357 Magnum has become pointless... for me.

[mcb]

Just for fun so don't get your nickers in too much of a bind over this. In a way this is sort of inspired by the worst revolver thread.

357 Magnum is my worst revolver cartridge and has become rather pointless for me.

It is certainly NOT obsolete or ineffective it is still very much a jack-of-all-trades (master-of-none IMHO) cartridge.

It has become pointless in my revolver collection. Admittedly a modest collection, encompassing only nine revolvers two of which are chambered for 357 Mag. When I reach into the gun cabinet for a revolver, a tool to do a job, any job I might employ a revolver for, I never grab a 357 Magnum. I use a revolver for competition, hunting, utility/woods, and for CCW. I always have a revolver/cartridge that will do any particular job as well or better than 357 Magnum. In the past 10+ years I have shot maybe three boxes of 357 Magnum probably less. In that same time period I have fired tens of thousands of rounds of other cartridges in revolvers. If I were to buy a new revolver right now I would buy a revolver in just about any other cartridge possible before I buy another 357 Magnum.

Am I the only one that has no love for 357 Magnum?

Is there another common revolver cartridge you have no love for?

 

[Wishoot]

Am I the only one that has no love for 357 Magnum?

Probably.

Just kidding...

While I absolutely love my .357 revolvers for range fun, they don't get carried often. Usually just when I'm deer hunting.

 

[mcb]

Probably.

Just kidding...

While I absolutely love my .357 revolvers for range fun, they don't get carried often. Usually just when I'm deer hunting.

I fully expect to be in a very small group of revolver lovers that does not love 357 Magnum, AND that is OK.

I deer hunted with a 10mm Auto revolver for years and picked up a 44 Mag revolver last summer though I have not killed a deer with the 44 Mag yet.

 

[tubeshooter]

Is there another common revolver cartridge you have no love for?

"No love for" is probably too strong of a sentiment, but I feel that .44 Mag would be pointless... for ME.

I just never got around to making a thread about it...

 

[627PCFan]

I'm curious what your other calibers are and uses for them in comparison.

 

[mcb]

I'm curious what your other calibers are and uses for them in comparison.

38 S&W
-Iver Johnson Safety Automatic. Bought as a fun gun since I really like top break revolvers
38/300
-Webley Mark IV, bought primarily as a fun gun, top break but I have carried it as my woods/tractor revolver
38 Special +P
-S&W 442 Moonclip, this is my primary CCW.
-S&W Model 10 4-inch heavy barrel, my IDPA competition revolver and my primary woods/tractor revolver
357 Magnum
-Ruger Blackhawk Convertible (so 9mm also), bough as a hunting revolver and hunted with it one or two season (unsuccessfully) but have probably put less that 200rds through it in the past 10+ years.
-S&W 627 PC 5-inch My current USPSA revolver, Less than a box of 357 Magnum through it. Several thousand 38 Short Colt fired in competition.
10mm Auto
-S&W 610 6.5 inch, this was my first revolver bought for USPSA, Fired alot of 40S&W though it in competition. Used 10mm Auto for hungting, found it much easier on my ears than 357 Mag
44 Magnum
-M29 6.5-inch, My newest revolver. Bought as a hunting revolver to go with my Rossi M92 in 44 Magnum. I have more 44 Mag fired through this revolver this summer working up loads than I have ever fired through both of my 357 Magnums combined.
45 ACP
S&W 625 5-inch. Bought as my USPSA revolver to replace my 610. Only used for two years when the rule change happened pushing me to the 627. I still shoot the 625 at club matches simply because its so much fun to shoot. I occasionally carry it as a woods/tractor gun but the Model 10 is much lighter.

 

[CaptHank]

Wow.... I just finished reloading 771 rounds of 357, XTP's, Deep Curls and Nosler JHP. Next project will be 45 Colt, Deep Curls.

 

[kidneyboy]

Shooting a handful of magnum 357 rounds puts my hand out of commission for a couple of days. So, as much as I like the 686 revolver it doesn't get much love. I'd just shoot 38sp out of it but I have a revolver just for those that I'm real happy with.

 

[mcb]

Wow.... I just finished reloading 771 rounds of 357, XTP's, Deep Curls and Nosler JHP. Next project will be 45 Colt, Deep Curls.

That is more 357 Mag than I have bought or reloaded in my life. And I have a Dillon XL 650 with close to 50k of pistol ammunition through it.

