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Common uses: Hunting, Big Game
| Type | rifle (centerfire) |
| Typical load | 200gr Winchester Super-X Power-Point |
| Muzzle velocity | 2460 fps |
| Muzzle energy | 2688 ft-lb |
| Published G1 ballistic coefficient | 0.238 |
| Case length | 51.8 mm |
| Overall length | 64.8 mm |
| Range (yd) | Velocity (fps) | Energy (ft-lb) | Drop (in) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 2460 | 2687 | -1.5 |
| 100 | 2108 | 1973 | 0 |
| 200 | 1788 | 1419 | -6.4 |
| 300 | 1505 | 1005 | -23.8 |
| 400 | 1271 | 717 | -56.7 |
| 500 | 1102 | 539 | -111.3 |
At 1,000 yards, .356 Win. (200gr at 2460 fps, 100 yd zero, standard conditions) has a modeled come-up of about 89.5 MOA / 26.0 MIL, retaining 767 fps (subsonic).
| Range (yd) | Velocity (fps) | State | Drop (in) | Elev (MOA) | Elev (MIL) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 300 | 1505 | Supersonic | -23.8 | 7.6 | 2.20 |
| 400 | 1271 | Transonic | -56.7 | 13.5 | 3.94 |
| 500 | 1102 | Subsonic | -111.3 | 21.3 | 6.18 |
| 600 | 995 | Subsonic | -194.4 | 30.9 | 9.00 |
| 700 | 921 | Subsonic | -312.6 | 42.6 | 12.40 |
| 800 | 862 | Subsonic | -471.9 | 56.3 | 16.38 |
| 900 | 812 | Subsonic | -678.1 | 72.0 | 20.93 |
| 1000 | 767 | Subsonic | -937.0 | 89.5 | 26.03 |
Extended predictions beyond 500 yards are modeled from the same G1 engine — useful for initial DOPE, but outside the 500-yard manufacturer-table validation audit. Confirm with observed DOPE, especially near transonic.
A retained-energy reference only — not a shoot/don't-shoot distance. Real effective range depends on your accuracy, shot placement, bullet construction, and conditions. The ~1,000 ft-lb (deer-sized) and ~1,500 ft-lb (elk-sized) figures are commonly cited rules of thumb, not standards.
Your barrel, ammunition lot, and conditions will differ — always verify against the manufacturer's data and your own rifle.
The .356 Winchester is a hard-hitting woods cartridge built to wring near-.358 Winchester performance out of a tube-fed lever gun, pairing heavy .35-caliber bullets with the fast handling of a Model 94. Loaded with 200- and 250-grain flat- or round-nose bullets required by tubular magazines, it delivers authoritative energy on deer, black bear, and hog inside typical brush and timber ranges. Those blunt bullets shed velocity quickly, so it is a short- to moderate-range proposition rather than a flat-shooting open-country round, and recoil is stout for the platform. It is best remembered as a capable but commercially unsuccessful cartridge, now uncommon enough that ammunition and rifles are largely the province of reloaders and lever-action enthusiasts.
Winchester introduced the .356 Winchester in 1982 alongside the .307 Winchester, debuting it in the Model 94 XTR "Angle Eject" lever-action rifle. It was created using a case similar to the .308 Winchester's but reworked into a semi-rimmed form so it would feed and headspace reliably through a lever-action, giving shooters substantially more power than traditional lever calibers of similar bullet diameter. Marlin also chambered it briefly in a version of the Model 336, but the round never gained a wide following and factory rifles and ammunition became scarce within a couple of decades.
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