O/T christmas present idea

So, I'm thinking of giving a present to myself.... A lever action rifle in .357, as I have a pistol already in that cal. Any thoughts? Anybody own one now? ..... Thanks Craig

357 for a pistol might be loaded differently than for a rifle. Yes, same case, same bullet but a rifle shoots different than a pistol. I would not think the ammo would be interchangble

A friend has an old marlin in .357, with a sling and green front site. It feels just right! I have not shot it but he claims very accurate . I want one! joe

I just bought one.Rossi M92 .357,16" bbl. Love it. A lot of fun.Easy to carry in my pickup. I just bought a box of ammo. Made no distinction of rifle or pistol.The only thing I'm not crazy about is it has the optional large loop.I would have rather bought a American made Henry. But they are almost $300 more money.The Henry is the smoothest action ever.The Henry is a beautiful firearm. The Rossi is more a utiltarian gun,looks like something from '92,but still a fine piece.I say go for it.

Yes,they are interchangeable. Also shoots .38 special.Shoot the same ammo in your revolver,or rifle.However,you can buy different loads.

While it's true the rifle can be loaded a little hotter, .357 revolver ammo works just fine.

I bought a Henry in .357 to help me use up all the ammo I loaded for revolvers over the years. Only have one .357 revolver left, an S&W 66 and it's really not intended for full-boogie .357 as a steady diet like the N frames are.

wfw: while you can certainly optimize ammunition for a rifle, especially if you reload, most lever-action rifles will shoot just fine with standard .357 ammunition, and many will also take .38 Special as well. The concept of common ammunition in a rifle and pistol is hardly a new one--for instance the Winchester 1873 in .44 WCF (.44-40) which was also used in the Colt Single Action Army revolver, as were other calibers of similar size and power. There are exceptions, but usually they involve pistol ammo that will not work well in rifles--typically things like wadcutter bullets that don't feed well through a lever-action's mechanism. Still, the vast majority of commonly-available pistol ammunition will work just fine in a lever-action rifle--it's just a matter of doing a bit of research and experimentation on what works well with the specific model you have. Another thought is a new-ish offering from Ruger--a model of their long-proven M77 bolt-action rifle made specifically for the .357. Video below is from Hickok45, who I consider to be one of the better Youtube shooting channels, and with over 2 million subscribers he has a considerable following. The .357 magnum makes for a very nice short-range light-recoiling cartridge that, in my opinion, would make a dandy gun for young or slender shooters while still having enough power to humanely kill deer-sized game with proper bullet placement, and several states have recently made it a legal caliber in areas that used to be shotgun-only.
Hickok45 357 ruger rifle

I's say go for it! I have the Henry in 357! Shoots the same ammo. I'm looking for a 357 revolver now to complement the rifle.

Rick

We have 2 Winchester model 94 rifles. One is the common 30/30 but the other one is a 44MAG which makes a good gun to go with my 44MAG pistol. The 30/30 is very old but the 44mag is almost new. Let one of the kids who hunt my place for deer use it one time and took a deer with it one shot at around 60 or so yards.

If your going to buy a rife why not just buy a rife cartridge. I do understand the matching ammunition. I have a 45 long colt in both rifle and pistol.

Same ammo that is why they are making them now days. I have a 44 mag pistol and a 44mag rifle and I shoot the same rounds in both

I would second the Rossi 92, light weight, available in 16" to 24"? barrel, priced reasonably. Only other 357 lever out there is the Henry Big Boy with the brass or blued version. Caution the brass version is heavy. Excellent made rifles however I do not care for the tube feed loading, I prefer the gate in the receiver. Marlin currently does not chamber the 94 for 357 at this time. There are other manufactures out there but are either far less common or far more costly.
If you do decide to go with the Rossi, just change the ejector spring and take 800 grit polishing paper to the action. Night and day difference. Also a nice set of Skinner peeps are easy on tired eyes.

Jim

Good combo. I have a older Marlin 94 in .357 and a three screw Blackhawk to go with it. That's one of my collections: Marlin 94s chambered the same as Blackhawks. Lot's of fun. My rifle cycles .38 special just fine but some do not. Factory .357 ammo will be fine for any of the rifles mentioned but be careful if you reload...don't try to load it hotter. The rifles will have been designed to handle SAAMI maximum. Just be happy with the extra velocity you get from the longer barrel using the slowest appropriate powder loaded no hotter than the manuals suggest. If you find an older Marlin with the Micro Groove barrel, don't be surprised if they do not group well or if the barrel leads up quickly using soft lead bullets. Micro Groove rifling is not as deep as other types and the soft lead bullets often don't grip it as well. Mine shoots hard-cast or jacketed bullets fine but soft lead bullets go all over the place and leave a mess to clean. Same with my set in .41 magnum. If I remember correctly, Marlin started using regular rifling in their "Cowboy" models to help out cowboy action shooters that wanted to use soft lead bullets that were easy on the targets. Good luck hunting for the right combo....that's half the fun.

Go for it. I like Marlins the best, but there are many good choices.

I have handloaded for 38, 357, and 44 mag for a long time. When my son got old enough to sit still in a deer blind, I got him a Marlin in 44 mag. He took his first deer with it with a single shot. I don't know who was prouder, him or me.

Yes, Marlin uses Ballard rifling now in their 44 mag, wish they would make the 357 again and 45c. But since the buy out of freedom group signs do not look promising.


Jim

Not sure what you mean by change ejector spring, are there different sizes for this gun?

In general, the same ammo should work fine. But, you might gain some accuracy and velocity from a slower powder in the rifle. Conversely, in a pistol, the slower powder would cause just the opposite effect. Somehow, I considered the .357 to be a bit light for a rifle. The .41 and .44 magnums seem to me to be a better cartridge for use in either a rifle or pistol. At the same time, my .44 revolver is a bit on the heavy side in terms of recoil and noise.

I have a Rossi also. With 38 Special loads, it is good up to 100 yards. Lots of fun to shoot!!!

Check out a Henery Rifle. Go to the web site im sure youll find something there

Not really just go to the hardware store and pick up a few different ones to try. Great videos on youtube in how to change them. The reason for changing is due to the a stiff action cause by compressing the ejector. 50cent fix.

Jim

(quoted from post at 08:17:02 12/22/16) So, I'm thinking of giving a present to myself.... A lever action rifle in .357, as I have a pistol already in that cal. Any thoughts? Anybody own one now? ..... Thanks Craig

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A man after my own heart. I've been looking at the lever action rifles chambered in .357. The Rossi is lower priced, but it isn't made in the USA. In my opinion, the Henry Big Boy is the only way to go. "Course I need a Ruger Vaquero to go along with it.

Thanks for all the feedback!!! I sure would like to get the Henry, but I would like to get some parts later on for another tractor I'm trying to work on also.... the Rossi would more than likely fit my needs just for plinking and such. Well I'll study on it for a bit....Thanks to all, And may you and yours have a Merry Christmas. Craig