Ammo for big boy steel .357/.38 special

[Nitetrain40]

Just got my 1st lever gun, 1st Henry! 1st gun in 357/ 38 special. So not too versed incthis,ammo or lever gun. I bought a few boxes of,American eagle .38 special 158 grain. Shot fine, tried 130 grain, shot fine. Really like the Henry!!! So my question is, I will do alot of plinking probably on average of 50 to 75 yards. What ammo works in both the .357/ .38special? I am getting the hornaday .357 lever revolution load for hunting. Please let me know what brand works for both 357/.38 special.

[BigAl52]

No 2 guns are alike so you will need to just shoot some to find what yours likes.
http://www.sgammo.com/catalog/pistol-ammo-sale These guys have a good selection and there prices are good you might check them out for 38 special and 357. Al

[JEBar]

congratulations on getting your 357, we have one and its a fine rifle .... paper punching doesn't require high dollar ammo .... for us 38 special level ammo works fine at 25 to 40 so yards .... beyond that, we prefer 357 level ammo .... 38 special brass is shorter than 357 and using it can build up a ring that can impact the ease with which 357's can be chambered .... we are delighted to have you join our forum, looking forward to your contributions .... please take a look at our How Many ? thread (link below) and add you Henry to our community's total

http://henryrifleforums.com/viewtopic.p ... 980#p48980

[Nitetrain40]

Thanks for the info, I did read about the .38 special .357 fouling. I usually leave cleaning material in my range bag, probably a quick patch cleaning at the receiver to clean it up before switching over to .357 Ammo.
I went to the "how many". I am #392

[North Country Gal]

I do pretty well in 357 factory ammo with Mag-tech and PMC 158s for my paper punching. The high dollar hunting 357 loads from Hornady and Barnes and so on may or may not shoot better, but they do definitely shoot to a different POI, so be sure to sight in with your hunting loads before hunting.

[Sir Henry]

If you shoot a lot of 38 make sure you clean the chamber out before shooting the 357.

[clovishound]

If you shoot it as much as Clovispup and I shoot ours, you should really investigate reloading. No way I could afford factory ammo for the amount we shoot. The other advantage of that you can load .357 for about the same cost as .38. Most of the .357 rifles seem to feed a little smoother than the .38s.

[Nitetrain40]

My friend got I into reload slast year! I might have to hit him up for some .357/ .38 special! I give him brass all the time now for his reloads.

[steelersfan97]

I use Federal American Eagle .357 158 grain jacketed soft point in mine along with their .38 Special 158 grain lead round nose. These have hit what I was aiming at for the most part thus far so I have stuck with them.

Henry recommends a minimum grain bullet in .38 special. I think it is 130 grains.

[Nitetrain40]

My 1st shots through it, were AE 158gr 38 special. I read if shooting 38 special, to use 158gr, but I had 130 grain I use in revolver, so I tried it anyway, ran fine.

[LeverLover]

I have been using cheap Monarch 158gr SJHP for 100yd plinking. Those are about 1600 fps from a pistol and probably near 1900 fps from a rifle with a really satisfying kick. I recently reloaded with 158gr Speers, Zeros, Rainiers at near max Rainier speed of about 1400 fps as plinkers. The five of each were about 1 1/2" lower at 50yds so I know they are a lower speed. Haven't had a chance to resight Henry at 100 yds yet but they cost less than the off the shelf stuff and I can shoot more often now. They grouped within 2 inch at 12 yds from my Security Six indoors today so I am looking forward to my outdoor visit. You can feed it nearly anything. Good luck.

[JEBar]

looking forward to your reports on your reloads

[JCN]

Check out my post here: http://henryrifleforums.com/viewtopic.p ... chi#p16389

I really like the Fiocchi FMJTC 142 grain .357 load. I've found that it cycles very smoothly in my BBS and hits at point of aim.

With the 38 spl loads I typically shoot high. Since the cost difference isn't very much I will shoot mostly .357 through mine. This Fiocchi load can be found for $16.99 - $17.99 per 50 rounds fairly regularly (Cabelas, Palmetto State Armory, Bass Pro Shops, Midway USA).

[The Wiz]

When I got mine, about two months ago, not knowing any better I picked up a box of Winchester .38, 130g target ammo. Worked fine at 25 yrds. Still use it.

[Steve51]

I do hand load my .38spl/.357magnum ammunition but I only shoot .357 magnum ammo in my BBS. I use iron sights and I want the same POI when I am plinking or when I am hunting. So I only shoot magnum loads with 158 grain bullets my BBS.

[BigAl52]

Check out my post here: http://henryrifleforums.com/viewtopic.p ... chi#p16389

I really like the Fiocchi FMJTC 142 grain .357 load. I've found that it cycles very smoothly in my BBS and hits at point of aim.

With the 38 spl loads I typically shoot high. Since the cost difference isn't very much I will shoot mostly .357 through mine. This Fiocchi load can be found for $16.99 - $17.99 per 50 rounds fairly regularly (Cabelas, Palmetto State Armory, Bass Pro Shops, Midway USA).

Your ammo can also be found at SGammo for 309.00 for 1000 rounds shipped to your front door for 329.00. Thats 16.45 a box with no sales tax. Just FYI. Al

[JCN]

Even better! I really do recommend it.