lever action pistol calibers

[tango3065]

I getting a sks but also want a lever 38/357 marlin for shtf and fun, my ? is how many rounds would this gun take before it needed worked on repaired, also in opinion would lets say a 38 coming out of a lever be a lot more potent than out of a handgun, and would a 38 be potent enough to kill a deer if the need arised? Well I guess as you already figured I have a lot of 38 ammo stockpiled for my handguns.

 

[SMLE]

You will get more velocity from a longer barrel with any pistol caliber. 357 will certainly take a deer, even from a handgun. I would not be too keen on using .38 Spec. for deer even in a carbine/rifle. If you're a good enough woodsman/stalker and a good enough shot, maybe.
A Marlin or Winchester rifle should last for many thousands of rounds in 38/357. The Rossi repop 1892 Winchesters are very nice rifles too. You might even look at a repop 1873 that you could also use for Cowboy Action.

 

[Pumpkinheaver]

I've never chrongraphed .38's out of my rifle before but .357mags are 450fps faster out of my 16" barreled carbine than out of my 6.5" blackhawk.

 

[tango3065]

Any info on the winchester 357, one told me they were nothing but problems and the would also not shoot 38's reliable.

 

[PO2Hammer]

.38's gain very little velocity out of a carbine, mabey 100 fps. +P's gain about 150. .357 gain substantial velocity because of the higher pressure and slower burning powder. .357 125gr. JHP's will clock about 2000fps, 158's-1700-1800fps. 16 inches of barrel will get all the velocity out of the magnum round, longer guns are easier to shoot and hold more cartridges. For deer, I would recomend Winchesters exellent 180gr nosler partition in their supreme line. It will hold together at carbine velocities, giving expansion and penetration. They are expensive, but you'll only need a box or two, and the deer deserve a good powerfull round that will take them cleanly. My 16" marlin is my SHTF carbine, with my Python on my hip of course! Ditch the SKS and get an American classic.

 

[c_yeager]

There is nothing at all wrong with an SKS as a survival gun. It fires a perfecctly adequate cartridge that is GREAT for taking game in north american. Sure, you COULD get an American rifle but, not everyone has the bank account to get a suitable american Semi-auto rifle.

And you CAN take a deer with .38's out of a rifle. But, i wouldnt recomend doing it unless you really had to.

 

[PO2Hammer]

P.S. Marlin .357' will cycle most .38's exept swc's and sometimes CCI bazers. HP's and LRN's work great and are perfect for small game. After you get the Marlin, it WILL become your clutch rifle. They last a long time and are more reliable with .38's than the win 94's or rossi 92's.(I've owned them all). Oh yeah, while I'm up on the soapbox, get an NEF single shot .357/20 gage combo.
Yeager- you're right, the SKS is a great little rifle that fires a good cartridge. I just meant the Marlin would be the 'american classic' and the SKS might not be nessesary if you already have a good rifle/pistol combo. The SKS fires a little faster, but the Marlin is a little more accurate.

 

[Kentucky Rifle]

I've always fired .357 mag from my Marlin 1894C...

I exect it to outlast me. I love it more than my AR-15. It's easier to clean and has no "demons" attached. If it were not for "rounding out" my collection, I'd sell my Bushmaster Shorty. (And I might just do that anyway. It's a perfect rifle and deserves to be fired more. I can NOT believe I just typed THAT.)

Will

 

[Crownvicman]

Po2hammer, my 1894 will feed swc ammo. My gun had some feeding problems ( with RNFP cowboy ammo) when I first bought it. I sent it back to Marlin and now have no problems shooting anything but blazers. The manual says not to use blazer ammo or aluminum cased ammo for a reason, I guess. Just an FYI.

 

[Pumpkinheaver]

My step dad has a win .357 and it eats everything it's fed.

 

[tango3065]

Pumpkin has he tried 38's in it?

 

[Dave Markowitz]

I have one of the Rossis -- an EMF Hartford Model Short Rifle. 20" octagon barrel, no barrel band, crescent buttplate. I did have to send it in for warranty work to get the extractor tweaked but aside from that it's been an outstanding gun.

I've run mostly Sellier & Bellot .357 Mag 158 grain JSPs through it, plus some of the equivalent loads in Federal's American Eagle line. I've run a limited amount of Winchester .38 Special LSWCs through it as well. It fed the .38s fine, but they do cause a buildup in the last .1" of the chamber that you need to get out. Shooting .38s in a 20" barrel feels and sounds like shooting standard velocity .22 LRs out of a rifle. Very quiet and would make a good small game round. I would be leery of using a .38 on deer unless I was very close and could precisely place my shot, and I'd want to be using +Ps.

