Wartime tracer ammunition for .38 Special revolvers

All right, this is very esoteric.

I stumbled across a reference in a work of fiction written in the early 1960s to .38 Special tracer ammo. That sounded a little odd to me, since tracers are generally made for rifles and MGs but not for pistol calibers. Well, I did some digging online and found that such a round did indeed exist. It was developed during WWII by Remington (I think) to meet a requirement by the US Navy. Revolvers in .38 Special (Colt Commando, S&W Victory) were standard issue for USN and USMC aircrew, and a tracer was wanted to give men armed with .38 Special revolvers some basic emergency signalling capacity for air/sea rescue when they were shot down. Anyway, that is the explanation I have read. Tracers were designed in .38 Special with 120 or 158 grain bullets, the latter being the same weight as the ordinary .38 Special ball made by Remington for wartime armed forces contracts. And that is where the mystery begins. Some online authorities state that only the 120 grain tracer bullet was actually issued and used. I am looking for ballistic data on the .38 Special tracer cartridge, but when I look at the available online references (US Army manuals and data sheets and a Frankford Arsenal stock list, dating from early to late 60's) I find no references to the 120 grain tracer, but only to the phantom 158 grain. So, I am thoroughly confused and frustrated. If anyone can help point me in the right direction I would be very grateful. Thanks.

 

All references to the 120 gr bullet come from the following source:

Brown Jr., Edwards, DCM Shopper's Guide, The American Rifleman, (April 1946), p. 18
Google it and you will find a ton of references to the bullet.

Sadly I can't find any copies of the issue.
Anyway, this Edward Brown Jr was a Lieutenant Commander in the USNR, but I can't find anything else about him.

 

I will see if my library can get hold of the article. I have received a copy of Charles Suydam's U.S. Cartridges and their Handguns. He mentions the .38 Special tracer and even has a picture of it, but he says the bullet was 119 grains rather than 120. He doesn't give ballistic info (MV, ME), either, and that is what I am after.