Reloads for tubular magazines

[Owly]

Seems this reloading section needs a jump start. Here goes...

My question is about bullet selection in Henry tube magazines. I've acquired an H012 357 and wonder about certain bullets when stacked up in the mag tube.

I've been handloading 357 ammo for several years for various revolvers. I know SWC and RNFP bullets will be fine stacked in the tube as well as most jacketed HP bullets so long as the cavity is large enough. My question is whether or not I should consider FMJ or plated RN bullets safe in the Henry mag tube?
Granted, these are far from Spitzer pointed bullets, but still when I hold them tip to tail the bullet rests ENTIRELY on the primer of the round above it. It is a wide contact area on the primer, but still it's in direct contact.
Should I avoid certain RN profiles in the Henry or am I being overly cautious?

[Steve51]

I use copper plated bullets in my Rossi R92 in .357 and my Henry Big Boy .44 but I do not use the round nose bullet. I use the round nose flat point style and have had no problems. I also use the Hornady JHP XTP bullets. These work great in my Henry but they do not feed well in the Rossi.

I do not use SWC bullets in my lever action rifles. I only shoot plated or jacketed bullets in my .357 and .44 rifles but I do shoot hard cast lead bullets in the .45-70.

I am just sharing what I am doing - not saying it is right or wrong.

[Sir Henry]

I use copper plated bullets in my Rossi R92 in .357 and my Henry Big Boy .44 but I do not use the round nose bullet. I use the round nose flat point style and have had no problems. I also use the Hornady JHP XTP bullets. These work great in my Henry but they do not feed well in the Rossi.

I do not use SWC bullets in my lever action rifles. I only shoot plated or jacketed bullets in my .357 and .44 rifles but I do shoot hard cast lead bullets in the .45-70.

I am just sharing what I am doing - not saying it is right or wrong.

I think that is good advise.

[Owly]

I do not use SWC bullets in my lever action rifles. I only shoot plated or jacketed bullets in my .357 and .44 rifles but I do shoot hard cast lead bullets in the .45-70.

Any particular reason why? I understand some SWC may not cycle reliably, but so far I've tried several varieties and all have cycled through the action smoothly. Shot accurately and clean. I hate scrubbing lead as much as the next guy, but so far so good.

I have some 357s loaded with Rainier 125 gn RNFP and they don't look concerning when stacking in the mag. It's other RN variants that concern me. I think your advice is solid and I'll just pick up FP versions when buying plated bullets from now on.

[Travlin]

Don't forget to slug your rifle bore and size the slugs one or two thousandths bigger.

[Steve51]

Owly wrote:
Any particular reason why? I understand some SWC may not cycle reliably, but so far I've tried several varieties and all have cycled through the action smoothly. Shot accurately and clean. I hate scrubbing lead as much as the next guy, but so far so good.

The SWC bullets I use in the .44 are true Keith style hard cast lead (longer nose & flat base). I buy them from Magnus Bullets. The OAL is too long to feed in my Big Boy. I can open the bolt and use them one at a time and they shoot fine but they are too long to feed through the mag tube. I have shot a few one at a time and didn't see any leading issues.

Actually, my favorite bullet in the .44 mag is the Hornady 240 grain XTP JHP.

I use the Keith style hard cast lead, plated RNFP, and Hornady 240 grain XTP JHP in my Ruger Super Blackhawk. It can handle the bullets with a longer OAL.

[JEBar]

we use Oregon Trail 44 Cal. 240g SWC (semi wad cutter) .431 in our Henry 44 and 45-70 Cal. 350g FP (flat point).459 in our 45-70 .... they both perform well

[Travlin]

Steve 51, Maybe you could try the long slugs in some 44 special cases. You will probably have to reduce the powder charge a bit though.

[Steve51]

Travlin wrote:
Steve 51, Maybe you could try the long slugs in some 44 special cases. You will probably have to reduce the powder charge a bit though.

I'm sure that would work fine.
I am not really into shooting different types of ammo in my center fire rifles. When I find a round that suits me, I get zeroed in and stay with it. In the .44 magnum, I stick with 240 grain Hornady XTP JHP bullets over 19.6 grains of Alliant 2400.

Since my Rossi 92 in .357 feeds plated RNFP bullets more reliably than the Hornady XTP's, I stay with the RNFP bullet over 7.4 grains of Alliant Unique.

In my rifles, I want a combination that works and is reliable.

I am much more flexible and willing to try different bullets and powders in my handguns. I don't have much confidence past 25 yds with a handgun.