38-55 in Marlin

[BCB]

It's a new one, I think one of the cowboy models...

Anybody recommend a cast boolit that might be a winner?

I know it is difficult to say without sluggin' the barrel, but it is a new one and I thought maybe someone else had experience...

Thanks...BCB

[Brownie]

my 38-55,s all shoot very well with Lyman #375248, a 250gr flat nose or Lyman #375449, a 280gr flat nose gas check bullet. size these .379.
38-55 was designed for target shooting 135 or so years ago, and it still is very good at it.

[HEAD0001]

Pictures, Pictures, Did I mention pictures?? Tom.

[KCSO]

Having shot and owned 3 of these so far I willl say that if you get a bullet with the right size from 379 to 381 the guns will shoot. I have a custom mould from Mountain Moulds and a Lee mould. The Lee drops a 381 bullet from my soft alloy 1-20 tin and lead. I size to 381 and use the thinner Starline bbrass. Winchester brass is slightly shorter and thicker and if you use a 380 or above bullet you may have problems with bullet release with the thicker brass, no probllems with the Starline and you can go all the way to 382 bullets.

I use my 38-55 for hunting and so I shoot a softer alloy and I am pushing it pretty hard ( 17-1800 fps) with either WW 748 IMR 3031 or Reloader7. The soft slugs are lubed with myy black powder lube and will show only the barest trace of leading after 20 sucessive shots. For target and plinking I am shoooting black power, Schutzen lightly compressed and the Lee Bullet. This load shoows NO leading. The Marlin has a chambber cut for the shorter Starline case and I have thought I might want to take it out to the old full length case but it shoots so darn good as is i hate to mess with it. I have in front of witnesses put 3 shots into 4" at 200 yards. This is with a Marbles peep and a Lyman bead front sight.

[JudgeBAC]

.380 bullets would not chamber in mine. .379 would chamber but they were a tight fit. I then reduced them to .378 and at that size the rounds chamber easily and I get very good accuracy at 100 yards with a Marble tang sight and factory brass bead front. 3031 seems to produce the best accuracy for me. Once you figure out the bullet diameter problem, these guns are very fun to shoot. Low recoil and accurate. What more could you ask for.

[9.3X62AL]

I have a Marlin 336 action that has tennis-volleyed between my nephew and I that I keep threatening to re-barrel into 38-55. But every time the subject gets discussed, the tomfoolery of bore/groove dimensional gymnastics with brass characteristics gives me a headache and makes me think "35-30". Buckshot's bad luck with his single-shot did nothing to alleviate that reluctance. either.

[August]

Marlin will do the work for 305 bucks. Mine is working great, but I am the second owner and don't know what the previous owner did, or didn't do to the chamber. I have a hunch he might have reamed it because it was so rough when I got it that brass would not extract. A couple of hours with the drill and some emery paper cleaned it up and it has worked and shot well since.

If I can do it, anyone can.