Who has a Henry Single Shot and do you like it?

I just got a .357 and am working up loads for it. So far, it looks like it might be a 2 MOA rifle. Seems to like my cast gas check bullets better than the jacketed but I'm just getting going. Need a better scope on it and I'm not happy with how much drop the stock has with scope. No good cheek weld. I have an old lace on cheek pad I might get out but hate to comer the nice wood.
Trigger good. Make sure you get one that has the upgrades (safety upgrade which much improves the trigger). If the inside rear of the trigger guard has a dimple, it has the upgrades.

I have one in 44 mag that my wife uses for deer hunting. It’s accurate and has a nice trigger, had to put a pad on it to get a cheek weld to see through the scope I put on it. Ours is the brass version, it’s a very nice looking and well made rifle.

I have a 45-70 steel receiver Henry Single Shot. I like it very much. I like shooting cowboy loads through it, 405 grain 1300 fps.
At just under 7 pounds harder hitting 360 grain factory hunting loads kick pretty darn good.
I haven’t really benched the gun to test it’s accuracy but shooting offhand with my cowboy loads I can keep them all in the black at 50 yards 10 rounds in a 5” circle.
For the money my Henry is a good looking rifle. I paid $370 for it in 2018.













I am considering one in .308

I bought one in .30-30 to see how much accuracy I could wring out of a "brush gun", on a budget. My first step was to get a scope and necessary mount pieces. By the time I got the scope I wanted, mounted to clear the hammer, I couldn't get a cheek weld that I was happy with. Okay, let's see what I can do with irons and spitzers. 150s pushed by H4895, looked like a shotgun pattern at 50. Really regretting this. Maybe the kids will enjoy a light load, got these 110 Sierra Varminter HPs and IMR3031. Middle of the charge range, and go. WOW! 5 holes touching at 50 yards with irons and cheap bags. Attractive, accurate at irons range, good handling. Alas, really bought it to get some range out of the cartridge, and my eyes can't do that without help. Wife needed trade bait for her new EDC. I enjoyed it for what it was, just wasn't what I wanted

I’ve always like the look of them. Beautiful wood, I regret not buying the 45-70 I saw back in 2020.

I have a. 357 one. Fitted with a 2.5x shotgun scope, it's purpose is a fun, cheap, camp plinker and a training gun and low recoil beginner deer rifle for the neighbors kids at my hunting camp. I absolutely love it. Accuracy is well beyond the pale of what cast. 38s or full on. 357s should be able to do. Fit, finish and reliability are superb. It is flat out a high quality firearm. Buy with confidence. Don't expect it to shoot cloverleaf groups, but for something to chuck a shell in and shoot to reasonable distances, it will do this in spades. As others have mentioned, a cheek riser will be needed with optics.

I'm irritated that they don't make one in .45 Colt. I think they'd sell quite a few of them.

I have one in .357 and love it. Great trigger. With a Nikon 3x scope, it shoots 2 moa with cast bullets. Just a tad heavy, but that attentuates recoil.

Tallinar said:

I'm irritated that they don't make one in .45 Colt. I think they'd sell quite a few of them.

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Give them a call. 866-200-2354 or 800-486-1278

When I bought my 45-70 they also made them in .308 Winchester, .223 Remington and .44 Magnum. I believe they may have also had .243 Winchester.
I called Henry and asked if the would ever consider.357 magnum or .30-30. The nice lady I spoke with said she would forward my request to management and that they had gotten a lot of calls regarding this. As you can see now, my call and a number of others has increased their offerings.

Screen shot from https://www.henryusa.com/rifles/single-shot-rifle/




I hate Otto Communista

I have a shotgun, which is basically the same as the rifle but chambered in 20 guage. I like everything about it. It's light, compact, modern (will shoot steel ammo, interchangeable choke), made in USA, and all steel and wood -- no aluminum or polymer. The wood is an attractive walnut too, not just stained birch. As a single-shot, it's not a fighting shotgun, but I bought it for quail, rabbit, and squirrels. I also bought it to start my kids on shotgun. It's offered with a short stock or a longer one. I bought both. I prefer this to having to chop a nice stock with a saw. For the kids, it's light to shoulder compared to a double and the weight is aft compared to a pump with the longer receiver and a magazine out front. Because it is light, it has more felt recoil. A gas-operated semi-auto might absorb recoil better, but is a lot more gun to shoulder.

badkarmamib said:

