Jlr2267

I think you will be fine with the .357 as long as you live within it's limitations.
There has been plenty of game taken with the .357 mag. in a revolver, no reason it wouldn't work in a rifle. I'd stay away from the lighter bullets they may blow up at rifle velocitys. I's use 158gr bullets & you might want a soft point rather than a hollow point as the extra velocity in a rifle might cause a HP to expand too violently.

You will probably be able to use .38 Speials for practice too.

By the way you can load the .30-30 down if you reload. Try some of the lighter bullets & load them down some. I have a great practice load in the .30-30 using the Hornaday & Speer 3/4 jacket.
Good luck, I think the Marlins are great hunting rifles.
Frank

 

357 would work, or you could buy "Reduced Recoil" loads for the 30-30....


BloodGroove4570

 

or you could buy "Reduced Recoil" loads for the 30-30....


BloodGroove4570

But then I wouldn't have an excuse to buy an 1894

 

The 1894C .357 is a dandy little rifle. It is quite capable of slaying deers inside of 100 yards or so. 158 JHP ammo or 180 grain loads work well. Recoil is very minimal. Accuracy is good.

I am going to assume that this platform is legal where you are. Where I am, a .357 mag. handgun is legal, a .357 mag. rifle is not. Go figure.

BUT

Rather than jumping right in and purchasing another rifle, consider trying some "softer" shooting ammo. I reload, so I can tailor my loads from mild to wild.

If you do not reload, there are still ammo options available. Federal still makes a 125 grain load that has less perceived recoil.

I load a similar recipe to load in this link. It is accurate, relatively quiet, and has no recoil. It is more than adequate for deer within 75 yards or so.

Ammo 30-30 Winchester 165 Grain Lead Flat Nose Box of 20

If you decide on a 1894C, you likely be happy with it now and for many years to come.

Red

 

Gotcha, i didnt realize you had "other" motives here !?!?!?!

Why sure the 1894 357 would be a Great rifle to get for deer!!!! :congrats:

Howz that Mo'Better :hmmmm: :biggrin:

BG4570

 

I would use one.
But you have to be careful you have alot less margin of error for a young hunter than say the .243. Just make sure you put in some extra range time with your son. And breakdown to him what a good shot is, and be selective on shots and you'll be just fine. and have fun!

 

243 with Winchester 95gr XP3 will drop anything in North America with one shot and is a flat shooter. At normal deer ranges it produces more damage than my 44 mag, 35 rem, 30-30, and 357, hands down!

Yes, the 357 is a good deer rifle to 125 yards.

You might also consider a 223 with razorback XT 64gr, it is leathal on 300lb hogs

 

Darn 243 lovers think that is the answer to everything.
I have only one concern about you getting "your son" a 1894 in 357MAG. Well he actually get to use it.
Mine goes everywhere except the military bases.

 

I bought a .357 a few years ago just for deer hunting in heavy brush. Unfortunately I haven't killed any deer with it yet but I did manage to take a couple of pigs. I have no reason to believe it won't work well for your intended purpose.
As far as ammo, any 158 soft point should do the job.
GH1

 

1894c is an awesome rifle for deer or pigs or anything up to and including even black bear, as long as you keep it under 125 yards or so everything is fine. It sounds like it would be the perfect gun for your son.

 

Mark, You can check it it at the armory or just don't say anything when you go through the gate.

 

Many folks will talk about it being a marginal hunter. I started off my kid with one when he was 7. Yes, it is legal, and no, it doesn't recoil as much as a 243. The loads to begin with were 7gr. of Herco and a 158gr.RN (practice) and I sighted in just for hunting with a 1.5 to 4.5 zoom Bushnell banner and used 185gr. (Beartooth) ahead of 16gr. of H110 for hunting. That made a perfect hunting round.It also had the same point of aim! We got a couple of deer with the gun that year, and none ran at all!

 

Doc, what a great pic! If the proof isn't in that pudding, I don't know what is. The rifle fits the kid and has plenty of poop behind it for a deer! You should be very proud of that kid and outfitting and teaching so well. Good on ya!

 

I am the nay sayer here. Yes the .357 will kill deer, but you need to use 158 or 180 grain soft points to be sure of penetration. Then flat nosed bullets of that size do not fly as well as some and shed velocity quickly - and rember that it started out slower to begin with. When you do the math on recoil, taking into account the weight of the rifle; bullet; powder; and velocity; of both the 1894 and the 336, I don't think you will realize much savings in recoil.


My suggestion is managed recoil loads or perhaps even better, a hard cast .30-30 load at 1200-1400 fps. The .243 is also an easy recoiling rifle, but some youngsters hear the muzzle blast and think it worse than it is.

Good luck and keep in mind that you are creating a life long impression of recoil with the kid. jack

 

Good luck and keep in mind that you are creating a life long impression of recoil with the kid. jack

Wise words. My thought process here was to get him on a lever gun (his choice) that he can shoot accurately (my demand). A .357 mag seemed to fit the bill but you are right that recoil has to be dealt with, and maybe better sooner than later. I am thinking the lighter Federals (in 30-30) might be the answer for now.

 

I agree that the standard off the shelf soft points in 357 (158gr) or 44 mag (240gr) do a perfect job.

 

I think the 357 carbine has less recoil...

Rifle Recoil Table

 

" life long impression of recoil"

I disagree with that. I was raised up barefoot with an Ithaca model 37 featherlight 16 gauge from the teeth rattling age of six to seventeen and I can shoot
straight with no recoil worries.

