Respectable groups with .38 special?

[habanero]

I have done a lot of .22 shooting, and can place a 5 shot group at 25 yds iron sights the size of a dime. But when I shoot my S&W .38 special, its a whole nuther story.

I am wondering what would be a respectable group for this type of gun. I know this gun has less than 500 rounds through it, is very clean, and I just did a trigger job on it, and the single action pull is very, very light. I would say my best effort at 15 yards with this gun is probably like a 6 inch group. I used Winchester super X 158gr wadcutter.

[Mark whiz]

Well...........

Shooting 2 & 4" barreled .38s at 10yds - my best group was "slightly" under an inch...... and an average around 1.5" using 158gr jacketed rounds.

These ARE handloads though.............so they're tweaked pretty good to each particular pistol.

[DocWagon]

What barrel length and type of sights does the .38 have? That can have a huge effect.

What I'd recommend is using a rest and firing a couple of groups with the pistol in question. Try a few different ammos and see which one the gun likes the best. That will give you an idea of what the gun is capable of. Then when you're shooting freehand you'll know how much of the group is from the "natural" spread of the gun and how much you are introducing.

[habanero]

It is a 4in barrel, and has the stock open sights. I took it to the range last week, and tried to rest it on this cheap ole piece of foam thing that was suppose to be a handgun rest. Anyway, I shot at 15yds about a 4in group (6 rounds), which is the best I have ever done with this gun.
What type of factory ammo do people use for the .38 special that is known for its accuracy?
I am going to have to get a nice rest, so I can get a better idea of the accuracy of this gun.

[habanero]

I am still not able to get this gun to shoot a decent group. I have tried Federal ammo, Winchester Super X ammo, Winchester white box ammo, a box of Speer ammo, and a box of Blazer, all with poor performance.

I usually shoot this gun at 15 yards, and use a Protektor sandbag as a rest, which is very stable. I cant get smaller than a 4 - 5 inch group, and it usually strings in a diagnal pattern. Some groups are a big as 12 inches across, and usually pretty random.

This is really frustrating, since my ruger .22 pistol, ruger .22 rifle, and ruger 7mm rem mag shoot exceptionally small groups.

Any ideas would be appreciated!

[Tailgunner]

See if you can find a box of "Wadcutter" target loads for it. Than ry some basic LRN ammo. It sounds like you've been playing with all jacketed full power loads.

[loco]

It sounds like your rear sight is loose, or your cylinder timing is off resulting in bullet shaving. Is there an abnormal amount of fouling or any lead shavings on the cylinder face or on the underside of the topstrap?

[habanero]

I havent noticed any shavings, and the foulings are very minimal. My rear sight is tight, and I usually cock the hammer then fire it single action, so the cylinder has already rotated and remains fixed until way after the shot.

I would love to get this thing on a ransom rest with match grade ammo. Then I could see what it is really doing.

I may have to take it to a gunsmith, or actually send it in to S&W.