I bought one in .30-30 to see how much accuracy I could wring out of a "brush gun", on a budget. My first step was to get a scope and necessary mount pieces. By the time I got the scope I wanted, mounted to clear the hammer, I couldn't get a cheek weld that I was happy with. Okay, let's see what I can do with irons and spitzers. 150s pushed by H4895, looked like a shotgun pattern at 50. Really regretting this. Maybe the kids will enjoy a light load, got these 110 Sierra Varminter HPs and IMR3031. Middle of the charge range, and go. WOW! 5 holes touching at 50 yards with irons and cheap bags. Attractive, accurate at irons range, good handling. Alas, really bought it to get some range out of the cartridge, and my eyes can't do that without help. Wife needed trade bait for her new EDC. I enjoyed it for what it was, just wasn't what I wanted

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That's why I don't have one. I was incredibly excited for them when they came out but the comb height is just wrong for a scope, and I need a scope for anything past 50 yards. I still might pick one up in 357 and put a skinner sight on it to shoot 38 plinking loads in.

I did a lot of research on them a few years ago when they were $340, but at close to $500 I'd look elsewhere personally.

Supposedly they have pretty heavy triggers, something like 8-10 pounds. If you do some looking on the web you can find a couple threads on another forum where people found replacement springs for the trigger. They're generic springs, so they aren't labeled as Henry trigger springs.

Some people contacted Henry about the heavy trigger pulls and apparently Henry won't change the design for safety reasons.

Scout21 said:

Supposedly they have pretty heavy triggers, something like 8-10 pounds. If you do some looking on the web you can find a couple threads on another forum where people found replacement springs for the trigger. They're generic springs, so they aren't labeled as Henry trigger springs.

Some people contacted Henry about the heavy trigger pulls and apparently Henry won't change the design for safety reasons

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Actually, this is backwards. They had a heavy (7lb-ish) trigger, but Henry did a safety recall 2-3 years ago and updated the rifle with a decent field trigger (half the pull weight of the original design) at no charge. All that were manufactured after that point have the updated trigger.

rbernie said:

Actually, this is backwards. They had a heavy (7lb-ish) trigger, but Henry did a safety recall 2-3 years ago and updated the rifle with a decent field trigger (half the pull weight of the original design) at no charge. All that were manufactured after that point have the updated trigger.

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That timeline sounds about right, I was looking at them when they first came out in 2018. This is one of the threads I found discussing the spring swap, if anybody is interested.

Stopped at a small gun shop looking for .243 ammo. Spotted a Henry single shot in .410. I have a TC Contender in 45Colt/.410 and shot many rabbits and squirrels but wanted something for longer shots. The walnut stock is beautiful and it has a full choke tube. I've written Henry asking for a lever action rifle in 454 Casull but they say there is no plan for one at this time.

Wham Bham said:

I was thinking a single-shot would be a nice addition too, but the trigger pull weight issue is a real put-off. 8 lbs. is just ridiculous!

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Then it’s a good thing that the Henry doesn’t have an eight pound trigger pull. Mine measures out at a little over 3 1/2 pounds.

I would love one in .50 AE and replace the front hand guard with a Mloc rail. Nice Sig Romeo 5 Reddot too

Mark_Mark said:

I would love one in .50 AE and replace the front hand guard with a Mloc rail. Nice Sig Romeo 5 Reddot too

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I'd prefer it in a rimmed cartridge, like 500mag. It could always be downloaded to 50AE recoil if desired.

gotboostvr said:

I'd prefer it in a rimmed cartridge, like 500mag. It could always be downloaded to 50AE recoil if desired.

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I meant 500 Mag or .460 mag

Mark_Mark said:

I meant 500 Mag or .460 mag

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I think 460 would be excellent in a single shot like that. could use a little lighter bullet and really get some velocity behind them.

I really, REALLY like them. My .357 (I added a Realist 4x scope) was such a fine shooter, that I bought a 30-30 (added a Weaver 4x scope) and gave it to my son-in-law as he was moving out of state. Both calibers are under 2 MOA with my failing eyesight. Exceptional firearms. A bit on the heavy side, but built like tanks.

I have a .308 and a .223. The commenters are right about the triggers. Very heavy. I did the Grainger Spring mod on mine and they were much better. Then the recall on the triggers came out and I de-modded them and sent them in. When they came back the triggers were much better so I left them as is. The accuracy is OK. Definitely less than 2 MOA with good ammo. Better than I am for sure. Very beautiful rifles.