This article appearing in the Sept/Oct 2010, #207 of the Fouling Shot was written by Craig Thompson.
It all started when I read an article that Forrest Asmus had written about rebarreling a Marlin Model 1895 to 40-65 WCF. Later I read a second article about the same rifle. I already had a nice Marlin 1895CB in 45-70 that I hunted with, so my original idea was to get another and have the barrel bored and relined to 40-65.
I went to my local dealer and had him get me anoth-er 1895CB. Well once the rifle arrived and I got it home, I was having a difficult time talking myself into reaming a perfectly good and new barrel. So the new 1895CB went into the safe and the idea got keyholed for awhile.
Maybe six months later I still hadnt done anything with the new rifle and happened to be browsing Gunbroker. I noticed an original Marlin 1895 of 1896 vin-tage in, of all calibers, 40-65 WCF, but the gun just hap-pened to be in Fairbanks Alaska.
Anyway to make a long story short I contacted the dealer selling the rifle and made a deal. In a couple weeks the new Marlin 1895 was in my hands, and I didnt have to sacrifice the other 1895CB.
While the wait for the 40-65 was going on I had my local dealer get me some Starline 40-65 brass, a set of RCBS 40-65 Cowboy dies and a Lyman 403169 mould. Very shortly after they arrived here I had a couple hun-dred bullets cast and lubed for loading. All my bullets were run thru a .408 die and lubed with Thompsons Blue Angel.
I looked in Mike Venturinos book about lever actions and started with a load he had listed; the bullet men-tioned above with 24 grains of XMP5744 and primed with a CCI 200 primer.
I ran about 30 cases through the sizer die just to make sure everything was round and then primed, charged and loaded twenty. I put a fairly decent crimp in the crimp groove. When the rifle arrived they went thru the action without problems.
The next day I headed to the range and set up a tar-get at 50 yards. This target had a pretty decent sized black bull as I planned on using the plain old iron sights. After giving the rifle another good scrubbing there at the range that morning, I proceeded to get on paper at 50 yards. Then I went for dead-on at 50 and wasted about 7 rounds.
I then decided to try a three-shot group. By no means did I shoot my best ever group, but for a 110 year old rifle and open sights I thought the two inch group I got was respectable. I then moved my target to 75 yards and shot another group. This one opened up to almost four inches. I decided to limit the old smoke pole to 75 yards or less. To be honest I didnt bother to try any other loads in the old rifle.
I was set for hunting season of 2006. Well, almost. While looking and waiting for this 40-65 I had run across a really, really nice Marlin 1895 in 38-56. This rifle was built in 1897 and Leroy Merz in Minnesota had it. Well to make a long story short, the rifle appeared on my doorstep about two weeks later, as did a package from Midway with a set of Redding 38-56 dies and some Quality Cartridge brass. I already had plenty of moulds and a sizing die since I also load for a pair of 38-55s and a 375 Win.
For the 38-56 I had a bit more work to do since I had a couple good moulds to use. On hand I had the already proven RCBS 250 grain GC mould and the Lyman 375449 262 grain GC mould. I also have a Lyman 375248 plain base mould but I kind of prefer to use gas checked bullets. In this rifle as well as the 40-65 all I used was straight WWs to cast my bullets.
Since I already had bullets cast, sized, checked and lubed I thought I should load a few. To start I tried a dozen of the RCBS bullet with 20 grains XMP5744 and a dozen with the Lyman bullet and the same charge. Then I headed to the range for a test run. Again I started at 50 yards as I was only using iron open sights. The RCBS bullet shot very well at 50; three shots were around an inch. Then I tried three of the Lyman bullets and they went into almost a single ragged hole. To say I was surprised would be an understatement!
Then and there I decided the Lyman bullet and 20 grains of 5744 would be the load. I moved the target out to 75 yards and shot three more which went in about an inch so I was pretty satisfied with this one as well for hunting season.
It all started when I read an article that Forrest Asmus had written about rebarreling a Marlin Model 1895 to 40-65 WCF. Later I read a second article about the same rifle. I already had a nice Marlin 1895CB in 45-70 that I hunted with, so my original idea was to get another and have the barrel bored and relined to 40-65.
I went to my local dealer and had him get me anoth-er 1895CB. Well once the rifle arrived and I got it home, I was having a difficult time talking myself into reaming a perfectly good and new barrel. So the new 1895CB went into the safe and the idea got keyholed for awhile.
Maybe six months later I still hadnt done anything with the new rifle and happened to be browsing Gunbroker. I noticed an original Marlin 1895 of 1896 vin-tage in, of all calibers, 40-65 WCF, but the gun just hap-pened to be in Fairbanks Alaska.
