Real or Replica?

[John Sabato]

mastermo

Just to say again. Your P.38 and it's accuracy are an anomaly in my shooting experience of almost 55 years.

My eyes aren't what they used to be, cause I am 64 years old now, but in the 1970's, I was an accomplished pistol competitor, amateur machinist and gunsmith...

Keeping the several p.38 pistols to which I had access at that time on a piece of standard typing paper at 50 yards was a real accomplishment.

With standard Army issue .45 1911 pistols, I could easily group 2 to 4 inches at the same distance... on a bad day. I was on a combat pistol team for almost 8 months... at 50 yards in competition, I could drop to the prone position, and push a .45 caliber hole into the center of a sillouette's Head... every time.

Man I wish I could still shoot like that!

I have always like the P.38 design, and the way it fits my hand. I carried one concealed for a long time... but only intended for a serious confrontation at typical gunfight distances of 10 yards or less. Any Luger I have ever used would shoot rings around a P.38... but I wouldn't carry a P.08 Luger for defense unless the only other thing I had to defend myself was a rock.

Since 1976, my "carry gun" has been a Colt steel-framed Combat Commander (similar to the one shown below), that was modified to true double action by L.W. Seecamp... It has never failed to hit what I aimed at...

[mastermo]

John,
WOW!, what a similarity of our past with the exception that I wasn't in the military. And I do believe in your shooting expertise, Great! There was nothing going on when I was 18 and was married and had a child, and not even the Draft asked me, .

When I was a young boy around ten yrs. old, I used to shoot for hours on end with a BB rifle for a couple of years. I would shoot ants, flies, and any bug around our home. I used a cardboard box as a back-stop, when I could, to catch my BB's so that I could use them again and again, etc. And believe me, I used to love to see, the little critters vanish when I picked them off.

Then in my 20's and up I was using a German Mauser 7.65 sporterized. One time shooting at this common area in the mountains I was shooting around 150 yds. at little brown jugs (empty beer bottles), and this guy was there with his rifle scoped. And I hit 3 out of 5 bottles and he came over and asked me if I was in the military or something because he couldn't believe of how I was shooting w/ no scope and hitting the bottles. Heck, he said you shoot better than me and I have a scope.

That Mauser was one heck of rifle too bad I had to give it to a guy in lieu of a debt. But, a few months ago, I just bought another one, not sporterized. Had it drilled and tapped and mounted a scope. It shoots great but not the same as my original. I just started shooting again a couple of years ago, one to two times a week.

You say: "Man I wish I could still shoot like that! "

I certainly understand about the eyes, I'm 71. And this is what I use:
1. ---300 magnification for reading and doing close work;
2. ---250 mag. for using at the computer and shooting sometimes to 10 yds. I think maybe a 225 would work better but I figure my eyes will only get worse so I left it at 250 and I'll fit right into them, ;
3. ---1.75 mag. from 25 yds. to 300 yds. --This one works great for me!
When I was experimenting the magnification, I had up to six pairs of glasses (from Walmart. I had several guys and rangers ask me 'if I had enough glasses, and I would answer 'not yet', lol. And finally I settled with the three I mentioned above. With the 1.75 the sights sometimes get real fuzzy, so, what I do is move off the target to some other background so that I have a better contrast then smoothly come back to the target.

Oh, try this. At the store pick something, an item that might be 10 yds. away and try glasses that you feel comfortable with to that distance. ---50yds to the same, then find a pair for across the store to something on wall or roof. Then take them to the range and see what happens, Good Luck.
Manuel
PS.--Great gun, nice choice!

[rhuff]

Originally Posted by John Sabato

mastermo

Just to say again. Your P.38 and it's accuracy are an anomaly in my shooting experience of almost 55 years.

My eyes aren't what they used to be, cause I am 64 years old now, but in the 1970's, I was an accomplished pistol competitor, amateur machinist and gunsmith...

Keeping the several p.38 pistols to which I had access at that time on a piece of standard typing paper at 50 yards was a real accomplishment.

With standard Army issue .45 1911 pistols, I could easily group 2 to 4 inches at the same distance... on a bad day. I was on a combat pistol team for almost 8 months... at 50 yards in competition, I could drop to the prone position, and push a .45 caliber hole into the center of a sillouette's Head... every time.

Man I wish I could still shoot like that!

I have always like the P.38 design, and the way it fits my hand. I carried one concealed for a long time... but only intended for a serious confrontation at typical gunfight distances of 10 yards or less. Any Luger I have ever used would shoot rings around a P.38... but I wouldn't carry a P.08 Luger for defense unless the only other thing I had to defend myself was a rock.

Since 1976, my "carry gun" has been a Colt steel-framed Combat Commander (similar to the one shown below), that was modified to true double action by L.W. Seecamp... It has never failed to hit what I aimed at...

John,

My experience with my P-38 seems to go hand and glove with yours. Like the "lightening thing!!".

Seeing your Commander rings a bell. I own (since 1973) a Colt Mark IV Government that Austin Behlert shortened the slide/barrel, shortened the grip, S&W rear sights, etc. He also converted it to a double action trigger pull that looks exactly like the one in the picture. What a masterpiece he built!! The USA lost a real pistolsmith when he passed.