Buying Personalised Henry For Wife. Advice On Caliber?

[jonp]

Through Sportsman Outdoor Superstore Henry is again offering some rifles with a pick your own serial number like they did last year. Im thinking of one for the wife as s Christmas present but am waffling on the caliber. Initial idea was either a .22lr or .22Mag but then was considering a centerfire

Any suggestions?

[Hamish]

How could you go wrong with 38/357?

[crowbuster]

My wife hunts with a 44 mag. not much kick. Guess depends on what she would use it for.

[DerekP Houston]

How could you go wrong with 38/357?

That would be my personal choice

[Lead Fred]

In a caliber you already have? His and Hers type deal.
22 is hard to find, 38 easy to find. Cheap to make up. 38/357 would be my choice.
We built his & hers AR this year. 300BO, she likes it even better than her SKS.

[OS OK]

Just something about the .45 Colt, I dunnoh...maybe because it would go well with the SAA. Love those rounds from yesteryear too.

[Mk42gunner]

Depends on the planned usage and how experienced a shooter your wife is. Caliber doesn't really matter for a safe queen, for real world use it does (even plinking).

Up until say 2012 I would have said a .22 was the best choice as an occasional plinker; but the great shortage/ non availability/ scalper's prices of .22 ammo ended that. Any of the pistol calibers can be loaded for shoot all day comfort, it does take a bit more effort than just buying a brick of .22 LR for ten dollars.

With all that said, the .38/.357 makes a good round for lever actions, although I can't remember ever holding one of the Henry center fire rifles.

Robert

[WILCO]

.22 LR gets my vote. Rimfire is available. Easier than before.

[MT Gianni]

If it is for her why not let her choose.

[runfiverun]

if they do special [38/44] calibers only I'd go with one of them.
you reload and cast obviously so you can load a 38 down till it almost resembles a 22 in recoil.
100 grs of lead at 7-800 fps is more than enough to roll tin cans all over the range and still be accurate at 100 yds.

[Butchman205]

45 Colt.


-Butchman

[montana_charlie]

Guess depends on what she would use it for.

Depends on the planned usage and how experienced a shooter your wife is.

Unless buying an antique to fill a particular spot in a collection, the above advice should be the governing factor on ANY gun purchase.

[GhostHawk]

A Let her choose.
B If she waffles I would lean towards .357. Can easily be loaded mild to wild, lots of store bought out there for semi reasonable money. And if she ever had to take out a critter, 4 legged or 2 legged the .357 would work a lot better than any .22.

Let her run some 25 rounds through it every month so she gets to know it, learns how to run it smooth and deadly like. And then let her keep it close.


In my wife's case I chose a Ruger Mk 3 22/45 with a Red Dot on top. Inside the house she can put 10 rounds into a water bottle cap at 20 feet.
And I just keep telling her, if you ever have to use it pick an eyeball and keep shooting till tis on the floor.

With a .357 lever gun you could use center of mass and do the exact same thing.

[jonp]

This is a gift with a custom serial and will be a surprise. Looks like every caliber availabe
Mostly target but i dont buy single use guns.

I can reload anyrhing and have 15k of 22lr in my closet so ammo type isnt a factor

[OS OK]

Well if you can't figure it out from all this good information...toss a coin, don't like the result?...toss it again!

[Iowa Fox]

In a caliber you already have? His and Hers type deal.
22 is hard to find, 38 easy to find. Cheap to make up. 38/357 would be my choice.
We built his & hers AR this year. 300BO, she likes it even better than her SKS.

Fred, What barrels did you use when you built your blackies? Thanks

[Smoke4320]

38/357 gets my vote .. Mild to wild , hunting/plinking .. Cheap to shoot and easy to reload for

[Butchman205]

Fred, What barrels did you use when you built your blackies? Thanks

Just my 2¢...Anderson 300BLK w-1/7 twist works great, for fair price.


