357 Magnum as a hunting round (From lever-action rifle)

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pqrnapm

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Greetings all,

I would appreciate confirmation by experienced hunters that 357 Magnum (from a lever-action rifle) is not an adequate caliber to hunt deers. An acquaintance of mine has been trying to convince me otherwise but I don't trust him. I did my homework, did some googling and looked at ballistic data but I never hunted anything and still doubt my own judgement. It seems like a lever-action rifle in that caliber is great for plinking and cowboy action shooting but best kept hidden in the gun locker during deer hunting season. It would seem arrogant and risky to shoot at a deer with that caliber beyond 50 yards, at most. But maybe I'm wrong.

What say you?
 
I think you should be fine with a well placed shot at 100 yards. A 357 magnum is about halfway between a .410 and a 20 gauge slug. However if you find it lacking you can ream the chamber to 357 max and with that would have plenty of energy to take a deer.

Here's my math
Regular lead .410 slug 1/4 oz. 109 grain 1780 fps
Regular lead 20ga slug 5/8 oz 273 grains 1580 fps
357 mag 158 grains. 1240 fps velocity from a handgun length barrel.
 
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A .357 is completely adequate out to 100 yrds for deer. A 158 gr from a 20" barrel Marlin will completely penetrate a 6" treated post and tear wood chunks off the exit side at 100 yrds.
Not advisable to ream the chamber of a lever gun to max length...all sorts of feeding problems/internal mods to overcome before it would be usable.
 
I have a 357 magnum lever as well (marlin 1894). I have not hunted with it so YMMV.

I found the following article illuminating:

http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2011/05/chris-dumm/lever-action-ballistics-30-30-vs-357-magnum/

I think it sums up nicely that the most exotic 357 magnum rounds equals the most pedestrian 30-30 rounds.

So I bought a Win94 30-30. The 357 magnum levers are pretty rare and much sought after. I thought it better not to scratch it up in the bush, but it's your rifle so enjoy it as you will.

The best hunting rounds I believe are the Hornady XTP. 158 grains is the heaviest I can find, although there are 180 grains out there but unobtainium. I've also gone with Winchester 296 for powder, which is identical to H110. Again I have yet to perfect the load so YMMV.

I've also read articles that using the shorter 38 cases in a 357 can lead to some chamber erosion. Whether true or not I'd stick to 357 cases and load down to 38 levels for plinking.

TLDR; : 100-150 yards with good ammo and you're good to go - but IMHO the 30-30 with Hornady FTX and LeverRevolution powder outshines it by a good margin
 
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buckbrushoutdoors said:
Will it kill deer out to 100y.... yes. But why? Id step up to the 44mag.
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I prefer multi-purpose firearms.

From the opinions expressed in this thread, it appears 357 Mag in a lever-action rifle is actually appropriate for deer hunting up to 100 yards. Taking into consideration the cost of ammunition also make it a better plinking gun, which means I'll get more practice out of it (357 Mag and 38 Special are close to half the price of 44 Mag/special). More practice should make me better at shot placement. Finally, I tried shooting offhand with a couple rifles so far and those chambered in 357 Mag have been those I've found most enjoyable.

If money, locker space and matrimonial restraints were not issues I'd probably follow your advice and pick a dedicated deer hunting rifle in 44 Mag.
 
safehunter said:
The best hunting rounds I believe are the Hornady XTP. 158 grains is the heaviest I can find, although there are 180 grains out there but unobtainium.

I've also read articles that using the shorter 38 cases in a 357 can lead to some chamber erosion. Whether true or not I'd stick to 357 cases and load down to 38 levels for plinking.
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Thank you for the link and your advice. (Hornady XTP 158 grains has been added to my notebook for future references).
 
safehunter said:
I've also read articles that using the shorter 38 cases in a 357 can lead to some chamber erosion. Whether true or not I'd stick to 357 cases and load down to 38 levels for plinking.


I have a marlin 357 as well. have shot approx 3000 rounds of 38+p ammo in mine. Have seen no sign of chamber erosion at all. Just checked my gun to make sure. Does anyone have more info on this?
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If loaded to .38 or even +P pressures I really doubt the throat erosion is much of a problem outside of the Internet. Even if loaded to 35,000 psi you'd likely burn many thousands of rounds before you noticed any erosion at all.
 
that was refreshing reading, this topic comes up so often it should almost be a sticky, normally the guy posting the question is heavily pressured into "only the latest hyper ballistic cruise missle magnum will drop a deer at 100 yrds"
its always amazed me that its generally accepted that the .357 was the most powerful handgun going ( untill the .44 came along ) and capable of hunting everything on this continent which they did. Yet when put in a rifle with MUCH better ballistics it becomes weak......?
 
pqrnapm said:
Greetings all,

I would appreciate confirmation by experienced hunters that 357 Magnum (from a lever-action rifle) is not an adequate caliber to hunt deers. An acquaintance of mine has been trying to convince me otherwise but I don't trust him. I did my homework, did some googling and looked at ballistic data but I never hunted anything and still doubt my own judgement. It seems like a lever-action rifle in that caliber is great for plinking and cowboy action shooting but best kept hidden in the gun locker during deer hunting season. It would seem arrogant and risky to shoot at a deer with that caliber beyond 50 yards, at most. But maybe I'm wrong.

What say you?
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I say it is impossible it can not be done.
There is no way a deer can be killed with a .357 Mag. round froma LA rifle with an 18 inch barrel.
Nope, can not be done...yet hundreds are taken with 6'' Revolvers every year.
Get out and go hunting instead of sitting around the kitchen table drinking Old Style and arguing about what can and can not be done with a Hand Gun Round and do it.
Rob
 
gwes2003 said:
Nothing wrong with a 357, but how painful would it be to see Mr Wonderful at 200 yards and not be able to close the gap to get a shot?
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Well, that's why it's called hunting. How many Mr. Wonderfulls did you see over the years that were just out of range with a 30-06, 308 type cal. I had my fair share.
 
As stated, keep your shots out to 100 m and you will be fine

As an aside, if you read the Indiana hunting regs, to hunt with a rifle it has to be a rifle chambered for a handgun cartridge....so as you can imagine there are a lot of .357 rifles out there in deer season. (along with many other .357 pistols....)
 
A friend of mine just shot a wild boar with a .357 mag ranch hand. It ran about 30 yards and fell over. I believe it was about 40 yards away and was a complete pass through both lungs. Was shooting hand loads with a Berry's 158 gr hp bullet.
 
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