School me on rifles in 38/357

[easy]

If you have some $$ to blow, look for a pump action Timber Wolf. Made by IMI, imported by Action Arms and Springfield. Seriously nice rifle.

 

[eastbank]

as posted before, i would sooner spend money for original lever action rifles (marlin and winchesters)that i can shoot and that will go up in value as the years go by. these are the last two winchesters i bought last dec., 1892 special order 25-20 and a 94 carbine 25-35 for 1700 for the pair. thats cheaper than the new made winchesters and most italian repo,s and not much over the MSRP of the others. eastbank.

 

[BCRider]

But there are not a lot of old originals in the requested .357Mag caliber. So he's stuck with relatively recent options.

 

[eastbank]

yes you are quite right, but as i reload the calibers in the old 1892,s they can be loaded to compete with the .357 mag., if i wanted a winchester 1892 or 1873 clone it would be a miroku made for browning or the new winchester made by the same company.and if i wanted a marlin 1894 it would be a marlin 94, not a rossi or a henry. eastbank.

 

[Furncliff]

I bought my 1894c through an an online auction having never seen one in person, it was just one of those gut purchases. I have not been disappointed, it has been faithful and accurate for ten years. There are instructions on-line for slicking the action.

My accuracy load uses Lil-Gun and Hornaday xtp 158's. It's a bit stout at 1900 fps. I would use loading this for deer with no hesitation.

 

[PO2Hammer]

I've owned many .357 carbines over the years. An older Rossi 1892 was very nice, but the wood cracked. Had a JM Marlin 1894 CP (16" ported) that didn't always cycle smoothly. Sold both of those and kept my NEF Handi rifle. The Handi is an older model fitted with .357, 30-30 and .410 barrels with nice open sights and ejectors. Super accurate in .357 and 30-30.

If I had to buy new I would look for a top quality 1892 replica, maybe Cimarron or one of the Miroku Winchesters. Miroku of Japan makes some very nice rifles with excellent fit and finish.
I don't like the 1866 or 1873 replicas because of the long, heavy actions.

 

[handyman163]

I love the look of the Henry's, but as BCRider touched on earlier - they are H_E_A_V_Y!!! Taking a 45LC octagon barrel and only drilling a 357 hole through it makes it feel like a weightlifting implement. That, and the tube load similar to a 22lr made me look a different way.


I've read a lot about Rossi quality, but when my local shop had 4 of them, I snagged the best one of the lot in the 20" 357 stainless, and I'm loving it. It did take some work to get loading smoothly, but not too bad (I'm no gunsmith). Changing out one spring (ejector) makes the action a whole lot smoother. They're sort of like roughed diamonds...with a little finish work, they can really be nice.

Couldn't find any Marlins, didn't really like the Henrys, couldn't afford the Uberti 1873...

 

[joem1945]

I have a Marlin in .38/.357. The accuracy with .38 spl. is poor. .357 mag loads are accurate and fun to shoot.

 

[tom0310]

picked up one of these today new at gandermountain. thought they had stopped the 357 cal but they had two, looked liked it had been in box long time. need some loads for 125 gr 158 gr bullseye also have to put scope on.
HR Handi rifle 357

 

[mdo]

"I have a Marlin in .38/.357. The accuracy with .38 spl. is poor. .357 mag loads are accurate and fun to shoot."

This is my experience too. And they are very hungry little guns. It's really easy to burn through a couple of hundred rounds with mine during an afternoon plinking session.

 

[MCgunner]

Mine is a Rossi 92, have had it for nearly 30 years. Great little rifle and very handy afield. Loaded with a gas checked cast Lee SWC weighing 165 grains over 16.8 grains Lil Gun, it can do anything a .30-30 can do to 100 yards. Loaded in .38 brass with a Lee cast 105 grain SWC over 2.3 grains Bullseye, it shoots 1.5" 50 yard groups and can do anything my .22s can do, yet is reloadable. Besides, it's a great lookin' rifle.

 

[d'zaster]

I bought a stainless rossi 92 online. That was a mistake. Piece of crap. Fit and finish, cycled rough and sticky, would not chamber 357, brass button on the front sight was not centered on the post..... Sent it back to Braztech. What a joke. After 4 months I got a complete runaround. Finally got it back and it was no different except cycling 357 was somewhat improved. I got a recommendation on THR to contact Steve Young in Texas. Bought his DVD and slicked up the gun myself. I learned a lot and it end up being a good experience but I find it completely unbelievable that Rossi produces quality guns. I hate to trash a manufacturer but in this case, be warned!!!!

 

[d'zaster]

I went with winchester/Miroku 45-70. Awesome quality and finish. Would highly recommend having a close look at their 357 or 44.
I considered Remlin but at the time, the guns I looked at where definitely not comparable. Sure I paid a few hundred more but looking back, it was totally worth it.

 

[OilyPablo]

My buddy has a 1894 Marlin (earlier style). That gun is SLICK. The action is smooth and perfect. I have offered to buy it from him.

I have an early 1900's Winchester converted (357/38) 1892. It's kinda slick, but not even in the same league as the Marlin. I love this gun.

The Winchester is way more accurate than the Marlin.