold blue will finish the job.
I shoot W-W 158 grain +P hollow points in my Bodyguard. They shoot about 6 inches low at 25 yards. I made no adjustments, since that is not a big deal in an across-the-table gun.
SIG pistol armorer/FFL Dealer/Full time Peace Officer, Moderator of General Discussion Board on Gunbroker. Visit www.gunbroker.com, the best gun auction site on the Net! Email davidnunn@texoma.net0 -
Wolftrap;
As suggested earliar, try filing the front sight.But do it slowly, at the range, shooting from a rest. Something alse, DO NOT fire +P or +P+ ammo in any airweight, unless your's is a very early example, it has a aluminum alloy frame that will not stand the higher pressures of this type ammo. There are some very early developement models with steel frames, they are easy to pick out because they are heavier AND have single or double digit serial numbers. overall the airwieght is a good revolver of good quality, but like a lot of fixed sight models they can require a little tuning to make them better. Just remember that sometimes after tuning they can become somewhat ammo picky, ie., shot real well with one brand and not so hot with others. I have a single action army colt that shots hand loads and remington premium real well, but won't shot federals for beans.0 -
I had the same problem with an Airweight Bodyguard. The problem was that the former owner shot too many +Ps thru it and stretched the top strap. Aluminum doesn't have the elastic "memory" that steel has, and it will stretch.
File down the front sight, and stay away from +Ps.0 -
I recommend that you NOT file down the front sight. That will uglify the gun, make it difficult to sight, and reduce the value by at least half.
The J-frame sights were not designed to work like target sights; i.e., you should not be able to level the top of the front and rear sights in obtaining a sight picture. It's OK to have a large part of the front sight showing above the rear sight; just put that part of the front sight on the target and pull the trigger. Use Kentucky windage to compensate for your load when firing at targets.
As those who have engaged in Close Encounters of the Worst Kind will tell you, you cannot focus on your sights when engaging a lethal threat at close range. YOU CAN'T TAKE YOUR EYES OFF THE THREAT. Most folks, even those highly trained, can only hope to put the gun between themselves and the threat, and keep pulling the trigger until the threat is neutralized. That's why the basics of stance, grip, and practice are so important.
Neal0 -
Before you go filing on your gun I'd say first insure your sight picture is correct. I've been a firearms instructor for quite a number of years and have observed this problem many times when teaching people who haven't used a small revolver much. You don't state your handgun experience with using iron sights so this is worth a try, especially when a S&W snubbie with it's shallow trough rear sight.
Make sure you're leveling the top of the front sight with the uppermost portion of the ears of the rear sight and see if this helps. Burying the front sight in the bottom of the rear notch of a J-frame .38 will put hits about where you say yours is printing.
If nothing else, have someone with extensive experience in a S&W snubbie fire yours and see where their rounds hit. As has been stated, this is not the easiest handgun to print tight 25 yd. groups with but the gun itself is generally pretty accurate. S&W quality control was much better back when your gun was made and to have one with the sights that far off sounds unusual to me.0
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