-Butchman

[Butchman205]

Not to derail the post...a 45 Colt would be my choice, but a 38/357 would be a fine rifle for a woman, or a big ole boy like me. Very cheap to feed, and near limitless range of power.


-Butchman

[jonp]

Just my 2¢...Anderson 300BLK w-1/7 twist works great, for fair price.


-Butchman
Thats what i bought for my current build. I think i got it through sportsmans guide.

[jonp]

Ive got a lever in 45lc and since i have several 38sp and 357mag revolvers im leaning that direction

[rl69]

30/30 ?

[rr2241tx]

You can never go wrong letting your wife choose her own guns. But I can tell you that Mrs. RR would take about .1 second to latch onto that octagon barrel, brass receiver .30-30. She doesn't worry about ammo, I make sure she has more than she can shoot and take her shooting all the time even though she is a better shot than I am on any given day no matter what the game of the day is.

[Bzcraig]

How could you go wrong with 38/357?

Ditto!

[FISH4BUGS]

I think that the 38/357 would be my first choice. Casting and reloading for the caliber is easy, brass is easy to find, and you have many bullet choices from 100gr to 215 gr. 231 powder goes a loooooooooooooooooooooong way and you can shoot cast reloads cheaper than a 22.
I shoot my Interarms Rossi 92 with 4gr or 231 in 38 and 5 gr 231 in 357 with cast H&G #51 158gr swc and H&G #39 158gr rn. I shoot them by the thousands.
I'll occasionally shoot 19.5 gr 296 in a 125gr jhp for fun, and with 158gr jhp it is a hunting round IN THE RIFLE ONLY!. It will stop any deer in the Noth American continent and under 100 yards is very accurate.
PLUS, I have a number of handguns that shoot the same ammo.
How can you go wrong?
2nd choice would be 44 mag for all the same reasons but recoil can become an issue for some with heavier loads.

[OS OK]

Are you loading some of the rounds for the rifle that would exceed the pressure limitations in the pistols?

If so, how do you distinguish between the loads...how do you insure that none of the rifle loads get into the pistol?

[HeavyMetal]

Knowing you want this to be a Christmas gift, and as such a complete surprise, I start by looking at what she prefers to shoot when your at the range!

22 long rifle has always been my go to suggestion when asked such a question but many other good calibers are available as well.

a short list would be as follows:

22 LR, 357 Mag, 44 Mag, 30-30. all of these are usually on the shelf at the local Wal Mart at very competitive prices, odd ball calibers like 38-40 and 44-40 are not and, unless you already load for them, the calibers in my short list are the way to go.

Just a thought and good luck with the gift search!

HM

[bedbugbilly]

My vote would be for a 38/347 as well. While I could easily go towards a 44 or a 45 Colt, I'd be looking at the ammo. 38 is cheap to load and shoot and if she likes shooting a lot, then it would offer a cheaper alternative to load. Personally, I've given up on 22s. While I enjoy them, I'm sick and tired of trying to find ammo and then having to pay an inflated price IF I could find any. I gave up on that caliber a few years ago.

I've been enjoying loading and shooting 30/30 and have given some thought to a Henry in that caliber to add to my Winchester and Marlin . . . but then I have all the brass, molds, etc. for 38 so am leaning strong towards a Henry in that caliber just because the cost of reloading would allow me to shoot more.

Whatever you get . . . if your wife likes to shoot . . . I'm sure she'll be tickled to death.

Good luck!

[FISH4BUGS]

Well, "exceed" is relative.
I would be happy to shoot any of these loads in the revolver. But I would not have a steady diet of them in the handgun. I have an early 60's era 6" blue S&W Model 28 that I would prefer not to shoot loose. The rifle is as strong as they come but i still shoot 38 and 357 light loads in it most of the time.
Max loaded 357's in the rifle are another animal altogether. I will experiment with some 215 gr 357 loads one of these days in the rifle.
I mark my cartridge boxes very clearly. RIFLE ONLY. I have gone as high as 20gr of 296 with a 125gr JHP in the Rossi but that is a bit on the high pressure side for my taste. The primers are quite flat and fill the pocket completely - a high pressure sign.


