Who here has taken game with a 38-55?

Win 38-55

Win 38-55

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I'd like to hear your experience with taking game with the 38-55. I'd especially be interested in details such as type of load you were using, range, how many shots it took, how fast the animal dropped, type of rifle, etc.

So far, I've only taken one small buck with the 38-55. I was using an old Winchester Model 1894 made in 1899. I cannot recall the amount of IMR SR4759 that I was using, but the velocity was about 1,575 fps with a soft cast flat point lead bullet. The deer was running flat out crosswise to me. I led it by about 3 feet and squeezed off the shot. The bullet passed right through it and it went down right there. I really like the 38-55 and plan to use it a lot more in the future.
 
I'd never have guessed you liked the .38-55! LOL!!

My great-grandfather owned one centrefire rifle, as far as I know. He bought a Winchester 1894, tang peep-sighted, 26" octagon-barreled rifle around 1900 and used it until he died in 1961. My grandmother told me that they were plowing a field about 1920 and a moose walked out at the far end, about 200 yards away. Her Dad sent her brother to the house for the rifle, and when he brought it, her Dad leaned it across a rail fence and dropped ol' Bullwinkle with one shot. He shot at least one moose and one deer (I say "at least" because he was a homesteader and may have occasionally taken extra) with that rifle until the late fifties.
Flash forward to 1958. The old fella was pushing 80 years old, and one morning while he was shaving, he spied a moose crossing the field behind his barn. Swapping his straight razor for his trusty Winchester, he headed to a fence near the barn where he braced the rifle and fired. The moose dropped in the patch of scrub willow he'd been devouring. Then Great-granddad called over to his son-in-law's farm for help to gut and skin it. My father, who was engaged to the old man's granddaughter (my mom) went to help. He showed me years later the locations of the shot and the moose. He paced it off at the time and said it was 200 yards, give or take. The heavy bullet had broken the shoulder blade and punched through the heart. The old guy probably never read a ballistics chart in his life. I guess neither he nor the moose knew you couldn't do that with a .38-55.
I don't know whatever happened to his rifle...I hope some lucky devil is still using it. Or that one of my distant cousins has it and will part with it!
I know that he never reloaded cartridges, and that he thought the smokeless loads were good for moose, but preferred the blackpowder loads for deer because they stayed in the deer when you shot.
Those are the details I know. Most of that family has died off, but the legend of the best hunter and woodsman the family ever produced stays with us.
 
Does a .375 Win count? If it does I took two deer with mine this year, a 99 in 375. I've got a couple Savage 1899's in 38-55 but haven't taken them hunting.
 
Second hand knowledge

Well Kirk, it is not direct knowledge I have, either. But as a kid, a long time ago, I saw the results of where a neighbor with a 38-55 had butchered two moose, probably a cow and calf. I followed the tracks in the snow, after the horses and sleigh had taken the moose home. I saw where the hunter had shot from (found the two empties) and he was only about fifty yards from where they were butchered. A streak of cut, black hair stretched out behind each butchering spot, indicating where the bullet went through. There would be a 99.9% chance he was using the old CIL, Dominion ammunition. This was high qulaity ammunition, even later praised by non other than Jack O'Connor!
I have a hand me down story from Manitoba. An older brother, who was a very accomplished rifle shooter, even as a young man, when this took place. They were working in the winter at a gravel pit and a moose came out to feed in the willows, a far distance away. A young native Indian, one of the crew, said he would bring his rifle the next day, because the moose might come back. The men laughed at him, stating the moose was over a quarter of a mile away! The Indian just said, "if he comes back, I get him." Next day the Indian brought his rifle, a 38-55! More laughing. Moose showed up, a shot, soon the moose started to stagger. Indian sharpened his knife, said, "now I go butcher him!"
 
My story isn't very glamorous, but out here we are allowed 3 deer in season....I hadn't filled my antlerless tag last year and the season was getting on. i put aside my bigger guns and took my Rem. Rolling block in 38/55 out to where I knew there would be some does. Like i said, nothing fancy, one shot broadside at about 110yds, deer got sick and died real fast. The 255gr. Saeco tapered flat point went out the other side of the chest, but I could not find the slug. My load was 43grs.(all I could fit) of Swiss 3fg. black, Rem. 2 1/2 pistol primer, 1368 fps.
 
