.358 Norma for deer?

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I was thinking about using a new (to me) .358 Norma for deer this year.

From what little I've read it is recommended to use heavier (therefore slower) bullets so as to decrease the damage caused to smaller game.

Has anyone used .358 for deer and, if so, what do you recommend for bullet weight? Or is this just too much rifle for deer?
 
I've used the .338 WM (very similar) and found that bullet construction and speed play a part. I would use a good quality 225gr or bigger and call it a day. Not much meat damage at all. Barnes TSX was what I used.
 
Just make sure you use bullets designed for the 35 whelen or 358win and not ones for the 35 rem and you'll be fine....I guess if you drop down to below 200 grain bullets it might be a bit more of an issue. Stick with the more standard 225 -250 grain pills in a quality bullet and you should be good to go. Having said all that, if you are handloading, you can easily load some 200's and drop the velocity down a bit to make it a little more shooter friendly...still plenty for any deer and a bit easier to shoot. A good hit with a 200 is better then a bad hit with a 250.....my .02$ anyway
 
Yes. As the guys have said, it's bullets blowing apart or expanding aggressively that bloodshots meat, not velocity. I shot last years whitetail with a 225TSX at 2900+ out of my Norma. Minimal bloodshot, and the deer died.

Too much rifle? That's a cutesy magazine thing. NO SUCH THING.
 
I've used my 358 Norma mag to shoot everything from Whitetail deer up to g bears over the last 20 odd years with 250 grain Hornady bullets and have never had a complaint just place your bullet in the right spot the same as you would with any other rifle
 
bjake said:
I've used my 358 Norma mag to shoot everything from Whitetail deer up to g bears over the last 20 odd years with 250 grain Hornady bullets and have never had a complaint just place your bullet in the right spot the same as you would with any other rifle
Click to expand...

That's the plan! :cheers:
 
The .358 Norma is a real power house which IMHO has more in common with the .375 than with the .338. Sometime ago Bartell made that comparison and its a viable one.

For your choice of bullets consider the TSX. A TSX doesn't expand as big as some of the conventional bullets, so they should be a good choice for light game, and you could throttle them back to 2600 or so and still have a reasonable trajectory out to 300. Bullet weight doesn't matter so much with the TSX as the portion of the bullet which expands is the same length regardless of weight within caliber, their weight is determined by the length of the shank, and at 2600 they all have enough momentum to punch through a deer over normal hunting ranges.
 
bjake said:
I've used my 358 Norma mag to shoot everything from Whitetail deer up to g bears over the last 20 odd years with 250 grain Hornady bullets and have never had a complaint just place your bullet in the right spot the same as you would with any other rifle
Click to expand...

What was your load with the 250gr Hornady?
 
The difference between a .338 Win Mag and the .358 Norma mag is about .02 of an inch. This is similar to the .270 Win and the .280 Rem argument which bears a difference of .007 of an inch. Comparing the energy and down range performance of the .338 and .358 will give you an excellent picture . . . like eating right up to the hole. The deer I have shot with a .338 WM never caused me to wonder if I should have moved up to a .358 NM.
 
.358 NM is far too much for deer in my opinion, the deer will be too dead to eat ;)

In all seriousness, heavy medium velocity bullets will do the job with little meat damage. I like the 6.5x55 for deer, but this year I am taking a .375H&H just because I really like the rifle. Enjoy your .358, I think its a very interesting round to use.
 
horseman2 said:
The difference between a .338 Win Mag and the .358 Norma mag is about .02 of an inch. This is similar to the .270 Win and the .280 Rem argument which bears a difference of .007 of an inch. Comparing the energy and down range performance of the .338 and .358 will give you an excellent picture . . . like eating right up to the hole. The deer I have shot with a .338 WM never caused me to wonder if I should have moved up to a .358 NM.
Click to expand...

Not the same comparison, .270 to 7mm, as the difference in diameter there is three times smaller than the difference between .338 and .358. Lay a .338 bullet on its side beside a .358 and look at the bases of the bullets beside each other- there's a difference, a significant one.
 
Great calibre and one day I still hope to acquire one in a Schultz & Larsen. In the meantime, I was fortunate enough to pick one up in a Husqvarna model 1651 from a gentleman on site:D.

Husqvarna1651358NM.jpg


Husqvarna358NM2.jpg


When he sent me photos, ;), I couldn't resist but one day, I still hope to get that calibre in a Schultz. Great calibre but it may be somewnat more than required for use on Deer.
 
Killed a nice bull elk , mule deer and black bear this September with a .35 Whelen. Bullet was Barnes TSX 225gr. M.V about 2,700. Recovered bullet under hide on offside shoulder which expanded perfectly and weighed 224.4 gr. Elk went 10 yards before expiring. Deer and bear died quickly also. Very impressed with TSX. I never worry about a little damaged meat to be honest.
Geoff
 
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