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Old December 22, 2017, 01:19 AM   #26
stormyone
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The 357 mag was my 1st love. It will always have a place in my heart and more often that not, on my belt.
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Old December 22, 2017, 06:43 AM   #27
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I will always have a few 357s around, but it's mostly nostalgia.
While a 3-4" 357 wheel gun is a pretty good "jack of all trades" I would propose my anti thesis that it really isn't "great" at anything.
While my 2 3/4" speed six with it's slick as snot DAO action and custom XS big dot front sight is about as good as it gets for a defensive 357 wheel gun, my Sig P229 40 S&W is nearly the same size and weight, offers similar ballistics and accuracy and carries twice the ammo.
My 686 SSR is probably the pinnacle of service revolvers, but scores from my IDPA shooting shows it pales in comparison to any duty size auto for SD/HD or any combat.
My 6" GP100 gets enough ballistics to make it a acceptable hunting gun and a good target gun. However my 44 specials and 45 Colts are equal to any task without ringing my ears like the 357 does and my 6" model 14 Smith is just as accurate and there's no need for 357 power just to poke holes in paper.
Yep I'll never get rid of my 357s but they sure spend a lot of time in the safe.
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Old December 22, 2017, 08:57 AM   #28
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only a fool dismisses a .357 as inadequate in any way. I saw a grizzly that was taken down with one. It kills bad guys, deer, anything from snakes or rats to most continental us game with proper handling and proper loading. It requires a little more skill, imo, to fire a DA revolver accurately, and I think that any inadequacy is on the part of a shooter's ability, not the round itself, or the pistol.

Why anyone could believe that a round of nine is better, or even five fired with only one hit is beyond my comprehension. the shooter who carries only six had better learn how to use it and be better than the guy with fourteen.

I think that I'm just as seriously dangerous with my trooper as I am with my glock.
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Old December 22, 2017, 11:29 AM   #29
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My Model 65 stays by my chair in the living room as part of the welcoming committee when someone I don't know knocks on our door. My Model 60-9 often finds itself slipped into my pocket on hot summer days. As much as I love .45 acp, .357 is still my top SD caliber in handguns.
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Old December 22, 2017, 11:31 AM   #30
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.357 magnum....when you care enough to send the very best.
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Old December 22, 2017, 12:33 PM   #31
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Yeah, I would have to agree on 357 wheelguns. Going back to the proverbial "if I can have only one gun convo" it would be a 4" S&W 627 or even a 4" Taurus 608.
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Old December 22, 2017, 01:15 PM   #32
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Yeah, maybe not the ultimate SD choice, but for me no other caliber is so satisfying when shooting outdoors at distance. Competed in IHMSA Field Pistol with my little 4" SA 357 revolver and knocking over the rams at 100 yards was just too much fun.

I think I'm going to put the silhouette sights back on it today and go play in the snow before it gets real cold.
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Old December 22, 2017, 01:31 PM   #33
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My 686+ 3" bbl is my go-to carry gun. I am most comfortable with a revolver. And the cartridge has been proven thoroughly effective to boot.
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Old December 22, 2017, 06:38 PM   #34
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I've owned many .357 revolvers, but this has become my number one favorite and carry, the .357 LCR. What's not to love about a light revolver that can handle anything from powder puff to hottest magnum loads.

Pictured next to it is .38 snake shot, .38 +P Hornady critical defense, 38 +P HST micro with wadcutter profile, Remington .357 midrange swchp, and the hot buffalo bore heavy 180 grain keith hard cast flat nose .357 outdoorsman rated at 617 foot pounds out of this little guy (chronographed). That's a huge range of options.

Next to it is the S.L. Variant Longwitze speed loader made in Germany, a rare find in 5 shot J frame and fits the LCR perfectly.
I love being to throw this into my jeans pocket for when I walk the dog in the woods.
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Old December 22, 2017, 07:06 PM   #35
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My first revolver was a .357 Single Action BH while in my late teens. At the time I thought it was a 'big' revolver. Well, compared to the .22LR revolvers I had been shooting it was. But one day me and a moose were side by side, me in the middle of a creek with a pole in my hand, and him on the edge... Looking 'up' at 'em I started to wonder if .357 would be enough, if I had to take 'em down. He went his way, I went mine, but from then on I started to carry a .44Mag in the hills. Now I carry .45 Colt. For a house gun and concealed is .44 Special. .357 is now just a range gun with 158 SWCs at around 1000fps.
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Old December 22, 2017, 09:37 PM   #36
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Quote:
Yes...there are times when being able to shoot THROUGH things someone is using for cover can be to your advantage.
By proper definition, if you can shoot through it, it's not cover, only concealment.

I thought I was done with the .357 in the mid 80s, had sold my 6' model 19, and even gave away my brass to a buddy. Couple years later, found a NIB model 28 6", the same gun my Dad had, and it just spoke to me. Since then, I've gotten a Ruger SA, a Marlin carbine, other M28s, and both a Coonan and a Desert Eagle in .357 Mag.

