Anyone on here load for .358 Norma Mag?

[Calvin45]

As title suggests…I've just won a rifle on auction in .358 Norma magnum. This cartridge has an intangible "cool" factor that the .33s and .37s do not for me, I'm over the moon about it. It's an old BRNO ZG47 Mauser type action, good condition, can't wait to pick it up. I've perused all the load data I can find. But wondered if anyone on here has any tips, favourite loads, or choice projectiles they'd recommend. Or just shoot the breeze and talk about your gun if you have one of these.

 

[Deleted member 109523]

Congrads. You'll have to check the twist rate when you get it. Mines not the bigger Norma, it's a 35 Whelen AI. I shoot 180's, up to 250's, and sometimes 158 pistol bullets for the kids. It's a 12 twist, and shoots the heavies very well. But my go to is the 225 game king at 2800. It drops em in there tracks.
Shoot steel is impressive.

 

[Calvin45]

Thanks. Yeah that's one thing kind of intriguing about the big .35…the impractical fun of loading .357 Revolver bullets at ungodly speed for vaporizing expired produce and such.

 

[Calvin45]

It's really too bad woodleigh is no longer making bullets. They had a few that would have been perfect for this. A .358 mag with a 310 weldcore round nose would give up nothing to the big .33s or .37s for close range smashing power.

 

[Mberline]

I have a Husqvarna in 358 Norma mag. Just shooting factory HSM ammo for brass then I have some 254gr hammer bullets to load up and try out.

 

[Lefty7mmstw]

I have a Husqvarna in 358 Norma mag. Just shooting factory HSM ammo for brass then I have some 254gr hammer bullets to load up and try out.

interesting... I'll have to try that pill one of these days, I had a member send me a few custom 259 grain mono projectiles to work up a load in a 35 whelen in. He was interested in how fast I could safely push them and if they held together on impact. They did pretty well on both counts. I got to right at 2400 fps with sub moa accuracy with rl15 on the first walk up. I dumped a few into a catch box with good results also. Now that the 220 speer fp I usually load in the whelen is discontinued I should probably get serious and start loading it with a heavy hitter. My 338 seems to be the plinker lately.

 

[Deleted member 109523]

There's a good selection of Hammers. More so than any other manufacture. The 223 and 245 shock hammer look like they would make some noise.

It's really too bad woodleigh is no longer making bullets. They had a few that would have been perfect for this. A .358 mag with a 310 weldcore round nose would give up nothing to the big .33s or .37s for close range smashing power.

It's a shame they went out of business. My father used those in everything.
Hornady used to make a wonderful 250 gr round nose, before the interlock came around

 

[Calvin45]

There's a good selection of Hammers. More so than any other manufacture. The 223 and 245 shock hammer look like they would make some noise.

It's a shame they went out of business. My father used those in everything.
Hornady used to make a wonderful 250 gr round nose, before the interlock came around

I played around with the woodleigh 180 grain 270…now with the 27 Nosler that would have been an absolute beast. It stabilized out of the 10 twist 270 Winchester but barely: accuracy wasn't very good but no keyholing or anything. Best load ended up being 2600 fps out a 22 inch barrel with win brass and rl25

 

[Calvin45]

Man…im starting to think I might just resell the thing through the same auction. I didn't realize just how awful the .35 cal bullet selection is and how dang hard it is to even source dies for this beast in Canada. Then again the action alone is a good one…

 

[Lefty7mmstw]

dang, the 338win and 358 norma are close on dimensions, with the norma at a 25.5 degree sholder vs. the 25 degree for the 338win... thre back of the shoulder is also a touch back on the win at 2.0402" vs. 2.084 on the Norma... it's nearly close enough to just use bushing dies for the 338 with the proper bushing for the 358... the shoulder angle bothers me more than the length dimension, the die could be unscrewed 1/4 turn or so for that.

 

[Calvin45]

dang, the 338win and 358 norma are close on dimensions, with the norma at a 25.5 degree sholder vs. the 25 degree for the 338win... thre back of the shoulder is also a touch back on the win at 2.0402" vs. 2.084 on the Norma... it's nearly close enough to just use bushing dies for the 338 with the proper bushing for the 358... the shoulder angle bothers me more than the length dimension, the die could be unscrewed 1/4 turn or so for that.

Interesting….I'll look into that possibility before doing anything I regret

 

[Lefty7mmstw]

Alternate dies can sometimes be used to very good effect for loading something that it's hard to get the proper dies for. I've done 300 weatherby ammo using 300rum dies as a neck sizing die. A buddy had an extremely poor grouping 300roy accumark and was about ready to sell it. I ran some of his empties through my 300rum die (he was unwilling to invest another dime in it until we got some semblance of a group) to neck size, checked fit, and proceeded to do a few load run-ups.
That ammo was the first sub moa ammo that rifle ever ate. He has since bought proper dies and now actually likes his rifle.

 

[dhbikerczar]

I have had great luck with the Nosler Partition in 225 gr and 250gr. I prefer the 225 though. It's an old round, but it's an effective round. This one has taken a lot of elk and a few moose with no problem.

 

[bengineer]

Make sure to read what Nathan Foster has to say on the matter at www.ballisticstudies.com. His insights and experience will guide you toward success and savings.