Back in the 1990s, I qualified with my 2.25" .357 Magnum Ruger SP-101 and Remington 125 gr. JHPs. I was able to qualify, but the recoil and muzzle flash was horrendous.
When I found that a hot 9mm load from my S&W 5906 had nearly as much muzzle energy and more than double the capacity, I dropped the .357 and never looked back.
It was much more comfortable to shoot and it did not have nearly as much recoil and muzzle blast as the snubbie. Follow up shots were much faster, to say the least.
I did the same research and came to the same conclusion as the OP did.
In those particular cases, a hot 9mm trumped a popular .357 snubbie every time.
Who cares if you can drop a deer at 100 yards with a 4" .357? That was never even part of the discussion!
When I found that a hot 9mm load from my S&W 5906 had nearly as much muzzle energy and more than double the capacity, I dropped the .357 and never looked back.
It was much more comfortable to shoot and it did not have nearly as much recoil and muzzle blast as the snubbie. Follow up shots were much faster, to say the least.
I did the same research and came to the same conclusion as the OP did.
In those particular cases, a hot 9mm trumped a popular .357 snubbie every time.
Who cares if you can drop a deer at 100 yards with a 4" .357? That was never even part of the discussion!