Original Winchester 1894 mfg. 1902 38-55
- Thread starter Big Game
- Start date
RCBS Cowboy dies will have two expanders. One is .374'' and the other is .379".
Hi,
Sorry omitted caliber 38-55
I lean towards RCBS. Looks like tapered expander to adjust to bullet dia.
Thanks Al
I have Lyman, RCBS, Redding as well as some Lee dies, any of these should be sufficient for loading the 38-55.
farmerjohn
Gold $$ Contributor
Hey Feller, I'm going to be watching this with you, going in for back surgery tomorrow and going to be laid up and have two different rifles (38-55) that I just acquired that I will be working with. One thing I might add is Starline has the shorter version with the thinner necks available for backorder which means they will usually ship within 3 or 4 weeks and if you need brass you might want to get in on this run, I've been waiting a year for them to run 50-70s .... John
farmerjohn
Gold $$ Contributor
This is what I'm starting with...
JohnI had an 1894 in 38-55 made in 1894. Slugged at .381". My problem was the brass available at the time was too thick, so after seating a .381" bullet, the ammo wouldn't chamber. I used Redding dies and Starline brass. With the thinner brass, it should be fine. That said, it gave 2-3" groups at 100 yards with jacketed bullets.
Hi John,
I hope all went well with your back surgery.
I "slugged" my barrel came up .3785. I purchased RCBS Cowboy die set. Large expander is .379
I was hoping to use 255 gr cast bullets @ .379. Probably should reconsider and use .380 cast bullets, however. I have both Winchester and Starline new brass @ 2.085"
Al
I hope all went well with your back surgery.
I "slugged" my barrel came up .3785. I purchased RCBS Cowboy die set. Large expander is .379
I was hoping to use 255 gr cast bullets @ .379. Probably should reconsider and use .380 cast bullets, however. I have both Winchester and Starline new brass @ 2.085"
Al
I used rcbs dies for a friends vintage marlin in 38-56 win and no problems. I think it was a model 188?
Had to make brass from rcbs 45 basic
farmerjohn
Gold $$ Contributor
Hey Fellers, been a little busy this week trying to get roads put back, fences put back, and downed trees cleaned up. I'm no good for physical labor anymore and about all I can do is operate the equipment. I did get to see how unique from 9 to 10.5 gr with the new Starline brass and the 230gr. Coated .279 dia., Badman Bullet would work. Was in a hurry and wasn't going for group, just speed, pressure, and recoil in the Baby Sharps. Bore sighting showed pretty close, 3" yellow dot at 60yds was all ready in place...
2 shots each...
9.0.....1264fps
10.0... 1314fps
10.5....1380fps
Old white box Winchester standard primers
No readable measurements on case expansion for the first 4, and a half tenth on the last 2 @200 line
Recoil on the little Sharps told me that 9.5 was enough for the 5.5lb toy and still be fun.
All shots stayed in the left side of the 3in dot probably a 2in group, looking forward to really playing with it and the bigger rifle as time permits... John
Upgrades & Donations
This Forum's expenses are primarily paid by member contributions. You can upgrade your Forum membership in seconds. Gold and Silver members get unlimited FREE classifieds for one year. Gold members can upload custom avatars.
Click Upgrade Membership Button ABOVE to get Gold or Silver Status.
You can also donate any amount, large or small, with the button below. Include your Forum Name in the PayPal Notes field.
To DONATE by CHECK, or make a recurring donation, CLICK HERE to learn how.
Click Upgrade Membership Button ABOVE to get Gold or Silver Status.
You can also donate any amount, large or small, with the button below. Include your Forum Name in the PayPal Notes field.
To DONATE by CHECK, or make a recurring donation, CLICK HERE to learn how.