38-55

[wgr]

anyone loading this round?is it possable to get 2000 fps out of it with a 250grain bullet?the rifle is a h&r target model. thinks bill

[stimpylu32]

wgr

All the data I'm finding shows the top speed around 1750 fps so the 2000 fps number may not be able to be reached , the biggest problem with the 38/55 in a Handi is that they are bad for having a very over-sized bore , sometimes as much as .008 .

This tends to make them not shoot standard sized bullets worth a hoot , most that shoot this barrel find that they have to go with custom cast bullets to get any kind of decent accuracy .

stimpy

[coyotejoe]

It seems you want a .375 Winchester. Some people do run .375 Winchester loads in their .38/55s but the manufacturer certainly does not recommend the practice. 

[quickdtoo]

The following applys specifically to the 38-55 H&R Target, not any other 38-55 chambered firearm.

Strength wise, the 38-55 H&R will work fine with 375 Win level loads, it uses the same SB2 frame as the Handi that's factory chambered in 270 Win and several other high pressure chamberings, but the chamber/bore dimensions are the issue as Stimpy mentioned. I can chamber Mt Baldy .380" cast bullets in Starline long brass in mine, but can't in 375 Win brass, it's thicker at the neck and would need to be neck turned or the chamber reamed to work. But that's not a real issue if you use 38-55 brass, many 375 Win Marlin shooters use 30-30 and 38-55 brass in their rifles with no problems. It's just a matter of being able to chamber the bullet that shoots good, and then careful load work using 375 Win data. If your bore requires .381" or larger cast bullets to shoot well, you'll likely have to neck ream the chamber which many older 38-55 Targets will require.

Tim

http://shootersforum.com/showthread.htm?t=2137&highlight=.375+win

http://shootersforum.com/showthread.htm?p=12449#poststop

[wgr]

the rifle i have has been reworked to take a .381/.382 bullet have no problems chambering using 38-55 brass are fire formed 30-30brass. I'm not wanting to go overboard on this just trying to get a good 200/250 yard load . i am using a 250grain cast bullet now but thinking about going to one that's 22o/230 grain

[quickdtoo]

The Lyman Cast Bullet handbook and 48th shows 248gr-249gr cast bullets at 1900+fps in their 375Win data in a 20" barrel, the 28" H&R barrel should easily do 2000fps with the right powder. I chose Reloder7 for mine with the 270gr Mt Baldy as it should work good in the longer barrel, but haven't been to the range yet. They show RL7 27.5gr start and 32gr max compressed for the 249gr bullet at a COL of 2.450", WLR primer, start low and work up. Their 38-55 data for the same bullet starts at 24gr, max is 27.5gr, but COL is 2.550".

Tim