New rifle

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Mountain trapper

Mountain trapper

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My wife decided that she wants a new rifle. She wants a .357 magnum lever action. Probably a Uberti. I've got an old Winchester 94 Trapper in .357 magnum and she likes shooting it. I'm thinking about getting a 38-55 Cimmeron for myself. I believe it's made by Uberti too. I'll have to buy reloading dies and components for the 38-55.
 
There is another chambering that is larger than a .357 but will also handle the .357 and .38. You might only shoot .38's in it but having larger options is always good. Sorry, brain fart, I'm sure someone will help me out.
 
Will you be casting bullets or trying to find commercial bullets for it?
 
Caribou said:
There is another chambering that is larger than a .357 but will also handle the .357 and .38. You might only shoot .38's in it but having larger options is always good. Sorry, brain fart, I'm sure someone will help me out.
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The only cartridge I am aware of that is bigger than the 357 magnum that will fire the 38 special and the 357 magnum is the 357 maximum (AKA 357 super magnum). It is a 50000 psi round and not usually found in lever actions. I have one revolver and a single shot. It is a darn near perfect round for game up to deer or black bear within 50 yards or so and with the proper bullet. I use a 158 grain HP at 2013 fps in the revolver and a 180 grain rifle bullet at just over 1800 fps in the single shot. Because of the higher pressure this cartridge uses a small rifle primer instead of the small pistol magnum primer.
 
randyt said:
38-55 is a great round. I have a winchester 94 rifle in that round. Octogon barrel, tang sight. According to family history it is on a second barrel. It had been sent in to winchester and had a new barrel installed.
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I love these old rifles. I have an original Winchester 1873 in .44 WCF. I believe the 38-55 is the predecessor to the 30-30, but I could be wrong.
 
Every Uberti I've owned or shot is oozing with quality.
yb 45.jpg
Uberti 45lc 2.jpg
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Jim
 
As difficult as it is these days to get ‘standard’ ammunition, I wouldn’t go for the ‘odd calibers’ as I call them. I understand you are thinking of reloading your own but that keeps me from entertaining such a rifle.

.357/.38 or .44 of any flavor would be nice to have. Of course, to each his/her own!
 
Spikedriver said:
I like those Uberti lever guns but $1200-1500 is a little hard for me to stomach. They sure do look good...
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Uberti's are a little pricy, but they are top of the line quality. For me they are worth the price. In my case I'm selling several guns that I don’t have a need for, and thats how I'm paying for these. "Trading assests" as my account likes to say.
 
kd4ulw said:
As difficult as it is these days to get ‘standard’ ammunition, I wouldn’t go for the ‘odd calibers’ as I call them. I understand you are thinking of reloading your own but that keeps me from entertaining such a rifle.

.357/.38 or .44 of any flavor would be nice to have. Of course, to each his/her own!
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I checked with Midway today and they have 38-55 ammo, bullets and brass available. Factory ammo is like $4.50 per round. I'll probably buy a couple boxes of ammo, then buy brass and bullets. I'll probably get in to casting bullets too.
 
Ammunition is never a limiting factor for me. I load for every gun I own with the exception of the rimfire cartridges. Several guns use obsolete or cartridges that are not popular but have a valid use for me. Two of those are my 257 Roberts and my 358 Winchester. I make my own brass from other cases and load them using tested loads with modern components.
 
Be sure and read reviews and ask people that own lever actions that shoot multiple calibers. e.g., .357mag and .38spl. While a revolver chambered in .357 will have no trouble shooting .38, a rifle might. Due to feeding problems. When designed for the longer round, that does not guaranty flawless feeding with the shorter round. I have read that some .357 lever guns have feeding issues with .38. So research the specific rifle for potential feeding issues if a diet of the shorter rounds is on the menu. You want to end up with one that likes all the different length rounds that you are planning to feed it.

The same thing applies for rifles that shoot .44mag/.44spl or ones that shoot .454casull/.45colt.
 
Haertig said:
Be sure and read reviews and ask people that own lever actions that shoot multiple calibers. e.g., .357mag and .38spl. While a revolver chambered in .357 will have no trouble shooting .38, a rifle might. Due to feeding problems. When designed for the longer round, that does not guaranty flawless feeding with the shorter round. I have read that some .357 lever guns have feeding issues with .38. So research the specific rifle for potential feeding issues if a diet of the shorter rounds is on the menu. You want to end up with one that likes all the different length rounds that you are planning to feed it.

The same thing applies for rifles that shoot .44mag/.44spl or ones that shoot .454casull/.45colt.
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I've thought about that. I doubt if I'd have a reason to shoot 38 special, even though the rifles I'm looking at claim to shoot both. Like Sheepdog above, I reload for every caliber of gun I own.
 
well, that kinda takes the fun out of it ;)
 
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