Why Doesn't Henry Make a 357 Pump Rifle?

[dverna]

Every manufacturer who introduced a CF pistol caliber pump gun has stopped offering them. They either could not get them to work reliably, or there was too little demand for them. If the issue was low demand, it could be either lack of interest in the platform, or lack of confidence in the manufacturer.

Maybe if Henry made them, they would be successful. At least the issue of lack of confidence would be addressed.

[Iron369]

I could see a pump working out better nowadays than any time over the last decade. 3d printing makes more interesting parts easier and cheaper to manufacture and marketing would be easier. The push for non-tactical style weapons is driving the firearms industry right now. Between lever actions and guns the pcc craze, I can see where pump action cf guns would be appealing.

[JHeath]

As laws clamp down on semiauto rifles it creates demand for black lever rifles covered in picatinny etc. I'm sure trombone rifles are coming.

[Nobade]

There is at least one outfit making a pump action AR rifle, and there's no reason you couldn't do one in pistol caliber version as well. However, getting something like that to work with 357 would be a real trick. 350 Legend would be easy.

I remember reading somewhere that someone bought one of those Taurus rifles chambered for 45 Colt and couldn't get it to work, so he rebarreled it for either 38-40 or 44-40 and it ran very well. Those long straight cartridges are tough for a Lightning design to feed well but the WCF bottlenecks will run through them nice and slick. Kind of like the way Colt designed the rifles back in the day.

[trapper9260]

Not to get off the subject on pistol round , Rem make a pump for 30-06 in the model 7600. I got one and love it .It dose have a mag for it . For what is stated if there is one company put more details into the rifle in a pump I think they could put it into any cartridge they like and it will market because they would have it in different cartridges. That is what I am thinking.

[TNsailorman]

In the years that I hunted deer, I saw exactly 1 pump rifle in the woods or in camp. That was back in the 60's and I don't believe it was a Remington. I never saw one in a local gun shop. They just don't sell very well. Gun companies have to make money to stay in business and ;I for one; don't think there is a large enough market for a pump rifle to lead a company to buy the machinery, tooling and train employees to make one that will set in inventory for months or years on end. It does not matter whether it is Henry or Ruger, they still have a large enough market to be able to sell their rifles. my .02 anyway, james

[Pereira]

I have an old Savage M 170 pump that I got from the fil. It's in 35 Rem, and I have taken a number of deer with it over the years. Even though it is quick to get the next round in the chamber, I've never need it with the ole 35.



RP

[Nobade]

I've wanted a Remington 14 1/2 for many years now, I used to see them occasionally at gun shows but any more it seems they are "collectible" and worth about 10 times what they were not many years ago. Guess I'm not destined to own one of those.

[Four-Sixty]

I have not figured out what a 410 bore levergun is optimal for, but several companies are offering them.

I know Rossi and Henry have pump guns in 22LR and 22WMR, and both already offer leverguns. If neither of them do it, I bet a Turkish company will eventually as the Turks are making darn good firearms.

[Jeff Michel]

Hard to say how many 14 1/2's were made, the serial numbers were lumped in with the model 14's. Couldn't of been many, I have one in 38-40 but the 44-40 has proved elusive. I think your correct with respect to the bottleneck cartridges, my Lightning knock offs perform very well in 38-40 and 44-40 but not as well in .357 or 45 Colt. In Remington 141's, all the calibers run like water but there again, bottleneck cartridges.

[elmacgyver0]

If enough people want them and are vocal about it, someone will make them.
As I said before, I prefer lever actions.

[jaysouth]

As laws clamp down on semiauto rifles it creates demand for black lever rifles covered in picatinny etc. I'm sure trombone rifles are coming.

Pump shotguns in Australia are "assault weapons"

[Bent Ramrod]

I read somewhere that when Winchester started making the 1890 pump .22, there were proposals to make a slightly larger version for the small rifle/pistol cartridges of the 73 and 92 models. The basic design was strong enough to handle them, and the reliability was proven. (And I’ve seen custom modification of 90s and 06s to lever operation, so the mechanism would lend itself to this modification without problems.) But somebody pointed out that such an offering would only be a sort of internal competition in the market already supplied by the lever guns, so the idea was shelved.

It may be that Henry sees the same sort of dilemma. Why go to the trouble and expense of setting up production for something that will only reduce sales of your already viable products?

[Tim357]

I always thought the Timber Wolf was a nice gun. 357 and 44 mag.
A lot of people musta thought they were good for what you have to pay for one today on the used market.
They may not have the look of a western era Colt, but they sure were neat and handy.

Amen! IMI designed these around a scaled-down 870. Shoulda bought one 40 years ago

[xtriggerman]

The IMI shot past a grand for a used one years ago. As far as the bottle neck thing goes, a Pump action should suffer nothing in feeding straight wall as well as a lever. The feed mechanism is generally the same. Its just the actuation of the bolt/carrier group is different. Cartridge lifter to bolt face, chamber should be the same geometry as any reliable lever gun in straight wall. As a Gunsmith, that argument dosent hold water in my view. Shoddy craftsmanship is making fake news out of the pump family straight wall guns. Nothing more than that. Remington had a good shot at it since their 760 series was the Hight of slick pump guns and a far better design over their semi's. Remington was pretty smart in using the same exact receiver for their 760 as their 742. You can actually put a 760 parts set into a 742 chewed up (bad) receiver and have a good working 760. I'v done that. Humans are creatures of habit. If you take a new shooter and put a lever gun on the range table along a lever, do timed target to target, the pump would win in likeability every time. It should not just be a shotgun thing. Bias is the problem here . JMHO.