It is official. The recently adopted deer rule changes have been approved by the Attorney General and Governor so they will be effective for 2012. Included is allowing rifle cartridges with case lengths up to 1.800 inches.

Also, the developer of the .358 Hoosier wildcat cartridge will be removing its proprietary status on January 1, 2012. What this means is that manufacturing, purchasing, selling, and using chambering reamers, rifles, barrels, ammunition, formed cases, and reloading dies for this cartridge will not be limited by any type of licensing or royalty as long as the name .358 Hoosier is used for the cartridge. The process for someone wanting to acquire a reamer, rifle, barrel, ammunition, cases, or dies for a .358 Hoosier would be like that for a commercially available cartridge, such as a .308 Winchester. A difference is that at the present time there are not multiple sources for many of the items. Current sources include:

CHAMBERING REAMERS & Gauges -- Pacific Tool and Gauge (http://www.pacifictoolandgauge.com 541-826-5808)
CUSTOM RIFLES -- A.J. Brown Arms (email alan@ajbrownarms.com 812-384-1056)
BARRELS (bolt action & TC Encore) -- A.J. Brown Arms
BARRELS (TC Encore) -- Match Grade Machine (MGM) (http://www.matchgrademachine.com/ 435-628-0071)
AMMUNITION -- A.J. Brown Arms
FORMED CASES -- A.J. Brown Arms
RELOADING DIES -- Hornady Manufacturing (http://www.hornady.com 800-338-3220)

More sources will likely become available as the wildcat gets more use and publicity.




This cartridge has been extensively tested with a variety of bullets and powders. Following are some of the desirable points that may be considered by a hunter wanting a new rifle, whether it is a custom-built bolt action (basic economy model up to a fancy expensive one) or just an extra barrel for his or her TC Encore:

• The .358 Hoosier, a center fire cartridge that will be legal in rifles for deer hunting in 2012
• 2650 ft/sec with 180 grain bullets; 2525 ft/sec with 200 grain bullets
• Ballistics (velocity, energy, and trajectory) much superior to the .35 Remington
• Ballistics approx. equal to factory .358 Winchester and slightly less than the currently legal .358 WSSM wildcat
• Cases easily made from economical and readily available .358 Winchester brass
• Cases made from .358 Winchester brass do not need neck turning or annealing
• Can be used in actions of economical, standard short-action bolt rifles originally chambered for the .308 Winchester family of cartridges (e.g., .308 Win, .243 Win, 7mm-08, .22-250 Rem)
• Can be used in actions of single shots and semiautomatics originally chambered for the .308 Winchester family of cartridges
• No need for bolt face or extractor modifications
• No need for magazine or side rail modifications, or spacers for proper feeding

This is not a wildcat boasting the highest possible velocity with the 1.800 maximum case length. However, it is a very practical wildcat. It offers economical basic rifle and brass costs, easily formed and loaded brass, and all the bullet velocity, energy, and accuracy needed to cleanly take deer (and other big game) up to the maximum distance at which probably 99 percent of the hunters can accurately place a bullet under field conditions.

At the present time please contact A.J. Brown Arms (email alan@ajbrownarms.com 812-384-1056) for more information on various options, prices, etc. He will have a table at the Indy 1500 Gun Show on January 13, 14, and 15, 2012. It is located on or near the south wall of the building. He will have a .358 Hoosier bolt rifle he built plus a TC Encore with 2 or 3 barrels made by MGM. Also, he will have a table at the Indiana Deer and Turkey Expo on February 17, 18, and 19, 2012.