.357 mag mod 94
- Thread starter masterduckmaster
- Start date
If you had a revolver chambered in .357 you can also chamber a .38 Special in there as well.
But again not the other way around.
You can hunt deer with a .357 In a Model 94.
Plus other small game as well.
But, first check with your Provincial Game laws before taking our word on it.
Tight Groups,
Rob
I have a 92, not a 94...in .44mag....but I read elsewhere that the 92's feed 44 better than they do 357. Anecdotal, I have no personal experience other than to say that, through about 200 rds, my Rossi Puma .44 has been flawless in feeding.
The sights, well, that's another question
I've also loaded to very low level .44 Special levels without issue. 180's @ 1000-1100 are easier on my daughter's shoulder than 240's @ 1600.
Virtually everyone has a horror story about 1 or more firearms that they have owned. He's my lever horror story;
In '94 I was looking for a lever in .357 because I was doing alot of .357 shooting out of my M66 and wanted a cheap and easy round that I could reload in abundance. After looking around for about 6-8 months I couldn't find one, I even phoned Winchester! The nice lady said that they didn't have enough calls to start manufacturing them again. Remember this was before Cowboy Action got bigger.
I finally gave up on .357 and found a Winchester Wrangler in .44 Magnum. Shades of John Wayne that large loop lever was kewl! Little did I realize that with 2 years, I'd start shooting Cowboy Action. I did lots of testing and came up 7.2 grains of Unique pushing a 240 grain LSWC bullet as an accurate target load.
Within the first 20 rds down range, the pot metal feed ramp broke. Off for warranty work! Eight months later I get the rifle back. After every 50 rds the rear sight elevator would fall off. So we have to install a Williams rear sight! Shooting again after every 50 rds the screws in the receiver would work loose. Locktite!! After 1,500 rds the tubular magazine spring gave up the ghost! Wolfe Gunsprings to the rescue. After this the Lever Link broke, 3 months and 5 nasty letters later, Winchester told me they would sell me the part but without warranty! They wanted me to send the gun to the warranty centre again!
That was the last straw, I found a sucker to buy the Winchester and bought a Marlin M1894S, after 8,000 rds through it, it broke a firing pin. I love the quality Marlin builds in.
P.S. My Wrangler was one of 4 Wranglers in town with the same problems.
I also have a 1906 mfg Winchester M92, a Browning B92 in .357 and a Rossi .38/.357 with a large loop lever that perform flawlessly. Post 64 Winchesters are junk!
In '94 I was looking for a lever in .357 because I was doing alot of .357 shooting out of my M66 and wanted a cheap and easy round that I could reload in abundance. After looking around for about 6-8 months I couldn't find one, I even phoned Winchester! The nice lady said that they didn't have enough calls to start manufacturing them again. Remember this was before Cowboy Action got bigger.
I finally gave up on .357 and found a Winchester Wrangler in .44 Magnum. Shades of John Wayne that large loop lever was kewl! Little did I realize that with 2 years, I'd start shooting Cowboy Action. I did lots of testing and came up 7.2 grains of Unique pushing a 240 grain LSWC bullet as an accurate target load.
Within the first 20 rds down range, the pot metal feed ramp broke. Off for warranty work! Eight months later I get the rifle back. After every 50 rds the rear sight elevator would fall off. So we have to install a Williams rear sight! Shooting again after every 50 rds the screws in the receiver would work loose. Locktite!! After 1,500 rds the tubular magazine spring gave up the ghost! Wolfe Gunsprings to the rescue. After this the Lever Link broke, 3 months and 5 nasty letters later, Winchester told me they would sell me the part but without warranty! They wanted me to send the gun to the warranty centre again!
That was the last straw, I found a sucker to buy the Winchester and bought a Marlin M1894S, after 8,000 rds through it, it broke a firing pin. I love the quality Marlin builds in.
P.S. My Wrangler was one of 4 Wranglers in town with the same problems.
