.38-55 Winchester

Type

Rifle

Place of origin

United States

Production history

Designer

Ballard Rifle & Cartridge Company

Designed

1884

Specifications

Case type

Rimmed straight

Bullet diameter

.3775 in (9.59 mm)

Neck diameter

.392 in (10.0 mm)

Base diameter

.421 in (10.7 mm)

Rim diameter

.506 in (12.9 mm)

Case length

2.085 in (53.0 mm)

Overall length

2.510 in (63.8 mm)

Rifling twist

1 turn in 18"

Maximum CUP

30,000 CUP

Ballistic performance

Bullet mass/type	Velocity	Energy
255 gr (17 g)	1,321 ft/s (403 m/s)	988 ft·lbf (1,340 J)
255 gr (17 g)	1,593 ft/s (486 m/s)	1,437 ft·lbf (1,948 J)

Source(s): Whelen, Townsend. The American Rifle. The Century Co.: 1918, p. 272.

The .38-55 Winchester cartridge (actually .3775 caliber) was introduced in 1876 by Ballard. It was used by Marlin Firearms from 1875 on for various single-shot target rifles and their 1893 lever action rifle. It was later offered by Winchester in its Model 1894. Winchester continued to use the round in various rifles until about 1940, and also used it in a few commemorative editions of rifles since then. In addition, Marlin offered it in some 336s and it was used in non-lever action rifles such as the Remington-Lee bolt-action and Colt's New Lightning pump-action rifles.

A modernized version of the cartridge debuted in 1978 as the .375 Winchester, designed with higher pressures and to be used in modern firearms only. It is not safe to fire factory .375 Win ammunition in rifles chambered in .38-55, especially in older examples. The brass is very similar (shorter by approx. 1 mm), but using modern, higher pressure .375 loads in an older rifle could cause serious injury to the shooter.

The .38-55 is renowned for its exceptional accuracy at ranges up to 330 yd (300 m). It is often used to hunt black bear and deer at moderate ranges, and is also used in cowboy action shooting side matches.

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