Win 38-55, I've never used a 38-55 on deer but I have used a 357 Maxi, built on a large Martini action. When built the rifle was intended to act like the "Whisper" line of sub sonic cartridges. I load a 250 grn Speer spire point over 21.0 grains of Rel7, for a velocity of appx 1100fps and a 300 grain cast bullet over the same charge for appx 1000fps. The bbl is a standard 26 inch, 1/10 twist and handles the gas checked, long cast bullet extremely well.
They both have trajectories like rainbows, and if you're standing right beside the rifle, it isn't loud at all, and there is absolutely no muzzle flash, probably because all of the powder is being burned up in the barrel, at that length its been suggested that the bble is acting like a resistance brake, not unlike 22rf shorts in long bbls.
It is however extremely accurate with both bullets once you figure out the ranges.
I tool a deer last year at just around 120yds with the 250 grain bullet, The deer walked about 4 paces and laid down. The bullet hit one of th short ribs on entry and went through both lungs, through the offside shoulder joint and left an exit wound about 3/4in dia.
Like I said, it's not a 38-55. Your cartridge is capable of better performance yet, even loaded to the standards of your Winchester, I'm sure a moose wouldn't know the difference between a 35 Whelan and the 38-55 if you do your part and hit it right. bearhunter
 
Bearhunter, the ballistics of your 357 Maxi are more modest than the 38-55, but interesting none the less.
 
Win 38-55
I have shot 2 or 3 deer with a 93 marlin 38-55 with a 250grn bullet cast from an Ideal loading tool. The deer never went to far after the shot, the deer camp old boys used to tell me how much better the 38-55 was than its little brother the 30-30 was. They always said the 38-55 cut through the brush better than the modern high velocity cartridges, and at least 10 times I saw evidence to back up thier stories. I have never tried the old girl on a moose as I chose the 45-70 instead, but I would not doubt the ability of the 38-55 to take on larger game. Although the balictics of the 38-55 or 45-70 are not to impressive on paper they both seem to kill very quickly and never ruin much meat. My great uncle who shot a 38-55 told me ''that you could eat right up to the hole'' which was important to a meat hunter, as a kid he used to give me proper s**t for shooting holes in the heart or liver of a deer as it was a waste of good meat. At 14 that was a little hard to take but I understand now and can laugh about it.
Regards
 
I have a Winchester 94 in 38-55 that I took one deer (doe) with 21 years ago. It was my great grandfather's gun and was made in 1895:cool:. I have been told that that gun has taken a pile of deer/moose back in the day (most likely under questionable circumstances......;)
 
Kilo Charlie's great grandfather's 1894 was purchased in 1900. I have two 38-55's, one of which was completed in 1899 and shipped from the factory in 1900. Maybe it's the same rifle? (very long shot, of course). I bought it at Ellwood Epps a few years ago. It's the one I dropped the small buck with. Here's a photo of it and a 38-55 SRC made in 1907 ...

Brace-of-38-55s-1.jpg
 
Somewhat of a side issue however I was wondering if Marlin, considering their efforts in modern lever action rifles, chamber any of their models for the .38-55, anyone know? I did a quick check of their website and didn't see any indication of it.
 
They made the 336 Cowboy in .38-55 for a few years, last year of production was about 2001.
I read on a levergun forum that they stil have front ends for them and will swap your old barrel, mag tube and forend for the 24" octagonal Cowboy rig for about $400.00 US. Check with Marlin.
Other than that, I suspect Marlin stopped chambering the .38-55 when they updated the Model 93 to the Model 36.
 
Update;
Did another check and still no mention found of a .38-55 so I phoned. Apparently they do. The lady I talked to informed me, that caliber is available in their 336 series. I might 'need' one. It would be a good mate for my 444 & .45-70.
 
Here are my two 38-55's.

The top one is an 1899A Saddle gun with a 22" barrel and it's wearing Stith mounts and a 4X Stith scope. This is the one I've had at the range, I get pretty good groups with that Stith scope. The second one is my 1899C half oct, half round barrel 26" wearing a Lyman 2A peep sight, nice gun but I haven't had it at the range yet, hopefully when I'm not tuning a rifle that I'm actually hunting with I'll get some time to go play with these old girls.

moose%20050.jpg
 
Have taken two deer with a Marlin in 38-55. Rainbow trajectory is right. The Marlin has a flip up range sight. First time I used the rifle, I didn't have good feel for how far away the deer was, so used the regular sight. Bullet went under the does belly. Flipped up the long distance sight where the closest adjustment is 200 yards. Broke her back, end of story. In all the fuss over the years about magnums and 3000 fps, people forget how much a 255 gr bullet can hurt, even if it is moving slow. The other deer was also a doe, 30 yards, running. Hit in the front shoulder and knocked down dead. No exit wound. A lot of high energy bullets can puncture and keep on going. The 38-55 usually transfers all of its energy to the target.
It can actually be a calibre that needs a little more caution in the bush, because it doesn't fragment, it doesn't stop easily and it can bounce.
 
I took a nice buck last year with a 1899 Sav 38-55 with a K Waters load of 35g of 3031 over a 220 Horn :) One shot thru the lungs, hardly any damage, buck went 40 ft & laid down.

MADDOG: Looks just like a 38-55 1/2 & 1/2 i had up to about 7-8 yrs ago.

38-55: That's a nice SRC :)
 
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