Are you loading some of the rounds for the rifle that would exceed the pressure limitations in the pistols?

If so, how do you distinguish between the loads...how do you insure that none of the rifle loads get into the pistol?

[Butchman205]

Are you loading some of the rounds for the rifle that would exceed the pressure limitations in the pistols?

If so, how do you distinguish between the loads...how do you insure that none of the rifle loads get into the pistol?

I agree with fish4bugs in marking the high pressure loads VERY clearly. I took it a step farther than marking ammo boxes only...http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160918/3b6baacde404496df28fd08a197af2d3.jpg

I made a pink colored bullet for my hot loads. Why did I pick pink?!? Because they sure as heck won't get accidentally shot from a non-high pressure rated gun. They're VERY easy to spot.

I do something similar with 556/223 and 300BLK loads. I store them in separate rooms, and never shoot both calibers in the same day. Period.
Marking the boxes, color coding the bullets, storing in separate locations, etc...maybe overkill for safety, but I haven't mixed them up yet, and don't plan on it.




-Butchman

[jonp]

Butchman, seems to me that red for high pressure and green for every firearm makes sense at least to me.

I think I have settled on a 38/357 Lever. Now for the serial number

[Butchman205]

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160918/f99fc55d4173ec22a02be2aca4ae4d50.jpg

Not a bad idea!
That way they are readily identifiable.



-Butchman

[OS OK]

I suppose that the 'relative' part could be added to the place you shoot too. Here we shoot on private ranges and use big folding tables to lay all the gear out on. All of us are handloaders and we try each others loads and different handgun boolit profiles to see how accuracy is improved or not.
When one of the fellas brought a Ruger Blackhawk and warned us about his .45 Colt loads, as they were quite stiff...that started some conversation among us about the 'relative' safety in loading common low pressure cartridges to higher pressure than would be allowable for say my Colt SAA. I notice this is done for the carbines too.
We agreed to place the stiff .45's on the far end of the table and that was good for the day but...I'm thinking about the fellas that don't use the PC to distinguish and how their only warning is on the plastic ammo box, on the lid often enough...when that lid is open the warning is facing the table top not the eye of a shooter. Not so safe then for an unsuspecting or forgetful shooter when these loads are on the same table with access to anyone shooting.
I can see the idea behind your methods...seems like a good solution but it just doesn't settle with me.
I suppose that my general problem with this is the loading to 'exceed' max-load standards published in the books yet they fit into low pressure weapons too.
Don't get me wrong, I like the idea of having a carbine to shoot a hot .45 Colt, I just don't like seeing a practice where ole Murphy has an easier job of 'Mucking up things' for someone.
Or...I could be just 'over thinking' this and making a mountain out of a molehill.

[jonp]

I suppose that the 'relative' part could be added to the place you shoot too. Here we shoot on private ranges and use big folding tables to lay all the gear out on. All of us are handloaders and we try each others loads and different handgun boolit profiles to see how accuracy is improved or not.
When one of the fellas brought a Ruger Blackhawk and warned us about his .45 Colt loads, as they were quite stiff...that started some conversation among us about the 'relative' safety in loading common low pressure cartridges to higher pressure than would be allowable for say my Colt SAA. I notice this is done for the carbines too.
We agreed to place the stiff .45's on the far end of the table and that was good for the day but...I'm thinking about the fellas that don't use the PC to distinguish and how their only warning is on the plastic ammo box, on the lid often enough...when that lid is open the warning is facing the table top not the eye of a shooter. Not so safe then for an unsuspecting or forgetful shooter when these loads are on the same table with access to anyone shooting.
I can see the idea behind your methods...seems like a good solution but it just doesn't settle with me.
I suppose that my general problem with this is the loading to 'exceed' max-load standards published in the books yet they fit into low pressure weapons too.
Don't get me wrong, I like the idea of having a carbine to shoot a hot .45 Colt, I just don't like seeing a practice where ole Murphy has an easier job of 'Mucking up things' for someone.
Or...I could be just 'over thinking' this and making a mountain out of a molehill.
interesting perspective from someone that shoots the majority of his time at a range. I've never really used a range other than the military. I shoot in my backyard or out in the woods.

