Henry Rifle Forums

Today was my first chance to take out the .357 Big Boy Steel. I was going to wait until I could get on a 100 yard private range I have reserved in October (this is what it has come to in SoCal) but I figured why not see what I could do sooner. Closest outdoor range to me is about 30 minutes away in Chino, California called Prado. I like to use the pistol range here because it sure beats shooting indoors. Only issue today was the 100 degree temps but I was willing to work with that.

Obvious drawback to a pistol range is the distance. I was set up at 15 yards so this was by no means an accuracy test (I'll save that for the private range in October). I mostly wanted to cycle a few different types of ammunition that I bought and this distance was fine for that.

Here is what I tried out:
American Eagle 357 Magnum 158gr JSP - AE357A $22.99
PMC Bronze 357 Magnum 158gr JSP - 357A $21.99
Fiocchi 357 Magnum 142gr FMJTC - 357F $16.99
Fiocchi 38 Special 138gr FMJ - 38A $18.79

Prices listed are what I paid from Palmetto State Armory (three boxes of 357) and Midway USA (the 38spl).

The first two on the list were very similar. The American Eagle and PMC Bronze were both 158 grain jacketed soft points. The AE is listed at 1240fps muzzle velocity and the PMC is listed at 1471. I didn't test the stated velocities since I don't own that type of technology. What I can tell you, however, is they both had very similar felt recoil and point of impact was very similar on the target. I also found that I had to work the lever a little more to get all of the rounds to chamber. Never had any issues with chambering or ejection, just a few rounds that needed a little coercion to get to close the lever. I can also assume this is because I am still a lever novice and may have been a little too gentle. More to come on this as I practice a little more....

The Fiocchi 357 is the load I was most interested in trying today. I was somewhat concerned that the jacketed truncated cone style bullet was a little too "pointy" to load end-to-end into a tube. No issues thankfully. In fact, these loads were terrific. The jacketed cone shaped bullets fed very easily into the chamber and ejected terrifically as well (obviously nothing to do with the bullet shape on the ejection). The rounds hit directly at point of aim and the recoil was a bit softer than the 158 grain loads above. I really enjoyed these and will certainly be buying more.

Lastly I loaded up a few 38 special rounds for sake of comparison. The recoil and point of impact were night and day compared to the 357s. Recoil felt like a pellet gun and the point of impact was significantly higher on the target. Does that sound right to you guys or was it just my poor shooting? I thought if anything the 38s would hit low. I'll have to take a look at bullet trajectories but seeing as this was a 15 yard test I don't want to read into it too much. The good news is these fed and ejected just fine. Very enjoyable to shoot these soft rounds but I think I'll stick with the big boys considering I can pretty much find them at the same price.

Thank you for letting me ramble about my day at the range here. I know this isn't very scientific but if I could help someone decide on a box of ammo then I suppose it is worthwhile. I know what I will be buying again!
And yes my Glock 19 joined the Henry on the trip. This came in handy considering I forgot to bring gloves and that barrel heated up very quickly! Nice to shoot some 9mm while it cooled off. Lever also scraped skin off the back of my fingers. Will certainly be using gloves next time!

Nice report, thanks. My 45 Colt Big Boy does not do well with American Eagle JSP. Shoots them fine, but accuracy is all over the place. Hornady 255 gr LFN is not bad, but most consistent performer is the Winchester 250 gr LFN. That's all I buy for it now. Probably over 1000 rounds through it by now and no issues at all with feed or eject.
Not sure what Winchester is available for 357, but suggest try a box if you can get them. That's a nice rifle for sure.

I liked your Range Report, JCN, and totally understandable not waiting until October for the private range. I sure wouldn't wait that long with a new Henry in hand begging to be shot!!

I ramble, too, so here goes.

I had to let go of my .357 steel BB last year. It's a great rifle, smooth as silk, and very accurate.
Actually I have tried all the ammo brands you listed, both in the Henry BB rifle, and in my Ruger SP101 .357 Magnum revolver, too.
For the Henry, my favorite ammo was the Fiocchi 142GR FMJTC, and I used it to sight in my steel BB at 50 yards. Worked great, and I agree when you said it is "terrific" ammo. I have a little more than 4 boxes in stock, and continue to shoot it in my revolver. And I will be buying more of it down-the-road.

Your "unscientific" day at the range is fine....as long as you enjoy the Henry, and have fun. I do those, too.
Thanks for your post.

