TargetTalk

I own a nice Colt National Match Mark III 38 Special..I try different brands of cartriges but I cannot find accuracy as S&W 52/1.. any one has some experiances on this pistol..I do not see any one using on competition..Thank you for any info..

I have owned two 52's and one colt nm 38 with the same results with accuracy. factory ammo in the 52 was better than reloads no matter how you did it. I didn't like the feel of the 52 in the matches as I do the 45 fit and feel.,. I own a jackie best custom 38 on a 9mm colt 70 series that still a work in progress. had the bomar sight rail removed and added regular bomar sights and changed the grip safety and hammer,. working on loads and bullet seating depth and bullet types now for reliable function and feeding then i will get to accuracy testing The fit on the gun is excellent so it should be a great shooter., jackie was a great smith,.., the 45 he build that i own made me reach expert class in under 2 years

Send it to a good pistol smith for an accuracy job.

Dave Salyer comes to mind... He has done a lot of work for me.

I have an Aikman (he is deceased, unfortunately) .38 spec long slide built on a Caspian Frame. I found 2.9 gr bullseye with Rem 148 HBWC works amazing at 25yds. Bullet seating is flush with a decent crimp. I've found that 1911 .38s are more forgiving than S&W 52s, where on some guns the bullets have to be below the rim to function right. As with all .38s 50yd groups are tough to get to under 3". Still it shoots much better than some .32s I've seen. Recoil is a third less than a .45. If I could I would shoot the .45 at 50 and the Caspian at 25y . No such luck, Lol

Greetings,

I also have a Colt 38 NM MKIII.

It is a blowback design and there is not a lot you can do to accurize it.

Try a heavier recoil spring so that a fired cartridge will lock the slide back consistently.

The only other thing that may be causing issues is Lead fouling in the chamber.

The Model 52 is a locked breech design and, with good ammunition, most likely will out shoot the Colt.

I have tested the Colt barrel for accuracy in a barrel fixture and with good ammunition it shoots under 2 inches at 50 yards. Sadly, I have not had the same success using the Random Rest.

Cheers,

Dave

Those Colt NM 38s are problematic. They came out with that model in response to all the success that John Giles, Jim Clark, and one or two others were having in converting 38 supers to fire the 38special wadcutter. Unfortunately, Colt didn't do their homework very well, specifically in regard to the blowback design. They did, however, make a very nice 38 special magazine!!!

Jim

I also have a Colt 38 NM MKIII. but the S&W52/1 is by far more accurate with the same factoty ammonition (Winchester) The problem I found on 52 is more difficult to shoot..too easy to go out of the 10..and not 9 maybe 8..or worse(( For certerfire competition now I use CZ 551 ZKR Revolver in .32 WC.

Do you reload? If you, you might want to try with some Federal brass... It didn't make my NM 38spl more accurate than the 52, but it sure did make it more reliable.

In a CF match you can shoot the 45 for the first two Slow fire matches but decide between 38 and 45 for the National MC and sustained fire.