If the boy really likes leverguns, I'd give him a 30-30 with 150 gr blue box federals, and a slip on recoil pad. That would put it somewhere
between 30-30 and 357.

 

" life long impression of recoil"

If the boy really likes leverguns, I'd give him a 30-30 with 150 gr blue box federals, and a slip on recoil pad. That would put it somewhere
between 30-30 and 357.

Coincidence?

When I see consistent 2"-3" groups at 70 yds, I will have no problem with this setup. I should add a Williams peep sight to help him a little, not sure if thats as helpful to young eyes as it is to mine.

 

I am a naysayer as well. I have both a 357 and a 30-30. I am damn accurate with the 357, but not when you go out to normal deer shooting range (30 yards). I would think the 357, which wears me out a lot faster than my 30-30, would be difficult to get a well placed shot on a live animal at anything rather than close range.

I put on a recoil pad on my 30-30 and loaded down some light recoil bullets and it kicks harder than a 22, but it doesn't kick much. I would keep running ammo down the 30-30 and get rid of the flinch.

Off topic - my son (15) took his first deer last year with a crossbow, which basically is like shooting a scoped rifle with almost no recoil. The best thing about a crossbow is that he can shoot it in the backyard and get almost unlimited practice for no cost after the initial setup.

Edit. Oops! Should have read the question closer - thought you were talking about a handgun....my bad:vollkommenauf:

 

Loco, I think he was saying that "dad" should not make recoil a big deal.

 

I've got a female cousin who's 4 foot 11 and weighs about 100lbs soaking wet who deer hunted for over 20 years with a 1894C and killed two or three deer a year with it using cheap Remington 125gr soft point factory ammo. I've killed several deer and a few hogs at various ranges using Winchester 145gr Silvertip JHPs. My brother saw us using 357 rifles and got one of his own that he used to kill quite a few deer.

Some folks have opinions about using a 357 rifle on deer, I have experience.

 

My dad and his buddy do the same thing all the time. 125 grain bullet and take deer all the time with them. I would here in alaska for Sitka deer but the bears come at the sound of a rifle and a .357 is not the best for a brown bear!

 

Thats funny right there man!

You'll work it out.

 

Well, I think a 357 1894 would be a gun that would be kept for a lifetime. Fun and cheap to shoot, deadly on deer out to their usable range, accurate, and zilch recoil. Wait till you shoot one with 38 Specials - it's like shooting a 22!

It's also the quintissential walkabout rifle. Not to mention home defense and zombie apocalypse use.

Serious hunting tool. CAS shooting. What is NOT to like?

I personally don't see the limited usable range (75-100 yards depending on size of game) as a problem at all. I'm 61 years old, and have hunted since I was 10. In all that time, I have never seen a deer in a woods that was more than 75 yards and most a lot less. Most places I've hunted you usually can't even see 100 yards.

Start him out with the stock buckhorn sights on 50 yard targets. Use a paper plate with a magic marker dot in the middle. If he can hit the plate every time, he's ready to hunt out to that range. Move it out to 75 and see how well he does, then 100, which should be the limit.

:biggrin:

 

The .357 would work, but the 44 magnum doesn't recoil much either and are a lot easier to find. Also, as someone pointed out there are reduced loads for the .30-.30 that can be had, then you could get a 45-70 or .444 for yourself. If you want to have even more fun, you can get into reloading and then the shooting world will be your oyster -- heavy loads, mid loads, mild loads, heavy bullets, light bullets, jacketed, cast, build 'em the way you want 'em.

 

I would love to reload, but just don't have the time to learn and practice it. Maybe when I retire.

By the way, I already have a 444

 

I dont have a 357 yet, but my 44 mag is very pleasant to shoot. The wife loves it. After putting several rounds down range with it, she asked to shoot the .35 and only put two rounds through it and said she would keep (Gulp) the 44. I am going to have to look for another. I can also say try the reduced recoil ammo for the 30-30. it is really nice and will work just fine on deer out to 75 to 100 yards.

 

galaxieman, I've lost a few guns that way too. Mrs Willy was latched onto my Navy Arms 1892 in 357, but then she got her Dad's old Rem 742 semi auto 30-06 and I was able to get my rifle back. Actually, I'd rather have her claim a few of mine than be married to a woman who isn't into guns.

 

I have given away, or sold, all my leverguns except the 44mag Stainless with XS sights. It just does a better job than the 30-30, 35, 357, or 308mx, at the ranges I use
it for anymore. I keep one 450 at the camp for kicks.

The rest of the time I use a Model Seven LSS 243win

Hell, I don't even kill whitetails unless someone else agrees to take the meat. I pop Axis deer now because they taste good and I only take the hog straps leaving
the rest for the buzzards.

Turkey hunting ain't what it used to be either. The Toms have so many hens you can't call them up anymore.

 

A note about the 44 vs 357 recoil for kids. I took an 11 year old deer hunting last fall (he got one). I tried him on my 357Maximum Encore and he did just fine. When I put my 1894 44Mag in his hand it really opened him up. The Max was a max load with a 180gr SSP and the 44 was a max load with a 240gr JSP. One thing I can't tell you is what the weight difference is between the 2 rifles.

On a side note - and I can't tell you why, but he shoots my 17Fireball better than anything else including a 22lr:hmmmm: