Legal Deer cartridge for Ohio for my K95

[MM]

In Ohio the only rifle cartridges legal for deer hunting are straight wall (no shoulder) cartridges with a minimum bullet diameter of 357 and no greater than 50. I really want to use my K95 so I took a 9.3x74r cartridge to a sport show and asked a game warden if he felt it was legal, and he said it was close but best not to use it. My only option left is to buy a 22hornet or 222 barrel and have it re-bored and chambered. I have narrowed it down to two choices a 9.3x72R or the new 350 legend. S&B has a factory load for the 9.3x72r and they run about $70 a box with ok performance. Load data is hard to find but if I reload I think I can get a 200grn bullet going about 2200-2300 FPS. I can measure velocity but I have no way to measure pressure as I am working up a load.
If I get a 222 barrel I can have it converted to a 350 legend billed as the fastest straight walll cartridge ever (not sure I buy that). Inexpensive practice loads two different deer loads and a subsonic loads for suppressed rifles. I would probably use the 150grn. Load at roughly 2300 FPS. If I reload I would have access to loading data that has been tested. This round will also recoil much less (20% less than a 243) not a huge factor but why have a gun that recoils a lot if you don’t have to.
If Ohio changes the law to say a cartridge over 357 and it can have a shoulder I would switch to reloading 200grn bullets in my 9.3x74R to have a longer range outfit. If they change it to any rifle cartridge I would just use my 30-06 barrel. This stupid expenditure of money will probably end up costing about $2000-$2500 and in the end I don’t think it will have much resale value so it is a lifetime purchase, but I really want to use my favorite rifle on my home turf and it lets me hunt with it more. If the law changes I could maybe see using the 350 legend (maybe get a suppressor for it) more than the 9.3because I would always pick the 9.3x74R over it if I need something that big.
Rimmned vs. rimless classis vs. modern are not big factors I am more interested in deer killing machine. Any thoughts?

[shoots100]

After doing a bit of research on what you'd like to do, I think getting a winchester rifle chambered in the 350 legend is going to be your best and cheapest alternative, if money is an issue.
The 350 ammo is cheap, accurate and deadly. A good combination.
Either having a barrel made for your K95 in 350 L or the 9.3x72R and/or Getting another blaser chambered in the 9.3x72R is going to cost alot more.
Having a nitrided blaser barrel machined is going to be the biggest expense, if you can find a machinist who'll do the job.
If it were me, I'd do a little bit more research on the blaser barrel option and let the wallet do the thinking as the season gets closer.
SJC

[stokesrj]

I've been following along with the 350 Legend development. In the beginning, the concept was to also be able to use 357 Maximum ammunition but Winchester made a late development design decision that took away that option. If it were me, I would buy one of the Henry single shots .357 and have it chambered in 357-223 1.8" as 357 bullets and .223 cases are and will be readily available. I'm quite sure you will find it to be a pleasant deer killing machine fully capable of taking a whitetail at 200 yards or more. Then if you like it proceed with the K95 conversion of your choice. Mike Bellm who has been in the business of fixing TC Contenders and Enchores so that they shoot for decades reports that the Henry is far better than the TC for fit, finish, bore diameter precision, and trigger. https://gem.godaddy.com/p/6142dd?pact=1 ... 2be273ce87

[SPEEDY]

Have you thought about the classic 45/70?

[Corjack]

To add to what Bob suggested. They Henry in 357 is a simple job to just run a 357 Maximum reamer into. You can do it by hand without a lathe. When New England made a break open 357, a whole bunch of guys went in and bought a reamer, and Maxed out their 357 chambers. Reported good accuracy and power levels in the 35 Remington range. I forget what website I read that on.

I looked at the Henry at the last couple shows I went to, and when I saw it is now chambered in 30-30, I will probably have to get one.

[stokesrj]

Here is some more information on the 350 Legend from Mike Bellm. https://gem.godaddy.com/p/9b12dd?pact=1 ... 548e21aed8

As an added note you can also simply cut the throat of a 357 Magnum chamber and load 357 Mag brass to longer seated bullets and achieve greater performance than the 350 Legend. That is explained in the first link I provided.

[John1911.com]

I am observing this thread from afar since I can't really contribute much. I reside in Ohio. And hunt Indiana with my R8. 350 Legend interests me, but I am waiting to see. I also am NOT the world's most experienced hunter. I live more on that tactical side of the industry.

For a while now, I have had a Marlin / Wild West Guns 45/70 lever gun ready to go for Ohio. And I have a Sharps 45/70.

Personally I like 45/70 so much, if given the option, I might actually choose a single-shot 45/70 R8 barrel over a repeating 350 R8 barrel. That would be dumb. But I am very, very deep into the 45/70 since it's a "military" round we support for the Armory's reference collection.

Throwing a K95 into the mix would make all of this simple for me. I would basically be throwing a fit in Blaser's office demanding a 45/70 barrel. But that begs the question…do they offer a 45/70 in the K95? If so, I would be all over that.

Regards,
Marky

[6.5x55]

I am observing this thread from afar since I can't really contribute much. I reside in Ohio. And hunt Indiana with my R8. 350 Legend interests me, but I am waiting to see. I also am NOT the world's most experienced hunter. I live more on that tactical side of the industry.

For a while now, I have had a Marlin / Wild West Guns 45/70 lever gun ready to go for Ohio. And I have a Sharps 45/70.

Personally I like 45/70 so much, if given the option, I might actually choose a single-shot 45/70 R8 barrel over a repeating 350 R8 barrel. That would be dumb. But I am very, very deep into the 45/70 since it's a "military" round we support for the Armory's reference collection.

Throwing a K95 into the mix would make all of this simple for me. I would basically be throwing a fit in Blaser's office demanding a 45/70 barrel. But that begs the question…do they offer a 45/70 in the K95? If so, I would be all over that.

Regards,
Marky

I think you should be able to order it as a custom calibre.

[MM]

I have been upgrading Ohio legal deer guns my entire adult life started with a smoothbore shotgun with sights, then upgraded to a scope when mounts became available. I then moved to an H&R single shot with a heavy rifled barrel and scope. On the muzzleloader side I had a Hawken, then I scoped that with a fast twist barrel, then an inline now I have a smokeless muzzleloader barrel custom made for my H&R. When pistols became legal I had various revolvers mainly Ruger single actions and S&W in .357, 44mag 45 Colt 10mm and 475 Linebaugh. I also have a TC Contender in 44mag and 45-70.
In the few short years straight wall cartridges have been available I have a Winchester 92 trapper in 44mag, had a Ruger #1 in 45-70 , a Henry single shot in 45-70 a Contender carbine barrel in 375 Winchgester and an old Kipplauf in 9.3x72r. They all work and I have killed a lot of deer with all of them particularly the 12 gauge single shot. I just want to be able to use my K95 for deer hunting in my home state. I have been told that Blaser will not do custom barrels for the K95 so my only option would be to buy a 222 barrel and have it rebored and rechambered to 350 Legend or get a 22 Hornet barrel and have it rebored and chambered for 9.3x72R and hot rod it to way outperform the 350 Legend. I am kinda leaning towards the 350 but there is no good data out on it yet but if they changed the laws here which eventually they will where I could use say a 30-06 I can still see using the 350 Legend maybe even with a suppressor whereas I would have no need for a 9.3x72r because I have a 9.3x74r already.

[stokesrj]

I think the 350 Legend is on a path to success but you never know how Ammunition companies (Winchester) will support it when the rubber meets the road and it costs millions to fill the supply chain. And then add to that the fact that we shooters are a fickle lott. But the thing I see going for it is that it uses the most available case head diameter imaginable, 223/556/9mm and most available pistol bullet 357/9mm. A K95 222 Rem barrel would already be set up with the proper extractor and that is the part of the K95 engineering I would most like to preserve if it were me. I've seen some very good field results reported but there aren't that many out there yet.

[SPEEDY]

I got to say if you can get a 9.3 built go with a 9.3, but the funny thing is I have an equal love these days for the humble 44mag.
I guess I don't see the need to get something that boots a whole lot just to kill moderately sized deer at closer or medium ranges.
But the 9.3's do a whole lot of killing with little fuss and no grandstanding, they are mild mannered and effective, they have also proven themselves for a very ling tome on a lot of game much tougher then deer.