Mold for .357 lever action

[ilcop22]

Howdy,

I picked up a new lever action chambered for .357 magnum yesterday. I only have one .357 mold and its not suited for this kind of action.

Do you have any suggestions for a good boolit mold which would suite my purpose? The rifle is a polished Rossi M92 with a 24" barrel. I prefer Lee molds simply because I can't really afford Lyman. :violin:

Thanks!

[excess650]

If you won't spend the $ for a Lyman, I guess it means a Saeco #354 or #353 is out of the question.

If its gonna be a Lee, try the 358-158RF. Its plainbase but with rounded flatpoint profile, so should feed nicely. Mine casts a touch over .360".

The Saecos I mentioned are similar profile, but heavier at close to 185gr. #354 is the GC version, and my favorite for my (3) Marlin 1894c.

[Larry Gibson]

If you want any kind of good accuracy at a decent velocity with Magnum revolver loads out of that long barrel then a GC mould will be best. If Lyman's 358156 is definately out of the question then I'd go with Lee's C358-158-SWC. If a plain base is a must then go with excess650's advise on the 358-158-RF Lee mould.

Larry Gibson

[lathesmith]

I don't know about those Rossi's, but my Henry 357 seems to hate SWC's. That Lee 158-RF feeds really well, but as Larry points out it will be velocity-limited. If your Rossi will feed that Lee SWC- GC, then that one will work for higher velocity; if not, you will need to look at another maker's offerings, or go to a custom design for a Rounder-nose profile GC slug.

lathesmith

[ilcop22]

http://www.lasc.us/FryxellMarlin1894.htm provided another good read on this topic. Sounds like these boolits work best in .38 SPL cases?

[ilcop22]

I'd like to add a caviet per your suggestions. Price aside, which mold would be best suited for hunting purposes? I'll likely get a Lee mold now for plinking, and spend some money on a better mold if I decide to hunt with the gun.

[EDK]

In addition to Glenn Fryxell's articles at lasc.us, check out marlinowners.

Most people favor a heavier boolit in the 357 lever guns. The NOE 360 180 WFN works great in my 357 Cowboy rifles, in either plain base or gas check.

Round nose flat point boolits usually feed best. Since the meplat, not the shoulder, does the work in a hunting boolit, get the rnfp like the LEE 358 158 RF or LYMAN 358665 for an inexpensive mould. The NOE 360 180 WFN is better IMHO.

[Treeman]

My Rossi feeds everything including wadcutters but the Lee 158 RF is a dandy bullet that feeds slick and has a nice big meplat.

[crabo]

For a great 50 yard plinker, the Lee 125 rnfp cowboy is a good shooter.

[looseprojectile]

IMHO you can't get a better boolit for your Rossi than a Ranch Dog 190 grain gas check boolit. These are designed for the 35 Remington and are long in the nose so I load them in 38 special cases. No problems no how. Cheap too.

Go here and read.
http://www.leverguns.com/articles/paco/357_magnum_and_the_literature.htm

Ought to get you started.

Life is good

[looseprojectile]

If that URL gets your curiosity moving PM me your address and I will send you a mit full of the RD 190 grain .359" boolits for you to try in your Rossi. This boolit is hands down the most accurate boolit I have shot in my Rossi carbine. Nice wide meplat and weight to drive it through. The Rossi is a very strong gun. Look up Ranch Dog moulds for drawings of the boolit.

Life is good

[OldBob]

I'll second looseprojectile's opinion.. that is one heck of a good bullet.

[Blammer]

the Lee 358 158 RF is a good one if you're looking for a Lee.

the ranch dog and the NOE 360-180 are both good choices too

[Beerd]

maybe if you PM Swede Nelson soon you can get in on this group buy:

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=73902
..

[GabbyM]

Not being a Marlin the OP's Rossi M92 will not have OAL restraints of the 94's. So using 38 Special brass should not be required. Also most of the newer 1894's we've tried the Saeco 180 grain rnfp in have worked.

