.356 Winchester

ninepointer

ninepointer

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Are there any .356 Winchester shooters out there? Winchester made them in their big-bore 94 model for a few years. A friend of mine has one and he loves it. Lots of power. I had heard that the problem with the caliber was the poor choice of factory-made loads. I don't think you can buy factory ammo any more, but Ellwood Epps sells brass.

Ninepointer
 
I had a model 94 in .356 for a few years and used it for deer hunting.I put a williams peep sight on it and only used factory ammo.It gave me 3" groups at 100 yards but where we hunt you're lucky to be able to see 50 yards anyway.It was devastating on the deer and easy to carry in the bush.In a fit fit of stupidity I sold it.Wish I still had it.Not sure if you can still buy factory ammo but if anybody carries it,likely Ellwood Epps would.
 
Caroline Supplies in Caroline Alberta has .356 win ammo in stock. Saw quite a few boxes when we stopped on our way through last weekend. Don't know the number but phone information and they will have it.
 
I have a 356 (Big Bore) and Winchester does still make ammuntition for it. I know of a gun store here in NB that has ammo so if you need the info PM me.
 
shows what marketing and a fickle public will do-by all counts the 356 is an excellent deer cartridge-yet nobody wants it.
 
That fickle public would be us. Often the manufacturers create cartridges we think we'd like, and then we as hunters and shooters don't buy it. We "wait to see if it catches on" or we listen when someone tells us it's impractical because "What if you're out in the middle of nowhere and forget your ammo? Ya can't get it in every general store."
This attitude has helped put the boots to the .307, .356, .375 Win, .358 Win, and has slowed the popularity of the .260 Rem. I'm as bad as the rest; I always meant to get myself a 336ER in .356 and just never got to it. The delay of myself and thousands of others killed a great cartridge.
Back to the thread...Winchester does still load this cartridge, but dropped the 250 grain load years back; 200 grains only now.
 
fear of buying ammo doesn't bother me. i have a 307 and a 358. 307 brass is a little harder to find but i have 250 virgin stored away and my 358 lives on necked up norma 308 brass. i also bought a 300 wsm when they first came out. no ammo in stores but brass was avalable. its handloaders that keep odd ball calibers from going extinct.
 
I've heard this ''where are you going to find ammunition ?''bit for years-tell me-if you are going on a hunt-of course you carry a couple of boxes of ammunition with you.The average hunting trip you may fire maybe 2 or 3 shots at game -that's it.Going to the range you fire more-but thats homewhere you know where you buy ammunition.
 
sunray said:
"...nobody wants it..." That's because it's the answer to an unasked question.
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That is such a cliche:rolleyes: .

There are lots of popular calibers that came to be because they were 'the answer to an unasked question'.;)
 
Wrong Way said:
Not to hijack the thread....but if anyone has a marlin 336 in this caliber....SELL IT TO ME!!!!

Ryan
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I've actually been planning to build a .356 on a Marlin or Win BB for quite some time.

Actually a true wild-cat, the .356 rimless has a lot of attraction for me (considering all of the brass fears of .356 Win).

My evil plan is to build a 26" with 2/3 mag tube (ala Marlin 336A or Win M.64) with a PG stock.

Having thought this through, I would base this beast on a .444 action. Yes I've heard all the yellin' in the 'states from those who have punched .35 Remingtons to .356Win and think that they're safe (they ain't by the way).

The facts of the matter are that .444 & .356 operate in the same pressure range & also share a common ancestor in the .30-06 case (do the research if you don't believe me).

This project has been put on hold for me since I got my 336A in 35Rem (which a bunch of people [who have both] seem to think handloaded to .30-30 pressures is darn close to .356 factory)
 
Wrong Way said:
Any of the short mags, 7/08, 6mm.............All had equals allready. Most son't do anything better than the "esablished" cartridges available at the time.
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Quite to the contrary, all kinds of guys were building wildcats on short action rifles before the factories brought them out. That is where all those cartridges came from. :D

My apologies for the hijack.

Ted
 
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I used my M94 .356 for two deer and one moose, a buddy borrowed it to kill and elk. Good gun, handy, and shoots the RCBS 200 gr. cast bullet very well too. I have about 300 rounds for mine, so I'm not worried about supply of brass in the future. I killed both the deer with the 250 gr. factory load, at about ten paces. Worked real well. The moose was exactly 250 paces away, a far shot for me. Two 220 sg speer handloads penetrated the chest completely and exited.
 
There are too many types of cartridges out there. The manufacturers create them to make money and the magazine writers are given a free rifle to sing their praises. Sure, the necked up 30-30 class are good calibres, but somebody please tell me why they are any better than a 35 Remington in a Marlin 336. For that matter, show me a deer that wouldn't be just as dead, whether hit well with a 356, or a 30-30.
 
H4831, I almost agree with you....however, the .356 and .307 are not necked-up .30-30's; they use a whole new case. And quite frankly. if I expect shots to be beyond 200 yards on moose, I would much rather have the 1450 ft-lbs of energy from the .356 vs the 790 left in the .35 Remington. The part about hitting well is right on the money though.
I also think you'll find that although most professional gun writers are LENT free rifles to test, they are required to return them. But they are in an unusual situation. They are testing a new gun and or cartridge. So if the rifle is a good-looking, well-functioning arm, and shoots accurately, and the cartridge is able to fulfill its intended purpose, what do you expect them to do? Lots of them have decried the ridiculous number of recent cartridge introductions, but they go unheeded. The honest truth is, there have been very few truly needed cartridges developed since about 1925, by which time we had the .250 Savage, .45-70, .30-30, .270 Win, .30-06, .348 Win, .300 and .375 H&H. Pretty much a do-all battery.
One thing we probably agree on...guns would be WAY cheaper if there were fewer chambering choices and less R&D being carried out. I'm glad I've got about all I really want already!
 
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