Henry Big Boy

[Coyote Tim]

A friend of mine just ordered a henry Big Boy in .357 and he was getting ready to mailorder a bunch of ammo. Doesn't he have to use flat-nosed ammo in this thing? If so, where is a good place to purchase some.

[LazyK Pejay]

There are a number of places you can order online. Right now I buy at Gander Mt., however, they are hard to come by.

LazyK Pejay

[L.G.]

www.ammodirect.com  has good prices on cowboy ammo.

[Stump Water]

Try here: http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/default.asp

[Stump Water]

Dang!  The monthly special at Ammo Direct looks good... $6.20/box if ya buy 1000 rounds.  If we didn't reload I'd be all over that like gravy on a biscuit!

[Coyote Tim]

My main question was whether or not he can use standard .357's or does he have to use flat tip cowboy ammo. Thanks for the links though. I've been looking for cowboy ammo in this caliber. I'm thinking of picking up a Marlin .357 for a backup rifle and I noticed .357 cowboy loads are pretty hard to find around here.

[Stump Water]

Yep.  Ya need ta use flat point boolits in a tube magazine.

[Driftwood Johnson]

"My main question was whether or not he can use standard .357's or does he have to use flat tip cowboy ammo."

Well, that depends on what he wants to do with it. If he wants to use it for CAS, full powered 357 Mag ammo is much too powerfull and will exceed the maximum velocity requirements. Full powered 357 Mag ammo will probably not feature flat point bullets. Most shooters use 38 Specials in their 357 Mag CAS revolvers.

Rifles can be a little bit more tricky. Some rifles can be Over All Length sensitive, meaning they may not feed one length of round as well as a different length. In some rifles chambered for 357 Magnum, they simply do not feed the shorter 38 Special rounds very well. The toggle link rifles; the Model 1860 Henry (not the Big Boy), the '66, and the '73 are particularly OAL sensitive. Marlins are sometimes OAL sensitive. Other rifles are not as sensitive and can feed both the Magnum and the 38 Special length rounds just fine. Henry would be the best source to tell him if he needs to worry about OAL in his new Big Boy.

Most Cowboy loads for 357 Mag are really just light 38 Sp loads in the longer 357 Mag case.

[Coyote Tim]

"My main question was whether or not he can use standard .357's or does he have to use flat tip cowboy ammo."

Well, that depends on what he wants to do with it. If he wants to use it for CAS, full powered 357 Mag ammo is much too powerfull and will exceed the maximum velocity requirements. Full powered 357 Mag ammo will probably not feature flat point bullets. Most shooters use 38 Specials in their 357 Mag CAS revolvers.

My buddy doesn't shoot CAS (yet). I'm hoping to get him out to one of the shoots to check it out. I could probably get him into it. Right now he does all of his shooting at the indoor range where we buy most of our guns. We just wanted to make sure he could shoot regular .357s in the Big Boy. I'd sure hate to see his gun blow up on him. (Especially since I'm usually standing beside him when he's shooting.)

[Driftwood Johnson]

Some of the CAS guns chambered in 357 definitely should not be fired with full power 357 Magnum ammo. They are relatively weak and won't stand up to repeated high powered loads. I would not shoot 357 in any toggle link rifle, like an Uberti 1873.

However, there are plenty of more modern designs that will stand up just fine to regular factory 357 Magnum loads. A Marlin will, Mrs Johnson's little Marlin feeds and fires 38 Special or 357 Magnum rounds just fine.

I'm pretty sure the mechanism inside the Henry Big Boy is very similar to a Marlin, and it should be fine to shoot factory 357 Mag ammo in it. However, all tubular magazine rifles should be only fired with flat point bullets, not pointed ones. Why don't you just call Henry and ask them? I understand their factory service is excellent. I'm sure they will tell you anything you need to know over the phone.

By the way, this kind of begs a question. You would think that if a rifle has the caliber engraved on it as 357 Magnum, then you should be able to shoot any factory 357 Mag ammo in it with out any concern. But the case of the Uberti replica 1873 is an exception. A friend of mine bought one used, only to discover the frame was cracked. He assumed it had seen too many full powered 357 Magnum loads, and the frame cracked. It has been debated for years how wise it is to shoot large quantities of factory 357 Mag ammo in K frame S&W revolvers. They can stand up to it just fine for a while, but a lot of shooters seem to rhink they will shoot loose after a while with too many heavy rounds through them.