357 Mag Revolvers for Self Defense

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My sp 101 has become my favorite for EDC. It's small enough I hardly notice it but even with the 2.25" barrel I can hit an 8" plate at 25 yards using single action. I definitely use 38 special if I'm doing lots of practice shooting. She's only 5 rounds but 2 speed loaders fit nicely in the pocket. image.jpeg image.jpeg
 
I love the .357 and right now own probably own around 30-35. Most of you know I have an addiction to 3" K frames especially the .357. I carry a 3" K frame 95% of the time and the rest I just throw a Model 60 in my pocket. For years, I used .357 ammo for carry, but lately I've had a real change of heart. Started with the very informative test that was done by luckygunner.com. If you haven't read it, it is worth the time. Go to their website and click on labs. Their testing was mainly comparing 2" and 4" barrel loads. What I realized is today there are some damn fine 38 Special +P loads available that do as well as sometimes better than the .357 loads especially out of a short barrel which makes them much more manageable especially for follow up shots. Since studying the article, I did some unscientific testing of my own loading up a variety of loads and I'm satisfied that in a revolver you can get all you need with +P 38 Special. If you have the chance also to read the articles and book by the NY cop that did a lot of stakeouts. I think his name is Crillo or something like that. He was a firm believer in .38 Wadcutters for SD in a snub nose. He wanted penetration and didn't care about expansion. I guess with the right shot placement, penetration is all you need.
 
This discussion adds to my struggles in what to carry in my king cobra. On one hand a fbi load type round works in both my guns but if you got a 357- USE it! lol. I’m thinking Remington 158gr sjhp
Too many choices! That’s a good thing

Underwood Ammunition offers some .357 Magnum (and other) wheel gun loads advertised as loaded with flash suppressed powder. I have to say I've never shot any in the dark yet.

Currently sold out of 158 grain loads, but 125 grain bonded shows to still be in stock as an option.

https://www.underwoodammo.com/collections/handgun-ammo/cartridge_357-mag

My favorite boutique / custom / hard-to-find ammo company Reed's Ammunition and Research in OK still lists plenty of options in .357 Magnum but best to double-check by phone or email before placing an order I suppose.

https://shop.reedsammo.com/357-Magnum_c39.htm

I guess I should qualify this with factory Speer 125 grain Gold Dot HP is my chosen .357 Magnum SD load (classic Gold Dot, no G2's in my ammo).

 
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I love the .357 and right now own probably own around 30-35. Most of you know I have an addiction to 3" K frames especially the .357. I carry a 3" K frame 95% of the time and the rest I just throw a Model 60 in my pocket. For years, I used .357 ammo for carry, but lately I've had a real change of heart. Started with the very informative test that was done by luckygunner.com. If you haven't read it, it is worth the time. Go to their website and click on labs. Their testing was mainly comparing 2" and 4" barrel loads. What I realized is today there are some damn fine 38 Special +P loads available that do as well as sometimes better than the .357 loads especially out of a short barrel which makes them much more manageable especially for follow up shots. Since studying the article, I did some unscientific testing of my own loading up a variety of loads and I'm satisfied that in a revolver you can get all you need with +P 38 Special. If you have the chance also to read the articles and book by the NY cop that did a lot of stakeouts. I think his name is Crillo or something like that. He was a firm believer in .38 Wadcutters for SD in a snub nose. He wanted penetration and didn't care about expansion. I guess with the right shot placement, penetration is all you need.
I carry Federal HST Micro 130 grain 38+P in my SP101 after I saw this ballistic report from LuckyGunner. Through a 2" barrel, .73" average expansion with all 5 shots, average 13" penetration and very easy to manage recoil. I'm in no way an expert but it looks good to me. I shoot very few 357 rounds these days and almost never carry it. The exception is when I walk the dog and carry a 5" GP100 due to the number of large black bears in our neighborhood. They've always gone the other direction when they spot us....so far.
 

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I second the Kimber K6s!
It’s my year round EDC sweet spot 90% of the time. Totally reliable with roughly 700 rounds of .38 special & 300 of .357 magnum. Summers IWB in a Tucker Texas Heritage. And the rest of the year the Mika pocket holster carries in an outer garment pocket (coat, jacket, or vest). 361296B9-C4D9-485B-97C3-5CBDDF9C2B9F.jpeg AB21559C-8F83-455A-8747-91B54899BB6D.jpeg
 
I started out with a .357 magnum S&W model 13 with a 3 inch barrel as my first issued duty gun. It was a great gun to carry, but not to shoot and I have doubted the strength of S&W K-frames to shoot .357 magnum on a regular basis. I replaced it as my duty gun with a S&W 681 (a fixed sight version of the 686) and it shot great, but was 10 ounces heavier and not very good for off duty carry.

