Henry Big Boy Steel .357 Magnum and cast boolits

[Hickok]

Any one own and load cast-boolits for the Henry Steel Big Boy .357 Magnum?

Just looking for results. Wondering if the Henry .357 lever action will feed SWC's or are Round Flat-points needed?

I realize that many lever actions need a RF-type boolit to feed and are picky about overall cartridge length.

IF you own a Henry Big Boy .357 Magnum, what is a good boolit mold for this rifle?

[dannyd]

This is a good bullet for the Big Boy

https://noebulletmolds.com/site/prod...60-182-wfn-u2/

[Misery-Whip]

I used the lee 158 tumble lube for quite a while. I crimped in the top tumble groove and they fed well, but at times would hang up, or drag. I could run the 3 inch plates on my rack at 75'. Mag loads or 38s with hs-6. But this was a 2cav mold.

The lee 158 rf feeds better, accuracy is the same as the tl version, and a 6cavity mold, So i use the rf more.

The lee 125rf in 38s is my go to. Feeds so much smoother and cloverleafes. The 3 inch plates got boring and made some 2 inch plates. Painted brightly i can run them at 100' . This is in 38s with bullseye, quit enough to almost not use ear pro.

I also use a 190 ranchdog for the 35 remington. Trimming mag brass back but still longer than 38s, and load of lil gun, groups 2.5in at 100yds. And really smacks a blacktail. Feeds well too, just watch the length.

The only issues ive had is with oal is too long. 38s feed just as well as 357s. And a 20in barrel model will hold 12+1 of 38s.

Warning: If it comes out to play at family get togethers everyone tries it, and everyone loves it especially women. so have lots of 38s ready and be ready for empty ammo boxes. I had to setup a dedicated loadmaster for 38s, just for the henry. And once, just once, i forgot the henry, and everyone was dissapointed. But now there are 2 more that come to the family shoots. And it gets a little competitive...

[TjB101]

Never any issues with the Lee 158gr SWC / gas check. Runs fine in the Henry.

[Hickok]

Good to hear the Lee SWC feeds properly!

[mnewcomb59]

RF bullets also have a much better BC, like 60% more aerodynamic than a SWC. 158 SWC BC is .11 and 158 RF depending on meplat is .15-.18. Not a big deal for shooting at 7-50 yards in a handgun but it makes a huge difference in the rifle.

If both bullets are started at 2000 fps with a 10 mph cross wind:

the RF .17 BC has 1580 fps, 882 fpe and 3.3" wind drift at 100 yards

the SWC .11 BC has 1387 fps, 679 fpe and 5.5" wind drift at 100 yards

My favorite rifle bullet is the NOE 154 WFN with a smaller .22-23 meplat. https://noebulletmolds.com/site/shop...1-2-cavity-pb/

NOE lists the calculated BC at .21 which I think is a little optimistic, but it obviously is a more aerodynamic shape than your average pistol bullet. It casts at 158 with 1.5-1.5-97 alloy. The long nose gives a better BC and more case capacity so 2100+ fps is possible with Lil' Gun if you really wanna push for max like Brian Pearce or Buffalo Bore and 2050 fps is possible with other deeper seating bullets and lower charges.

I load Lil' Gun between Hodgdon's max and Brian Pearce's max (18 and 19 grains), but both max loads were established with deeper seating bullets. Cases are GREAT compared to max loads of 2400 as a known pressure comparison. Lil' Gun makes really mild pressures in this cartridge and bullet weight, but gives 150-200 fps more than other powders can give. It is the ideal powder for the 357 rifle. Loaded rounds with the NOE bullet are around 1.63" if I remember correctly and they cycle through the action of all 3 Rossis that they were tried in.

[badguybuster]

Mine shoots the Buffalo Bore 180 grain hard cast really well.

[Agent1187]

I picked up one of the new sidegate offerings this spring, so I haven't had a ton of time to experiment yet.

What I have found is that it didn't particularly like 140gr Lee SWC at 38 spl length. Once I seated them out to 357 mag length, they fed much better, but I still get one here and there that catches on the way into the chamber. Say 95% now - and they like to be cycled fast.

My 200gr RNFP have been flawless as expected. I'm (im)patiently waiting for a Lee 158 RNFP mold from BPI, so I can try putting a bit more speed on those puppies.

[Hickok]

I picked up one of the new sidegate offerings this spring, so I haven't had a ton of time to experiment yet.

What I have found is that it didn't particularly like 140gr Lee SWC at 38 spl length. Once I seated them out to 357 mag length, they fed much better, but I still get one here and there that catches on the way into the chamber. Say 95% now - and they like to be cycled fast.

My 200gr RNFP have been flawless as expected. I'm (im)patiently waiting for a Lee 158 RNFP mold from BPI, so I can try putting a bit more speed on those puppies.

Which 200 gr RNFP are you using?

[Agent1187]

Those are 200gr GC also from the Lee 6 banger.

I will confess that those load to 1.6" almost perfectly in 38 spl cases, but I drive them to 357 speeds anyway (well labeled of course).