[looseprojectile]

required me to trim the .357 cases about .040"and loaded with the RD boolits then they were just short enough to function kinda rough. The gun loves the short nosed jacketed bullets.
I have had absoutely no problems using 38 special cases and crimping in the second crimp groove. As a matter of fact I have been using 38 special cases for .357 loads since 1956 and never have had an issue. Using really dirty powder like 2400 no build up no problem in chambering .357s after shooting the special loads.
I use the same tricks in the Rossi .44 magnum 92 when loading overly long nosed boolits. I did consider lengthing the lifter but that sounds like a lot more work than making shorter ammo.
I pretty much have quit using any boolits except for the Ranch Dog designs.
It may be my perception but the ammo made with 38 special cases seem to feed much smoother in my gun. None of those will fit in my Colt cobra:grin:.
GabbyM; The SAECO 180 grain #354 does not have a too long nose and load great.

Life is good

[dunkel]

Awesome info, guys, thanks. This is just about the exact gun I'm going to be loading for (one of them, anyway)...Rossi 92 w/16" bbl.

Would really like to get a load worked up that shoots equally well out of my Rossi and my 6.5" Blackhawk.

[jlchucker]

For a great 50 yard plinker, the Lee 125 rnfp cowboy is a good shooter.

Yes, indeed it is. But to make it feed right without jamming, when using 38 special brass, I have to load mine out to where I'm crimping into the leading edge of the grease groove. That may be just my gun, though. Everything, including semiwadcutters, feeds just fine with 357 brass.

[kawalekm]

I picked up a new lever action chambered for .357 magnum yesterday. I only have one .357 mold and its not suited for this kind of action.


Which mold do you already have, and why do you think it is ill-suited? What I have found with my lever .357 is that it is cartridge-length sensitive, not bullet-profile sensitive. Very short cartridges like .38 specials loaded with Lyman's. 141 grain WC (358495) will fail to feed when loaded to crimp at the crimping groove. However, the same bullet, crimped on the second driving band (grease grooves sticking out) at on OAL of 1.495" will feed just fine!

My favorate .357 load though is with Lyman's 150 grain 358477 SWC that leaves the barrel at about 1800 fps. That bullet is long enough that it feeds just fine when loaded right at it's designated crimping groove.

[timkelley]

Try the mold you have it may suprise you. My wifes .357 Rossi (brass and stainless) likes the Lee 158 SWC and the 358156PB group buy we did a couple years ago. It likes them best in .357 brass.

[Farmall 1066]

My favorite in a 16" Puma is the Lee 158 RFN bullet, over 6.5-7gn Unique. Accurate, economical and a joy to shoot in handgun and rifle.

Andy

[dunkel]

Has anyone tried any heavier cast bullets in their Rossi levergun? Looking around, a 180gr kinda caught my eye. Was thinking it might be good for hunting, little heavier bullet to put a harder thwack on something, eh?

[Al_sway]

Which mold do you already have, and why do you think it is ill-suited? What I have found with my lever .357 is that it is cartridge-length sensitive, not bullet-profile sensitive. Very short cartridges like .38 specials loaded with Lyman's. 141 grain WC (358495) will fail to feed when loaded to crimp at the crimping groove. However, the same bullet, crimped on the second driving band (grease grooves sticking out) at on OAL of 1.495" will feed just fine!

My favorate .357 load though is with Lyman's 150 grain 358477 SWC that leaves the barrel at about 1800 fps. That bullet is long enough that it feeds just fine when loaded right at it's designated crimping groove.

My question exactly. I have a Rossi, and I shoot .38 Special with RN and long loaded 148 WC, as well as .357 with 130 grain RFN, and Lee 158 RFN as well as Lee 150 grain SWC and Lyman Keith 170 grain SWC. They all work. The Lyman Keith has worked well with a full load of 2400, without the need for a gas check.

[massmanute]

Will the Ranch Dog 190 grain bullet (TLC359-190-RF) stabilize in the Rossi model 92 rifle with its relatively slow twist rate of 1 turn in 30"?

Thanks.

[fecmech]

Will the Ranch Dog 190 grain bullet (TLC359-190-RF) stabilize in the Rossi model 92 rifle with its relatively slow twist rate of 1 turn in 30"?

Thanks.

I was going to bring that point up myself as my two Rossi's would not shoot the NOE 180 worth a hoot. If it were me I'd be taking the poster up on his offer for the RD 190's to try before I bought any heavy weight molds for a Rossi. Mine do their best work with the Lee 125 rf and Lee 158 SWC. YMMV