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#16881740 01/25/22
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Bugger Offline OP
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I’ve long desired a rifle chambered for the 35 Newton.
I took the book, “Big Bore Rifles and Cartridges” out of my book-case to review once again the 35 Newton and it dawned on me the case dimensions looked familiar. It seems to me that the Ruger engineers came very close to matching the 35 Newton case when they designed the 375 Ruger while using a case that could be made from other cases, and a bolt face similar to others.
I suppose a 375 Ruger necked to .358 would be more sensible than a 35 Newton. Cases, reloading dies etc. (I could call it my 35 Newton I suppose.)
But I’ve always like older cartridges and maybe a 358 Norma Mag would fit the bill…


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Bugger, I have had a Newton for awhile. It was a JES rechamber/rebore job that shot very well and was an easy to load for cartridge. Mine just had a 20" barrel and it was a bit too light for what I wanted, so I donated the action to another project. I still have my dies and a couple 358 barrels for when I wanna jump back in.

It was as easy as running a 375 Ruger case into a 35 Newton FL sizing die then trimming to length. It was a beast, even with the 20" barrel. 225's at over 2900 and 250's easily over 2800 without breathing too hard at all.

It is still on my to do list to make another one up.


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I have a friend who has a 35 Belted Newton. It is not far behind my .358 STA.

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The 358 Norma is essentially the same as the Newton but with a belt. GD

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Originally Posted by beretzs
Bugger, I have had a Newton for awhile. It was a JES rechamber/rebore job that shot very well and was an easy to load for cartridge. Mine just had a 20" barrel and it was a bit too light for what I wanted, so I donated the action to another project. I still have my dies and a couple 358 barrels for when I wanna jump back in.

It was as easy as running a 375 Ruger case into a 35 Newton FL sizing die then trimming to length. It was a beast, even with the 20" barrel. 225's at over 2900 and 250's easily over 2800 without breathing too hard at all.

It is still on my to do list to make another one up.


Where did you get your reloading dies? Please.

Last edited by Bugger; 01/29/22.

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Lots of the cartridges from years ago are still quite appealing, although not as popular as some of the newer offerings. I am a fan of the Newton cartridges and find several of them very satisfactory for my purposes and nostalgia reasons. Many of the new chamberings appear to have been designed to match some of the older rounds, such as those designed by Newton, J M Browning, Mauser and other "pioneers". I believe that handloading opens new doors for old cartridges, IF we are using modern steels, safe actions and the high quality barrels now available. Because some of the development of the legacy cartridges was done prior to the availability of good chronographs and slower powders, be especially cautious. Some of the loads I have found published in older manuals are dangerously hot, partly because pressure testing was by the "seat of the pants" method, or velocities were optimistically estimated and/or partly from the desire of the originator to have the "fastest and bestest" development. The Handloader articles from the last 30 or 40 years and/or the collected articles on vintage cartridge's (Ken Waters style) are generally more conservative and were tested as safe in specific guns.

The 358 Norma is a close cousin to the 35 Newton in performance, just as the 30-338 is essentially a 30 Newton with a belt. SAAMI standards are now better established with modern rounds (for chambering reamers and dies) and components are obviously more available. New brass with proper headstamps don't require trimming or fire-forming. If you decide to go with the 358 Norma, I have a set of used dies that I would sell for a reasonable price. Best wishes on your new adventure !


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I'd just neck up the 33 Nosler to 358 cal and be ahead of the 35-300 PRC in powder capacity and shorter coal to boot


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A friend has a 358 Norma, which he was given as a retirement gift. He lives in a “shack - ha ha” in the mountains of New Mexico and loves elk meat. He doesn’t reload and if I had dies I’d reload for him.

I suppose I should get those dies from you border doc.
I have a tanger 77 7 mm RM, that I’d use as a donor, unless I can move it at gun shows this spring, then I’d likely go with a 700 action.
The things with the 35 Newton are:
nostalgia is a big plus for me,
difficulty in getting reloading dies a minus,
I’m not sure if that 77 would feed the Newton and I’m sure it would with the Norma - are 77 tangers a true controlled feed?
Finally the 358 Norma is a fairly old cartridge too. I like old cartridges.

Last edited by Bugger; 01/30/22.

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C-H 4d makes 35 Newton dies. They also make 30 and 256 newton dies. GD

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The RCBS custom shop turned out my .256 Newton dies in about 3 or 4 weeks and I paid $65 plus shipping in 1977 dollars.. I resize and trim .270 Win brass, but 25-06 cases would maybe work a slight bit better because of neck thickness. My little hoard of original brass cases is more for amusement, since they were last manufactured in 1938. It takes about 5 minutes to adapt each .270 case to new dimensions. That extra time is one of the other drawbacks to obsolete cartridges. Also, IIRC, some African countries require that the imported ammunition and rifle must match, presumably talking about headstamps and engraved info, but I'm not knowledgeable about that.

