Buy HammerDown Handgun, 357 Magnum, 170 Grain, Bonded Hollow Point, 1610 fps 357 Magnum Ammo 170 | LG3571

How about something made for a lever action ?
There are several brands out there, but this one has the most muzzle energy.

 

Buy HammerDown Handgun, 357 Magnum, 170 Grain, Bonded Hollow Point, 1610 fps 357 Magnum Ammo 170 | LG3571

How about something made for a lever action ?
There are several brands out there, but this one has the most muzzle energy.

Looks impressive. This rifle will be just for fun, so I was hoping for something a little less pricey. Was also wondering if there are any particular types of ammo that are more prone to feed problems in lever actions.

 

I have a Rossi 1892. Never had an issue with 357. 38 OTOH can have issues due to OAL. But buy and run whatever. Find out what it does and does like.

 

I have a 92 Rossi, it’s never fired a factory load but has ran various hand loads in 38 Special and 357 pills. Round nose, truncated cone and hollow point. Even the 38 +P hit paper well out to 100 yards.
Handloaded 125 gr 357 easily in .30-30 territory. I recently purchased a 92 in 44 as well.
Fun little carbines that will work well in the field at close distances.

 

Picked this up a couple years ago for my youngest's 18 b-day. So far, we've only run whatever 38/357 is on sale. He's starting to get a bit more serious about it so we're going to get ammo more suited to it. It's a hoot!

 

I have a Miroku '73 that doesn't discriminate so far, even with .38s. I would stick to brass if I was concerned with a semi, but (though I haven't tried it) I wouldn't worry about it in a lever. Couldn't say if they still sell Blazer Aluminum, but that was my main range fodder back in the day.

 

For 'trying out', just about anything you've mentioned, plus you can try out Freedom Munitions/LAX. Sometimes you can find great deals on Federal and Norma bulk ammo. I haven't tried Armscor, if the price is right, Fiocchi and Magtech are good to go. I prefer to stay in the 140gr and above range, JSP and WFNs, I haven't tried SWCs. Many JHP designs will not hold together at carbine velocities, same with 44mag.

 

That was exactly what I was looking for.

I ordered a couple of boxes of Magtech and couple of SB, both 158gr FMJ. I also have a few boxes somewhere near the bottom of my ammo can stack I may dig out this weekend.

Thanks!

 

I have an OLD Browning Model 92(?) .357.
It eats everything.
@Glolt20-91 ’s suggestion of bulk freedom is a good one.
I keep a couple boxes of American Eagle 158gr soft points in case the hogs ever make it up to CT 😂

 

@gh1138 , if you don't mind me asking, what did you get. I've been interested in a lever action .357 for a while and would like to hear your initial impressions.

 

It's still on the way here, but I ordered a G-Force Saddlehorn with case-hardened finish (in order to get steel receiver). I would have liked a Henry or Ruger/Marlin, but as little as I'll probably shoot it, I thought the G-Force was fine. Lots of good reviews, and although I haven't read of any problems with .357, they do seem hit or miss with 38.

 

Just plinking, anything in jacketed will likely be fine. Its mot like you are looking for tack driving, 300y bolt gun ammo.

 

You can custom load some cool 357 ammo for long gun using totally different, slower powders that have larger charge weights... IF you're a hand loader.

Our riflesmith had a recipe, but I've since forgotten it. It struck me as SO odd because the charge weight was much heavier than regular pistol powder.

 

nevermind

 

American Eagle 158 grain jacketed soft points.

 

I don’t think it will really matter if it’s just a plinker. .357 Mag is getting harder to find at a reasonable cost. Federal has always been my first choice for a defensive round and WWB for plinking. Fiocchi is becoming popular and gets good reviews. If your Walmart sells ammo, you probably won’t do any better pricewise than them.

