I carry a Ruger SP101 3" with Rem 110gr JHP and personally think it's the greatest thing since Budweiser in the can! I love it, the gun that is. LOL! The weapon is thin enough to conceal easily and more than powerful enough to "take out the trash". Anyone who says Ruger doesn't make combat handguns never picked up a SP101 or GP100. They are the best of breed since Colt and S&W basically went out of the defensive handgun business. I own both a SP101 and a GP100 4" and would not sell either one.
.357 snubby for Self Defense ?
- Thread starter Waitone
- Start date
Ben Shepherd
New member
The sp101 is BY FAR the strongest, if you want to shoot exclusively 357mag loads. Trigger pull is a little heavier that most are used to, but you can get a spring kit to lighten it up. I've had mine for 2+ years, carry remington 125 golden sabers. I love that gun!!!! You can depend on a BANG! every time you pull the trigger. I would suggest houge mono-grips with 357 loads. If you REALLY need it to, it will shoot 180's, although they pack a healthy wallop.
I know a guy who just got one of those S&W scandium .357 lightweights. Looks spiffy, but with full power loads he couldn't even keep a 2 handed grip in slow fire. He said that after all 5 (or 6 whatever it shoots) his hands were trembling and beet red. May not matter in self-defense, but definitely will trim down the range time! A 12oz gun may be too light. Another guy with the .38 version said it had pretty hard hitting recoil as well. LAter.
Mike Irwin
Staff
"why the step back in technology..."
:barf:
:barf:Marko Kloos
Inactive
I am just curious as to why you keep hanging out in the Revolver Forum, when all your contributions here are merely comments regarding the obsolescence of the revolver.
I don't mind arguing the merits and drawbacks of the wheelgun, but you have yet to furnish adequate, documented, observable and empirical evidence as to why a revolver is a worse choice in a real-life defensive situation than a semi-auto pistol. If you have such evidence, I'd be interested in seeing it. Until then, try and change your tune every once in a while, 'cause it's getting just a mite old.
4thHorseman
New member
355Sigfan
Now you did it. Gettin these guys all riled up about the old "revolver vs semi-automatic" again!
Seriously though..... some things do get better with age. My trusty old revolver is like an old friend. Always ready, always there when I call on it. Unless you can relate, it is mute point.
I guess if I cut my teeth on a 1911 it would be the same thing. But for 30 years its been the wheel gun. I do own a Colt 1911 and a Sig, but I don't get a warm fuzzy with them. Just a matter of opinion I guess.
Now you did it. Gettin these guys all riled up about the old "revolver vs semi-automatic" again!
Seriously though..... some things do get better with age. My trusty old revolver is like an old friend. Always ready, always there when I call on it. Unless you can relate, it is mute point.
I guess if I cut my teeth on a 1911 it would be the same thing. But for 30 years its been the wheel gun. I do own a Colt 1911 and a Sig, but I don't get a warm fuzzy with them. Just a matter of opinion I guess.
VictorLouis
New member
PAT said:
My friend, it is THEE issue, IMHO. That's why I've taken that step down myself.
You make me giggle.
My friend, it is THEE issue, IMHO. That's why I've taken that step down myself.
You make me giggle.
PAT,
Because not all of us seek a hardware solution to a software problem. With any of my carry wheelguns, I have six fast, utterly dependable, accurate shots in a hard-hitting caliber. As a non-LEO, I don't have to post a sigline like "I intend to go in harm's way", as I most certainly don't. My most likely encounter will be with one, maybe two, perps; perhaps they're armed, perhaps not. According to most studies as well as my own personal experiences, they will most likely take flight at the first sight of the gun or when shots are first fired. The odds of me needing a handgun to assault a fortified position held by a swarm of bloodthirsty ninja holdup artists is slim. If I am assaulted at work or home and am carrying a revolver, I have one reload (moonclip or speedloader) available, and a backup piece (a Glock 33 in my purse and/or a Beretta Tomcat or Jetfire in a pocket) to keep me covered until I can reach a nearby shotgun or carbine to repel boarders.