IMO, .357 Magnum is a great rifle round, and the leverguns in the chambering are the cat's pajamas. Light recoil and relatively low noise, useful for game up to deer size, and they make a good weapon for defense against 2-legged animals. The ability to share ammo with your favorite revolver is icing on the cake.

 

[Pumpkinheaver]

Yes, it feeds .38 swc, rnfp, rnl, hollow points. It has digested every thing we have tried.

 

[tango3065]

Thanks for the replies now I just got to decide which brand to get, i'm sure the winchester will be cheaper so I may go that route.

 

[Brian Williams]

Get a Marlin, If the Single Action shooters use Marlins over Winnies 4 to 1, then believe me My Marlin is the best. Go to MarlinTalk.com or Leverguns.com.

 

[JShirley]

I like Marlins better.

Georgia Arms makes quality ammo at affordable prices. I would avoid .38 for defensive use out of your rifle because of that possibility of hanging up when you need it most.

http://www.georgia-arms.com/pistol.htm
158 JHP @ 1200 fps from pistol. 12$/50, 1,000 for $230. This is reloaded, but it will be quality. New ammo is $2.00 more for 50, and 50 fps faster.

John

 

[charleym3]

Rossi works for me

I've actually got 2. A Rossi SRC 92 carbine, 1 or 2000 and a LSI 24 inch Rifle. They both feed .38 perfectly. I load all my own ammo so I can't speak to Factory rounds. I ran some very hot 110 gr HP .357 ammo through the rifle. The bullets fragmented in a gallon milk jug. The results were spectacular. I've been wanting to try it on deer size game. Come to think of it I still have a few days of deer season left and 20 wooded acres behind my house. Hmmm... I'll report back if I get a shot.

 

[tango3065]

Thanks JShirley I would only use this gun for fun or the great shtf happening and in the shtf I would be using 38's because I have around 1000 round premium quality that I got cheap. So is it a common problem for these rifles to jam on 38's and are winchester kinda on the junk side? Also on side noe I have been reading marlin talk and it seems people are having alot of problems with the marlin 357's and are sending alot back for repair.

 

[JShirley]

The bullets fragmented in a gallon milk jug. The results were spectacular. I've been wanting to try it on deer size game.

Charley, please don't. You have what many people would consider an ideal low penetration defensive round there. On larger edible game, you want a deeper penetrating bullet- I would want more than 3 milk jugs of penetration for deer. (I think 3 to 5 jugs is ideal for PERSONAL DEFENSE.) Deer loads I want even a little more penetration, but 1 jug ain't it.

mastinson, I freely admit I have a design prejudice against the Winchester- I really prefer a solid receiver top. The only Marlins I've had have been .45-70's. Honestly, I believe you will be able to use the .38 to get very good and very fast, and by the time you've shot it all, you'll either be ready to either buy .357, or know you can trust the rifle with .38's!

Best,

John

 

[charleym3]

I run 38s through both of my Rossi/LSI rifles with no problems at all.

 

[Grayrock]

Nobody has mentioned any other calibers- I have been contemplating a pistol caliber lever action, but in .44 Mag, or LSI has one in .454 Casull or .480 Ruger. Anyone have any experience or opinions on these? Is there that much difference in power between the .357 and .44+ calibers? I already have a .357 revolver, so that would seem to be the logical choice, but I have been wanting a big bore single action for handgun hunting.

 

[MrAcheson]

The .357 is a nice plinking and short range hunting caliber. Once you pass 100 yards you probably need something better to hunt with since velocity falls off fairly quickly (its section density is lower than a real rifle round). .44 gives you a little longer reach because of the bigger mass and better range for hunting but it also recoils significantly more if you use full power loads. Its still a good cheap option though.

Before the LSI .454s came out there was some concern over longevity. This cartridge/gun combo had been tried before without success. I believe those reports are proving to be false and the LSIs are holding up, but I do know that the .454s recoil more than some people are comformable with. The '92 is a fairly light gun after all.

Personally a stainless '92 short rifle in .357 will probably be in my future. They're fairly inexpensive both to buy and shoot (since I don't reload) and I doubt I'll be rifle shooting at anything much above 100 yards anyway for lack of a decent range. If necessary it could be a useful home defense tool. The EMFs have better sights and safeties than the LSIs with a little better fit and finish so I'll probably buy one of those.

 

[Crownvicman]

Who are LSI? I have never heard of them.

 

[MrAcheson]

LSI is Legacy Sports International. They import the cheapest version of the Rossi 1892 winchester clone. The LSI guns have the nasty modern safety on them and the worst fit/finish/sights of all the Rossi made '92s.

 

[tango3065]

HShirley neither the Marlin nor the Winchester have a solid reciever top in the pistol calibers.