what 357 ammo do you use

what ammo do you use

  • federalpremium

    Votes: 31 22.6%

  • winchester

    Votes: 34 24.8%

  • hornady

    Votes: 10 7.3%

  • remington

    Votes: 31 22.6%

  • Other (please specify what you do use)

    Votes: 68 49.6%
  • Total voters
    137
Status
Not open for further replies.
M

mike6161

Member
Joined
Oct 14, 2007
Messages
267
Location
some where in the black swamp of ohio
What ammo do you use in your 357 and 38.i just bought a S&W 66-1 and I need to get some ammo for it. so I was just wondering what you used for SD/HD and plinking. I have some older Winchester white box but some people say that it is not good as the older stuff I that I got with the gun is this true. (The Winchester is from 1980). I would like to know if you use 38 special or 38 +p in your 357.
 
In my 2 1/4" SP101 my preferences for defensive use:

1. Speer GDHP 135 grain 38+P
2. Winchester SXT 130 grain 38+P
3. Winchester Silvertip HP 145 .357

I chose "other" since Speer is my first choice.

For range (I don't get to do much "plinking") a variety of 38 and .357 FMJ.
 
What 357 ammo?

I can't remember the last box of factory ammo I bought....:confused:
99.9% of my 357 ammo come from my reloading room. With about 95% of that being a lead bullet reload of 7gr. of Unique under a 150-158 gr. cast bullet. The rest are 10.5 gr of Bluedot under a good 158gr jacketed bullet.
Sorry but I just don't buy factory ammo.......:D
 
I'm a reloader too.:D I haven't bought a box of factory ammo in 2 years. I load a Remington 125 grain SJHP with 9 grains of Unique for 1350 fps, 16.6 grains of 296 behind a 158 grain JSP for 1300 fps, and 158 grain Ranier's with 7 grains of Unique for 1050 fps, my plinking load.:D I'm getting these numbers from a 4" Tracker.:D
 
For .357, I use a little S&B, but I mostly (like maybe 98%) I load my own.

I've never bought any .38 Special ammo, I only shoot reloads. If I were to start carrying a concealed weapon, I'd probably buy Federal Nyclad 158 grain +P LHP's -- I think they pretty much match my home defense handloads.

Definitely .38's. I want to have a little hearing left if I ever have to shoot indoors. (I've even thought about paying the $200 tax and getting a silencer for my BHP)
 
I use the federal reduced recoil personal def from a 5 inch revo for HD. Think of it as in between 38 and 357 in power level. For plinking I use whatever is cheapest. One day Ill get into reloading.

-tsi
 
I've got a pair of model 66s--a 4 inch revision 2 and a 2.5 inch revision 5.

I shoot mostly Georgia Arms for practice and on the rare occasions that I carry a K frame instead of my 1911. The 125 grain @ 1400 fps shoots well in my 2.5 inch, but I prefer the 158 grain @ 1250 for my 4 inch. Both of those are GoldDot loads.
 
most of my 357s are loaded with remmi golden sabers except my SP101 and Tauri 605 they both get Silvertips
 
Incomplete parameters available to provide valid response. Other than... it depends. :D

It depends on what the usage is - I think there is a chasm between SD and plinking

It depends if it is short barreled or long.

Hunting (and hunting what) call for much different choices.

Limited to SD/HD the answer is always the same. Whatever that particular gun shoots most accurately out of a choice of a dozen or so tested factory loads and many dozens of reloads.
 
Federal 158gr Hydrashocks. I prefer heavier bullets to begin with and the concussion seems less than the 125gr loads.
 
I used Remington and Winchester stuff (whatever was available) to shoot until I got my reloading bench. Now, I just need some brass.
 
I also reload my own 38/357 plinking and competition ammo but I do buy my SD rounds. I buy 125gr DoubleTap .38 Special +P ammo for my S&W M638 J frame and 135gr Speer Short Barrel .357 Magnum ammo for my 2 3/4" Ruger Police Service-Six.

When I did buy plinking ammo I usually bought 130gr Remington UMC .38 Special FMJ ammo because it was usually the cheapest. It's good clean practice ammo. As for .357 Magnum ammo I usually bought Remington, American Eagle (Federal) or International. I don't like Blazer because even though they say it's the same as other ammo it feels very light when fired. When practicing you don't want ammo with recoil that doesn't feel close to what you will fire when in a SD situation.

**Special Note**
It isn't advisable to shoot light .357 Magnum bullets in your K frame. All the rumors about the K frame revolver being too weak to shoot a steady diet of Magnum rounds were caused by the screaming fast light 125gr bullets. If you want your M66 to remain trouble free you should shoot 158gr .357 Magnum rounds. You will do no damage to the forcing cone with those.
 
For plinking
- Winchester Whitebox
- reload 158gr LRNFP over 6gr Uniq
- reload 158gr SP over 15gr Lil'gun
- reload 180gr RNFP over Lil'gun (don't remember the load right now)

HD/SD, 12ga B.S.
 
158 Hydra Shocks for carry and house guns, 7 grains of Unique under a 158SWC for everything else (looks like I'm not the only one using that load...).
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

Mr_Flintstone
  • Locked
What SD ammo do you use in your .38 Special?
2 3
Replies
70
Views
4K
DDDWho
DDDWho
Loyalist Dave
  • Locked
SP 101 and Federal 180 Grain .357 Magnum Ammo
2
Replies
25
Views
5K
paul105
P
J
  • Locked
Any Of You Guys Use Buffalo Bore Ammo
2
Replies
25
Views
3K
TAB
T
E
  • Locked
  • Poll
Ruger SP101 Snubby .357 Ammo Preference
2
Replies
31
Views
6K
revolverman357
R
S
  • Locked
Ammo suggestions for my S&W 66 3inch
Replies
12
Views
774
Trebor
T
Back
Top