Straight Wall Cartridges for Deer

[kmittleman]

Hi all,

I’m developing loads for this deer season and I have both .357 and .41 mag lever guns. Have any of you tried either of these on deer yet?

In the .357 I was going to use 180gr xtp’s and 210 Remington jsp’s or xtp’s.

Thanks!

K

 

[6-Pack]

No, but I plan on getting a 45/70 for my deer hunting

 

[dannyp]

i feel like you needed special loads for the 357 , at least for a 6" barreled handgun if i remember right .

 

[Derwood]

I can't answer your exact question, but I use 240 grain .44 mag jacketed hollow point rounds out of a lever gun and I've never had a deer run more than a few yards after being hit. I'd go with jacketed hollow point if you can load those, and from there, heavier and hotter/faster is better.

 

[dannyp]

I can't answer your exact question, but I use 240 grain .44 mag jacketed hollow point rounds out of a lever gun and I've never had a deer run more than a few yards after being hit. I'd go with jacketed hollow point if you can load those, and from there, heavier and hotter/faster is better.

i'm not sure how much more volocity a rifle barrel will give you , i know there are rules in md hunting guidelines.

 

[DutchV]

Look here:

Deer Regs for Archery, Muzzleloader, Firearms & Airguns - Maryland Hunting

An Archery Stamp ( Hunting Licenses ) is required to hunt deer during the Archery Season and when using archery equipment during the Primitive Deer Hunt Days except that: Hunters entitled to hunt without a license and hunters with a Senior Lifetime Consolidated License do not need to purchase an…

www.eregulations.com

"

• Rifles used for deer hunting must use ammunition developing a muzzle energy of at least 1,200 foot pounds. Consult ammunition guides for ballistics information."

 

[camo556]

357 from a 16" barrel is plenty for deer.

I dont reload; Buffalo Bore and some others make 180 gr 357 magnum heavy hunting loads that reach 1700-1800 fps from a 16" barrel and are plenty for deer (and will meet the 1200 ft lbs)

 

[lazarus]

357 from a 16" barrel is plenty for deer.

I dont reload; Buffalo Bore and some others make 180 gr 357 magnum heavy hunting loads that reach 1700-1800 fps from a 16" barrel and are plenty for deer (and will meet the 1200 ft lbs)

Buffalo bore and I think Underwood make a load that will just exceed 1200ft-lbs from a 16" barrel. No one else does. Reloading info is scant that will get you there too.

IIRC when I looked it up, you are pretty much going to have to use lil gun and push it, but you can get there. You cannot get there with a 210 in a .357. The bullet takes up too much powder volume. A 180 is also likely to be difficult. You'll probably need to run 158s.

That said, there is what the regs says and what is actually enough on a deer. A 357 out of a lever gun with a warm to hot load (no matter if it really makes 1200+ or just vaguely close) is more than enough so long as you aim and don't have a bad hit.

I would NOT want to use a .357 past 100 yds. Even a really hot load. The .41 would be a better choice if you do anticipate >100yd shots.

I plan to get a .357 lever gun as a SWC deer rifle since I live in Howard. Plus I want something inexpensive to reload for plinking. So happy marriage. And anything in HoCo (unless someone wants to extend me an invite to a farm...) is certainly going to be 100yds or less. Also, good suppression for subsonics 357s/38s

For 180s, you'll need >1734fps to achieve 1200ft-lbs. For 210s you'd need 1604fps. H110 max loads are about 100fps short of the velocity needed from a 16".

 

[kmittleman]

Buffalo bore and I think Underwood make a load that will just exceed 1200ft-lbs from a 16" barrel. No one else does. Reloading info is scant that will get you there too.

IIRC when I looked it up, you are pretty much going to have to use lil gun and push it, but you can get there. You cannot get there with a 210 in a .357. The bullet takes up too much powder volume. A 180 is also likely to be difficult. You'll probably need to run 158s.

That said, there is what the regs says and what is actually enough on a deer. A 357 out of a lever gun with a warm to hot load (no matter if it really makes 1200+ or just vaguely close) is more than enough so long as you aim and don't have a bad hit.

I would NOT want to use a .357 past 100 yds. Even a really hot load. The .41 would be a better choice if you do anticipate >100yd shots.

I plan to get a .357 lever gun as a SWC deer rifle since I live in Howard. Plus I want something inexpensive to reload for plinking. So happy marriage. And anything in HoCo (unless someone wants to extend me an invite to a farm...) is certainly going to be 100yds or less. Also, good suppression for subsonics 357s/38s

For 180s, you'll need >1734fps to achieve 1200ft-lbs. For 210s you'd need 1604fps. H110 max loads are about 100fps short of the velocity needed from a 16".

