conversion of a 9mm luger to 38 super auto

Doors of Perception

Doors of Perception

CGN Regular
Rating - 100%
54   0   0
Location
Burlington, Ontario
I came across a 38 super auto case while sorting range brass and I like what I see. Looks like a 9mm - but longer. How easy is it to convert a 9mm carbine to 38 super auto? I could not find much info on the web.

Specifically - I would like to convert a keltec sub 2000 from 9mm to 38 super auto. Do I just ream the chamber? or are there additional measures like altering the extractor, mag etc. I have not run this by gun smith yet.

Thanks
 
38 super brass is a lot harder to come by and a lot more expensive than 9mm luger if you have to buy the brass. If you want hot loads, you can just develop hot +P loads in 9mm luger. I've developed loads using 7.2gr Longshot under a 124gr Campro HP bullet that's good for 1320fps. I know some IPSC shooters that shoot Major with 9mm loads that meet the 165 PF.
 
Thank you. Brass is not so much of an issue with me - I just like having something different. I have a chrony, I only reload and enjoy load development. I have taken this gun as far as it will go. The idea came from another thread where a guy used a mythical 9mm load of 148gn at 1400fps to prove a ballistic point - this got me thinking.

I know the 357 mag will do this, but I still want to trick out my sub2k with out going all mall ninja - not that there is anything wrong with mall ninja :)
 
it's not quite so simple as it looks- for one the super headspaces on a semi rim, ( and falls off frequently) - the 9mm headspaces on the cartridge mouth- you get around this by using a special barrel- or moving the case mouth forward( it's not near as easy as it sounds)and there's a slight taper to the 38 super case- even buying one right off the shelf you have to be careful- lots of guys have put in something like a bar-sto right out of the box- you can also look for a 9x23/25 which gives you your longer case (Dillon used to list 1 - but now we're into super custom 9 pardon the pun) like les bauer , Wilson and a few others-
 
t-star said:
it's not quite so simple as it looks- for one the super headspaces on a semi rim, ( and falls off frequently) - the 9mm headspaces on the cartridge mouth- you get around this by using a special barrel- or moving the case mouth forward( it's not near as easy as it sounds)and there's a slight taper to the 38 super case- even buying one right off the shelf you have to be careful- lots of guys have put in something like a bar-sto right out of the box- you can also look for a 9x23/25 which gives you your longer case (Dillon used to list 1 - but now we're into super custom 9 pardon the pun) like les bauer , Wilson and a few others-
Click to expand...

Yes - I forgot about the 9x23/25 - GUNNUTZ always has the answer. Is this just a simple chamber ream?
 
Last edited:
All my .38 Super 1911 pistols head space on the cartridge mouth.
The early Colt guns headspaced on the semi-rim.
As mentioned above, not very well.


QUOTE=t-star;11507224]it's not quite so simple as it looks- for one the super headspaces on a semi rim, ( and falls off frequently) - the 9mm headspaces on the cartridge mouth- you get around this by using a special barrel- or moving the case mouth forward( it's not near as easy as it sounds)and there's a slight taper to the 38 super case- even buying one right off the shelf you have to be careful- lots of guys have put in something like a bar-sto right out of the box- you can also look for a 9x23/25 which gives you your longer case (Dillon used to list 1 - but now we're into super custom 9 pardon the pun) like les bauer , Wilson and a few others-[/QUOTE]
 
For 9x23 and 9x25 it's only a ream job in the chamber. But there's not a lot of 9x19 mags that will hold the longer rounds. That's going to be the first thing you'd need to check.
 
Halger280HVMag said:
All my .38 Super 1911 pistols head space on the cartridge mouth.
The early Colt guns headspaced on the semi-rim.
As mentioned above, not very well.


QUOTE=t-star;11507224]it's not quite so simple as it looks- for one the super headspaces on a semi rim, ( and falls off frequently) - the 9mm headspaces on the cartridge mouth- you get around this by using a special barrel- or moving the case mouth forward( it's not near as easy as it sounds)and there's a slight taper to the 38 super case- even buying one right off the shelf you have to be careful- lots of guys have put in something like a bar-sto right out of the box- you can also look for a 9x23/25 which gives you your longer case (Dillon used to list 1 - but now we're into super custom 9 pardon the pun) like les bauer , Wilson and a few others-
Click to expand...
[/QUOTE]
you need define "early" - my mk4/series 70- 74-75 issue headspaced on the semi-rim
 
There's going to be extractor work(Super's rim is 12 thou bigger), another mag(Super's case is 146 thou longer and OAL is 130 thou longer) and the conversion from rimless to semi-rimmed. Super runs at slightly higher pressures too.
Brass/ammo will become an issue if you can't find any.
 
BCRider said:
For 9x23 and 9x25 it's only a ream job in the chamber. But there's not a lot of 9x19 mags that will hold the longer rounds. That's going to be the first thing you'd need to check.
Click to expand...
Agree, no mags available your out of luck. On 1911 this is a straight forward job, every thing needed is out there.
To clear up some misconceptions, all modern quality 38 Super's head space on the case mouth. As to cost, 38 super brass is readily available and is about the same price as 9mm, check Higginsons. Bullets are 9mm-.355 or you can use .356. Powder charges are about 1 to 2 GR. more then 9mm not double as so many think.
 
Does the Kel-Tec use proprietary mags? If they used 1911 mags it wouldn't be a problem as they already exist but I don't think there are very many guns aside from 1911 style that were ever chambered in 38 ACP/38 Super. Starline even makes rimless 38 Super brass (38 Super Comp) which would probably solve the extractor/rim issue but mags are probably the biggest stumbling block.
 
All thing considered, plus the fact you'll probably double the original cost of the carbine, might want to consider another platform for38 Super. Hey you can never run out of reason to buy another gun.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom