Some shooting with my 358 win

JWFilips

JWFilips

Well-Known Member
Hi Folks,
Well my range has been closed this summer for major upgrade work....So I have done a lot of casting and reloading in the past 60 days.

We Got the all clear last week to shoot again "Range Open"! I had been chomping on the bit to try out some of "BEN'S BIG BOYS"! He sent me some of his old Lyman 358009 bullets to try out in my JES rebore 3 grove Weatherby Vanguard...... now .358 Win! The weighed in at 296 Grains. All shot well at 100 yds but this second group really amazed me.
The big boys can shoot!
Jim

296gr009-100yds.jpg
 
Ben

Ben

Moderator
Staff member
Now that is the way a group should look !!!!!!

Great Shooting Jim.

Ben
 
3

35 shooter

Well-Known Member
JW,

That is some fine shooting in my book. An old classic bullet, a fine rifle, great load, and a darn good rifleman behind the trigger.
 
Brother_Love

Brother_Love

Well-Known Member
Wow! That is a good shooting rifle (and the shooter too). I have yet to put my JES 358 to the test but I am as soon as weather permits.
 
JWFilips

JWFilips

Well-Known Member
Brother,
When you do, you are going to love it...It is a great cast caliber. Mine is a rebored Weatherby Vanguard. One big improvement I made to it ( since I'm only a target shooter any more) was to take off the recoil pad and clean out the area inside (of the Urethane foam) and put 1.5 lbs of #9 shot in it.
That shifted the center of gravity back to the bolt area & really improved my bench shooting! The nice thing is If I ever want to get it back to stock weight I just have to dump the shot.
 
RicinYakima

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
JES did a ratty '03 Sporter for me that someone had "fire-lapped" until there was no rifling in the front of the chamber and still pits in last two inches in the muzzle. He was able to rebore it to .35, but I don't know how he did it without anything to guide the cutter. With the #3589 and 24 grains of SR4759, it will hold an 1 1/4 MOA all day long. That is a fine wind-bucking bullet!
JES 35 Whelan.jpg
 
RicinYakima

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
Thank you, but it is not a nice as the picture makes it look. I got the barreled action in a really poorly done Bishop stock. That was replaced with this original NRA Sporter one that had been cut for a bent bolt handle. The Sporter butt plate was rusty, but wire brushed out pretty smooth. The original "carbona blacking" finish is really thin and has rust pits behind the front sight. The picture shows it with a replacement bolt and Lyman 48, but after I had JES rebore it, it shot so well, I put a scope on it and the original bent bolt back in it.

JES did the rebore and throating so well, that I could not tell that the headspace changed at all with an RCBS Case Mic. Very good workmanship. I hope Jim has many years of shooting satisfaction from his .358 Win.
 
Brother_Love

Brother_Love

Well-Known Member
That is one great looking '03! My JES .358 is done on a Mossberg Patriot. I know it is a ho-hum rifle but Mossberg got the Patriot stock right! It is the best feeling and best fit of any stock I have.

I have an '03 sporter and I love it but the stock is awful. I may re-stock it someday.
 
RicinYakima

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
I hope Jim enjoys his .358 for many years, as it has been a fun caliber for me. This is a new favorite in 35 Whelen, if I had known they could shoot cast bullets so well, I would have gotten one earlier instead of .338's!
 
RicinYakima

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
Yes, it was a NRA Sporter. At one time at least. The rear sight is a 1930's 48-B (medium not a long slide {1909-1916} with graduations down to 225) with 1/3 minute clicks off of a, I would think, M2 22 LR. It would cost about $350 to have the holes welded up and the lettering re-engraved. I don't know what an NRA Sporter barrel would cost (they are .080" larger than a NM or S rifle barrel). A nice NRA Sporter stock is bringing about $600 out here on the west coast. I'm very happy with it as a 35 Whelen. I have less than $750 in it because I had 40 years worth of parts stored under the work bench. Did I tell you that I am Bubba? Built '03 "sporters" for guys from about 1970 until CMP started selling '03's. Then is was restorations, from parts that I saved. Bought my first 03A3 in 1966 from Sears Roebuck for $24.95, new in the cosmoline from a 55 drum full. Didn't have to have my parents sign for it cause I was 18. Loved '03's ever since. Ric
 
quicksylver

quicksylver

Well-Known Member
Me too...but my first was $30.00-$35.00..your choice out of a wooden case..in the back seat of a traveling salesman car...

Guess he was making $5.00 ea on them..

If you come across another one of those stocks please let me know...slept through the last three for $375.00 thought that was a little steep..sorry now..

Sorry to for high jacking this thread..I would like to try a 358 ..but just have a hard time using that much lead for paper punching..

I would also love to have the two 358 Savages I sold my customers...for what $125.00 maybe..see the prices on them in 358 lately?
 
RicinYakima

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
I've only been around two 358 Winchesters. One was when I first moved west and one of the guys I worked with Dad have a Model 70 Featherweight, with the aluminum butt plate. He only used the 200 grain WW SP for deer and elk and bear (deadly on both ends!). He had a Lee Loader and loaded 158 grain 357 SP for everything else, light load of 2400. One of the FF's I worked with had Mauser of some sort with a heavy maybe 24 inch barrel. He had of load of 4064 and used the 220 grain Speer bullet, mostly for elk stands in the mountains. Both men liked the rifles for knock down on game animals.
 
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