Shooting a handful of magnum 357 rounds puts my hand out of commission for a couple of days. So, as much as I like the 686 revolver it doesn't get much love. I'd just shoot 38sp out of it but I have a revolver just for those that I'm real happy with.

The recoil in full size guns does not bother me but the report and muzzle blast does in a hunting or woods carry role. 357 mag in a 340PD is one of the most painful handguns I have ever fired hence my choice of a 442.

 

[Walkalong]

No matter what you think about .357 Magnum as a caliber, there are way too many cool .357 Mag revolvers out there not to own one or two.

 

[George P]

I love my 357s, but I shoot 38spl 99% of the time

 

[ontarget]

Yup I'm with George P on this one.

 

[LUCKYDAWG13]

I could live without a 357 if Ruger would make the SP101 in a 41 magnum But hard to beat a 357 for cheap shooting

 

[sequins]

I love 357, it does a great job at being a hoot to shoot. I don't like shooting auto cartridges in revolvers. I'd rather a 357 or a 41 over the 40 or 10mm. I feel moon clips are a mistake and would not use a firearm which relied on such an accoutrement.

The beauty of revolvers, to me, is the simplicity and reliability of the operation. Autoloader cartridges diminish that strength. A 10mm might be ballistically superior to a 357, but if I'm going 10mm I'm going Glock and would never consider a gp100 or other revolver in that chambering.

It is strange to me to see esteemed posters espouse the inseparability of cartridge and platform to justify a 10mm gp100 over a 41 redhawk by saying platform matters and gp100 is best power/weight ratio, while at the same time not cutting to the chase and getting a Glock 10mm instead of either revolver.

If you don't like the unique strengths and sentimentality of revolvers enough to use a revolver cartridge, why use revolvers? In the OPs case it seems the only justification is the contrivances which arise in structured competion, which is to say that 45acp in a revolver is a valid choice if you're trying to hit a certain power factor rather than "real shooting" considerations.

In the end I prefer a 38spl, 357 mag, 44 mag, or 45 colt over any autoloader cartridge chambering.

 

[WheelGunMan]

I have three revolvers chambered in .357. I carry them with .38 Specials in their chambers 95% of the time...especially my EDC. I like having the option of stepping up to .357 when needed.

 

[Dave T]

I'm with mcb. I have no use for the cartridge, despite its versatility.

All my heavy 38 caliber (OK, it's actually 36 caliber) needs are filled by the 357s grandfather, the 38-44 S&W. Back in 1930 it delivered 158g bullets at 1125 fps from the then new S&W Heavy Duty revolver. I've owned a number of them and still have two, which I shoot when I need a 36 cal N-frame fix.

I hand load this round by putting 11.5g of 2400 into 38 Special cases behind 158g projectiles. Chronographs at ~1130 fps from my 4" HD. For a factory equivalent I carry Buffalo Bore's Heavy 38 Special +P 158g SWCHP-GC loading. It virtually duplicates the old 38-44. (smile)

Dave4

 

[mcb]

No matter what you think about .357 Magnum as a caliber, there are way too many cool .357 Mag revolvers out there not to own one or two.

I struggle with this. Yes there are lot of cool 357 Magnum revolver out there but I struggle to find a use more than collecting them.

I would trade my 627 PC for a 929 if short order if a good deal came along. The 9mm does USPSA even better than my 38 Short Colt in my 627.

I would trade or sell my Blackhawk for just about any other firearm. Nothing wrong with it other than its a single action only revolver and it simple does not mesh well with the way I like to use my revolvers.

I could live without a 357 if Ruger would make the SP101 in a 41 magnum But hard to beat a 357 for cheap shooting

That would be interesting assuming the cylinder had room to get five round of 41 Mag in there, even if it was only 41 Special it would be much much more interesting than 357 Mag.

 

[SteadyD]

I typically shoot 38 in my 357 revolvers but many of the revolvers I like are chambered in 357 instead of just 38. I do enjoy my rifles that are chambered in 357. Since I don’t participate in shooting sports I’m not particularly interested in the semi auto chambered revolvers. I have nothing against them and have even owned a few.

 

[mcb]

I love 357, it does a great job at being a hoot to shoot. I don't like shooting auto cartridges in revolvers. I'd rather a 357 or a 41 over the 40 or 10mm. I feel moon clips are a mistake and would not use a firearm which relied on such an accoutrement.