[Butchman205]

I suppose that the 'relative' part could be added to the place you shoot too. Here we shoot on private ranges and use big folding tables to lay all the gear out on. All of us are handloaders and we try each others loads and different handgun boolit profiles to see how accuracy is improved or not.
When one of the fellas brought a Ruger Blackhawk and warned us about his .45 Colt loads, as they were quite stiff...that started some conversation among us about the 'relative' safety in loading common low pressure cartridges to higher pressure than would be allowable for say my Colt SAA. I notice this is done for the carbines too.
We agreed to place the stiff .45's on the far end of the table and that was good for the day but...I'm thinking about the fellas that don't use the PC to distinguish and how their only warning is on the plastic ammo box, on the lid often enough...when that lid is open the warning is facing the table top not the eye of a shooter. Not so safe then for an unsuspecting or forgetful shooter when these loads are on the same table with access to anyone shooting.
I can see the idea behind your methods...seems like a good solution but it just doesn't settle with me.
I suppose that my general problem with this is the loading to 'exceed' max-load standards published in the books yet they fit into low pressure weapons too.
Don't get me wrong, I like the idea of having a carbine to shoot a hot .45 Colt, I just don't like seeing a practice where ole Murphy has an easier job of 'Mucking up things' for someone.
Or...I could be just 'over thinking' this and making a mountain out of a molehill.

I wouldn't say you're overthinking it at all, as it'd suck to wish someone would've been more safe after blowing a hand off.


-Butchman

[The Governor]

Ladies seem to like this .22 Henry;
https://www.henryrifles.com/rifles/the-american-beauty/

[lightman]

44-40. Easy to load and cast for. Feeds well in a lever gun. Classic caliber for that type of rifle.

[Idaho45guy]

Had a Marlin 1894C in .38/.357 that my kids absolutely loved to shoot...

For distinguishing hot loads... I have a Cimarron Arms 1873 Peacemaker and a Ruger BH Bisley, both in .45 Colt. The hot loads are loaded in brass cases and the mild loads in nickel cases.

[OS OK]

interesting perspective from someone that shoots the majority of his time at a range. I've never really used a range other than the military. I shoot in my backyard or out in the woods.

You know jonp...I'm not in the mood this morning for your snide remarks, if you ever get your 'head' extracted from your 'butt' so that you can read a little more clearly perhaps we can discuss the point I'm making here...until then, "Take your dribble somewhere else!"

charlie

[Finster101]

.22 LR gets my vote. Rimfire is available. Easier than before.

Still not much available around me. I would buy anything but a .22 right now.

[jonp]

You know jonp...I'm not in the mood this morning for your snide remarks, if you ever get your 'head' extracted from your 'butt' so that you can read a little more clearly perhaps we can discuss the point I'm making here...until then, "Take your dribble somewhere else!"

charlie

Lay off the caffeine, charlie. No insult intended with that comment. As I said, it's an interesting perspective that I don't have as I have never used a range

[OS OK]

No problem jonp...we are still friends...just that sometimes I'm a tad on the 'crotchety old irritated hard headed short tempered' side...but, most of the time I'm just me...loving, kind, generous, handsome, smart, interesting, handsome, tolerant and all that sort of fella.

We're just shooting private properties, that's all...in the woods and clearings here in the Sierra's...not unlike anybody else's woods even though it is Cali!