The  358 Winchester , The Bull Of The Woods

 

 

The 358 Winchester cartridge would be developed in 1955 by the Winchester firearms company and would be developed from the 308 Winchester cartridge. They would develop the 308 in the 1954 time period. The 243 Winchester and the 358 Winchester are both developed from the 308 cartridge design. Gotta love that short action ability.

The 358 cartridge is not the most pleasant round to shoot off the bench. They do have a tendency to give a good kick. But it is one of the best heavy brush hunting cartridges that were ever produced. (IMHO) They would be considered a great bear hunting round in my area of NE Pennsylvania. But they would never come close to the popularity of the 35 Remington cartridge for a short range brush gun. 

I mentioned here the 358 cartridge because of its collectability in several firearms from the 1950s and 1960s. Of course one of the more noted rifles in this cartridge was the Winchester model 88 and of course the Winchester model 70. The 358 cartridge in a pre-64 Winchester model 70 are extremely rare and highly desirable. (watch for fakes)

 

358 WINCHESTER

 
Savage Arms Company made the Savage 99 model in the 358 and is what I considered to be one of my all-time favorite rifles in the 358 Winchester cartridge. The Browning gun company would also produce the 358 in the Browning BLR lever action. (Later time frame) These were also very popular.

It is worth noting that the 358 cartridge in any firearm from the 1950s especially and in the 1960s are very desirable simply because they were not manufactured in high numbers.

Whether it is a Savage or Winchester, they are excellent firearms to invest in and are considered excellent collectors’ items.

I will also recommend that any 358 ammo that were manufactured in the 1950s and 60s and are in the original boxes are also considered good collectible items. Especially those with the factory ammo still intact and the boxes are in great shape. They are very hard to find and are very desirable to the cartridge collectors.

Ruger Firearms Company did make the Ruger 77 model in the 358 cartridge and these Ruger rifles are also very collectible for the early manufactured models (Tang safety). Mannlicher-Schoenauer would also chamber their carbines in the 358 (hard to find). Anything in the 358 cartridge from the 1950s and 60s are good firearms  to invest in and I believe will be worth considerably more in the years to come.