chrisintexas
New member
what would you consider the Best(least recoil/most reliable) small revolver that can shoot .357 magnum with great accuracy? thanks
Best(less recoil) small revolver that can shoot .357 magnum
- Thread starter chrisintexas
- Start date
There ain't no such thing as a low recoil small .357. Unless you mean a short barreled L or N frame.
As far as J frames the 20 oz Model 60 is the lightest gun I've shot .357 out of without yelping like a stepped on puppy.
A lot depends on grip style, the draw back is grips that help absorb recoil tend to be big.
Oh just to be technically correct the "recoil" is the same no matter what gun you use. What changes is "felt recoil".
As far as J frames the 20 oz Model 60 is the lightest gun I've shot .357 out of without yelping like a stepped on puppy.
A lot depends on grip style, the draw back is grips that help absorb recoil tend to be big.
Oh just to be technically correct the "recoil" is the same no matter what gun you use. What changes is "felt recoil".
Take a look at a Ruger SP 101, it's the small SIZE of the J Frame Smiths but SOLID steel, so more recoil-absorbing weight.
That said, I find .357 magnum a painful caliber to shoot generally--the only ones I find reasonably comfortable are the 110 grains and medium-velocity loads. I load the .38+P FBI round when I carry my .357s.
That said, I find .357 magnum a painful caliber to shoot generally--the only ones I find reasonably comfortable are the 110 grains and medium-velocity loads. I load the .38+P FBI round when I carry my .357s.
Baba Louie
New member
Look up a 60-18 5" sometime for grins and snickers. Sorta rare-ish. Add grips to help felt recoil, holster, hit the range, make small groups.
Shadi Khalil
New member
My suggestion as well.
shouldazagged
New member
It seems to me you have to really love recoil, and godawful flash and blast, to fire .357 Magnum in a snubby. I don't. The old "FBI/Metro" load suits me just fine in a steel J-frame. Among other things, since the already huge fireball from muzzle and cylinder gap is magnified in a short-barreled revolver, I'd be afraid if I had to use the .357 snub at night I'd be blinded by the first shot and unable to assess the developing situation or spot another assailant.
Short bbl revolvers are as a rule very accurate. They are very hard to shoot accurately. I can shoot 2" groups off bags at 25 yds but can't put a round in the head of a snake at 15 feet shooting off hand. Any of the small 5 shooters is gonna have a heck of a recoil with .357 loads. The steel ones are pleasant with .38 Special.
anothernewb
New member
the sp101 is possible to handle with a full house 158gr 357 load, but it's solidly in the category of "use only if necessary" I will say the stock grips do a great job. my fingers and palm feel secure and solid after a cylinder full, but I can feel my hand and wrist has been working hard.
5 rounds of that, and while not in pain, I'm ready to put the pistol down for awhile.
5 rounds of that, and while not in pain, I'm ready to put the pistol down for awhile.
Small .357 with low recoil, for the most part that idea contradicts itself.
Get a SP101 worked over by the folks at Gemini Customs, have it ported. The porting won't really reduce recoil all that much but it will reduce the amount of muzzle rise. It will be louder, and with more muzzle flash.
S&W 627 might have enough mass to soak up a lot of the .357 recoil. They make them in a few different barrel lengths all the way down to 2.625" up to 5". It is an N-Frame 8 shot .357 which is pretty epic in its own right. Cyclinder is a bit large to comfortably concealed carry it.
Get a SP101 worked over by the folks at Gemini Customs, have it ported. The porting won't really reduce recoil all that much but it will reduce the amount of muzzle rise. It will be louder, and with more muzzle flash.
S&W 627 might have enough mass to soak up a lot of the .357 recoil. They make them in a few different barrel lengths all the way down to 2.625" up to 5". It is an N-Frame 8 shot .357 which is pretty epic in its own right. Cyclinder is a bit large to comfortably concealed carry it.
L_Killkenny
New member
SP101 and recoil? My sister in law bought a SP for her first SD/HD gun and since day one has had no recoil related issues. She's even sent some of my hunting 180gr. XTP loads downrange with it.
While not a cartridge I want to shoot in any of the true lightweights the .357 is nothin to fear in most steel frame guns.
While not a cartridge I want to shoot in any of the true lightweights the .357 is nothin to fear in most steel frame guns.
Flintstone
Inactive
Since recoil is subjective that's hard to answer, but the LCR is more comfortable to me than the SP101. The 101 beats my finger up against the trigger guard. Any full house 357 is going to sting in a snubbie but the LCR is the best I've experienced. Try BB reduced load, I think they call it "tactical"---works for me.
It depends on what you consider small and how well you tolerate recoil. I personally don't find the recoil of full-power .357 Magnums from a medium-frame snub like my 2 1/2" S&W M66 or my brother's 2 3/4" Ruger Security Six to be unpleasant in the least and even a small frame gun isn't bad so long as it is of all steel construction like the Ruger SP101 or S&W M60, 640, or 649. While I've not shot one, I wouldn't expect the recoil of a medium or large frame lightweight revolver like the S&W 386 or 327 to be too bad either since such guns usually weigh as much or more than an all-steel small frame.
The only lightweight small frame that I've fired .357 Magnums through was my dad's .357 Ruger LCR. While not as bad as I expected, the recoil was substantial (noticeably more than full-power .44 Magnums through my 4" S&W 629) and two or three cylinders full is all I'd want in one sitting. The best analogy that I can give you is that the recoil was akin to catching a fastball without a glove.
Part of the equation for taming recoil lies in the grips. What you want is a grip with enough palmswell to distribute the force over the largest possible area of your hand without being so large as to force you to take an awkward or uncomfortable grip on the gun. Too small a grip will allow the gun to shift around in your hand and direct almost all of the impulse into the web of the hand while too large a grip will not allow you to get a sufficiently firm grasp on the gun and will direct the recoil into your thumb and fingers. While softer rubber grips cushion recoil somewhat, in my experience shape and fit is more important than material. Hogue or Uncle Mike's finger-groove grips tend to fit me well, but then again I have fairly large hands (I wear an XL sized glove) with long fingers.
Also, different people have different perceptions of recoil. I have been shooting .357 Magnum and larger caliber revolvers since I was 11 or 12 years old, so I'm accustomed to what many people would consider to be heavy recoil. What I find to be manageable or even pleasant may seem excessive to someone who is new to handgun shooting or has only ever shot lighter recoiling guns.
The only lightweight small frame that I've fired .357 Magnums through was my dad's .357 Ruger LCR. While not as bad as I expected, the recoil was substantial (noticeably more than full-power .44 Magnums through my 4" S&W 629) and two or three cylinders full is all I'd want in one sitting. The best analogy that I can give you is that the recoil was akin to catching a fastball without a glove.
Part of the equation for taming recoil lies in the grips. What you want is a grip with enough palmswell to distribute the force over the largest possible area of your hand without being so large as to force you to take an awkward or uncomfortable grip on the gun. Too small a grip will allow the gun to shift around in your hand and direct almost all of the impulse into the web of the hand while too large a grip will not allow you to get a sufficiently firm grasp on the gun and will direct the recoil into your thumb and fingers. While softer rubber grips cushion recoil somewhat, in my experience shape and fit is more important than material. Hogue or Uncle Mike's finger-groove grips tend to fit me well, but then again I have fairly large hands (I wear an XL sized glove) with long fingers.
Also, different people have different perceptions of recoil. I have been shooting .357 Magnum and larger caliber revolvers since I was 11 or 12 years old, so I'm accustomed to what many people would consider to be heavy recoil. What I find to be manageable or even pleasant may seem excessive to someone who is new to handgun shooting or has only ever shot lighter recoiling guns.
BigD_in_FL
Moderator
FALSE
One of the major components in calculating recoil is the mass of the gun - a 15oz J frame will have substantially more recoil than a 6" N frame firing the same cartridge