Anyway to make a long story short I contacted the dealer selling the rifle and made a deal. In a couple weeks the new Marlin 1895 was in my hands, and I didnt have to sacrifice the other 1895CB.
While the wait for the 40-65 was going on I had my local dealer get me some Starline 40-65 brass, a set of RCBS 40-65 Cowboy dies and a Lyman 403169 mould. Very shortly after they arrived here I had a couple hun-dred bullets cast and lubed for loading. All my bullets were run thru a .408 die and lubed with Thompsons Blue Angel.
I looked in Mike Venturinos book about lever actions and started with a load he had listed; the bullet men-tioned above with 24 grains of XMP5744 and primed with a CCI 200 primer.
I ran about 30 cases through the sizer die just to make sure everything was round and then primed, charged and loaded twenty. I put a fairly decent crimp in the crimp groove. When the rifle arrived they went thru the action without problems.
The next day I headed to the range and set up a tar-get at 50 yards. This target had a pretty decent sized black bull as I planned on using the plain old iron sights. After giving the rifle another good scrubbing there at the range that morning, I proceeded to get on paper at 50 yards. Then I went for dead-on at 50 and wasted about 7 rounds.
I then decided to try a three-shot group. By no means did I shoot my best ever group, but for a 110 year old rifle and open sights I thought the two inch group I got was respectable. I then moved my target to 75 yards and shot another group. This one opened up to almost four inches. I decided to limit the old smoke pole to 75 yards or less. To be honest I didnt bother to try any other loads in the old rifle.
I was set for hunting season of 2006. Well, almost. While looking and waiting for this 40-65 I had run across a really, really nice Marlin 1895 in 38-56. This rifle was built in 1897 and Leroy Merz in Minnesota had it. Well to make a long story short, the rifle appeared on my doorstep about two weeks later, as did a package from Midway with a set of Redding 38-56 dies and some Quality Cartridge brass. I already had plenty of moulds and a sizing die since I also load for a pair of 38-55s and a 375 Win.
For the 38-56 I had a bit more work to do since I had a couple good moulds to use. On hand I had the already proven RCBS 250 grain GC mould and the Lyman 375449 262 grain GC mould. I also have a Lyman 375248 plain base mould but I kind of prefer to use gas checked bullets. In this rifle as well as the 40-65 all I used was straight WWs to cast my bullets.
Since I already had bullets cast, sized, checked and lubed I thought I should load a few. To start I tried a dozen of the RCBS bullet with 20 grains XMP5744 and a dozen with the Lyman bullet and the same charge. Then I headed to the range for a test run. Again I started at 50 yards as I was only using iron open sights. The RCBS bullet shot very well at 50; three shots were around an inch. Then I tried three of the Lyman bullets and they went into almost a single ragged hole. To say I was surprised would be an understatement!
Then and there I decided the Lyman bullet and 20 grains of 5744 would be the load. I moved the target out to 75 yards and shot three more which went in about an inch so I was pretty satisfied with this one as well for hunting season.
Now you would think I was finished but no! I had run across an antique gun dealer in California that had another Marlin 1895, but this one was in 33 WCF and made about 1912-1914. I dug a little deeper in my pockets and got this one as well. Actually, it and the 38-56 arrived about the same time, as did the brass and dies. For the 33 WCF I also used Quality Cartridge brass.
The hold up however was a mould! I had tried on EBay a couple times to win a Lyman 338320 or the older GC version of the RCBS 33-200 mould, but each time I had no luck! A couple weeks later a guy on leverguns told me about a dealer in California that had a like new dual cavity 338320. His price was a little high, but it was only about $20 more than the single cavity moulds had been selling for on EBay. I went ahead and bought the mould. I already had gas checks on hand, as every time I would see a partial box at a gun show I would pick them up. Seems I have a few thousand now. I also got a lube size die at the same time I got the loading dies.
With the 33 WCF I decided to start at 20 grains of XMP5744 and work up. I loaded six rounds with 20 grains, six rounds with 21 grains, six rounds with 22 grains and six more with 23 grains. All of these were shot at 50 yards in three-shot groups. The 20 grain load was not so great, the 21 grain load was not bad and the 22 grain load looked good. The 23 grain load opened up a bit from the 22 grain load.
I went home quickly and loaded about a dozen with 22 grains and six with 23 grains. I came back and shot the 23 grain load first so as to give it a better chance, but I saw no difference.
Then I tried to sight in as best I could. My 22 grain load at 50 yards shot about five inches high. Oh well, I just need to remember to hold a tad low at the shot.
So at this point I have all three rifles ready for deer season, and only a couple weeks before I can try them. Since the 40-65 started this whole ordeal I decided it was only fitting for that one to get first go.
