1873 ammo questions?

Gunnie 12 · Post by **Gunnie 12** » Sat Sep 29, 2007 10:26 pm

Will the .38 spl feed correctly and reliable irrespective of the cartridge length? .357 cowboy loads are good for the 73â€™ but not standard .357 loads?

Post by **Ysabel Kid** » Sat Sep 29, 2007 10:42 pm

Not sure in an 1873 clone, but in my Marlin 1894 I had a full-wadcutter .38 jam up the action for a good hour while I tried to fix it. I'd stay away from the full wadcutters, but almost anything else should feed reliably. Not saying they'd be accurate, but feed...

PPpastordon · Post by **PPpastordon** » Sun Sep 30, 2007 6:12 am

Gunnie 12;
Yes; a standard .357 should be fine in a '73. However, not being someone willing to risk guns, eyes, fingers or other parts of myself (or others) - I would stay away from HOT loads - and a lot of them are out there for the .357 Mag.

Much of the pressure handling ability of firearms has to do with breech thrust. For this reason an action that cannot handle a "high pressure" cartridge can actually do well with a high pressure cartridge that has a relatively lower breech thrust. In this case that would be a .357. Again, I would stay away from hot loads. Use factory loads or a loading manual. Besides, many '73's are used for Cowboy loads, which are lower velocity/pressure loadings.
PPpastordon

J Miller · Post by **J Miller** » Sun Sep 30, 2007 6:52 am

Gunnie 12,

I simplify this a bit with this line of thought.

No manufacturer would willingly place them selfs in line for major law suits by building and selling a gun that is unsafe. Not in this day and age.
For Uberti and others to manufacture and sell the 1873 copies in the .357 caliber they have to be able to safely shoot full house SAAMI spec loads.

Regardless of what many shooters use the gun for, it's the chambering that dictates how much pressure it has to be able to take.

Joe

Grizzly Adams · Post by **Grizzly Adams** » Sun Sep 30, 2007 10:39 am

J Miller wrote:Gunnie 12,

I simplify this a bit with this line of thought.

No manufacturer would willingly place them selfs in line for major law suits by building and selling a gun that is unsafe. Not in this day and age.
For Uberti and others to manufacture and sell the 1873 copies in the .357 caliber they have to be able to safely shoot full house SAAMI spec loads.

Regardless of what many shooters use the gun for, it's the chambering that dictates how much pressure it has to be able to take.

Joe

+1. Gunnie the Uberti 73 is proofed for and is safe with SAAMI spec 357 loads.

You are NOT restricted to "cowboy loads."

As to OAL and function of the 38spl in the 73, the answer is "yes" provided you don't get them too short. The 73, like every other lever action I know of, can be picky about OAL.

CraigC · Post by **CraigC** » Sun Sep 30, 2007 11:28 am

Joe nailed it. In this day and age, no manufacturer would produce a firearm if it will not tolerate a steady diet of SAAMI-spec factory loads. Don't know why this sort of thing comes up so often and in regards to several different guns.

Grizzly Adams · Post by **Grizzly Adams** » Sun Sep 30, 2007 1:31 pm

CraigC wrote:Joe nailed it. In this day and age, no manufacturer would produce a firearm if it will not tolerate a steady diet of SAAMI-spec factory loads. Don't know why this sort of thing comes up so often and in regards to several different guns.

+1.....Or why some folks ask the same question so many times!

jd45 · Post by **jd45** » Sun Sep 30, 2007 3:00 pm

Gunnie, I seem to recall PACO mentioning having an 1873 in .357 & it handling any & all mag loads with no trouble. jd45