Home Forums Lever Action Central Lever Actions - General Best 357 lever gun on the market ?

Another option is to buy a Rossi already worked over, directly from Steve.

His prices are good and you'll save money, time and shipping costs.

DF

Browning.

Cowboy shooters have different reasons for their gun choices, so forgive me for being eccentric, especially if you are looking for home defense or a saddle gun for hunting. Many of my loads use 38 Special brass and data, but all are stout enough to be used on reactive and live targets. I do not "play games" with my guns, they are for ALL shooting sports.

My first lever 357 was a Marlin, second hand from a local pawn store for about $300. It shot well and still does, although I expect to sell it within the next 18 months. I found several loads that it likes using 145 gr Truncated Cone lead bullets. This Marlin is solid, but not as smooth or fast as I like. Two coils (one at a time) had to be cut off the tubular magazine spring so that it would hold ten rounds.

The 357 Rossi M-92 clone is a "special edition", like that might make any difference. It says 1 of 1000. I paid a friend @ $400 for it in @ 2004. You have to work the lever with certainty, full stroke and all, to run it dry in a hurry, without hiccups. Reliable and quick, shoots accurately with a handful of loads at ranges up to 100 yds. Very smooth trigger after a tiny bit of amatuer work. The Rossi 92 is my choice for field work and it shoots regular 158 gr lead RN or RNFP bullets at 1200-1500 fps for those chores. It does NOT feed SWC bullets worth a hoot. I would, and do, use it for any game smaller than deer. It might be OK on deer if necessary, but I have other rifles that will do a better job and they will be using mostly jacketed bullets.

My Winchester 73 clone from Italy is also accurate and very slick if you are looking to be competitive in SASS-style shooting. Also easy to load for, keeping the pressure at BP levels with a half dozen loads, also using the 145 TC lead bullet. Pricey ($1200 range in 2010), but lots of quality and speed for the buck. The wood and checkering are very pretty and the blueing is nice, so I don't take it out in nasty weather much.

I have not shot a Browning, so have no opinion there.

The three rifles above are pretty much out of the box accurate (1.0-1.5" at 35 yards) and have not had any attention beyond very minor help with a gritty trigger or the mentioned magazine spring. I put a tang sight with a BIG peep aperture on the Rossi and have really enjoyed it for shooting beyond powder burn range; 5 shot groups at 50 yards are still in the 1" - 1.5" range. I think it is a Marble pattern and I would do it again for any SASS lever action that is to be used for shots beyond 50 or 60 yards. My Puma M-92 clone in 45 Colt also wears a tang sight and is scary accurate out there at 50-100 yds, also without any professional gunsmithing.

Agree, CAS needs aren't the same as a hunter's needs.

The '73 is the fastest, ctgs moved into the chamber parallel, not at an angle. The toggle link action is the weakest.

The '92 is the strongest, but not necessarily the fastest. Rounds have to enter the chamber at an angle, are prone to stove piping, most COAL sensitive.

The Marlin is somewhere in between, stronger than the '73, close to, but not as strong as the '92.

A slicked up Marlin can run pretty fast, not as fast as a '73.

Heavy walled brass, like .45 Colt, doesn't do that well with low powered CAS loads, are prone to blow back. The thick walled case at low pressure doesn't expand to seal gases from blowing back. The chambers have to be loose enough for a bullet to chamber at an angle. I took my Marlin Cowboy .45 Colt out of CAS, loaded 300 gr. bullets over a max dose of 4227. A real 'diller killer, no blow back.

Here's my custom, short stroked .357 '73 carbine. This is about as good as it gets for CAS.

DF

Beautiful rifle. Have a Cimmaron I love but this one takes the cake I think.

In my opinion the Browning .357 is the most desireable of the .357 lever actions, as Miroku closely replicated the Winchester 1892 mechanical operation but with a Browning flair for finish . They are hard to find and you will pay for a clean example but well worth it and a pleasure to own and shoot. Next up and just as useful and maybe more so as you can mount a receiver sight or a scope is the pre safety Marlin 1894. My Browning and Marlins are loaded with the Hornady 180 gr. XTP and 15 gr. of Lil Gun. Speer 158 gr. Gold Dots and Lil Gun are another favorite.

Miroku guns are some of the best.

I’ve heard the opinion that a Miroku ‘92 is better made than the original.

DF

When did Sako make a lever action 357 Magnum???I am guessing never.

More like .243, .308, etc.

DF

Depends on what you'll use it for.
For my application , I wanted a gun to use in a canoe for wild river trips in AK.
I choose the rossi in 44 mag.Their 357 is still the same gun.
It's an easy fix for the minor dings of a rough action. A stone used in the right places and you have
a beautiful SS, rugged use lever gun.

Yup!