Henry Rifle Forums

I wanted to help those who are struggling with the decision of whether the buy a Henry or an alternate. Give some thought of what you NEED your weapon to do and what else it can do. I had these criteria which led me to the .357 steel:
1) it had to be more powerful than a 22LR
2) it had to hold more than the 5-6 rounds of a 30-30
3) it had to be as lefty friendly as possible
4) it had to be able to mount a sling and be scope
5) it had to have low recoil and ease of use for other family members
6) it had to be somewhat subdued and not an AR festooned with gadgets
7) it had to be high quality (and pleasing to the eye)
8) it had to be able to shoot common and affordable ammo
9) it had to reach out to at least 100yds
10) it had to be legal to hunt biggish game with
11) it had to be useable for self defense
12) it had to have built in safeties that you don't have to remember to turn off
Tada! - the Henry .357 steel
It fits the need of a low recoil 100yd range rifle, powerful enough to hunt anything from rabbit to deer that the entire family can use. It holds enough rounds to be useful in stress situations and can eat nearly any ammo. As a bonus, the steel to me it is more a work of art than the brass version. Now go and find something that fits your needs (Hint,hint - Henry).

Not to mention they are real purty guns!

Made in America and Customer service second to none.

Good choice!

p.s. A picture or two might be welcome here.

Save #3, I agree with everything on the list, so no big surprise this rifle in .357 would be my next Henry purchase, maybe next year

Would only add that it's also a fantastic pistol caliber for a matching side arm.

I'm a little unsure about barrel length though 16.5 or 20

You have to decide which is more important - 3 rounds of capacity or a 3" shorter rifle.

No pics? Never happened.

What's with the demand for pics? You mean I have to buy a lever action camera too? LOL.

LeverLover wrote:What's with the demand for pics? You mean I have to buy a lever action camera too? LOL.

No, just buy some film for the one you already have.

here again, except for #3, I followed much the same line of reasoning when purchasing our Henry 357, Henry 44

with our Henry 45-70 #s 2 & 3 didn't apply .... I shouldn't be hunting any critter I can't stop with 4 - 5 rounds out of a 45-70 ..

Ahh, but you will have nothing left of a rabbit sized critter with the 45-70. The 357 is a good middle of the range caliber. Go over or under for specialized needs.

that's why we have a 357, 44, and 45-70 ...

My first Henry BBS 44 was chosen because it was not a Marlin(nothing against Marlin but everyone else has a Marlin in the hunting camp) plus when you bring out a Henry peoples eyes light up. There is a historical mystique about a Henry.

ssonb wrote:There is a historical mystique about a Henry.

What historical mystique is there in a Henry BBS44? Don't get me wrong - I've got a BBS44 Carbine that is hoot to shoot and I really like, but I see a pretty modern rifle when I look at it - not a classic Winchester or Marlin design....

TD...yer an injineer aren't ya.......Too literal.....The Henry brand and name has the reputation.

Wanted a rifle in .327 Federal Magnum and Henry was it. Plus I've wanted a Henry for a long time and this was just as good excuse as any!

tractortad wrote:

ssonb wrote:There is a historical mystique about a Henry.

What historical mystique is there in a Henry BBS44? Don't get me wrong - I've got a BBS44 Carbine that is hoot to shoot and I really like, but I see a pretty modern rifle when I look at it - not a classic Winchester or Marlin design....

I think he may have meant with the brass frame and all, at least with the big/boys. It really does catch peoples attention. The steel has some old time mojo too, just being a lever

I was comparing the Henry 357 to the mini 14 the other day. For all practical purposes these are equivalent. They have roughly the same short range ballistics and energy, the same capacity (assuming the mini has only one 10 round mag), about the same reload speed (again assuming one mag), about the same ammo cost, about the same ammo availability and variety, neither are the "scary baby killer black rifle". So do you want a beautiful rifle that you shoot or one that just goes bang? Of course this over simplifies things and both are desirable. Choose the one that fits you unless both do.

I bought a Big Boy 44Mag to hunt white tail deer. They have a great reputation and are made in America.

Jim

My reasons were pretty simple. i had spoken to a friend and told him that I always wanted a 44 mag rifle or carbine to go with my Super Blackhawk. A week later he shows up with a brass Henry Big Boy for a camping Trip! I showed it to Mama Squatch and she said, "That's the prettiest rifle I've ever seen". I said, "Good I'm glad you like it. I'm going to buy one." After the trip where I shot it and fell in love with it. I bought both a Brass Big Boy and a Golden Boy at the same time.

The 45/70 came later.