357 magnum personal defense

I personally have experienced a 357 being discharged in a small room. It was sound for just a couple of milliseconds, then I was deaf for a few minutes. I could not tell if it was loud or not.
Click to expand...

As have I, I was not deafened though. Were your ears bleeding?
 
A .357 125 grain round out of a 2.5" Sp101 is the most powerful round personally that I have ever experienced. Recoil was intense and accuracy was poor, but that was due to factors such as using too short of a revolver for the round, and not being used to the recoil. It's definitely highly effective for personal defense. Wasn't deafening, but that was outdoors. A 357 mag out of a 4-6" DA-only revolver would be an ideal self defense weapon in terms of stopping power. For me personally, I don't care for magnums, but absolutely love revolvers, and feel that the 38+P or the 357 are exceptional rounds for as-needed potent firepower.
 
Iirc, the fib carried .357 revolvers loaded with +p 125 grain 38 special for a while about thirty years ago.

They would not have played that game now. They would have designed a .357 round to their own specs instead of a compromise round.
 
Barnes 140gr VOR-TX with the XPB bullet. Approx. 1215 fps from a 2" barrel and 1365 fps from a 4" barrel on my Dan Wesson. Due to the seating depth of the all copper bullet (approx. the same as a lead core 180gr bullet), this is actually a modernized .38-44HV load so recoil and muzzle flash are less than a full-power Magnum.
 
Years ago, when the so-called cop-killer bullet controversy was making headlines, everyone in the media was trying to find reasons to outlaw any type of copper or teflon coated bullets that could penetrate the bullet-resistant vests cops wore. Even jacketed bullets that couldn't penetrate these vests often got caught up in the fray by idiot lawmakers and reporters who didn't know the difference!

Working for the NRA at the time and covering the issue, I often touched base with gun writers and various pundits who were working with police and civic groups. And then the technology wasn't as advanced as it is today. And there were several things we were purposely trying to keep quiet for the good of the cops who wore such protection. First, any good centerfire rifle round could defeat such vests, and two, this was hush-hush back in those days, nearly all of the 125-grain jacketed hollow-point .357 magnum rounds then could also defeat them as well.

Can you imagine what the media back then would have done with that? Yep, all the proposed bans would have included them! At the time, we didn't want people to know what ammo would defeat vests because we didn't want criminals to use them against cops. But always happy to step up were the media! And rather than using a type of ammo, cop killers simply went for head shots when they ambushed their prey -- thanks to the media.

At the time it was pretty impressive that the .357 was the only caliber with a standard round that powerful. Vests have now improved, but no one should turn their noses up at the power and versatility of this caliber.

 
"First, any good centerfire rifle round could defeat such vests, and two, this was hush-hush back in those days, nearly all of the 125-grain jacketed hollow-point .357 magnum rounds then could also defeat them as well."

I wonder about 327 Federal and vests.

You have a smaller diameter (.31") round going faster than most 357 loads.

But it is lighter.
 
... I wonder about 327 Federal and vests.
Click to expand...

Just poking around the web, there doesn't seem to be a lot of backyard testing with this round yet. I've seen all sorts of tests, ranging in their scientific rigor, of other rounds. Just not a whole lot on this one. There also isn't a whole lot available in terms of specialty rounds.

People often focus on velocity and mass in these discussions but factors like bullet shape, composition, and sectional density start to become more relevant when we're talking about penetrating different barriers. The .327 has good sectional density but AFAIK, all the factory ammo is either hollowpoints or a semi-jacketed soft-point. I'd love to see something like the Lehigh Xtreme Penetrator in .327 Federal.
 
"What 38 load with the same bullet achieves the same velocity? What 38 is rated to handle comparable pressure levels?"
Click to expand...

Ok the only .38 load that can handle .357 pressures is the .38-44 and then only out of a .38 Heavy Duty/Model 20 or out of a .357.

Do not exceed maximum pressure levels recommended by loading manuals.
 
My favorite factory load for the 357 magnum is Hornady 135 grain Critical Duty. My next one is Hornady 125 grain Critical defence.
 
Lucky Gunner has just released its testing of .38 Special and .357 Magnum ammo: link
Click to expand...

Thank you, 2damnold4this. I've been thinking of switching out my carry ammo for something different, this is very timely.
 
what revolver

I did not see what type revolver the OP intended to load.

I'd not run the same load in one of the smaller J type frames, as I would in a N frame or something like a Blackhawk.

As I do not have a small frame .357, I can only advise on what I would use in a full size revolver, and that would be full house 125 JHP, Federal or likely Rem.
Considerable blast and flash, but felt recoil is not abusive in a full size pistol.
 
For bipedal self-defense, the FBI load: .38 Special, 158 grains LSWC +P or its hollow point version.

I never use .357 Mag cartridges for bipedal self-defense.
 
I got off work a little early today and conducted an experiment with some loads I had on hand. Using my Kimber K6s, I shot some of my .38 Special 130 grain mild reloads, 110 grain Hornady Critical Defense in .38 Special, 110 grain +P Hornady Critical Defense in .38 Special, 135 grain +p Speer short barrel .38 Special and 135 grain Speer short barrel .357 Magnum.

At ten yards, my mild 130 grain loads shot a hair low in the K6s as did both Speer loads. The two Hornady loads shot about four inches lower. The .357 load made more noise and had a bit more recoil but seemed controllable. The Hornady +P also had a bit more bark than the other loads but the recoil didn't seem bad. All of the nickel plated cartridges extracted easily despite having fired many of the .38 loads before the .357s.

At this point, I was thinking that the Speer .357 load might be the best for carry. But then came the shot timer. From the low ready with the shot timer, I shot several strings with my .38 reloads, the Hornady 110 grain +P .38s and the Speer .357 short barrel rounds at five yards. The target was a ten inch plate. As expected, the time to the first shot was about the same for each round. What was revealing was the split times. It took only slightly longer to get the second hit with the Hornady +p as compared to the mild reloads but the split times with .357 were almost 50% slower. I could get about four good hits with the 38+P in the same time as I could get three good hits with the .357 in the Kimber.

Food for thought.
 
when i carry my Ruger Sec-Six 4", i load Fed 158gr JSP, nothing fancy and should get the job done if need be.
 
Last edited:
I've pretty much standardized on the Speer 135-gr. +P Gold Dot Hollow Point in .38 Special.

My primary carry and house guns are .38 Specials, so it's easiest just to use that ammo.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top