What can .357 carbine be used for?

Vermin of all sizes within its range limitations.

Small game with a light, .38 special level load

Deer when properly loaded, within its range limitations. For this use, I personally wouldn't trust most off the shelf factory ammo. Boutique stuff like Buffalo Bore and hot handloads only.

Critters up to small deer at short range. I personally don’t see the point in deer hunting with them but people do.

I'm sure by now that you've found how accurate they are. Deer, wild bores, etc. are just a couple of the uses, not to mention home protection. Just use your imagination, I'm quite certain you'll find other uses for that rifle.

someguy2800 said:

Critters up to small deer at short range. I personally don’t see the point in deer hunting with them but people do.

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It's because they are rifles that are easy to fall in love with and people want to hunt with the guns they love.

It really depends on the terrain and hunting scenario. Would I want one for spot and stalk hunting mule deer out west? No. Would I want one if hunting from a blind or tree stand over a bucket of corn and apples 35 yards away, why not?

Their light, handy brush rifles and good for varmint and small deer. The hot loads make them pretty impressive from what I've read the real good ammo out there (buffalo bore, lehigh, underwood, etc.) push the .357 carbine into the mid 30-30 power territory, of course high end .357 can't compete against high end 30-30. But your basically getting a pistol caliber carbine with rifle ballistics, which I think is pretty cool, plus all the hollow points and other cool rounds for .357 that just don't exist (or are disappointing) in rifle calibers. Also .357 has a huge bullet weight range, as low as 90-110gr all the way up to 180-220gr if you want to cast your own lead, where 30-30 is typically 125-175. I'm trying to talk myself into buying a .357 carbine if you can't tell.

A 38/357 carbine is very versatile. You can hunt anything up to about deer with it, HD, cowboy action, targets and plinking, it's all about choosing the right load. While 44 mag is better on deer, 357 is more versatile and economic then 44 IMO.

Well a 357 rifle can really get a bullet moving but remember they are shooting little soup cans so that energy dissipates in a hurry. It’s not in the same class as a 30-30 in power or range. Fine for 100 yard deer sized game, but experience has led me to tend toward overkill. I’d much rather use a 44 given a choice.

If I were taking a 357 mag rifle deer hunting I would load a gas checked 158 flat point hard cast and fill the case to the base of the bullet with h110. Mag primer too.

Something to be aware of too with a 357 rifle is that most 357 bullets are designed to expand at revolver velocities and they come unglued if they hit something at 1800-2000 FPS. Good jacketed bullets to use would be a Sierra 158 JSP, or a Zero 158 JSP.

I’ve tested a bunch of bullets in 357 maximum and a lot of them will fragment like a varmint bullet if driven fast. The Sierra and Zero jsp’s both have very hard cores.

You can compete in lever action pistol caliber metallic silhouette competitions. Shoot at metallic chickens, boars, goats and rams!

You've been given good advice. The main thing is using a proper bullet that won't break up. Heres a interesting article. If you compare .357 rifle ballistics to other common old rounds that were regularly used for deer, like 25-20, 25-35, 32-20, 32-40, and even the 38-55 it's equal or better.
http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2011/05/chris-dumm/lever-action-ballistics-30-30-vs-357-magnum/

I had a Marlin years ago in 357- wish I had kept it. Its good for a fun range toy or cowboy shooting. You could kill a deer or hog with it, But you could do it better and over a longer distance with a rifle firing a rifle round. They are also good for HD, if you lived somewhere that an AR or similar isn't allowed.

Scooter22 said:

You've been given good advice. The main thing is using a proper bullet that won't break up. Heres a interesting article. If you compare .357 rifle ballistics to other common old rounds that were regularly used for deer, like 25-20, 25-35, 32-20, 32-40, and even the 38-55 it's equal or better.
http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2011/05/chris-dumm/lever-action-ballistics-30-30-vs-357-magnum/

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Ya, the older rounds weren’t much when it came to velocity and energy, I don't know how well yesteryears marksmen were when it came to shots at game, I would hope their wounded-loss rate was low.

Today’s rounds are much more capable, and the .357,.41,.44 etc are much more effective than the 1900-era .38-40, .44-40 and .45 Colt. Even the listed .38-55 threw a 255 gr slug... but only at about 1300 FPS and 950 ft lbs. Not great shakes IMHO.

Don't rule it out as a HD gun besides hunting. Even 38 out of the longer barrel would be very effective

Home defense. Very early in the Henry's history the carbine, in 44 rimfire made an impact during the civil war. In the lawless years that followed, the light handy pistol caliber carbine kept food on the table, hostile Indians at bay and protected home and hearth in the wilds. There is excellent .357 ammo available as a viable home defense round, including the relatively inexpensive factory rounds that don't expand reliably from pistol barrel lengths become more effective from a 16" plus length barrel.

For me......personally...the beauty of the .357 carbine is in sharing ammo supplies with my .357 revolvers (4 of them).
I get an upgrade in accuracy, capacity, velocity, and verasatility.

In my mind, it bridges a levergun gap between .22mag and .30-30.

Imo a .357 rifle is one of the most versatile rifles you can own. I like the fact you can go through the thick woods here easily because the rifles are light and short. They are plenty powerful enough for deer or even small black bear with a good hit. For black bear or large deer I'd keep my shots under about 50-60 yards. A lot of much larger game is regularly taken in Alaska by the Eskimos using a lowly .22 or .22 magnum to get food.

Pretty wide range. Deer, black bear, and hogs would be the top end of the spectrum, but loaded with light 38spl it can go down to rabbit, squirrel, etc.

I once recommended a .357 carbine to a neighbor who wasnt a "gun person".
He wanted something bigger than a .22 for farm security against 2 and 4 legged vermin.
He didnt want a detachable magazine.
He already had a .357 revolver.

Not much.

What did you have in mind to hunt?

Mr_Flintstone said:

No particular plans yet. I was just wondering what it’s niche was.

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I had a Ruger 77/357. I put a lot of ammo thru that rifle ( load experiments) and my conclusion was it wasn't suited for much of anything except varmint control and small deer under 100 yds. There is a shortage of velocity inherent in the cartridge to make it useful for most hunting applications. Hornady states that their bullets were designed for a max velocity of 1500-1600 fps.

I'm sure a lot of people hunt with one and have success. Just wasn't what I would call optimal. A 44 mag would be a better choice if you want a pistol cartridge to hunt with.

How well does the 357 Leverevolution bullets do? Close up and out to 100yds or so?

Turnin money into noise..... And great for a walking around rifle. Impromptu hunts for deer on down, and as a truck gun. Plus its just fun to play with leverguns and 38 spcl is pretty cheap.