The beauty of revolvers, to me, is the simplicity and reliability of the operation. Autoloader cartridges diminish that strength. A 10mm might be ballistically superior to a 357, but if I'm going 10mm I'm going Glock and would never consider a gp100 or other revolver in that chambering.

It is strange to me to see esteemed posters espouse the inseparability of cartridge and platform to justify a 10mm gp100 over a 41 redhawk by saying platform matters and gp100 is best power/weight ratio, while at the same time not cutting to the chase and getting a Glock 10mm instead of either revolver.

If you don't like the unique strengths and sentimentality of revolvers enough to use a revolver cartridge, why use revolvers? In the OPs case it seems the only justification is the contrivances which arise in structured competion, which is to say that 45acp in a revolver is a valid choice if you're trying to hit a certain power factor rather than "real shooting" considerations.

In the end I prefer a 38spl, 357 mag, 44 mag, or 45 colt over any autoloader cartridge chambering.

Them there are fightin' words!!! Well maybe not... but I do hold a very different opinion of the moonclip. IMHO the moonclip fed revolver is the pinnacle of the combat revolver. The moonclip for a rimless cartridge is much more robust and less finicky than the moonclip for a rimmed cartridge. Rimless handgun cartridges tend to be shorter than typical revolver cartridge. These factors make the rimless cartridge revolver an extremely fast reloading revolver. I can't tell you how much fun I have playing practical pistol games (USPSA/IDPA) with a revolver. Beating the filthy bottom feeders with the noble round gun is very satisfying. Objectively I understand the reliability issue people bring up about moonclips and yet all of those can be addressed and mitigated. I have been shooting a moonclip feed revolver is competition for the past 10+ years and I can honestly say I have never had a moonclip let me down in competition and cause a revolver to miss-fire or malfunction, I have seen vanishingly few reliability issue in other people revolver also (far less than magazine issues I have seen in competition). I have had a few failures of a revolver in competition but never a failure caused by a moonclip. I would and do trust a moonclips with my life as my carry revolver is also moonclip fed.

Waxing poetic a S&W L-frame, fixed sights, round butt, 4-inch full underlug barrel, stainless steel, chambered in 10mm Magnum would be the perfect do-all combat revolver the 357 Magnum was in the hay-day of combat revolvers.

 

[mcb]

I'm with mcb. I have no use for the cartridge, despite its versatility.

All my heavy 38 caliber (OK, it's actually 36 caliber) needs are filled by the 357s grandfather, the 38-44 S&W. Back in 1930 it delivered 158g bullets at 1125 fps from the then new S&W Heavy Duty revolver. I've owned a number of them and still have two, which I shoot when I need a 36 cal N-frame fix.

I hand load this round by putting 11.5g of 2400 into 38 Special cases behind 158g projectiles. Chronographs at ~1130 fps from my 4" HD. For a factory equivalent I carry Buffalo Bore's Heavy 38 Special +P 158g SWCHP-GC loading. It virtually duplicates the old 38-44. (smile)

Dave4

Good to know I am not completely alone in this!

 

[ArchAngelCD]

My first gun was a .357 Magnum and there have been plenty since in 38/357.

When I walk around the woods I mostly carry a .357 Magnum with or without the .357 Magnum levergun. When not carrying the .357 I carry a 45 Colt.

 

[mcb]

My first gun was a .357 Magnum and there have been plenty since in 38/357.

When I walk around the woods I mostly carry a .357 Magnum with or without the .357 Magnum levergun. When not carrying the .357 I carry a 45 Colt.

My first revolver was also a 357 Mag, my Blackhawk. Unfortunately for it, I quickly evolved from single action to double action revolvers and it has see limited use since.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

I'm with you.
I love big bores. The only thing that has kept me keeping a .357 around is my daughter likes to shoot it with .38s. If it gets her wanting to shoot, I'll hang on to it I reckon.
I've been tempted to sell it and put the money towards one I'd shoot more.

 

[Tallball]

I usually shoot 38's out of the several 357 revolvers I have, but it's still fun to cut loose with real 357 cartridges every once in a while.

 

[jamesjames]

Here in Oregon, I went from a beginner on 38 special to a big bore enthusiast with a detour through single actions. Finally settled on .44 as a revolver caliber. Love .44 specials for 2 legged self defense and .44 magnum for hunting and 4 legged self defense. With the possibility for larger charismatic megafauna in the west, .357 seemed unnecessary when I had already leap frogged to other pastures.