I bought my lever action thinking I might try CAS. But I haven’t done that. I reload, so I pretty much just shoot .38’s in mine. I have shot .357 Mags to try it out, but they cost too much. And I really don’t need them in the lever action.

Have fun with your new rifle.

 

Anything that feeds and goes bang will work for plinking. If you get serious about hunting Hornady FTX or the boutique stuff will work,

357 Mag 140 gr FTX® LEVERevolution® - Hornady Manufacturing, Inc

...

www.hornady.com

 

My 357 Rossi shoots two loads…..140 gr TC coated for a range load and 158 gr XTP with a full dose of 296. Both loads are very accurate

 

After you have spent a lot of money on fact ammo and
have some brass to work with, get the 125gr two cavity
mold and learn how to use it.

Then get the six cav in both the 125 and the 158gr,

Double Cavity Mould 358-125-RF by Lee

6 Cavity Mold 358-125-RF by Lee

Double Cavity Mold 358-158-RF by Lee

6 Cavity Mold 358-158 RF by Lee

If you get a free check maker you will be able to
shoot over 1800 fps and use it for a 600lb elk if
you want to.

I know a ranch owner in Idaho that does that,
sometimes he does use a bigger boolit, like a
187gr to 190gr.

 

get the 125gr two cavity mold and learn how to use it.

Then get the six cav in both the 125 and the 158gr,

Double Cavity Mould 358-125-RF by Lee

6 Cavity Mold 358-125-RF by Lee

Double Cavity Mold 358-158-RF by Lee

6 Cavity Mold 358-158 RF by Lee

Thanks, I’ve been leaning toward molding, and midsouthshooterssupply has lee on sale.
re OP: Rossi R92, has shot everything - reloads & various factory, both 38 & 357 - with no issues, and since it’s just been plinking, no particular recommendation or spec.

 

Would like to add a little more info on the 125gr lee,
have two molds, one I got probably 12 years ago??, with
COWW drops a 131gr boolit, ready to shoot, the other one
is about five years old, drops a 129gr boolit.

The 131gr with HF red, LBT blue and a free check did 1672 fps
in a six inch 357 sig, was using 800x powder, did three different
wts, all shot good at 32 yards, no three shot group was over 1.75''.
the fast one was the best. Only did the test that one time.???

That boolit is also great in the 9mm, with HS6 powder you can
get around 1250 fps in a 4 to 4.5'' barrel, in a 6.5'' 357 BH revolver
with a 9mm cylinder it does around 1350 fps and around 1.5'' at 25 yds.

 

I have a Marlin and it shoots 158 amazingly. For factory get the best price. It should cycle anything. I load Hornady XTP behind a pinch on W296 (15.0 grains) and it is a riot to shoot. I will take it deer hunting this fall. I ended up using my 44 magnum last fall (Winchester ‘92) with a 240 XTP and W296 and it hit that mule deer like a Mack Truck.

IF you can get into loading it is soooo much less cost. You are gonna love that rifle by the way.

 

Hornady .357" 158gr XTP-FN. Optics Planet has factory loaded ammunition on sale for less than $30/box of 25 rounds. (I handload it.)

I also handload Berry's .357" 158gr FMJ-FN TP (Thick Plated).

I specifically shoot these in a Marlin 16" 1894 Trapper lever gun.

 

I also handload Berry's .357" 158gr FMJ-FN TP (Thick Plated).

For basic plinking I load with the Xtreme 158gn plated FP. Although I have used the Berry’s 158gn FP-TP

 

Berry’s has a relatively new 158 flat point heavy plate with a strong canelure that they had listed at 1800 fps I believe. Looks promising.
Edit, that was the 44, the 357 is still 1500fps

158 Grain 38 Special | 38 Special Bullets for Reloading

Made with accuracy and precision in mind, these 158 Grain 38 Special bullets for reloading are plated bullets and the ideal choice of bullets for all shooters.

www.berrysmfg.com

 

Isn’t that the 158gn FP-TP? (thick plate) Although I thought that was list at 1500 fps.

