Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles Loading .38-55 in .375 Win dies - can it be done?

Like the subject asks, can 38-55 brass be loaded using 375 Winchester dies? I have researched and found that 375 brass is about .100" shorter than 38-55 brass...seems to me one could load 38-55s in 375 dies...kind of like when one loads 357 mags in 38 special dies (with the 38 dies backed off a bit of course). Do any of you do it? Thanks.

Yes you can, I load all my 38-55's with RCBS 375 dies. My concern was that the expander would be a bit undersized for cast bullets but when checked against the expander in a set of RCBS 38-55 dies they miked exactly the same. The 375 dies were about half the cost of the 38-55 dies so that is why I use them. I only load for 38-55 so once the crimp was set I didn't have to do any adjusting for shorter cases. When loading for my single shot I just put a shim under the die lock ring so the case is not crimped, could probably do the same switching from 375's to 38-55's.

Thanks for the response Dave. Now, next question: can 375 Win be shot in a 38-55 Win 94? I don't load my 375s hot, just real mild cast plinking loads. I am going to be getting a Win 94 in 38-55 soon, and want to sell off my Marlin 375, as I just cannot "warm up" to it. Thanks again.