I also have a 1906 mfg Winchester M92, a Browning B92 in .357 and a Rossi .38/.357 with a large loop lever that perform flawlessly. Post 64 Winchesters are junk!
Perhaps look into a Rossi Puma 92 in 357 mag, (DelSelins has one in the EE right now with a 24" octagon barrel). The Puma is stamped 357/38 special and it feeds both reliably. A lot of guys in Cowboy love them and say they function very reliably. I've handled one with a ghost ring type tang sight and lighter springs and it handled 38 special superbly.
I picked up my own Puma 92 a few weeks ago and have ran about 50 357 magnum and a little less cast 38 special through it with no problems. My eyes are crap and I can't use iron sights that well so I'm not gonna talk about accuracy. With a 24" octagon barrel she is a little nose heavy.
If you reload you can shoot the 38 special a lot! I buy 500 cast bullets for $45 from a local guy and can make a 38 round with 4 grains of bullseye and a cast bullet for about 15 cents a piece. Keep in mind this is a cowboy action load and you can choose a much better powder for the rifle, but Bullseye is cheap and it works.
As for hunting with the 357 magnum, the limiting factor would be your vision and the iron sights. Here is a good article from a guy who knows a hell of a lot more than me about hunting with the 357 magnum.
www.leverguns.com/articles/paco/357_magnum_and_the_literature.htm
Keep in mind both the 92 and the 94 models are top eject so if ever think you'll want a scope on it, perhaps look into a side eject lever gun.
I picked up my own Puma 92 a few weeks ago and have ran about 50 357 magnum and a little less cast 38 special through it with no problems. My eyes are crap and I can't use iron sights that well so I'm not gonna talk about accuracy. With a 24" octagon barrel she is a little nose heavy.
If you reload you can shoot the 38 special a lot! I buy 500 cast bullets for $45 from a local guy and can make a 38 round with 4 grains of bullseye and a cast bullet for about 15 cents a piece. Keep in mind this is a cowboy action load and you can choose a much better powder for the rifle, but Bullseye is cheap and it works.
As for hunting with the 357 magnum, the limiting factor would be your vision and the iron sights. Here is a good article from a guy who knows a hell of a lot more than me about hunting with the 357 magnum.
www.leverguns.com/articles/paco/357_magnum_and_the_literature.htm
Keep in mind both the 92 and the 94 models are top eject so if ever think you'll want a scope on it, perhaps look into a side eject lever gun.
Unless there is someone who has some experience with the Model 94 in .357, there is no way to know whether or not it will feed .38s as well as it will feed .357. Yes, they will both chamber and shoot, but the point of the lever action is the ability to feed the cartridges up from the magazine every time.
Some lever actions models are fussy, such as the Model 92, Marlin etc.
So, don't get your hopes up until you try it, or someone who has can chime in.
A good friend of mine has a Winchester trapper/big loop lever '94 in 357 mag. Purchased new by him a few years back.
It has not been the most reliable gun, badly jamming at critical times with some varieties of 357 ammo. It does fire 38's but his stovepipes quite often when shooting them. That being said, it is quite accurate for what it is.
It's a nice looking gun, but if I were to buy a 357 lever carbine I would certainly go with the Marlin 1894 instead, having no experience with the Puma.
It has not been the most reliable gun, badly jamming at critical times with some varieties of 357 ammo. It does fire 38's but his stovepipes quite often when shooting them. That being said, it is quite accurate for what it is.
It's a nice looking gun, but if I were to buy a 357 lever carbine I would certainly go with the Marlin 1894 instead, having no experience with the Puma.
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on the other hand, i have a 94 trapper in 44 mag( vintage 93 or so) that just keeps on ticking- but it's a TRAPPER, not a wrangler- provided i don't short stroke the lever or something equally as stupid- the only problem i have with it is that the rear scope base completely blocks the rear sight unless it's in the uppermost notch- and that thing will feed any bullet i care to- roundnose, swc,fc, keiths,jacketeds- it's my back up gun- my main is a savage 99
