Which lever action rifle?

[eastbank]

google up 1876 winchester rifle strenth tests, you may be surprized. no double loads of bullseye, but the rifles were more than strong enough for the calibers they were chambered for. i shoot a 350 gr cast bullet at over 1350 fps with a charge of imr 4198 and have killed deer with it.

 

[35 Whelen]

google up 1876 winchester rifle strenth tests, you may be surprized. no double loads of bullseye, but the rifles were more than strong enough for the calibers they were chambered for. i shoot a 350 gr cast bullet at over 1350 fps with a charge of imr 4198 and have killed deer with it.

Oh yes, I forgot that...and it's actually a well documented test. As written by Bill Hockett-

In response to a letter sent to the company by Charles Hallock, Esquire, of Forest & Stream magazine, Oliver Winchester responded by telling about the tests the factory accomplished on the 1876 rifle. He indicated that engineers first started the tests by removing one of the toggle links and fired 20 rounds (this was with .45-75 W.C.F. cartridge with 350 grain bullet) with no effect. They restored the missing link then went through 6 more trials starting with a charge of 105 grains of black powder, behind a 700 grain bullet! The comment "worked well" is noted. They then increased the charge of powder to 165 grains behind 3 bullets (1,150 grains) and that "worked well." From there, they increased the powder charge to 203 grains and added more bullets until they reached 1,750 grains of lead (five 350 grain bullets). This also "worked well." Finally, they added one more bullet, bringing the total weight to 2,100 grains, and things began to happen. The comment was, "Breech pin slightly bent. Arm working stiff." The seventh and final test was again 203 grains of powder but this time six Martini bullets weighing 480 grains each (2,880 grains) were used. "The charge bent the breech pin, blew out the side plates, split the frame and otherwise disabled the arm," was the comment. Oliver Winchester noted that in this seventh trial, the shell had burst into fragments and the escape of gas at the breech did the damage.

35W

 

[RainDodger]

I have a Uberti '73 in .357 also. I forget the name of the outfit, but I found a cowboy shooter site online that specializes in aftermarket accessories for the Uberti. I bought a different magazine spring, and a polymer tube that fit the magazine tube perfectly. What it does is, it tightens the tolerances of the magazine such that .38 and .357s exit out of the magazine in a straighter fashion, with no wobble. Does it work? I don't really know, but I do know my Uberti handles .38 Special every bit as well as .357s. I've found my rifle to shoot very well, and it's heavy enough that a full house .357 has barely noticeable recoil. I don't shoot it as much as someone who competes, but I have no qualms about shooting any .357 rounds in mine anytime. I asked my gunsmith about that exact issue and he told me , "it's a .357; go and shoot .357s". I haven't had a problem, ever. That was probably 7 or 8 years ago.

 

[3Crows]

Hey, 3 Crows, how much does that howitzer weigh? One of those "comforting, not comfortable" things, I 'spect!
Moon

With scope and six rounds of 430 grain bear buster cartridges, 9 pounds 5 oz and without the scope 8 pounds 7 ounces, still with six rounds locked and loaded. There are times weight provides comfort disproportionally. And when mean things might be about, the ability to put near 2,600 grains of lead and 18,600 FPE on that mean something with a few flicks of the wrist is indeed very comforting. Think about it, that is 47 rounds of 55 grain 5.56 NATO .

In addition to my own workings, it has the WWG Happy Trigger, extractor and follower and the RPP loading gate and quick take down lever screw. It is reliable and accurate. The Burris Scout scope is 2.75X and is on Warne steel QR rings for easy and quick R&R or reversion to the irons. I had a Nikon African 1X4 on it but even with generous "African" eye relief it would try to kiss me so I went to the Burris Scout.