Lever action 357 or 45 colt

[BossHogg]

I've read some 357 rifles don't shoot 38 spl, some have no trouble with either round. Give me some info on make and model that you like, also on the 45 colt.

Trying to make my mind up but waffle about every other day, please help me out.

I have both 357 and 45 colt in pistols and also plan to start reloading. Will be for range fun mostly.

 

[blutarsky]

can't go wrong with a marlin 1894c in .38spl/.357mag. lots of choices for ammo, plus it's really handy and rugged. there's not many people who have much bad to say about the marlins, in any caliber for that matter.

 

[bpl]

I have a Winchester 94 in .357mag and I shoot .38spl out of it without any problems.

 

[Ed Ames]

Both are fun. The .357 is arguably more practical. Cheaper to shoot, reasonable ballistics, better reach past 150 yards. If it's mostly for fun you probably won't go wrong either way.

I now have two lever guns, both M92 repros in .45/.454 w/20" barrels. One has a Leupold Deltapoint 7.5moa red dot, the other is in stock irons waiting for me to find a peep i like. I like 'em, especially paired w/ a revolver. I mostly shoot slightly hot 255gr .45 but quote .454 ballistics, which are similar to the 357 but more fuss and expense. Double the energy at 200 yards and a bigger hole though. I probably would've gone .44 mag if the .454 wasn't available.

 

[handloader357]

I don't mean to threadjack here, but I have a question that may also help the OP... And for what it's worth to the OP I'm biased to anything in 357 but have absolutely no experience with the 45's.

Anyway, my question is related to feeding handloads through these 357 lever guns. I've read some reviews where people had issues feeding long bullets on 357 cases through some of these lever guns. Two bullets I'd like to use are the Elmer Keith 168gr and the Hornady 180gr HP-XTP. Unfortunately quite a bit of the info I've come across on the web has been in conflict so hopefully someone here can set the record straight for me. Which of the currently produced lever guns like to feed these longer rounds? In the revolvers my Smith 686 eats them up, but my dads Python will not chamber them due to the slightly shorter cylinder.

Many thanks!