I suppose this will be different enough that the 357 Maximum shouldn't be fired in the chamber. Looks like the Maxi case is a good bit smaller at the base.
Yes - if it's built on a .30-30 case then the Max has a significantly smaller case head. I can't see it being significantly different in ballistics than the .357 Max. If Remington had worked with a rifle manufacturer to bring out a lever action in .357 Max and then put proper bullets with it (Speer FNSP is the sweet spot - or even the Remington 200 gr. Corelokt) they wouldn't have had to spend time and money developing this new one. This will likely appeal to hunters who want to use a lever in states with cartridge limitations, such as Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan. I'm in Iowa and thankful that the DNR is starting to come to their senses with the approved change to bottle-necked cartridges flinging a .350"-500" projectile that came into effect last year. Until then I used a .357 Max in an Encore pistol with an 18" barrel during the late muzzleloader season. It runs my cast 190 RanchDog LFNGC or the Speer 180 gr. FNSP out at 2100 fps with 30 gr. AA1680 and puts them under 2" at 200 yards. It's been a deer hammer for us. Because of the change in regs (and because my 19 year old daughter turned to me last year and said, "This gun is mine now. Go buy another one for you.") I picked up an XP-100 in .350 Remington Magnum about a year ago. It gains 3-400 fps over the Max and I'm comfortable shooting at deer 300 yards off instead of the 225 yard self-imposed limit with the .357 Max. IF the ballistic gain is significant I might consider sending the Max barrel back to MGM and have it reamed out for this cartridge, but then I might as well make it a .358 Winchester because case availability would be a moot issue with all of the .308 Win brass out there and in my reloading room. I hope this takes off, but if Remington continues with the same pattern of "marketing" and "support" that goes all the way back to the .244 Remington (6.5 Rem Mag, 18" barreled .350 Rem Mag, anemic .260 Rem factory loads, and the now defunct RSAUM line), this won't even make a flash in the pan. It will only be of interest to lever gun aficionados and every Iowa deer hunter I know that wanted to set down their slug gun picked up a .350 Legend or .450 Bushmaster of some sort because the factory ammo is available in every store that sells ammunition.