Now when I want to carry a .357 magnum for CCW, I use a RUGER Security Six with a 4 inch barrel and PACKMAYR grips. PERFECTION! To me at least. I have a 2 3/4 inch Speed Six and have carried it, but until I put rubber grips on it, I kept only +P .38 Specials in it.
I have a 586 and a couple of RUGER GP-100 revolvers. One of the RUGER'S is an old fixed sight, stainless model with a 4 inch half lugged barrel and it is the only GP-100 I would consider for CCW. I do not like barrels shorter than 4 inches on .357 magnums, So RUGER wins this contest.

For me, I need at least 2 pounds of weight and rubber grips with a 4 inch barrel to offset the muzzle blast, recoil and flash of a .357 magnum round. I also like MAGNA-PORTS for these guns.
I have shot the CHARTER ARMS Police Undercover with +P .38 Special ammo and did not enjoy it at all. I would like the .357 even less.
The new COLT King COBRA and RUGER SP-101 are heavy enough that they make work for me, but I have not used them, so I cannot say.

Jim
 
My sp 101 has become my favorite for EDC. It's small enough I hardly notice it but even with the 2.25" barrel I can hit an 8" plate at 25 yards using single action.
Do you really think that SA shooting in a self defense incident would be prudent?

She's only 5 rounds but 2 speed loaders fit nicely in the pocket.
Could you reload once or twice with a violent criminal actor running at you from a distance of several feet?

I respectfully recommend that you look into some realistic SD training
 
Do you really think that SA shooting in a self defense incident would be prudent?

Could you reload once or twice with a violent criminal actor running at you from a distance of several feet?

I respectfully recommend that you look into some realistic SD training
For your information I train and shoot daily. Not only do I shoot single action for accuracy but quick double action from draw at close range. In the case of an active shooter situation I would definitely have time for single action. Shooting quick from the holster in double action from 3-5 yards I constantly hit the bullseye. I shoot over 15000 rounds a year training for any possibility and am confident in my speed loader reloads.
 
For your information I train and shoot daily.
I was referring to training by instructors in realistic, lawful defensive shooting. That is not something that one does "daily". You are referring to practice.

Practice is important--provided that you are practicing the right rhings.

Lawful defensive shooting involves very rapidly identifying a rapidly unfolding, imminent attack from ny quarter, drawing quickly, and shooting quickly and rapidly with combat accuracy.

An imminent threat--one in which the attacker has the ability and the opportunity to seriously wound or kill, and the defender has reason to believe that he is in jeopardy---is most likely to materialize at close range, and by the time the defender has drawn, will likely involve shooting at a distance of two or maybe three yards.

The attacker can be expected to be moving at around five yards per second. "Hitting the bullseye" would be nice, but a better goal is to achieve three to five hits, or more, with combat accuracy--in a second or two. Think in terms of a small pie plate, moving fast.

I have no idea what you can do, but your assertion that one could reload twice with speedloaders during a lawful use of force incident would indicate that you have not thought it through realistically.

Consider this: if you draw when the attacker is seven yards away--which should support an argument for imminence--you will likely start shooting at just few feet.

To hit something critical in the body is a matter of luck, and more fast shots increase the luck.

Speedloaders would likely be of little use before the threat has dissipated, when continued shooting would not be lawful.

To be able to handle an active shooter situation is not a bad thing, but it is surely the least likely of all potential use of force situations.

One other thing, and this has been discussed here at length. Carrying a revolver that can be fired double action entails some serious risks. I had the hammer on my SP101 bobbed, and I later replaced it with a six shot K6A.
 
For many years I carried a custom S&W 66 that Pachmyer did their UnderCover custom job on when they still did custom gun work. Sweet revolver and I still enjoy it a lot today.

I'm still a big .357 fan and if things warrant it I think it is a great option. However, it is a heavy chunk of steel and most don't want to tote that around (not sure I would so much these days). So, depends on the risk and your abilities.
 
I second the Kimber K6s!
It’s my year round EDC sweet spot 90% of the time. Totally reliable with roughly 700 rounds of .38 special & 300 of .357 magnum. Summers IWB in a Tucker Texas Heritage. And the rest of the year the Mika pocket holster carries in an outer garment pocket (coat, jacket, or vest). View attachment 906634View attachment 906635
I have owned 2 of the 2" K6s and loved both of them. Kimber Makes a great Revolver. Very Smooth and Unique DA Trigger. I could almost stage mine and shoot SA. Sold 1st one to a guy who had more money than sense and had to have it right then. 2nd I sold because I wanted one of the newer DA/SA Models. I tried one and really like the fact that I could shoot it SA, but the DA didn't feel the same. I am probably going to wind up with a 3" DAO.
 
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