Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles 358 winchester rifle

Browning A-Bolt II Micro featherweight Carbine (20")
OR
Browning BLR pre-81 (LNIB)

I have a BLR that I have hunted with for 30 years so i'm familiar with the platform, but I really like bolt guns with low degree bolt throw so I can mount scopes down. Both have the same OAL,BBL length and capacity and ability to load spitzers.
Both are the same price.
Both would be mounted with the same scope. 1.75-6x32.
I will reload for both

I would go with the carbine. I like the caliber and in a lightweight carbine it would be a great bear, elk, moose, large game stomper. T.S.

BLR hands down... It is a classic, most shoot very well, your familiar with it and I would much rather have a 69 Z28 than a 2011 Z28... Just sayin' the BLR will always be worth what you paid for it. You cant buy that gun anymore unless someone else wants to sell it.....

W

I really like the .358 Win in a bolt action. ...but in this case, I'll choose the BLR...by default...

Do they both have the same accuracy potential?

I think so. The BLR's I have had shot very well and the magazine affords you all the benefits of a bolt gun....

W

I'd probably go with the Browning BLR (although I'd REALLY suggest looking for a nice Savage 99 in .358). The .358 Win. is a GREAT cartridge, but is a medium range round (300 yards or so). The lever guns are pleany accurate enough for such work...and often just as accurate as a bolt gun. To me, the lever guns are much faster to use at the ranges the .358 is suitable.

As far as the bolt action rifles, I've never found the short action (or short bolt throw) rifles to have enough "advantage" to choose a "weaker" round over a slightly longer, more powerful cartridge. I love the .358 Win., but in a bolt rifle I'd likely go with a .35 Whelen or 9.3x62mm which will give a bit more power and range (although not as much range as some think).

BLR, but I'm biased as that pre-81 in 358 is high on my want to have list.

I was just going to start a new thread on this very subject. Ringwork, you beat me to it! Thanks for the timely post. I apologize for hijacking the thread but I've been reading some very positive articles about the 358 Win (not many out there compared to other calibers) but I think I'm sold. I have both bolt actions (223, 25-06 and 300 Win Mag) and a marlin 30-30 lever action rifle. Both formats have their advantages. I'm looking at a Browning BLR 358 as a backup and/or primary rifle for CO Elk and deer. In my case, my comfort zone for shots is around 300 yards or so. To date, my longest shot was just over 160 yards. I hope the responses keep coming.

BLR, hands down. My 358 is a tack driver and has never let me down.

The .358 is something different than what everyone else will have at camp and so is the blr. Seems to go together like peanut butter and jelly to me.

I have owned a BLR in .358, and currently own a M7 rebarreled to .358. There are pro's and con's to both.

If ever there's a match made in heaven between cartridge and rifle, the .358 BLR has got to be it. They are a mid-range rifle IMHO, due to the trigger and "rest" ergonomics, and the .358 is a great mid-range cartridge.

On the BLR, Neil Jones Custom Products can fix that ugly trigger for about $100. You can't mount a scope as low on a BLR, maybe, because you need clearance for your thumb on the hammer and they aren't set up for a spur that I'm aware of... may not matter for you; on my .325 WSM BLR I wish I could get the scope lower (Leup 2.5-8x36mm).

However, as much as I enjoyed my .358 BLR, I've really come to love my M7 .358. It's perfection for what I want from it. I went with a 20" barrel.

Around here, followup shots don't happen, at least where I hunt. So the bolt gun is marginally better at putting ONE SHOT where I want it to go... most of the time, grin.

Let me add: both my BLR's were very accurate, certainly 1.5 MOA or better, and once the trigger is fixed by Neil they are quite the package! Oh... also... YMMV and all that but I much prefer the pistol-grip stock. It handles recoil better for me.

Get the BLR. Truely a great rifle. I haven't had a .358 yet but my .325WSM is a keeper for sure.

Ringworm,

I have 1 of the Grice Specials and love this rifle. This bolt rifle shoulders perfectly for me. Used Talley low rings and a Leupold VX-III 2.5-8x36 Matte finish. At 100 yards it will put 2 shots touching side by side with the factory Winchester 200gr SilverTip. There is a gunbroker auction now with 18 of these rifles for $699.00. I thought about buying another one. The lever rifle just doesn't shoulder right for me. Maybe a different stock configuration would work better. I'm a bolt guy anyways.

Top rifle



Bottom rifle is a E R Shaw build in 358 Win. I have 6 rifles in 358 Win.

Ken

the only thing killing me about the A-bolts is the stocks are as plain as table legs and I dont care for the magazine set-up.

I really liked my BLR in .358 with the exception of it was very barrel light. I traded mine for a Hawkeye in .358 Win and I am pleased with it. My BLR was a 1.5"ish rifle, the Hawkeye is usuallly 1" or better with my handloads. CDNN is showing they have the Hawkeye in .358 Win.

Looking back I wish I would have kept the BLR just because they are a neat little rifle, I would pick up another one if I found one with the right tag on it.

Buy both. You can never have too many 358's.

I have four now, and will be eventually adding a BLR and possibly the A-Bolt to that mix as well...

Hey ringworm you still coming to AR this month? If so, I will bring my pre '81 BLR (straight grip topped with Nikon monarch 2x7x32) in .358 out and you can shoot it to see what you think. I am currently running Hornady 200g SP's for our small So AR deer. This was one of my had to have rifles yet, I still think about getting a .358 bolt gun to go with it.

I have had a .358 BLR, and it shot well. I enjoyed using it on deer and hogs. If you have to choose one, I would go with the bolt gun. I think you will squeeze more accuracy out of it. I had a few feeding issues with my old BLR with the hang down magazine.