hunting with a .357 Lever action

[Daniel_187]

I have only hunted with a bolt gun in Colorado, and was looking a maybe getting a lever gun in .357 for hunting mule deer. I went to Sportsmans and the guy behind the counter said I can't "needs to be a .243 or bigger" is this right? I thought it just needed to be bigger that a .22 cal bullet. I looked on the DOW web site and can't find anything.

[Jamnanc]

It's there. 357 hunting rounds are legal. Look at the muzzle energy and retained energy on the box of ammo. I believe 357 makes the cut with good ammo.

[Irving]

Since when is .357 not bigger than .243?

To be clear though, it does qualify with the correct velocity ammo.

[car-15]

• Center fire rifles, 24 caliber (6mm) or larger and produce an impact energy of 1000 ft/lbs at 100yds. Barrel must be at least 16" and total length at least 26".
• Muzzle loaders for elk hunting must be 50 caliber or larger and only open sights are allowed.
• Electronic ignitions are not legal for muzzle loading season in Colorado.
• Shotguns must be 20 gauge or larger with 18" or longer barrel and minimum 26" total length.
• Handguns, 24 caliber (6mm) or larger and produce an impact energy of 550 ft/lbs at 50 yards as rated by the manufacturer. Four inches is minimum length for handgun barrels.

[car-15]

that being said the .357 does not have enough energy to be legal according to the chart below from the hornady website.
Rifle (18" Barrel) Velocity (fps) / Energy (ft-lbs)
MUZZLE 1850/1064
100 1458/660

whats more interesting here is that a gunstore employee was right about something....

[Daniel_187]

thanks guys

[RedDogFabrication]

good read

http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/201...vs-357-magnum/

[SA Friday]

whats more interesting here is that a gunstore employee was right about something....

I've found that to be pretty common at the gunstore counters I've worked at.

[car-15]

I've found that to be pretty common at the gunstore counters I've worked at.

there are a few, very few. and almost never are they at the "chain" type stores, most of them I compare to used car salesmen, just there to make the sale no matter what un substantiated trash they spew.

[spqrzilla]

The .357 Magnum is legal for big game in Colorado from a handgun only with a very long barrel and certain higher performance loads. Most factory loads are not legal for big game in handguns. Last time I looked at ballistics charts, the .357 Magnum in a lever rifle was not legal not because of bullet diameter (which indeed must be .243 or 6mm or larger) because of a lack of energy (1,000 ft lbs at 100 yards as mentioned above). The difference between the two requirements confuses people.