New Winchester Hi-Wall in 38-55

[NAVYENC]

I've just gotten this rifle, 2019 model Traditional Hunter, was the last one anybody had in stock that I could get. I was wondering if anyone else out there had this same rifle. Specs say it's a 1-15 twist, but nothing about bore size, I'm going to assume it's not 375. I don't have the gun yet so I can't slug the bore to order a couple boolit molds. To anyone that has one of these, what are the bore dimensions of your rifles, and which boolit molds should I be looking at? I will be shooting mostly targets, maybe some hunting. any suggestions would be appreciated.

[tejano]

U.S. Repeating Arms|Winchester Rifle 1885 Limited Series

BRAND:U.S. Repeating Arms|Winchester# OF MAGS:
MODEL:1885 Limited SeriesSAFETY:Half Cock Safety
TYPE:RifleSIGHTS:Marbles Blade Front & Rear Tang Mounted Peep
CALIBER:38-55BARREL LENGTH:28" w/Semi-Buckhorn Rear Sight, Rifling 1-18
FINISH:BlueOVERALL LENGTH:44.5"
ACTION:Single ShotWEIGHT:9 lbs
STOCK:Walnut, Satin, Checkered, StraightPACKAGING:
CAPACITY:1FEATURES:Octagonal BBL, Bore Diam's: Lands .368 Grooves .376
CHOKES:FEATURESavidson's Exclusive Spec Edtn w/Auth Certificate
CHAMBER:BUTT PLATE:Crescent Butt Plate with Strap on Top
MUZZLE:RECEIVER:Blue, Drilled & Tapped

[daved63]

I don't have that exact model but I have had several of the Miroku made Winchester 1885 rifles. The bore size does vary a little. I only had one that was actually .376 like Winchester lists. The others had .377 bores. They are great rifles and accurate too when you get a bullet to fit the barrel. Your best bet is to wait on the rifle and slug the bore. I shoot the Ranch Dog TLC379-235-RF in the Miroku 1885 I currently have and it is very accurate. I size them to .378 for the .377 barrel. I've killed deer with that bullet as well as plenty of paper target shooting.

[John Boy]

The most accurate 38-55 bullet is the Ideal 375166, 320gr. Accurate molds has a clone of this bullet on the website that Tom made for me because the original Ideal mold if you can find one runs over $200
Spec the mold to your groove or 2 thousands greater for obturation. Also, the 375166 calculates in the Powley Calculator with a high rating in a 14 to 18 twist ratio

[NAVYENC]

Thanks for the responses so far. I've been looking at the Accurate Molds and they look like the ones I'll be ordering. tejano, I got my info off the Winchester web site about the twist rate. The gun is a leftover 2019 Shot Show Special so it may have different specs on it, so I'll slug it and measure the twist when I get it home. Thanks for the info guys.

[koger]

I have the same rifle, it is scary accurate. Only thing I have shot with it is the Lee 265 gr with my alloy and shot great with the first two loads I shot out of it. I have the Noe mold that makes a 338 gr slug, I just have not got around to shooting them.

[lotech]

I bought a Traditional Hunter .38-55 more than twenty years ago, not long after they became available. I've tried several bullets and the Lyman flat nose gas check design is my favorite. It weighs around 275-280 grains cast of wheelweight alloy. I'd use the largest diameter bullet that will allow chambering without difficulty. I contacted a Browning engineer who told me bore and groove specs were .373" and .379" respectively at that time. I'd be surprised if those specs have changed, but I guess it's a possibility. However, my rifle may be a bit tight in the bore. I run bullets through a .379" die.

HANDLOADER magazine published an article using one of these rifles in issue #210, April 2001. A number of bullet and powder combinations were used and bullets included both ww alloy and linotype.

[Chill Wills]

I've just gotten this rifle, 2019 model Traditional Hunter, was the last one anybody had in stock that I could get. I was wondering if anyone else out there had this same rifle. Specs say it's a 1-15 twist, but nothing about bore size, I'm going to assume it's not 375. I don't have the gun yet so I can't slug the bore to order a couple boolit molds. To anyone that has one of these, what are the bore dimensions of your rifles, and which boolit molds should I be looking at? I will be shooting mostly targets, maybe some hunting. any suggestions would be appreciated.

Bullet design could/would depend on what you have in mind to use it for.
Off Topic - could you describe what ship is in your avatr photo? It is too small to see the details of what it is.

[NAVYENC]

The ship is an Adams Class Guided Missile Destroyer, this one was the Richard E Byrd DDG 23. One of 3 destroyers and one aircraft carrier I was on while I was in.