If, for some reason, I was limited to only one handgun, the .357 would be a good choice.
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Old December 22, 2017, 10:36 PM   #37
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I have two 357's. One single action, one double action. I shoot a bunch of 38's but love to shoot full power 357 rounds. Got to love the big boom.
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Old December 22, 2017, 11:06 PM   #38
Doc Holliday 1950
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In 1970, when I became a AuxLEO, I had the choice of carrying a 38 special or a 357 in magnum revolver. The reason that i picked the 357 was the ability to shoot 38's, 38 specials, & 357 in mag ammo. There was/is no other revolver that give you the options that the 357 in magnum gives you. In reading the responses to my post, I saw that I was not the only person that felt like I did & has at least one if not more 357's in their collection. The thing that brought me back to revolvers was having a 7 shot 3" solid steel revolver that would handle just about any weight ammo that I would ever need for SD or for plinking. At 36 ounces, this is no featherweight, but at that weight, it eats up any perceived recoil.
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Old December 22, 2017, 11:21 PM   #39
m&p45acp10+1
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I swear I do not collect them. They just seem to accumulate. Not counting the ones I inherited from my grandpa I have a Model 13 (came from my uncle for digging a levee on the back of his land.) A Model 28 that came from the estate of a retired motorcycle officer. A 686 Plus that I took home from the LGS used gun case. A Colt Trooper Mk.III 6 inch I purchased from the estate of a retired Texas Ranger Captain. There is a S&W 5 shot snub in the safe somewhere. I am unsure of the model number. I do recall it being a .357 Mag. My sister carried it for a while, and then returned it. (To take my G26).

My true love in the Magnums is the .41 Rem Mag. Though I have a single RBH for that. The .357 mags just seem to keep piling up somehow.
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Old December 23, 2017, 10:40 AM   #40
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My first gun I ever shot was a .357 Ruger Sp 101. extremely loud, huge kick, great standby defensive round.
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Old December 24, 2017, 09:00 AM   #41
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ANY gun can misfire and I doubt that autos are more likely to do so than are revolvers. Shooting through cover may not be wise since you can't ID the target. Whatever you feel comfortable with is what you should carry. The 357 is potent, but not sure we need that much power.
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Old December 24, 2017, 12:03 PM   #42
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The round isn't necessarily limited to SD.

There's bears in them thar hills.
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Old December 24, 2017, 01:19 PM   #43
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S&W Mel 34 in .22 OR, bought in `68. Used it as my back pocket gun while teaching police rookies, Mel 19-2. .357 bought in `72 and was my first duty pistol till it was replaced by a .45acp 1911. Those three cover 90% of any handgun needs. And, if only one, the .357 Mel 19 4" does not leave you at any real disadvantage.

A whole lots of cops got to go home for dinner carrying and using one. 14+ bang noises don't fix problems, but well placed 158 gr8 half jacket SWCs do. Been there, done that, have the t-shirt, hat AND the pennant to prove it.
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Old December 25, 2017, 12:32 PM   #44
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ArmyBrat - my stable of .357s is quite similar to yours.
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Old December 25, 2017, 12:41 PM   #45
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Quote:
There's bears in them thar hills.
Yep, why we carry .44s and .45s .
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Old December 25, 2017, 07:50 PM   #46
Model12Win
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rclark View Post
Yep, why we carry .44s and .45s .
+1

The .357 is a pudd round compared to the big .44s and .45s. While the .357 can be effective on small game and human sized targets, there is no replacement for displacement and it doesn't hold a candle against bruin or large ungulates.
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Old December 26, 2017, 02:55 PM   #47
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Not for your Montana monsters of course.

They are adequate for the smaller eastern variety from what I've read our yankee friends say. Ain't got any bears around my neck of the woods.
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Old December 27, 2017, 12:35 PM   #48
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The .357 is just too good of a round to pass up in my opinion.

A 4" stainless Security-six is my go to trail gun these days and a 2 3/4" Speed-six sees quite a bit of EDC holster time.
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Old December 29, 2017, 09:31 PM   #49
Doc Holliday 1950
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To all that wrote about a 44 or 45 caliber revolver, you missed my rational and my reason for the post.

The post is about being able to use multiple types of ammo. There is no revolver out there that allows you to shoot multiple caliber ammo than the 357 in magnum revolver.

I'm not talking about Bear hunting or Elefant hunting. That's absurd. However,
a well placed shot generally will stop "almost" everything & most of the Forum would acknowledge this.
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Old December 29, 2017, 10:48 PM   #50
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terminology

Technically, isn't a "misfire" the result of a bad primer/cartridge? Thus, a bad cartridge will cause a failure to fire in BOTH a revolver and an auto.

Resolving same in the DA revolver requires another trigger pull, simpler and quicker for most of us. But your 6-shooter is now a 5 shooter, or a 4- shooter if a 5 shot.

The auto will require a tap/rack, slower for most.
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