.360 Buckhammer

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Originally Posted by NSB

Getting a rifle for it is as simple as taking a Henry single shot to a mediocre gunsmith and running a reamer into it to lengthen the chamber. If you own a TC Encore or Contender, or any other single shot .357mag rifle you can buy an aftermarket barrel or have your barrel reamed out. MGM, Bullberry, SSK, and several other companies make barrels for this cartridge. I’m going to bet that getting .360 Buckhammer ammo isn’t going to be a walk in the park. Coming along this late isn’t going to set any sales records and I’m willing to bet finding loaded ammo in any gun store is going to be extremely difficult. If you don’t reload, anyone with a set of .357mag dies can load ammo for you…..cheaply. Give them a hundred empty cases and you’re probably set for hunting ammo for several years. It’s NO harder to load than .357mag ammo is. I’ll bet I can find more empty .357max cases than I can Buckhammer cases. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with the .360 Buckhammer round, I’m just saying there won’t be a glut of ammo anywhere. It’s going to be like looking for 5mm rimfire ammo. It’s out there, but no one can find any of it.

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Everything you stated is correct. The reality, at least in my area, is that Joe Deer Camp does not reload. If they did the .350L would not have succeeded...same for the .450BM. That alone "proves" the .357 Max is not something JDC will gravitate to. If the .357 Max was kicked to the curb when it was first needed, it will not succeed now that there are commercial options the gun rags are touting.

I do not know anyone in my area who hunts with a single shot. JDC is not likely to buy a single shot deer rifle and have it reamed out...even if he knew he could it. I doubt 1% of the 700,000 deer hunters in MI would have a clue about it.

I am repeating myself, but we keep thinking like reloaders. We are of almost no interest to ammunition companies. And companies building guns need guns the proletariat will buy.

The .357 Max is a "dead duck". JDC cannot buy either a gun or ammunition for it.

The .360 BH will likely be another "dead duck" once the hype dies down. It will join the ranks of the WSM's, WSSM's, etc etc. But in the meantime, the gun rags will ensure manufacturers will sell guns and ammunition. And that is what the firearms industry is all about.

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Originally Posted by dverna

Everything you stated is correct. The reality, at least in my area, is that Joe Deer Camp does not reload. If they did the .350L would not have succeeded...same for the .450BM. That alone "proves" the .357 Max is not something JDC will gravitate to. If the .357 Max was kicked to the curb when it was first needed, it will not succeed now that there are commercial options the gun rags are touting.

I do not know anyone in my area who hunts with a single shot. JDC is not likely to buy a single shot deer rifle and have it reamed out...even if he knew he could it. I doubt 1% of the 700,000 deer hunters in MI would have a clue about it.

I am repeating myself, but we keep thinking like reloaders. We are of almost no interest to ammunition companies. And companies building guns need guns the proletariat will buy.

The .357 Max is a "dead duck". JDC cannot buy either a gun or ammunition for it.

The .360 BH will likely be another "dead duck" once the hype dies down. It will join the ranks of the WSM's, WSSM's, etc etc. But in the meantime, the gun rags will ensure manufacturers will sell guns and ammunition. And that is what the firearms industry is all about.

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I am one of those 1% of hunters. I use mostly single shots a lot of them are antiques from the 1800’s and I reload every cartridge I use other than the small 17 and 22 rimfires. To me the quality time I spend hunting is worth what I go through to have a gun in my hands that has some history or meaning.
I wount say I don’t own any modern rifles with plastic stocks but they are almost always the last ones to be chosen. I maybe have another 10 hunting years left in me and the newest factory offerings don’t interest me .

Jedman

I would be curious to know if this cartridge will work with carbide dies. I presume it headspaces on the rim?

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Originally Posted by Jedman

I am one of those 1% of hunters. I use mostly single shots a lot of them are antiques from the 1800’s and I reload every cartridge I use other than the small 17 and 22 rimfires. To me the quality time I spend hunting is worth what I go through to have a gun in my hands that has some history or meaning.
I wount say I don’t own any modern rifles with plastic stocks but they are almost always the last ones to be chosen. I maybe have another 10 hunting years left in me and the newest factory offerings don’t interest me .