Reloading data for the .358 NM is readily available and tested safe in modern guns with modern powders and other components, which I think is a plus when compared to rounds like the .333 OKH or .35 Newton. I agree with your Vintage Cartridge Nostalgia comment until I have to go out on thin ice with unknown pressures and obsolete powder comparisons.

I'll send a PM concerning the dies.


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The C-H 4d dies are about that price in 2020 dollars. The one drawback to the 256 dies is that they lack a vent hole at the shoulder and trapped air can collapse the shoulder if forming brass from 25-06 or 30/06. I ended up drilling my set I've had no issues with the 30 Newton dies. By the way, the case capacity of my Norma 308 NM brass and my Quality Cartridge 30 Newton brass is exactly the same. Not too surprising that the velocities and loads are essentially identical as well. GD

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One could always roll with the belted Newton. Much easier to obtain brass for.

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Originally Posted by Bugger
Originally Posted by beretzs
Bugger, I have had a Newton for awhile. It was a JES rechamber/rebore job that shot very well and was an easy to load for cartridge. Mine just had a 20" barrel and it was a bit too light for what I wanted, so I donated the action to another project. I still have my dies and a couple 358 barrels for when I wanna jump back in.

It was as easy as running a 375 Ruger case into a 35 Newton FL sizing die then trimming to length. It was a beast, even with the 20" barrel. 225's at over 2900 and 250's easily over 2800 without breathing too hard at all.

It is still on my to do list to make another one up.


Where did you get your reloading dies? Please.


Bugger, just seeing this. Got mine used years ago from some classifieds online somewhere. They are old RCBS dies, but seem to work fine.


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Originally Posted by Bugger
A friend has a 358 Norma, which he was given as a retirement gift. He lives in a “shack - ha ha” in the mountains of New Mexico and loves elk meat. He doesn’t reload and if I had dies I’d reload for him.

I suppose I should get those dies from you border doc.
I have a tanger 77 7 mm RM, that I’d use as a donor, unless I can move it at gun shows this spring, then I’d likely go with a 700 action.
The things with the 35 Newton are:
nostalgia is a big plus for me,
difficulty in getting reloading dies a minus,
I’m not sure if that 77 would feed the Newton and I’m sure it would with the Norma - are 77 tangers a true controlled feed?
Finally the 358 Norma is a fairly old cartridge too. I like old cartridges.


The Newton will feed fine if the rifle was/is a 7 Rem. My first Newton was a rechambered/rebored 338 Win M70. The Ruger case is the same diameter as the belt and used to feed empty 35 Newton cases just fine. I wouldn't think you'd have a lick of trouble. Dies aren't impossible and if you just wanted to try it out, contact JES, he was able to get a reamer to make mine.


Originally Posted by Swamplord
I'd just neck up the 33 Nosler to 358 cal and be ahead of the 35-300 PRC in powder capacity and shorter coal to boot


SL, I had that thought too. I am debating it and I am ready to send a rifle off, just can't decide between the 358NM, 35 Newton or 35 Nosler.

What's your thoughts on dies for a 35 Nosler? 33 Nosler bushing dies?


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I thought the 35 Nosler had case much more capacity, and is a bit too modern for some of us. I have had 4ea. 338 Win Mags (2 Model 70's and 2 Model 700's), I sold them. I sold the brass too. I suppose it's a toss-up on getting 375 Ruger brass or 338 brass now. I thought that the 375 Ruger had about 5% more capacity than the 375 H&H so it would be the middle weight, while the 358 NM would be the little laugh one.


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If I remember correctly, reformed 375 Ruger to Newton (Hornady brass) and Nosler 338 Win brass were just about identical in capacity.

I’ve got some 27 Nosler brass I’m going to neck up and check capacity soon as I get a chance. Figure it’ll help everyone out to know what’s what.

Here’s what I got.

[Linked Image from hosting.photobucket.com]

[Linked Image from hosting.photobucket.com]

Roughly about 10% more capacity for a 35 Nosler. Still not sure of one over another but I wanted to see with my own eyes anyhow.

Last edited by beretzs; 02/03/22.

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Yea build a Newton.

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Hello. Anyone interested in Newton brass? (.30 and .35) I have some and want to get it gone before I talk myself into building another rifle.

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Originally Posted by MarkW61
Hello. Anyone interested in Newton brass? (.30 and .35) I have some and want to get it gone before I talk myself into building another rifle.

Yes I am. You can't PM so email me at

risible-mentor.0kicloud.com


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