.357 magnum as a camp gun in CA??

S

SIGarmed

New member
In California we don't have grizzly bear. What do you think of a .357 magnum as a California woods gun?
Corbon has a 200gr hard cast hunting round that is rated at 1200 fps out of a 4 inch barrel. They also have a 180gr bonded core round rated at 1265 fps out of a 4 inch barrel.
I think this is pretty stout and up there with 10mm performance.
Would you feel the need for more gun in the California outdoors?
 
.357 magnum is plenty for most animals you will encounter in Granola land. It should work fine on Pumas, deer and similar sized animals IMO. For Black Bear, its MARGINAL but with a hot Cor Bon load I think its a good choice for those that can't tolerate full house 300 grain .44 magnum loads.
 
Those Cor-Bons can indeed do a number on a black bear. I'd recommend a larger sized gun, L-Frame S&W or GP100 or bigger. they're stout loads and you'll want to crank off a few as it charges :).
 
.357 magnum as a camp gun in Ca.

Granted, you don't have grizzly bears but you do have hoards of humans. Last time I camped in Ca. I set up icamp in the afternoon and during the night 30-40 foreign speaking individuals showed up next to me. They started by sawing down trees in the campground for firewood; playing loud boombox music all night and when I got up to use the can in the morning they had their little ones (and there were lots of little ones) doing target practice at the empty beer bottles they'd accumulated during the night - they were shooting across the road. I managed to stop the target practice long enough to get to the toilet by using creative hand movements - they didn't speak English and I'd left my Berlitz tapes at home. I believe they were deer hunting - the season opened that day. I didn't even bother folding my tent, I thru the whole thing in my pickup and left when I realized I didn't have enough ammo on hand to deal with all of them if things got ugly.
If you're carrying a .357 for protection; carry three or four and know a second language.
 
Those Cor-Bons can indeed do a number on a black bear. I'd recommend a larger sized gun, L-Frame S&W or GP100 or bigger. they're stout loads and you'll want to crank off a few as it charges .
Click to expand...

How much recoil would you estimate the 180 grain and 200 grain Cor Bons produce in a GP 100 sized gun? These are lot loads (they approach light-moderate .41 magnum performance), and I'm curious as to how much recoil such loads produce compared to a .41 magnum
 
My personal preference would be for a Smith & Wesson
L-frame 686 .357 magnum, with a 6" barrel. As I read
the K-fornia restrictions, I believe the 686-6 has been
added to the "approved list"? Again, my personal choice
would be an older model 686; but any - up to and
including the -5 would suffice!:) :cool: :D

Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member
 
I'm also curious as to whether the .357 Marlin lever action rifles are strong enough to take a stead diet of the 180 grain and 200 grain Cor Bon hunting loads. A Marlin lever action and Ruger GP 100 loaded with Cor Bon hunting loads would make a nice battery, IMO.

The velocities out of a carbine length barrel would be impressive, I think.
 
I think the caliber choice is quite good.
The load of choice more than adequate.

I would rather use it in a substantial gun...
So as to be able to practice with gun and load...
Enough to get as good with them as I can.

Camping in California, or anywhere, your most likely danger
is going to be from two legged critter.

Sam
 
The SP101 can indeed fire these without breaking, in a pinch. And if that's all you have, go ahead and load those Cor-Bon monsters. But the term "steady diet" is meaningless because it would hurt too much, I suspect :).

On a more serious note: the GP100 is an easy gun to find as a range rental. Get ahold of either type of Cor-Bon hunting load, since recoil is in the same ballpark, and try 'em out.
 
Hi ...

.357 is my standard backwoods revolver, for most reasons already stated. Barrel length is only important regarding how you plan to carry it. The longer barrels, however, certainly add some legs to the cartridge.

Sure, I have a fondness for .44 Magnum & .45 Colt, especially in SA revolvers, and enjoy carrying them in the country ... but a good DA revolver is more "suitable" ... sigh ... for general all-around backwoods defensive carry & use most of the time. And .357 Magnum is chambered in more easily carried DA revolvers than the larger calibers. My 5 1/2" Redhawk and 6 1/2" 629 Classic are just a little too heavy for most of what I enjoy doing nowadays, unless I anticipate a specific need for them.

I have a great Mag Na Ported & tuned Ruger Service Six Heavy Barrel, as well as a little SP-101. The Service Six is just a handy medium framed revolver, and I've lost count of the handloads and factory Magnum loads it's digested. I really liked my 686 when I had one issued to me, and used it for rural carry off duty. A new 686, a Ruger GP100, and one of the new Performance Center 8-shot .357's, are on my "gotta get one someday" list ...

The newer generation of factory "heavy" loads & hunting loads for the .357 Magnum have given us some interesting options for this enduring caliber ... I think, anyway ...
 
My S&W 586 has been my companion many-a-time while backpacking the Pacific NW & as backup for pig hunting.

Only things I've ever drawn on were marmots & racoons though.
 
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