JCN wrote:Today was my first chance to take out the .357 Big Boy Steel.
Here is what I tried out:

American Eagle 357 Magnum 158gr JSP - AE357A $22.99
PMC Bronze 357 Magnum 158gr JSP - 357A $21.99
Fiocchi 357 Magnum 142gr FMJTC - 357F $16.99
Fiocchi 38 Special 138gr FMJ - 38A $18.79

The Fiocchi 357 is the load I was most interested in trying today. I was somewhat concerned that the jacketed truncated cone style bullet was a little too "pointy" to load end-to-end into a tube. No issues thankfully. In fact, these loads were terrific. The jacketed cone shaped bullets fed very easily into the chamber and ejected terrifically as well (obviously nothing to do with the bullet shape on the ejection). The rounds hit directly at point of aim and the recoil was a bit softer than the 158 grain loads above. I really enjoyed these and will certainly be buying more.

Thank you for letting me ramble about my day at the range here. I know this isn't very scientific but if I could help someone decide on a box of ammo then I suppose it is worthwhile. I know what I will be buying again!

Great report Sir, glad you got to shoot the new Henry. Waiting till October would have killed me. A 357 is on my short list of Rifles that will join the herd.

Thanks for the great range report, the very helpful ammo report, and the pics. Well, done. And waiting 'till October would not have been an option for me, either; though I regularly shoot indoors with a max of 25 yards, so it's my normal range experience.

Thanks for the report, I'm glad that you had the opportunity to shoot your new rifle and I know you are looking forward to shooting it at greater distances.

Just for sake of comparison, below is a picture of the rounds I shot over the weekend.

From left to right: American Eagle 357 JSP, PMC Bronze 357 JSP, Fiocchi 357 FMJTC, and Fiocchi 38 FMJ.
I went to pick up more of the Fiocchi FMJTC and Palmetto State Armory was sold out. Should have picked up more at $16.99/box!

Nice photo of your bullet comparison. Easily recognize the Fiocchi truncated cone bullet.

Part of the reason I initially tried/bought the Fiocchi 357 FMJTC ammo was because of a similar bullet I bought for my son-in-law, who does reloading. He helps me out with my ammo stock, and does reloads using a .38 Special + "P" recipe. He's made the same reload for me only using different sized casings --- .38 Special brass and .357 Magnum brass, both with a Berry Bullet: 357CAL .357DIA 125GR FP. They are an FP designation, which is a flat point bullet. Quite similar to the Fiocchi TC ammo; mainly the point is a little wider on the Berry bullets.

The Berry bullets are described on their web site:
https://www.berrysmfg.com/item/bp-38-357-125gr-fp

Here is a photo I took tonight;from left to right:
~~Your Fiocchi 357 FMJTC ~~Berry bullet .38 Special brass reload ~~Berry bullet .357 Magnum brass reload. All three of these rounds worked quite well in my Henry .357 Bronze Big Boy, and of course, they shoot excellently out of my SP101 .357 Magnum revolver.

Glad you found the Fiocchi magnums, JCN.

BTW, you might search the .357 Magnum ammo list at GUNBOT http://www.gunbot.net/ammo/pistol/357mag/
I've often found this Fiocchi .357 FMJTC ammo at shops listed there.

JCN wrote:Just for sake of comparison, below is a picture of the rounds I shot over the weekend.

From left to right: American Eagle 357 JSP, PMC Bronze 357 JSP, Fiocchi 357 FMJTC, and Fiocchi 38 FMJ.

I went to pick up more of the Fiocchi FMJTC and Palmetto State Armory was sold out. Should have picked up more at $16.99/box!

What I liked most about the TC bullet was how easily it fed. Looks like the Berry bullets you posted would most likely be similar in that regard. If I start reloading (read: when I move to a place where I have space for a reloading setup) I'll give them a try.

Slower loads will print higher on the target at close range as the barrel has more time to recoil up before the bullet leaves the bore. At longer range the slower loads drop more. The faster loads will print higher on the target or at least higher than the slower loads which have more drop when shooting at 100 yards.

That is interesting I didn't consider that or have heard of that. Makes sense and certainly played out at 15 yards.

I have a BB steel in .357. I found that a few rounds here and there would hesitate to chamber early on. After a few hundred rounds it feeds smoothly on nearly everything. Don't know if it is break in of the rifle, break in of the shooter, or a combo of both.

As to the AE 158 grain SP, I chronographed some out of mine last year. They came in at 1800 fps. It is my hunting round now.

I have said it before here, but the only major issue I have had with my .357 Henry is keeping enough .357 loaded up to keep my daughter happy shooting.

That's great to hear. I figure it's a combination of new rifle and new shooter break-in!

Thank you for the thorough review of these four loads. I keep my eye open for the 357 ammo on PSA.