If you feel that the right "high-tech" wonderpistol in the latest zoomencaliber strapped into the bestest high-speed, low-drag tactical thigh rig is necessary for a good gunfighter, explain why the LE transition to high-cap autoloaders coincided with a skyrocketing number of shots fired per-cop per-gunfight and a plummeting LE hit ratio. Perhaps the "run-your-Glock-to-slidelock" phenomena that has caused such PR blunders as the Diallou shooting would be less common if 686's or GP-100's were the order of the day. How long would the Miami massacre have lasted if the infamous 115gr Silvertip had been a 158gr SJHP? What model of autopistol was used to put an end to Platt and Mattix?
Because not all of us seek a hardware solution to a software problem. With any of my carry wheelguns, I have six fast, utterly dependable, accurate shots in a hard-hitting caliber. As a non-LEO, I don't have to post a sigline like "I intend to go in harm's way", as I most certainly don't. My most likely encounter will be with one, maybe two, perps; perhaps they're armed, perhaps not. According to most studies as well as my own personal experiences, they will most likely take flight at the first sight of the gun or when shots are first fired. The odds of me needing a handgun to assault a fortified position held by a swarm of bloodthirsty ninja holdup artists is slim. If I am assaulted at work or home and am carrying a revolver, I have one reload (moonclip or speedloader) available, and a backup piece (a Glock 33 in my purse and/or a Beretta Tomcat or Jetfire in a pocket) to keep me covered until I can reach a nearby shotgun or carbine to repel boarders.
If you feel that the right "high-tech" wonderpistol in the latest zoomencaliber strapped into the bestest high-speed, low-drag tactical thigh rig is necessary for a good gunfighter, explain why the LE transition to high-cap autoloaders coincided with a skyrocketing number of shots fired per-cop per-gunfight and a plummeting LE hit ratio. Perhaps the "run-your-Glock-to-slidelock" phenomena that has caused such PR blunders as the Diallou shooting would be less common if 686's or GP-100's were the order of the day. How long would the Miami massacre have lasted if the infamous 115gr Silvertip had been a 158gr SJHP? What model of autopistol was used to put an end to Platt and Mattix?
VictorLouis
Reliablity is the issue thats why I carry a glock not a revolver. I have had revolvers missfire, have the bullets jump crip and tie the gun up. I have had cartridge rims get stuck under the extractor. plus revolvers jam every 6 rounds. There is a reason that no military and almost no LEO's use Revolvers as primary sidearms anymore. They have thier place as hunters, plinkers and as back up guns but they are not a viable choice for first line duty anymore.
PAT
Reliablity is the issue thats why I carry a glock not a revolver. I have had revolvers missfire, have the bullets jump crip and tie the gun up. I have had cartridge rims get stuck under the extractor. plus revolvers jam every 6 rounds. There is a reason that no military and almost no LEO's use Revolvers as primary sidearms anymore. They have thier place as hunters, plinkers and as back up guns but they are not a viable choice for first line duty anymore.
PAT
Ben Shepherd
New member
355sig, I own several of either type. I usually carry one of each at any given time. My sp101 has NEVER had a problem(over 10,000 rounds, all but 10 were full-house 357 ).
While shooting with the owner at a local range: Brand new glock(I watched him unpack it) shot the spring guide rod down range instead of cycling the action on the very first shot.
I don't dislike glocks, a lot of guys in our local IDPA chapter shoot the h*** out of em with no trouble. However I go with what works for me. You gotta go with what works for you.
Whatever YOU decide to carry:YOU must have complete confidence that YOUR gun will fire EVERY time you pull the trigger.
Maybe revo's don't like you 'cause you don't like them.
While shooting with the owner at a local range: Brand new glock(I watched him unpack it) shot the spring guide rod down range instead of cycling the action on the very first shot.
I don't dislike glocks, a lot of guys in our local IDPA chapter shoot the h*** out of em with no trouble. However I go with what works for me. You gotta go with what works for you.
Whatever YOU decide to carry:YOU must have complete confidence that YOUR gun will fire EVERY time you pull the trigger.
Maybe revo's don't like you 'cause you don't like them.
