Winchester 1895 .38-72 Range Report #4- We Shootin' Now

[Shasta]

This is my fourth and final report on my efforts to get a nice old octagon-barreled Winchester 1895 in .38-72 shooting with reasonable accuracy. Here is a link to the previous report:

http://www.levergunscommunity.com/viewt ... =1&t=37563


After thinning the Bertram Brass case mouths from .014" to .010" I was able to chamber a .379" diameter bullet that was closer to the barrel's .381 bore size. Turning another thousandth off allowed an easy fit of a .380" bullet, and I could even chamber a .381" bullet without too much effort. Surprisingly these larger bullets just did not shoot as well as the RCBS 37-250-FN gas checked bullets I had previously sized at .379.
The mould I have for this bullet is very old, and the bullets tend to be egg-shaped, but I went ahead and ran a few through a .381" bullet sizer die, which lubed the bullet without sizing it. I used an RCBS Case Master Concentricity Gauging Tool to check the outside case neck diameter before and after seating a bullet. That bullet put the case neck .005" out-of-round, but they did chamber OK.
I had benchrest fired many test loads with various powders, primers, and bullets, and was having some success working up a load with the RCBS bullet, Federal large rifle primer, and IMR 4198 powder, but unfortunately I ran out of 4198, so I switched to Reloader 7. This proved to be as good or even better than the 4198! A charge of 26 grains gave 1,390 FPS. Addition of a filler consisting of one square of single-ply toilet paper boosted velocity to 1,527 FPS and I finally got the accuracy I was looking for. Pictured is a white target fired at 50 yards and an orange target fired at 100 yards. Four out of five shots under an inch at 50 yards, and three out of five into 1 1/8" at 100 yards. That's as good as I can shoot barrel sights.





Now I'm going to go enjoy a few sips of Johnny Walker Black Label.

SHASTA

[kimwcook]

Looks like you've struck pay dirt. I'd have a sip too.

[C. Cash]

I'd say that's quite nice for shooting out of round bullets! Looks like that load is a winner, and the rifle oozes class. Congrats all around.

[Ben_Rumson]

Interesting... You done good... get out there and have some fun with that old beauty.. bust some rocks.. dance some cans... make some meat!.. Congrats!

[geobru]

Shasta,
I just re-read the threads leading up to this final chapter in your quest for an accurate load in your 38-72. The steps you went through reminded me of my experimentation with trying to find a load for my 40-82. These are the common threads in our experiments.

1. You have to slug the bore and use a bullet that fits the barrel. Undersize bullets tumble. Period!
2. Brass that is loaded with bullets that fit oversized bores have to have their necks turned down so the cartridge will chamber.
3. Black powder calibers with long cases over 2.4" are more accurate if fillers are used to keep the powder up against the base of the case. (The 45-90 and 40-82 have 2.4" brass, and the 38-72 case length is 2.58".)
4. Without a filler, 5744 leaves a lot of unburned powder in the barrel, in spite of their assertion that it is not position sensitive.
5. Bullets with longer driving bands are more stable and consistantly accurate then those with shorter driving bands in these guns.
6. Gas check bullets work better than plain based in these calibers when using smokeless powders.

Very interesting thread, and very nicely documented. Thanks for posting.
Congratulations on finding the right combination for your gun! Now go out there and shoot the bejeebers out of it!

[KirkD]

Good work on your load development. The lack of comments on this thread may be in keeping with the shear rarity of the 38-72 cartridge.

[Hobie]

I know I don't have a .38-72 but I found this interesting...

[snkbittin]

Wow!..just found this..Im messing with a 95 in 38-72 ..I made up 50 rounds of brass from .405 Hornday ..had to turn the rim and ream the necks and all that...I SHOULD have learned from my 40-72...i have 50 rnds of brass made from 9.3x74r...and as it starts out 9.3 is .366 and going up .012 - .015 for the .379-.380 needed for the .38-72 is easy...as compared to going up to .406 for the 40-72
i had some fired brass from that batch and resized it in the 38-72 dies and its perfect...so brass problem is fixed...NOW i need to get the thing to fire..so far only Hawk .377 255grns work with out tumbling Thanks for the great posts on this cool Caliber

[Griff]

Resurrecting a 5-½ year old thread... Maybe Shasta will see it and provide more updates in his quest. But, as he said in his post, you need the slug that barrel and see if you need a larger bullet.

[Dusty Texian]

Great to see an old one shooting that good again. Very nice old rifle and caliber. With that kind of accuracey it would be a very good all-around rifle. ,,DT

[Shasta]

I was sure surprised to see this old thread brought back.

I have not worked much more with my old .38-72, but I did spring for a new Accurate 382250B three cavity bullet mould that drops a plain base .382" diameter bullet that fits the bore well and does not require use of a gas check. This bullet shoots about the same groups as the RCBS 37-250-FN. My biggest problem right now is that the barrel sights run out of elevation much past 100 yards. I'm keeping an eye out on Ebay for a Lyman 38 receiver sight, but they have been going for well over $400 when they do come up. I am thinking about installing a Providence Tool #21 sight available from Buffalo Arms for under $150, but would really rather have an old Lyman #21 or #38 that appears worn and would look better on a rifle with low finish.

Shasta

[Chuck 100 yd]

Sometimes we just have to keep on trying. When it works out it is worth the effort. Good job !!!

[Blaine]

Does anyone know what happened to KimCook?

[Sixgun]

Shasta....I've had great luck with the Providence job. Like you said, a correctly coded 21 brings 4-5 and add another 2-4 for a 38.

So.....you spend a buck and a half for a Providence, strip the hot dip blue and rust blue maybe two times......not the regular 5 times. .....then work it over with a lead removing cloth.----6

[JerryB]

Blaine I reckon he just dropped out like some of the others have.

[Aussie Chris]

Shame about Kim, I enjoyed his posts.

Chris

[saw whet owl]

I know I don't have a .38-72 but I found this interesting...

ditto

Nice work, nice write up, and nice shooting .