Winchester 1894 38/55 shooters?

[Huntsman]

Well just recently one these came into my hands out of pure coincidence if not pure impulse buy. But either way I got one of these and it fits nicely with my petite collection of leverguns. I worked with a guy in Cold Lake who hunted bear with a 1906 model 1894. I thought cool round but not my thing at the time. A few years back my brother picked up a Win 94 Big bore in .375. He dropped a young bull moose with it and a fat whitetail doe.
I fired both rifles and noticed a bit more Recoil from the 375 but it did have the standard 20" bbl compared to buddy's 1906 1894 with I believe a 26" octagonal barrel, so heavier weight it had next to zero kick and I'm sure the factory loads were tame for a reason. So now I finally got in the game with my own 38/55. I've always been a 30/30 fan which I cast boolits and hunt and shoot with a fair bit.
The rifle came with some brass and reloads, thankfully. And I have a line on a set of RCBS dies. And since I was already casting some Lee 250gr hunks of lead for my brother I'm pretty well set. Powder isn't a problem either as I have a few lbs of IMR 3031.
Data was supplied with the reloads and I found a fair amount of cast lead data online. I like the Lee 250gr boolit but it's not designed gas checks. I do have a NOE (Ranch Dog) mold on 30-30 and they have some idea molds with gc so I may have to order one.
Are they any 38/55 shooters/hunters out there who cares to share any info on this old cartridge? My plans for elk this fall may have taken a slight change with rifle choice now but we shall see how she shoots first.
Btw, the rifle I picked up is a Alberta Diamond Jubilee commemorative. It's been fired. Which is partially why I bought it due to it being substantially cheaper. Besides and gun I can't shoot is no good to me. Came with box and papers too.
Here it sits with my other leverguns;







I've since removed the Williams peep site it came with and reinstalled a set of buch-horns.

[mgvande]

You cast so this is a perfect gun to play with in my opinion. I've been eyeing them up but I have too much stuff on the go and I am getting overwhelmed with bullet molds. Pls keep us posted on your findings.
Why did you remove the peep? I think that one screams tangsight imo.

[Huntsman]

Ya I removed it 1) because imo it doesn't match 2) it covers part of the engraved receiver .
I'll post updates with my casting and reloading success for sure.

["No Choke"Lord Walsingham]

Great thread and a lovely find! If there was a vote for official rifle of AO, this one would get mine.

.38-55 is a very interesting cartridge. I don't have one handy as of this writing, yet now I surely do hope to soon. Looking forward to update and learning more about the .38-55.

[Huntsman]

Indeed a great find. Here's the ammo and brass.

[Dean2]

I am a big 38-55 fan. Cast bullets makes them next to free to shoot as you can easily get 200 rounds out of a pound of powder. I find .379 cast work well in both the 38-55, which can be anywhere from .376-.378 with some larger due to use, and in the 375 Winchester which is a true .375.

You can easily make 38-55 brass from 30-30, just pass it through your FL sizer well lubed with Imperial Wax. The newly made 38-55s will take quite a lot stiffer loads than I use in the old guns. All of my 38-55s were made before 1901. The 375 is basically a new version of the 38-55 and I use it to shoot the hotter loads. I use proper head stamped 375 brass so I never mix the hot loads, despite what I learned from Buffalo Bore.

Here is one of the best articles on loading for the 38-55.

https://www.buffalobore.com/index.ph...t_detail&p=159

[Huntsman]

That was a good read Dean, Thx.
I'm pretty much set for life for lead both pure and COWW plus the hundred lbs or so I've smelted into ingots already. I did the Lyman #2 alloy for a bit but found COWW's to shoot just fine. I test the Brinell hardness with my Lee hardness tester and am happy with the results. A few years back I conducted a wet newspaper (was actually expired Acklands and Granger catalogs) at 100 yds with all the bullets I was casting at the time. The 200gr RNGC from my .308 and the 160gr NOE gc from 30/30 both expanded very nicely at the 100yd wet paper impact. The 170gr Lee from my 30/30 not so much.
Like mentioned, I just might order another NOE for this 38/55 exclusively for gas checks.
I have pics of all my range results but unfortunately Photobucket has custody of them.
My 38/55 is a 1980's variant so it should be able to handle higher pressure loads. I'll need to slug the bore as well. Al this will have to wait a few months due to work.

[Pioneer2]

Be aware there are two correct lengths of brass before you ruin a few like I did .Either trim to one length or segregate them.I have Grandpa's 1894 rifle.Harold

["No Choke"Lord Walsingham]

Originally Posted by Pioneer2

Be aware there are two correct lengths of brass before you ruin a few like I did .Either trim to one length or segregate them.I have Grandpa's 1894 rifle.Harold

.375 Win as well. Slightly shorter is the aforementioned, than .38-55. The older guns are what I'd prefer black powder cartridges for exclusively. The win 94's are very strong. Some new production currently available.

I would like it if Pedersoli would care to do up a run of the Lightning Express large frame in .38-55. A Colt pump repro, you understand.