Jedman

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Same here. I got into the single shot game in 2002 when I moved to Iowa from South Dakota and the geniuses setting regs here didn't (don't) permit the use of rifles for deer hunting. But I could use a handgun as long as the barrel was more than 4" and fired one of the DNR "approved" straight-walled cartridge chamberings and we all know that a single shot handgun is far more precise than a shotgun shooting slugs at any distance. I started with and Encore with a .454 Casull barrel, then moved to the .357 Max a few years later. Then I moved to MN in the shotgun only zone, but I could use a handgun there also. Bought an 18" MGM .260 Remington barrel that is ridiculously precise. Moved back to Iowa in 2015 and dusted off the .357 Max MGM barrel. 190 gr Ranch Dog bullets at 2000 fps are nothing to sneeze at. We started using 180 gr. Speer FNSP a few years ago at 2150 fps. My daughter claimed the Encore last year as "my gun now - go buy yourself a different pistol". Last year the Iowa regs changed to permit bottlenecked cartridges in rifles as long as the projectile is .355" - .500" and generates 500 ft/lbs at the muzzle. So I found a .350 Rem Mag centergrip XP-100 for my new deer pistol. Because pistols are permitted during the late muzzleloader season (yeah, weird), we hunt that season because it's the longest one and fits with our schedule the best. I haven't killed a deer with anything except a single shot since 2011 when we stopped hunting mule deer in the West River country of South Dakota. I killed several mulies with that .260 Remington barrel as well. Single shots are where it's at for me with deer hunting in Iowa now. And I don't expect that the change anytime soon. I have the TC Encore with several barrels, the XP-100 in .350 Rem Mag (no, it's not as horrendous as you may be imagining), and my favorite squirrel and rabbit rifle is the Stevens 404 on a 44 1/2 frame that I inherited from my great-grandfather, who purchased it new.

If the bullet manufactures respond. It may give more bullet options for my Contender 10” 357Max.
BigBoreShooter

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Originally Posted by BigboreShooter

If the bullet manufactures respond. It may give more bullet options for my Contender 10” 357Max.
BigBoreShooter

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You can use any .357/.358” bullet in your .357max. I use several different handgun bullets and several different rifle bullets in all my .357max guns. FWIW, I’ve never felt handicapped using any of my single shot rifles. I can’t recall a time where I didn’t get a deer because my gun only held one cartridge, and I’ve shot a lot of deer in my 61 years of deer hunting.

What I meant. Is the the bullet manufacturers will bring out rifle bullets that will expand at lower velocities achievable from 10” 357Max.
BigBoreShooter

The companys want to bring something out new to try to appeal to some. All are not accepted by some and it gives a choice without having the same thing. I have the 357 max in contender pistol along with 35 rem along with several other calibers. The 360 uses a 30-30 case which is usually easy to find. The 357 max brass is easier to find since starline makes them. The 350 legend is easy to find factory loads for and can be loaded with heavier 9mm bullets for cheaper loads. Been thinking about a barrel or a cva pistol for this reason. I shoot mostly my contender or cva pistols mostly hunting now for several years.I have rifles also if i want them.Just good to have different options if you want to use something different. Hoping components hurry up and get back in stock. Wish some prices would reduce but not happening soon i'm afraid.

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Originally Posted by BigboreShooter

What I meant. Is the the bullet manufacturers will bring out rifle bullets that will expand at lower velocities achievable from 10” 357Max.
BigBoreShooter

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Why not just load it up with a WFNGC in the 190-200 gr. range? That's what I started out using in my .357 Max with 16.5" barrel and it works dandy. No expansion needed. Just drills a nice hole through the vitals and the blood runs out. Have you tried the Speer 180 gr. FNSP? That's also been a great bullet in my Max.

