.357 magnum for concealed carry?

[emilianoksa]

Unfortunately, where I live, this caliber is not allowed for civilians.

It must be very comforting to carry such a powerful and effective cartridge. However, I've often wondered what people think about the possible consequences, in a defensive situation, of rounds going astray.

I know hollow points are designed to mushroom, but I've heard that magnum rounds are quite capable of penetrating thick doors and some walls, and injuring the innocent. I always imagine a missing round sailing on down the street, and stopping God knows where.

I'm not a crack shot, and, although I'd love to be able to have a 357, I'm not sure I'd trust myself to carry it in an urban environment.

As I say, I'm only speaking of myself here, but I wondered what others thought.

 

[orionengnr]

You are responsible for every bullet that leaves your firearm.

A .45 will do as much damage to an innocent bystander as a .357 will....as will a .22.

The obvious solution is to not miss

Easier said than done, but that is why we train...

 

[emilianoksa]

You're right, of course.

 

[NMGonzo]

depends ...

 

[NOLAEMT]

any round that will be effective as a self defense round is likely to penetrate through car doors, house walls, etc. its just the nature of the beast so to speak.

So if you are forced to shoot at someone or something, you need to make sure that your background is clear.

It is common for rounds to miss their target in police and private citizen shootings, most of the the time no one is hurt by these, thankfully.

 

[GoodKat]

A hollowpoint only mushrooms when it meets a fluid like material such as water or human flesh. The only rounds that I can hing of which will reliably stop on impact with other materials are the magsafe and glaser safety slug.

 

[MCgunner]

I live in a rural area, carry a 3" Taurus 66 at times in cooler months, especially when I'm collecting on my route once a week. I normally have a Taurus 85UL or a Kel Tec P11 9x19 in a pocket, though. Hot months I like pocket carry.

Don't hit any bystanders with ANY caliber, as has already been said.

 

[HappyHunting]

An unintentional target will get killed just as fast as an intentional one will. The S&W .357 magnum gained popularity when an eskimo killed a bull walrus with a single shot and S&W recorded and publicized it. What is the largest caliber you can own in Peru? I wouldn't think a .357 round would be any more deadly down-range than any other round.

 

[grimjaw]

I carried .357 Magnum in a S&W 640 for just a little while. From my range sessions with that gun, I can tell you that I hoped I never had occasion to shoot more than one round and I would not describe the experience as "comforting."

 

[emilianoksa]

38 sp + p is as high as you can go in Peru.

And for semiautos only 380 acp.

I'm not complaining though.

In the UK, where I come from, you aren't even allowed to carry a knife in your pocket, in case you hurt the mugger with it.

 

[MCgunner]

Yeah, from what I've heard of the UK, it's gotten ridiculous.

.38+P is plenty, better than .380, and probably what I'd carry for self defense given those two choices. I have a .380, but never carry it. However, I'm infatuated with this little Polish Radom P64 in 9x18 Makarov. I've been carrying that a lot and it's not much more than a .380, really. Dang thing is accurate, though, and fun at the range.

 

[emilianoksa]

I also like 380. I've got a Glock 25 in that caliber (same size as a 19, and carries 15 rounds), and a Russian Mak (widely available here) which I use as range guns, along with my CZ75 Kadett in 22lr.

For home defence I've got a pump shotgun and a four inch 38sp +p revolver.

I use the Mak for cc on the rare occasion I leave the city limits, or venture into bad areas, but I'd like to get a snub revolver in the future.

The Ruger LCR is available now in the gunshops, but I want to wait until some slightly heavier revolvers arrive, and then compare them.

In general revolvers aren't too popular here, so there are never many in stock. Every six months or so, one or two Smiths or Rugers arrive (at twice the US price), but Taurus are more common.

 

[snooperman]

I carry the Ruger SP101 in 357 magnum...

while working on my farm but when I get dressed up and leave for town etc I usually carry the 38 special snubby with +p loads. I think your 38 special with the right ammo is quite adequate. I also like the 9mm and sometimes carry the KelTec P11 as well. However, I am not a fan of the 380 as a primary carry gun.

 

[goon]

The type of bullet in particular is as important as the potential power of the round.
A .357 Revolver can reliably fire pretty much any round that will fit in the chamber. This means that frangible round like Glaser and Magsafe will work fine without hundreds of rounds of testing. I'd say that with those, it is actually less likely to overpenetrate than other calibers.
When I carry around town for defense I load Speer short barrel 135 grain GDHP's. When I'm packing in the country or in the woods I carry full power 158 grain JSP's from Federal or Magtech. I want the extra penetration and power if I come up against something big and scratchy and I want the extra noise if I have to signal for help. But it's not needed or desirable in a SD scenario.
That's the beauty of a .357 - the flexibility.

 

[NMGonzo]

how much is 40 kilogrametros in foot pounds anyhow?