 

Finally made it to the range with the rifle. 25 rounds of Magtech .357 and 25 rounds of S&B .357 with zero issues.

Also ran 25 rounds of .38. The .38 had a couple of hiccups in first couple of rounds, but I think that was my fault in not cycling the lever with enough force. The action was OK to start with, but it smoothed out a lot during the session. I'm also surprised at how good the trigger is on the rifle.

The .38 was a hoot. After shooting the .357, the .38 seemed like shooting a .22.

I was at a 25-yard indoor range, so it shot a few inches high at that range, but the groups were really tight.

I appreciate everyone's advice on ammo for this rifle.

 

357 rifles of any flavor are just fun! Need to get mine to the range after the monsoon blows over!

 

Same thing you use in your revolver.

 

Maybe. Where the 357 shines in a rifle is getting the 158 & 180gr sp to expand with the higher vel. For plinking, 158gr TC coated, all you need.

 

I agree with the 125 and 158 suggestion, except I use a 120 and a 168.
I load the Lee 120g TCTL in 38 cases with 4.X grains of Unique. The 168g Lee SWC gets loaded in a 357 case with 10.X grains of AA#9. Both are powder coated and sized to .358".
Only thing about my Rossi is it bulges 357 cases, so they don't get reloaded again with a heavy load. But that's ok because I shoot the 38 load almost exclusively. It's a 50 yard load but I've shot it out to 200.

 

I agree with the 125 and 158 suggestion, except I use a 120 and a 168.
I load the Lee 120g TCTL in 38 cases with 4.X grains of Unique. The 168g Lee SWC gets loaded in a 357 case with 10.X grains of AA#9. Both are powder coated and sized to .358".
Only thing about my Rossi is it bulges 357 cases, so they don't get reloaded again with a heavy load. But that's ok because I shoot the 38 load almost exclusively. It's a 50 yard load but I've shot it out to 200.

Call Rossi and tell them about your chamber, it should not do that,
make them fix it.

 

I'd go with truncated cone for .357mag lever rifle round.

Fiocchi Range Dynamics 357 Mag Ammo 142 Grain Full Metal Jacket Case $0.50 per round

Fiocchi Range Dynamics ammunition offers great quality and consistency for the high-volume shooter and hunter. Loaded with similar grain weights as the Exacta line, this ammunition is perfect for training and practicing with similar results at a much cheaper price. This allows you to shoot, plink, or hunt as much as possible. This ammunition is new production, non-corrosive, in boxer-primed, reloadable brass cases.

Good hunting round with truncated projectile for deep penetration. Flat point goes deep and far more destructive than round nose fmj. Because of this it is a bad choice for home defense. It will absolutely overpenetrate walls, doors, roofs and people. Good woods round penetration no expansion but Flat nose kills.

The rub with "premium" rounds is they tend to get very expensive to practice with, but you do have to practice with what you carry. While some view Fiocchi as a "budget" or a step down from "premium", you'll be pleasantly surprised with this ammo. Plus the cost to properly train and carry doesn't threaten to upend your household budget. I've been shooting these rounds for awhile now in both a lever action carbine and revolver. Never had an issue; the recoil is stout as expected but manageable; and muzzle velocities are in line with those advertised. Up until a few years ago I carried these as my first up backwoods "just in case" rounds where I used to typically go (for those wondering I now carry the ridiculously powerful Lehigh/Underwood 125gr FMJ "hunting" and also 120gr Extreme Penetrator rounds as where I tend to venture now I'm not necessarily "at the top of the food chain" as it were). Here's why. The FMJ-TC bullet (Fiocchi figured it out before Winchester came out with the 1300+ FPS 9mm M1152) hits hard, and in gel (and IRW applications) penetrates well and causes a lot of cavitation damage along the way. The advertised muzzle energy of 630 ft/lbs isn't anything to sneeze at either.