.38/.357 in a rifle

[OLeveraction]

I use a Rossi R92 rifle in lever action silhouette. I prefer the 24" octagon barrelled rifle over the 20" carbine for this. The carbine is too light for a steady hold. Targets are out to 100 m so accuracy is somewhat important. Why "somewhat?" Because the "stock nut" is loose (that's me...) and sighting (tang sight) isn't terribly precise.

Having said all that, I shoot IMR4227 in .357 cases with Badman's 157 gr round nose flat point. The load will hold around 2 1/2" at 100 m from a bench. Good enough.

The rifle doesn't feed semi-wadcutters. Their shoulders cause hang-ups. Stubby RNFPs don't feed well either. The "bulbous bow" bangs into the roof of the chamber when feeding. Not a problem with Badman's sleeker bullet. The gun also doesn't care much for .38 Special cases.

Tomorrow there's a lever action silhouette match at Machias if anybody is in the area and interested. Yeah, it says "Seattle" but that's a leftover from the 1960's when the club was closer to Seattle. The name stuck around, but the club didn't.

Seattle Rifle & Pistol Association - Cowboy Rifle and Hunter Pistol Silhouette Matches

www.seattlerifle.org

357 is over powered foe Pistol Caliber Silhouette. 39sp is better. Even better would be a 32-20 rifle.

 

[Tommie]

As already stated the 1885 action is tougher than hobo crap. When reloading revolver cartridges for a rifle I’ll use the slower powders to take advantage of the barrel length.

 

[Krogen]

357 is over powered foe Pistol Caliber Silhouette. 39sp is better. Even better would be a 32-20 rifle.

Indeed it is! When I wrote the post above that you replied to, I hadn't yet gone down (yet another) garden path. It didn't take me long, though. I bought a Model 92 in 44-40. Compared to the .357, it was significantly over-powered. Chickens flew into low earth orbit. The rifle is fun to shoot, but clearly I went in the wrong direction.

So, I fixed that and backtracked. As you mention, a 32-20 is a better choice. I snagged a Marlin 1894 in 32-20 at Cabela's for a "can't ignore" price. I added a tang sight and a 17A front sight. I also put in a better trigger and a loading gate that doesn't draw blood. After a bit of load development, I'm set for next Saturday's match. I can't wait!

 

[Leo_B]

1. https://hodgdonreloading.com/rldc
2. Filter by Cartridge
3. Rifle
4. Cartridges scroll box
5. 357 Magnum
Viola! (sic) Bob's your uncle and there's a whole bunch of options rifle specific