355sigfan,
Explain to me how the needs of LEO's and the military in a handgun are in any way at all similar.
The military needs handguns in war zones, where large amounts of bullets get expended indiscriminately in a thing called "suppressive fire". Pistols have large mags so that they can be used for long periods of time between ammo resupplies with a minimal amount of magazines carried. A pistol may make it through more than one firefight without a mag change since they're frequently used to fire an emergency shot or two when a main weapon is broken or needs reloading.
A lot of LEO's in recent high-publicity shootings have made the mistake of thinking they were soldiers in a war zone that needed "suppressive fire". The result is the "spray-n-pray" silliness we see so frequently, such as the recent gunfight here in Knoxville where several mags were fired at a BG in a traffic stop, with only a couple of hits, and an innocent woman at a traffic light down the street took a police bullet through her headrest that would have killed her had she not been changing radio stations.
Get over this "firepower" thing. 'Firepower' is steel on target, not filling the air with poorly aimed chunks of lead.
Explain to me how the needs of LEO's and the military in a handgun are in any way at all similar.
The military needs handguns in war zones, where large amounts of bullets get expended indiscriminately in a thing called "suppressive fire". Pistols have large mags so that they can be used for long periods of time between ammo resupplies with a minimal amount of magazines carried. A pistol may make it through more than one firefight without a mag change since they're frequently used to fire an emergency shot or two when a main weapon is broken or needs reloading.
A lot of LEO's in recent high-publicity shootings have made the mistake of thinking they were soldiers in a war zone that needed "suppressive fire". The result is the "spray-n-pray" silliness we see so frequently, such as the recent gunfight here in Knoxville where several mags were fired at a BG in a traffic stop, with only a couple of hits, and an innocent woman at a traffic light down the street took a police bullet through her headrest that would have killed her had she not been changing radio stations.
Get over this "firepower" thing. 'Firepower' is steel on target, not filling the air with poorly aimed chunks of lead.
I've had Glocks stovepipe, jam and misfire as well. What's the difference? All guns are gonna mess up sometimes.
All I know is that I can't limp wrist my revolver, it won't have problems with oddly shaped bullets or oddly sized cartridges, and I can shoot lead, too.
If simplicity is obsolete..
All I know is that I can't limp wrist my revolver, it won't have problems with oddly shaped bullets or oddly sized cartridges, and I can shoot lead, too.
If simplicity is obsolete..
Mike Irwin
Staff
Even more importantly, explain to me how the needs of an LEO, a member of the military, and a civilian CCW are even remotely similar.
I can tell you why police no longer carry revolvers as a general matter of course...
PERCEPTION.
Not reliability, or need for the newest technology.
The PERCEPTION that the average run of the mill street cop in lower Dumb **** Township, population 272, is outgunned by the hoards of coke freaked drug dealers with "7 trillion shot without reloading ubersault weapons.
Doesn't matter that the most violent thing ever to hit Dumb **** Township is Mrs. Rasmussen's toy poodle...
It was a PERCEPTION that police everywhere, not just the big cities, were under siege, dodging through a hail of hot lead day in and day out.
No matter that over 95 percent of all police, even police in big cities, never fire a shot in anger in their entire career.
If crapazines like Buns & Whammo (you know, the people who regularly bring you stories like "ULTIMATE MANSTOPPER SHOOTOUT -- .0002 Micromidget vs. a Flaming Gasoline Enema! Which is better?") tells police that every average Joe Donut needs a 15-shot semi-automatic, lord knows they had better listen.
Perception is a wonderful thing.
It's also often a wonderously WRONG thing.
I can tell you why police no longer carry revolvers as a general matter of course...
PERCEPTION.
Not reliability, or need for the newest technology.
The PERCEPTION that the average run of the mill street cop in lower Dumb **** Township, population 272, is outgunned by the hoards of coke freaked drug dealers with "7 trillion shot without reloading ubersault weapons.
Doesn't matter that the most violent thing ever to hit Dumb **** Township is Mrs. Rasmussen's toy poodle...
