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.38 rimfire

Firearm cartridge

Field	Value
name	.38 Long rimfire
image	5 rounds of .38 Rimfire long.JPG	image_size = 300px
origin	United States
type	Rifle and handgun
used_by	US Army
variants	Short, Long, and Extra Long
case_type	Rimmed, straight
bullet	.374
neck	.376
shoulder	.376
base	.378
rim_dia	.433
rim_thick	.051
case_length	0.874
length	1.382
primer	Rimfire
max_pressure	13000
pressure_method	CIP
bw1	150
btype1	LRN
vel1	980
en1	320
test_barrel_length	Rifle

The .38 rimfire / 9.5x22mmRF refers to a family of cartridges that have been in service in the United States since the mid-19th century. The cartridges are produced in short, long, and extra long variants.

Much like the smaller .32 rimfire, the rounds were originally manufactured loaded with black powder. In the early 1900s, manufacturers switched to the "new" smokeless powder.

The .38 rimfire was preferred to the .32 rimfire for hunting and self-defense purposes because of its larger diameter bullet and increased muzzle energy.

History

The .38 rimfire cartridge was a common round for many antique revolvers and rifles from the 1870s to the early 1900s. It was a common self-defense round for a small revolver that was often kept in a vest pocket through to the 1890s. Production in the United States of rimfire calibers larger than .22 ceased upon the country's entry into World War II and was never resumed again by any of the major manufacturers. Factory loaded ammunition is no longer available except as collector items.

Uses and variants

The .38 rimfire cartridge was available in short, long, extra long, and also shotshells. Most of the revolvers and rifle which were produced were chambered for either .38 short rifle, or .38 long rifle. While there were a few different rifles produced for the .38 extra long cartridge and a few rolling block, falling block, and bolt-action rifles had smoothbore barrels which had a slight choke which enabled it to shoot the .38 RF shotshells, which was good for hunting small game at close ranges. Hopkins & Allen produced revolvers and rifles chambered for the .38RF. Rifles of this caliber were produced by Remington (the revolving rifle of 1866), Ballard, Stevens and Frank Wesson, and revolvers by Enterprise, Favorite, Forehand & Wadsworth, and Colt.

References

http://www.oldammo.com/august04.htm

References

Barnes, Frank C.. (2012). "Cartridges of the World".
Barnes, Frank C.. (2012). "Cartridges of the World A Complete Illustrated Reference for over 1500 Cartridges.". Gun Digest.

Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

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