Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles 358 Winchester

True I think its a neat little scope for sure. For me though I think there a lot better options for a lightweight scope that will work plenty far as I would ever plan to shoot with a 358 win that cost a heck of a lot less. A NXS just seems like such overkll.

I hear that for sure!! My 358 win is almost exactly 1 pound lighter than that with the Leupold 2-7 on it, oh so nice to carry and still shoots 1-1.5" groups which is plenty good for me with that rifle.

You really need to stop reading

Only thing it will do is knock the snot out of whatever you shoot with it. Excellent hunting round.

I have both the .358 and .356 Wins. I use the .358 where the shot will be under 250 yards normally, but I bet it will go 300 no problem. It gets the call in brush country where a good blood trail is nice to have. The only deer I have shot with it have been in MN where if a deer gets out of site it is almost impossible to find them. First one left a blood trail a blind man could follow the other dropped in its tracks. Had the same results with the .356 in MT. First one died in its track next one turned the snow crimson for 50 yards in thick timber so was easy to find.

The biggest animal I've taken with mine was a WT buck at around 50 yards or so. But it has gone elk hunting in CO several times, just never had an opportunity to take one. I've shot deer with my 25-06 and 300 wm all at distances of less than 200 yards. The buck taken with the 358 Winnie dropped quicker than anyone I've ever taken. The little 358 is a real thumper at reasonable distances. My personal limit for large game is 300 yards but I try and keep my 358 around 250 or so. I normally reload using 225 gr. NP's over Ramshot TAC but, will be trying 225 gr. Sierra GK's that I have ready for the range.

The 358 is quite a cartridge for whitetail deer; that I know for a fact. I haven't carried either one of mine in a few years but past experiences have proved its worth to me. I have a left-hand Remington 788 that was rebored to 358Winchester without marking the change on the barrel.(story for another day) The other is a Browning BLR-81that I really like to hunt with. I've had very satisfying results sigh the 200gr Hornady RN and the 225gr Nosler Partition. Whi!e the Partition isn't necessary for the whitetails I hunt, it does an excellent job at it. If I absolutely had to kill a deer no matter the shot angle I know it will do the job. I've taken 15-20 deer with the 358 and the most common result at the pull of the trigger is for the deer to collapse. Examining the wound while dressing the animal clearly shows that the Partition begins to expand immediately and that it always exits. The Hornady RN has always given an exit but damage is not quite as severe as the Nosler. In the future I hope to try the 225gr Sierra just to see how it performs. My load with the Hornady is really mild but gives outstanding accuracy in both rifles.

I really don't understand why the 358 hasn't got the attention it deserves. I think it is a great round for anyone that hunts in both the thick stuff or broken areas of cover where a shot could be right under your nose or across a clear cut. I would love to have something like the old Remington 600 or 660, or the original Remington Model 7 or a Ruger M-77 compact or even a Number One RSI with its beautiful Mannlicher stock. But I shoot left handed and the only way I can get a compact rifle in 358 is to build one, rebore one, re-barrel one or continue to use the BLR-81. Thankfully I like my BLR, it is an older model with an all steel receiver. I have had a 2.5-8x Leupold on it from the start and it is a perfect match for the rifle and me.

Love the classic 358! I'm having Jim Kobe build me a 20" carbine in 358 on a Sako action, with NECG sights. Can't wait :-)

358 Win, would be an excellent heavy knock’m down caliber for any medium to large game animal at reasonable distances. One of my hunting buds uses a 348 Win as his timber gun for elk. It seems to be impervious to small twigs and light brush in the way of an elk. He’s piled up several with one shot. 358 Win would do the same.

A few .358 victims. This little rifle has killed a lot of deer. Several rounds would work about as well but for still hunting mountain sides I've not found anything I like as well. Stainless M7, stainless 21" Douglas #3 1/12 twist, edge fill Mt. Rifle stock. It kills stuff pretty dead.

Thanks for the input, guys.

Those critters look pretty dead to me.

donsm70

I sent my .308 Montana to JES Reboring yesterday with instruction to shorten the 22" barrel by 2.5 inches and bore to .358. If JES is as quick as he was with my last rebore I should be shooting my 19.5 inch barreled .358 Montana in 3 weeks!

Mine went to Africa in 2012 with my middle son using it and myself on a few critters. It worked well on kudu, gemsbuck, three wart hogs, nyala, bushbuck, wildebeest, impala, springbuck and blesbuck. WE used the 200 gr TTSX.

Please post about it when it's done. Good luck!

Nice man!!! I bet you'll end up liking it a lot. 160 raptors at 2800, 200 TTSX at 2600, and 225 NPT at 2400 is what I was getting out of my 16" 358 win Montana...with the extra 3.5" you should be able to easily eclipse that.

I have taken black bears,,several big hogs and a few smaller pigs 100-200 pounders and deer.
I have NEVER had to trail an animal for a very long distance.All but the huge boar I shot fell on the spot and the big boar dropped just 20-25 feet after being hit.
I have shot black bears with a 300 win mag that ran all over the country when hit but with a 358 they mostly fall where hit.
One of the best rounds in the 35 cal line up.

What bullet are you running in that useful little hammer?

X-VERMINATOR

200 grain hornady spire point. It's a great fit for the .358 at modest speeds, no need to push it.

I've got some 200 TTSX that I've thought about working up a speedy (relative) load for but I never followed through as I haven't been able to find fault in the 200 grain spire point.

200 gr TTSX's at 2700 fps will handle any and all conus and African plains game animals out to an easy 350 yards.

I have a Savage 99 and a BLR in 358 that I use this for black bears over bait in the fall. I shoot 250 gr Hornady bullets in the BLR with a max load of H335 which have worked well and leave a good blood trail. They are surprisingly accurate in that gun. The factory 200 gr Silver-tips grouped poorly and did not exit the one bear I shot with them. The Savage doesn't like either load and may go down the road if I don't find something promising.

I recently rebarreled a Savage 16 to 358 but haven't shot it yet. it will be my go to bear gun once I get the barrel channel enlarged and a load it likes.