It was a PERCEPTION that police everywhere, not just the big cities, were under siege, dodging through a hail of hot lead day in and day out.
No matter that over 95 percent of all police, even police in big cities, never fire a shot in anger in their entire career.
If crapazines like Buns & Whammo (you know, the people who regularly bring you stories like "ULTIMATE MANSTOPPER SHOOTOUT -- .0002 Micromidget vs. a Flaming Gasoline Enema! Which is better?") tells police that every average Joe Donut needs a 15-shot semi-automatic, lord knows they had better listen.
Perception is a wonderful thing.
It's also often a wonderously WRONG thing.
Pat;
Yea, it is called "spray and pray"...many LEO's couldn't hit the side of a barn if they needed to. Often the only time they shoot a gun is during their yearly qual. So, if we give them the latest hi-cap "vunderschuster" they may have a 1 in 18 chance of hitting their intended target
. But, I would not put any money on it.
The military uses hi-cap because you buy them for them, they should have never replaced the 1911, but they also got bit by the "vunderschuster, look how much lead we can throw at them without a reload" bug. Tamara hit on the head with her explaination
. IMHO.
Use what you like, I will use what I like...which is 99% of the time a Para P-14..the rest of the time I tuck an airweight into my pocket.
I would like to think you will eventually get over your "gee-whiz, if it is new and the gun rags like then it must be the best there is" attitude and look at each and every firearm for its own merits and faults, and then make up your own mind rather than espousing whatever the latest gun rag you read said.
I personally think a CZ52 would make a good carry piece, after ther proper work has been done to it, but I can't get any gun rags to go along with me.
bob
Yea, it is called "spray and pray"...many LEO's couldn't hit the side of a barn if they needed to. Often the only time they shoot a gun is during their yearly qual. So, if we give them the latest hi-cap "vunderschuster" they may have a 1 in 18 chance of hitting their intended target
The military uses hi-cap because you buy them for them, they should have never replaced the 1911, but they also got bit by the "vunderschuster, look how much lead we can throw at them without a reload" bug. Tamara hit on the head with her explaination
Use what you like, I will use what I like...which is 99% of the time a Para P-14..the rest of the time I tuck an airweight into my pocket.
I would like to think you will eventually get over your "gee-whiz, if it is new and the gun rags like then it must be the best there is" attitude and look at each and every firearm for its own merits and faults, and then make up your own mind rather than espousing whatever the latest gun rag you read said.
I personally think a CZ52 would make a good carry piece, after ther proper work has been done to it, but I can't get any gun rags to go along with me.
bob
Mike Irwin
Staff
Oh, now Bob, you know that's not true...
Within WEEKS of being armed with the new WONDERGLOCK, the most WONDEROUS & RELIABLE handgun ever made (it was a GOOD thing they gave up those old, technologically ancient and unreliable revolvers), the Washington, DC, Metropolitan Police Department started shooting at, and hitting, suspects, coworkers, etc., with a HIGH degree of regularity.
Unfortunatly, though, if you believe the officers in question, those shots were all accidental discharges.
So DC really had a triple-threat situation going when they were armed with their new VUNDERGUNZ...
1. Higher rate of accidental discharges.
2. Higher rate of accidental shootings causing injury or death.
3. MUCH higher rate of out-of-court settlements to compensate the victims.
I wonder if Glock's promotional literature/sales team highlighted those advantages?
Within WEEKS of being armed with the new WONDERGLOCK, the most WONDEROUS & RELIABLE handgun ever made (it was a GOOD thing they gave up those old, technologically ancient and unreliable revolvers), the Washington, DC, Metropolitan Police Department started shooting at, and hitting, suspects, coworkers, etc., with a HIGH degree of regularity.
Unfortunatly, though, if you believe the officers in question, those shots were all accidental discharges.
So DC really had a triple-threat situation going when they were armed with their new VUNDERGUNZ...
1. Higher rate of accidental discharges.
2. Higher rate of accidental shootings causing injury or death.
3. MUCH higher rate of out-of-court settlements to compensate the victims.
I wonder if Glock's promotional literature/sales team highlighted those advantages?