MachIVshooter
Member
I still use my 357 to hunt deer, although with much heavier bullets, no "practical" auto, not even the venerable 10mm, will match the power, acuracy and penetration of my handloads in my 6.5in Blackhawk.
With this statement I beg to differ. Top loads from .357 in a 6" revolver are balistically identical to top loads from a 10mm in a 5" autoloader, both teetering on the 800 ft/lb mark.
Accuracy is going to be a function of the platform, of which both cartridges are available in phenomenally accurate guns.
Penetration is also a dead heat between the two with the heavier bullets in full jacket or hard cast trim.
Both are extremely flexible, having a wide range of bullet types and weights, being agreeable with many different powders and generally forgiving to the handloader. Power levels can range from ~300 ft/lb cream puffs (even lighter for the advanced handloader) to the aforementioned 800 ft/lb sledgehammer loads.
They truly are ballistic twins that coexist peacefully on the market only because they seldom exist in the same type of gun. For this reason, I see .357 autoloaders and 10mm revolvers as particularly pointless, offering only drawbacks (long, rimmed cartridges no good for autos, moon clips are a PITA). The only upside to the 610 is being able to use .40. But then, a quick barrel change offers the same thing in an auto, and without the worry of the shorter cartridge having carboned up the chamber and making cleaning necessary to transition back to the 10mm. And if you've ever handled one of the .357 autoloaders that have been made, it's easy to see why 10mm is the superior choice in that platform. The Coonan was the most practical, but it still had a loooong grip and only held 7 rounds, where a more ergonomically pleasing 10mm can hold 15+ rounds (upwards of 20 with aftermarket IPSC Tanfoglio Witness mags)
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