Home Forums Lever Action Central Marlin 336 Lever Actions Leverevolution ammo in .35 Remington

I just took my new to me 336sc .35 remington to the range and fired 200 grain leverevolution ammo through it. Even with the goofy seethru rings and a cheap bushnell scope the accuracy was much better than I expected. My question is given the accuracy and velocity of the leverevolution is there really any reason to handload for this rifle other than the satisfaction of your producing own handloads? If so what powder would be recommended?

Great question.

I get more than acceptable whitetail hunting accuracy and ballistics from the factory Remington 200gr loads and the Hornady Lever Revolution 200gr. The Remington PSP 200gr works fine on whitetail for me (boom / flop if the shooter does thier part with shot placement).

Loaded a few .35 Rem with lighter recoil loads for my boys when they started hunting a few years back. Have used the Remington factory 200gr lately.

I have only shot the Hornady lever revolution ammo on the range, accurate, but the recoil seems heavier than the Remington loads.

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Reloading, although associated with shooting, is a hobby in it's self. It is a hobby in which the purpose is to find the most accurate or most velocity that a given rifle/cartridge combo can produce. The combinations are almost limitless with dozens of powders, bullets, and other components available.

Then there is the cost "savings" which is another myth. There is no savings, ammo is just cheaper so you shoot more but you still spends as much or more on ammo. I just loaded up about 400 rounds for the Hyphenated Happening in Washington in a couple of weeks. It cost about $80 for cast bullets, powder, and primers. Factory ammunition at $20 per box would have cost around $400 and would be less accurate. Velocity is of no concern.

We don't reload to have something to shoot, sometimes we shoot to have something to reload.

.

I resemble that remark

Last year or the year before, can't remember, for Christmas my boss gave me a box Hornady Leverevolution 200 gr. for my 35 Rem. It's a Marlin 336 with XS Sight Systems Ghost Ring Sights on it. The 200 gr. Remington soft points are a bang flop as Mikem2 mentioned. At least it was on my 75 yard shot on a 150 lbs. White Tail.

I keep toying with the idea of putting XS Lever Scout Mount setup on it with a Leupold/Burris Scope and Quick Release Rings. Then maybe I'll use the Leverevolution. I'm sold on the 200 gr. Remington soft points for the 10 to 75 yards I'll use this rifle for.

The purpose of the Hornady LeverRevolution ammo is extended range in lever actions. I've shot them in a 45-70, 444, 308ME and 30-30 and they do seem to kick a little more and shoot a little more accurate than some other factory loads but I haven't hunted with any of the LeverRevolution loads.

Several people I know have used it on game animals and stated the bullets don't stay together or penetrate well at close range.

I guess I'd try them on game animals if I was limited to a using lever gun for all types of hunting with possible long range shots but since I own several extremely accurate long range bolt guns I'll stick to conventional lead bullets for my lever actions.

I've tried the Leverevolution ammo in my .35 Marlin. Accuracy was great. But more importantly, I didn't suffer any light hits as I sometimes do with handloads that might have hard primers. Each primer indent in the Hornady ammo was deep and positive. I would not hesitate to hunt with this stuff as the most important aspect of the ammunition is that it must go bang when you pull the trigger, be it the only spike you've seen in a week of hard hunting or a true wall hanger.

Frankly, the .35 is not a gun normally used for range sessions so there's little need to handload for it. Also, there isn't much room for ballistic improvement in this round, at least none in which the deer will feel the difference.

My 336/35 rem didn't feed them well and it may have been a headspace thing since rem's feed properly. The rifle is gone now so I don't know what the problem was.
A co-workers brother uses them in his 3030 and he says its like a different gun and he quit using his 300 mag in the WI woods because they work so well (and cheaper and easier on the shoulder...)

Hey guys, first post here. No expert on the HDY FTX bullets but
I think from my two kills they are getting an undeserved rap for
breaking apart when hitting game. Killed one with an open sited
.32 Special Mod 94. Broke shoulders on a doe at 80 yards, bang
flop! Loaded some of .35 caliber HDY FTX component bullets in a
7600 Remington pump in .35 Remington. Drove them to 2404fps with
a +P+ load. Shot a HUGE doe trotting across an overgrown field @
98 yards. Bang flop again. In the right shoulder and out the left shoulder. Tore the heart completely free of lungs. Two kills does not make a scientific study but it sure built my confidence up those FTX bullets. The doe with .35 Remington still hit with over 2000ft/lbs of energy and that bullet stayed
together as did the factory load from the .32 Special @ 2300fps.
358 Win

358win, That is a very good post to remind shooters that there are always exceptions of bullet performance in live game. We shouldn't DECLARE a bullet no good or inadequate based on a hand full of shootings. They are good to know about because they can add up and then create a "history" of poor performance, but don't draw broad conclusions without more data.

tks

For me my handloads (180 grain Speer HotCor at a moderate 2050 fps) shoot right at 1 MOA in my M336C Marlin, but the LeverEvolution shot just under 3 MOA. Of course I could have just not been shooting my best that day - only shot a few of the Hornady factory loads.

I handload Speer 180 grain flat nose for my 35 Remington. The 24 inch barrel also helps to increase velocity and flatten trajectory. (42.5 grains WIN 748) My longest shot so far with this outfit: approx 125 yards. Bang flop! Wide wound channel and ghastly exit hole.

I'm shooting 3.5 to 5 inch groups at 200 yards.

Sherwood

I hadn't seen one with a butt stock like that before. What year was it made?

Accuracy has been hit and miss with me in my contender carbine. You seen this?

http://www.marlinowners.com/forum/336/8840-more-detailed-look-35-remington-leverevolution.html

Ammunition is hard to find locally, but they stock 200 FTX bullets so I reloaded a bunch. They are accurate, and I just followed the load on the can of Leverevolution I bought.



Compared to factory 200 gr Remington RN below:



Shooting was from a rest (of sorts), open sights, 336C (1951). Distance 40 yds.

I have a friend who has come to swear by the FTX is 32 win from his 94. I will tell tell you like I told him, I am sure those bullets will be available for a long time as components but I am sure not banking on large quantities of loaded ammunition being available in the distant future. They will likely do what they have done with many of their projects which is to just produce enough to keep the line alive but not guarantee the box being available for the seasonal rushes at deer seasons. If you choose not to handload I would at-least always keep an extra box or to laying around.

Hornady is a research and development and launch company, they are already on to the next thing, that's not to speak bad of them but their lines come and go, this one will stick by popular demand but the question will always be how much will they make?

the LE ammo in my modern 35's shoot and feed great and knock the snot out of deer. i am a big corelokt fan and use them in my older 35 pumps and levers but it is getting harder to find so i save it for my old timers and use this LE in my 336D and 336 SS LTD.