.357 loads for lever gun.

[otis24]

I am patiently awaiting the arrival of an ANIB Marlin 1894C in .357 mag. What factory ammo will feed reliably in these and which will not? Please include suggestions of any .38 special ammo that works well and that which will not. I am a newbie to the .357 in a lever gun.

Many thanks, and Merry Christmas!

 

[max]

I don't have a Marlin, mine is a Rossi I believe. It feeds 38 and 357 lswc's just fine. I have also fired some 125gr jhp's in 357 without any problems. The recoil is a bit surprising.

 

[WPWarhawk]

You'll really have to try the specific ammo you want to shoot, some guns are a lot more picky than others.

I have a pre-safety 1894c, luckily it feeds just about any factory ammo, the only loads I have a problem with are Keith bullets and they are too long to cycle through the action.

I don't think I've ever tried .38s in mine.

 

[Faulkner]

Realizing you specifically asked about a Marlin, I have a Winchester 94 and a EMF model 1892 in .38/.357 and they both will digest anything that says .38 Special or .357 magnum on the end.

 

[DGNY]

.357 ammo for Marlin 94

Congratulations on your purchase! My ca 1980 Model 94 in .357 prefers Independence 158 gr JSP ammo and Magtech 158 jacketed a close second. These are the only ammo I have tried. Can't see the 125 gr in rifle [just my opinion...] and don't reload anymore.

The 158s shoot under 1.5 " at 50 yards rested, with cheap 4x scope liberated from another project.

Good Luck,

Dyson

 

[armadillo]

I had an early Marlin .357 that I bought new when they came out. It was very picky about feeding - I determined that it was the overall length of the cartridge that mattered most.

It would not feed any brand of .38 ammo I tried, but I shot a lot of it at the range by single loading.

Lead bullets almost always keyholed because of the "micro groove" rifling.

 

[paragon1]

Buffalo Bore has some excellent .357 ammo if you are going to hunt with it.

5. 18.5 inch Marlin 1894

a. Item 19A/20-180gr. Hard Cast = 1851 fps
b. Item 19B/20-170gr. JHC = 1860 fps
c. Item 19C/20-158gr. Jacketed Hollow Point = 2153 fps
d. Item 19D/20-125gr. Jacketed Hollow Point = 2298 fps

That's getting close to 30-30 energy. While the ballistics would probably start to suffer past 100 yds. or so, This would make an excellent short range deer rifle.

 

[Groo01]

Groo here
If you go to the marlin forum sight they have tons of stuff..
If you use reloads or heavy factory the gun is set for 1.6 inch oal
or just a touch more no Blackhawk length loads.
Also they tend to be picky of keith types and no pointed bullets.

 

[mkk41]

A friend has one that I've shot quite a bit and he says that plain old American Eagle 158gr JSPs work the best. He's even taken a few deer with this gun and load.