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Rimfire · Proprietary

.38 Short Rimfire

.38 Short RF.38 RF Short

Early American rimfire cartridge for revolvers and pocket pistols; one of the dominant handgun cartridges of the Civil War era before centerfire cartridges took over..

Caliber
0.374″ · 9.5 mm
Introduced
1861
Case
Rimmed
Status
Discontinued
Identity
Introduced
1861
Type
Rimfire
Origin
United States
Inventor
Various / American commercial
Standard
Proprietary
Status
Discontinued
Availability
Rare
Build
Primer
Rimfire
Case type
Rimmed
Pressure & range
Eff. range
25 yd

Ballistics

Published velocity/energy data isn't available for .38 Short Rimfire — an obsolete/collector cartridge.

Dimensionscase measurements · scale drawing · size vs familiar rounds

Case dimensions — the scale drawing at the top of the page is built from these.

Wikipedia · approximate
Measuremmin✓
Bullet ⌀9.500.374~
Neck ⌀9.550.376✓
Shoulder ⌀n/a
Shoulder anglen/a
Base ⌀9.600.378✓
Rim ⌀11.000.433✓
Belt ⌀n/a
Rim thickness1.300.051✓
Neck lengthn/a
Case length18.540.730✓
Overall length30.351.195✓

Size vs familiar rounds

Drawn at true 1:1 — every case is accurate relative to the others. Absolute size depends on your screen's pixel density, so measuring one against a real ruler may be off. .38 Short Rimfire is highlighted below.

Connected reference

FirearmsFirearms in .38 Short Rimfire↗

History

The .38 Short Rimfire was introduced during the Civil War era and chambered in a variety of Remington, Smith & Wesson, and National Arms Company revolvers and pocket pistols. It predates all centerfire .38 cartridges and is encountered in antique revolvers of the 1860s–1870s.

FAQs

What bullet diameter is .38 Short Rimfire?
.38 Short Rimfire uses a 0.374″ (9.5 mm) diameter bullet.
Is .38 Short Rimfire still in production?
.38 Short Rimfire is discontinued; typical availability is rare.

Sources & provenance

Data & sources. Specs compiled from the Lindcott Armory reference; the trajectory is modeled (point-mass), not measured. See methodology. Spotted an error? Report it →