I have the 180 Fn- Gc by NOE. Have had little better accuracy with 180xtp.I been keeping an eye out for the 180 Speer FN.No luck in finding any. Again, mote options is always better!
BigBoreShooter

Both the Speer 180g FNSP and the Hornady 180g XTP JHP are deadly on deer out to as far as you can hit them with the 357max. I have used both out to 190 yards (actual measurement) and they performed flawlessly. I’ve shot a lot of deer with the 180g Hornady XTP bullets in both handguns and rifles with great results (probably in excess of eighty with the XTP’s and a dozen or so with the Speer 180’s). I have never lost a deer with either. I did lose one deer once using a 158g XTP that was driven to around 2,400 fps. I found that on paper those bullets came apart between the muzzle and the target. Simply too fast for that “lighter” bullet. About 25% simply came apart before hitting the target. The 180g have never been a problem.

Local (kind of) pawn/gun shop has 3 or 4 boxes of the 180gr speer fp bullets. Think they are $36/box. Already have some and a 190 RD and a 200gr LBT, so i'm good to go with either my 357 max or 35 Rem (or 356 Win for that fact)

I used the Speer 180 gr. FNSP out of my .350 Rem Mag XP-100 this year on a big Iowa whitetail doe at 189 yds. 2400 fps at the muzzle. Perfect performance. Daughter used it out of the .357 Max on a nice Iowa buck the next day on a 75 yard shot. 2000 fps at the muzzle. Perfect performance. It's a great bullet for deer.

A friend is @ Shot Show this week.

https://youtu.be/Ofb8_LuqqkE

If I were looking for a rimmed 35 caliber cartridge to run cast through this one would work just fine.

Since this 360 BH is more or less a straight wall shortened 30-30, is the length the only difference between it and the 35-30-30 wildcat?

The 35-30 is a bottle neck & a longer case. Otherwise yes.

CW

https://youtu.be/2JwYWd9HMmw

I'm in a situation that might benefit from the Buckhammer. I grew up a Buckeye, and hunted for several years under the shotgun-only rules. Once I got access to land in Kentucky, I crossed the bridge and haven't gone back in over 20 years.

I have a 200 acre farm in SW Bracken County, about 10 miles from the Ohio River. It would be nice to hunt Ohio. When the new PCR rules came out, I started working on a suitable rifle. I'll be honest, once a guy like me takes a 30-06 and pole-axes a 275 lb buck across a pasture, there really is no going home. I tried 30-30, 44 Magnum and 357 Magnum. None of these gave me the warm fuzzies, but I've kept trying. I currently have a ratbag Marlin 336 in the back of the safe that I'm pondering sending off to JES for a rebore. I'd originally thought 38-55, but 360 Buckhammer looks even better, at least to my taste.

Back about decade ago, I took on a project to make all my 35-somethings capable of shooting cast lead. That list included 357 Mag pistols and rifles, and a Remington 7600 in 35 Whelen. With the way things were looking at the time, it looked like a prudent step. You probably know this: the selection of .358 bullets and 358 molds is much better than .375. Half the time, I can't find a deer-ready jacketed .375 bullet in stock. The 360 Buckhammer would just fit right in. I've got all the fixings already.

Now that I'm retired, I'll have the time now to run deer camp in Kentucky, close up shop and trot over to Ohio for a week. At the very least, I'd like to be able to spend a day or two in KY's season kicking it up old school with an Ohio-ready gun. However, I'm not as thrilled with that idea when I look at my 12 GA bone crushers on the wall and remember what a 3 inch slug load feels like.

I am a former OH native also, now just 21 miles north in SE MI. Where I live now does have the 1.8” strait walled restrictions. I think the 360 BH will be a good seller for a while but many have recently bought 450 BM and 350 legend rifles and with the Buck Hammer advertising that you can get near 2400 fps with a 180 gr. Spire point bullet that should shoot slightly flatter.
Ohio allows any length strait walled cartridge as long as it is .357 or larger but as you go larger in bore diameter you get more recoil so even a 45-120 is legal you don’t gain a lot in trajectory.
A friend of mine experimented with a H&R Buffalo express reamed to 45-120 using sabots and 40 cal bullets and they just weren’t worth the bother.

Jedman

I just had a bum realization: a 30-30 can't be rebored to 360 BuckHammer. Drat.