I had a 16-foot ladder stand set-up about 30 yards back in the woods off a pasture. The deer were known to travel from the field into the woods in the general area I had the stand. The first morning I got up in the tree with the 40-65 long before first light.
It finally got light enough to see to shoot at about 6:45. About 20 minutes later I heard a deer coming through the brush almost straight at me. When she was about 35 yards away I put the bead behind her shoulder and pulled the trigger. At the crack of the gun she turned tail and went back the way she came but in about three seconds I heard a crash. I waited about 20 minutes and then got down and went to find her. The doe was dead and the old Lyman plain base bullet had done a pass thru on her.
The next week I decided to take out the 38-56 and give it a try. The second morning I took it out I was in the same stand early in the morning. Again, a doe comes toward me like the one the week before. I am not sure if I moved too quickly and she saw me or what but anyway before I could get the gun up she was gone.
For some unexplained reason I decided to get down and walk over where she was when she turned and ran. After looking around there some, I looked up and saw the neighbors horses standing at the fence watching me. Then they turned their heads and looked back down in the field. I looked where they were looking and noticed a trio of does coming in my direction. I sat down on the ground with my back against a tree and waited, with the rifle up resting on my knee and the butt against my shoul-der.
The three deer came up to the fence and milled about some. Then the largest one went under the fence and came up on my side about 25 yards away. Her chest cavity was behind a tree with her head poking out, look-ing around. I decided to put the bead on her temple and pulled the trigger. Needless to say at the crack of the rifle she hit the ground. I got up and walked over to her; of course she was dead. I was amazed that my mild load had gone in and out of her head.
The following week I took the 33 WCF out a couple times and got a shot at a nice little spike at about 65 yards. I am sorry to say I did not connect with that one. Still even after missing the little spike I had a good year!I didnt take out the 33 WCF in 2008 as I had some other things I wanted to try, but I am sure not too far down the road the old 33 WCF will get another shot!
With the 33 WCF I decided to start at 20 grains of XMP5744 and work up. I loaded six rounds with 20 grains, six rounds with 21 grains, six rounds with 22 grains and six more with 23 grains. All of these were shot at 50 yards in three-shot groups. The 20 grain load was not so great, the 21 grain load was not bad and the 22 grain load looked good. The 23 grain load opened up a bit from the 22 grain load.
I went home quickly and loaded about a dozen with 22 grains and six with 23 grains. I came back and shot the 23 grain load first so as to give it a better chance, but I saw no difference.
Then I tried to sight in as best I could. My 22 grain load at 50 yards shot about five inches high. Oh well, I just need to remember to hold a tad low at the shot.
So at this point I have all three rifles ready for deer season, and only a couple weeks before I can try them. Since the 40-65 started this whole ordeal I decided it was only fitting for that one to get first go.
I had a 16-foot ladder stand set-up about 30 yards back in the woods off a pasture. The deer were known to travel from the field into the woods in the general area I had the stand. The first morning I got up in the tree with the 40-65 long before first light.
It finally got light enough to see to shoot at about 6:45. About 20 minutes later I heard a deer coming through the brush almost straight at me. When she was about 35 yards away I put the bead behind her shoulder and pulled the trigger. At the crack of the gun she turned tail and went back the way she came but in about three seconds I heard a crash. I waited about 20 minutes and then got down and went to find her. The doe was dead and the old Lyman plain base bullet had done a pass thru on her.
The next week I decided to take out the 38-56 and give it a try. The second morning I took it out I was in the same stand early in the morning. Again, a doe comes toward me like the one the week before. I am not sure if I moved too quickly and she saw me or what but anyway before I could get the gun up she was gone.
For some unexplained reason I decided to get down and walk over where she was when she turned and ran. After looking around there some, I looked up and saw the neighbors horses standing at the fence watching me. Then they turned their heads and looked back down in the field. I looked where they were looking and noticed a trio of does coming in my direction. I sat down on the ground with my back against a tree and waited, with the rifle up resting on my knee and the butt against my shoul-der.
The three deer came up to the fence and milled about some. Then the largest one went under the fence and came up on my side about 25 yards away. Her chest cavity was behind a tree with her head poking out, look-ing around. I decided to put the bead on her temple and pulled the trigger. Needless to say at the crack of the rifle she hit the ground. I got up and walked over to her; of course she was dead. I was amazed that my mild load had gone in and out of her head.
The following week I took the 33 WCF out a couple times and got a shot at a nice little spike at about 65 yards. I am sorry to say I did not connect with that one. Still even after missing the little spike I had a good year!I didnt take out the 33 WCF in 2008 as I had some other things I wanted to try, but I am sure not too far down the road the old 33 WCF will get another shot!