Thanks for the feedback. I was thinking about Buffalo Bore/Underwood in .357 or some max load of Lil Gun in 158/180gr. For the .41 mag, I‘m sure most factory loads would be GTG. However, does anyone have experience actually shooting a deer with one of these cartridges? If so, how has the blood trail? My .357 has an 18.5” barrel and the .41 has a 16” barrel.

 

[camo556]

If you do your part the deer will go down.

I have to lol at blood trial though. 9 times out of 10 you won't need one if you do your part. As for the 1 time, there will usually be a blood trail. Occasionally all the fat might close over the wound. But I've seen that happen with slugs too. My experience is that if there is no blood trail, its not because of the cartridge, its because *cough* someone missed. As in, dont shoot running deer.

 

[Muleskinner]

I regularly hunt deer with my lever actions. I have a Marlin 1894C and a Henry X. My go to load for either is a Hornady XTP over 16.7 grn H110 with a CCI magnum pistol primer. I've killed a dozen or so with it. Last year was the first time in a while i've hunted with them since we now have a lease in a former shotgun only county.

I have yet to have to trail anything I've shot. Generally I try to keep my distance within 50 yards to prevent that. Heart shot is easy at that range. I've also shot 2 in the head when they refuse to give me a shoulder.

 

[Biggfoot44]

Not deer , but I have shot wild boar with .357 carbine . I have gone afield with .357 carbine with intent to shoot deer , but Bambi didn't cooperate . And I helped Shooting & Handloading Partner #1 aka best friend develope big game loads for his Marlin .41 , but cancer interfered be hunting with it .

Will .357 from rifle with suitable load kill deer ? Well YEAH ! Is .41 Mag from rifle More Better ? Yes .

Ft Lb per se is a very poor predictor of game performance . ( Cue multiple discussions about arbitrary numbers in Md Regs , and actual performance , in context of both handguns , and straight wall rifles .)

With .357 rifles , its a very narrow window of bullet selection and velocity to achieve suitable controlled expansion with expanding bullets . IF you seek expansion . If you seek penetration , hard cast SWC , RNFP , or JSP have penetration measured in feet , not inches .

 

[gizzard]

357 from a 16" barrel is plenty for deer.

I dont reload; Buffalo Bore and some others make 180 gr 357 magnum heavy hunting loads that reach 1700-1800 fps from a 16" barrel and are plenty for deer (and will meet the 1200 ft lbs)

buy the buffalo bore when you see it, scarce

 

[Harrys]

Hi all,

I’m developing loads for this deer season and I have both .357 and .41 mag lever guns. Have any of you tried either of these on deer yet?

In the .357 I was going to use 180gr xtp’s and 210 Remington jsp’s or xtp’s.

Thanks!

K

Like others I use a 45/70 and also have been using .500 S&W magnum BFR Revolver. This year I will be using a Big Horn Armory .500 S&W mag carbine. A bud did use his 357 with a 158 gr. HDY XTP with longshot loaded with 8 gr. of powder which is almost max load. He got a nice doe with it.

 

[Bisleyfan44]

The 180 Remington SJHP 357 factory load works great on deer from a 6.5" Blackhawk. Personal experience. Should do even better from a levergun.
Also shot two with the 210 Remington 41 factory JSP, from a 7.5" Bisley Blackhawk. Same results...in one side, out the other, lots of mess in the middle.
All in iron sight handgun range.

 

[Bluemoon]

I hunt with the 357 Mg, 41 Mag, 44 Special, and 44 Magnum, all in Ruger SBH. I have taken deer with all of them. I also hunt with a 357 Mag, 44 Mag, 444 Marlin and 45-70 all in Marlin Lever guns. I love straight wall rounds.

 

[Bluemoon]

I hunt with the 357 Mg, 41 Mag, 44 Special, and 44 Magnum, all in Ruger SBH. I have taken deer with all of them. I also hunt with a 357 Mag, 44 Mag, 444 Marlin and 45-70 all in Marlin Lever guns. I love straight wall rounds.

 

[RRomig]

I’m sorry I didn’t get that
Can you repeat
JK

 

[Afrikeber]

If you do your part the deer will go down.

I have to lol at blood trial though. 9 times out of 10 you won't need one if you do your part. As for the 1 time, there will usually be a blood trail. Occasionally all the fat might close over the wound. But I've seen that happen with slugs too. My experience is that if there is no blood trail, its not because of the cartridge, its because *cough* someone missed. As in, dont shoot running deer.

Passed up the biggest most beautiful Buck I’ve ever had in my sights because it was running.

 

[Afrikeber]

Anybody using the 350 legend this upcoming deer shotgun season?