Stupid question- 38 and 357magnum in lever guns?

[xsquidgator]

Some day I know I'll pick up a lever gun, just because I've wanted one and they're neat. But I don't understand something about them... is it safe to shoot 38 Special in a 357 levergun?

I know it's not safe to shoot 22LR in a 22Magnum rifle. I know it's safe to shoot 38 in a 357 wheelgun. How about a 357 levergun?

I cast bullets and it would be way cool if I could turn my big supply of 38 special brass into low-cost plinking rounds for a fun little rifle.

 

[bonedust]

i shoot both 38 and 357 in my Marlin.

 

[ArmedBear]

.38 and .357 both work great in my Marlin, also. LSWC rounds have fed reliably, too.

 

[saturno_v]

You can...just don't drop a deer shooting 38 Specials....

 

[Seafarer12]

I shoot 38's and 357's out of my Navy Arms 92.

 

[xsquidgator]

Glad to hear it, thanks much for the replies!

 

[Marlin 45 carbine]

I don't have one, a shooting buddy has a Marlin lever in 38/357 that he (and me) shoots his 'practice' .38's in with good results. no noticeable recoil but still makes a satisfying 'whack' on steel discs at 50 yds. that thing is accurate.
he hasn't mentioned any problems to me concerning.

 

[ArmedBear]

shoots his 'practice' .38's in with good results. no noticeable recoil but still makes a satisfying 'whack' on steel discs at 50 yds. that thing is accurate.

My experience, too. I stuck 5 .38s in my 1894C at an indoor range and rested it on my shooting bag, just to see how it was sighted in when I got it.

I was surprised when I reeled the target back and found a cloverleaf group, with iron sights at that.

 

[Rmac58]

I understand the action will become dirtier.

 

[ArmedBear]

Like a revolver, you will get a fouling ring before the end of the chamber, and after it gets dirty enough, .357s won't fit until you clean it.

However, this takes a lot more than a few rounds.

Marlins are very easy to strip and clean from the breech. It's not a big deal to run a cleaning rod through it, wipe the action and bolt with a rag, oil it lightly, and put it back together.

 

[zxcvbob]

My Marlin '94 cycles .38 Specials as well or better than .357's. So I load .38's to almost-357 performance and mark the case heads with a red marker and put them in a box marked "Rifle Only" (I get one more round in the magazine that way.) Modern .38-44's.

You can also load .357 Magnum cartridges using DEWC bullets and accomplish the same thing without worrying about your reloads winding up in someone's .38 Special aluminum-framed or breaktop revolver. (crimp in the top groove, not over the top of the bullet.)

Or just load normal .38 Specials for it like a sane person RNFP and JHP bullets work better than SWC's. Haven't tried truncated cones yet but that should also be a good design.

 

[ArmedBear]

Haven't tried truncated cones yet but that should also be a good design.

They've worked fine in mine.

I've just been surprised to see that LSWCs feed reliably. I thought that, if anything would get hung up, it'd be them. They don't have any trouble. Bottom line, it seems you can use whatever bullet you want, as long as it doesn't have a sharp, pointy tip, so you can load for accuracy, performance, economy, or whatever you want.