federal 357 hydra shock???

I've been watching Federal loads for a long time. I think there's a rule of thumb that applies: if the Federal ammo is loaded for police use in common police calibers, it'll be loaded plenty hot. Otherwise, relatively speaking, it'll be a wimp.

The 357Mag is no longer considered "police ammo" in the US. I would not trust my life to Federal stuff most of the time. Right now their best stuff is the HST series in 9mm+P, 40S&W and 45ACP. Anything else...no. Sorry.

On top of that the Hydrashock is outdated. The Gold Dot slugs are currently the most high-tech JHPs available in 357Mag and 38+P. The Winchester Ranger-T series and the Federal HST is slightly better tech than the Gold Dots BUT they're not available in 357 or 38+P...and the Gold Dots are not at all far behind anyways.

I'm carrying 125gr Gold Dots loaded balls-out in my 357Mag.
 
Just picked up some 357 158gr for a 4" Python.
I always thought 158 was pretty much standard for 357, but when i went to check the reviews, I see a lot of hype for the 125gr federal.
one source even stated that the 158 should only be used as a hunting round!
am I wrong in wanting to use this ammo for self defense?

thanks
tom
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Sounds like you've been reading that Chuck Hawks ammo article that's been circulating on the Internet for 15 years. It's total crap. My advice - do the opposite of what Chuck says and you should be all right.
 
for hunting, like deer, coyotes, etc. take a look at Federal Fusion 158gr. It has excellent penetration and expansion. Made especially for hunting. Recoil will not be too bad in a Python.
 
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Shot placement

Howdy,

A solid torso hit with Federal's 158 hydra-shok would have to be as good as one could ask for in a self-defense scenario. My 2 cents and YMMV.
 
I think post #20 by Bill is about right.

Back in the 1970s a fella by the name of Lee Jurras developed a series of jacketed hollowpoint bullets that shot well and were accurate and expanded more reliably than bullets made by anyone else. They were just on the lower side of tolerance for bullet size and jacketed which meant less friction and less energy was taken up in overcoming the resistance of the barrel. The result was a very fast bullet. They were also light weight. This began the trend for 125 gr. and 110 gr. loads for the 38 Spl. and the .357. His company was Super Vel.

The major ammo companies learned from him and produced their own versions and the 125 gr. loads for the 357 became popular and the traditional 158 gr. loads fell behind some except in home defense and hunting and with a good many shooters who stuck with lead swchp and similar bullets.

The 158 gr. loads are good for self defense. I prefer them. Less muzzle flash,less noise, less felt recoil. Good in any size handgun. For me at least.

Look around here...http://www.midwayusa.com/find?sortby=1&itemsperpage=20&newcategorydimensionid=15454&

tipoc
 
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Tipoc,

I deleted a whole long paragraph in my post giving Lee Juras & Super-Vel credit for starting the fast & light bullet and +P ammo markets. My post was already getting too long without adding that historical detail!

Speaking of flash... those early 125gr JHP loads were not flash suppressed very well and were developed using 7.5" unvented test barrels. The result was that when police fired them from a 6-inch barrel at night there was a gawd-almighty noise and moderate flash. But from a 4-inch barrel, the noise was horrendous and the flash was just short of a nuclear weapon.
 
Being an old mossback I still believe that a 158Gr. LSWCGC ahead of 14.5 grains of 2400 is the end all be all in .357 magnum ammo. It always worked for me.
 
I've shot a lot of 158 gr, but carry 125 gr for self-defense... the reason being most tests show better results in self-defense shooting , a higher velocity, etc.
But .... no probem at all with 158 gr either.
 
For along time I carried 125gr +P Golden Sabers, but only target shot using .38 loads. My K frame Smith is getting older and I've put about 3k worth of rounds through it both .38 and .357.

I started reading that in the K frames the higher pressure and lighter bullets in +p loads can cause problems in the long term, so I'm opting to go to 158 grain HP.

Reading this thread have given me some ideas for directions to go for 158 ammo varieties.

Thanks all!
 
I started reading that in the K frames the higher pressure and lighter bullets in +p loads can cause problems in the long term, so I'm opting to go to 158 grain HP.
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The problems with K-Frame forcing cones was due to the use of .357 Magnum 125gr ammo, not .38 Special +P. The .38 +P produces only about 20,000 psi while the .357 produces 35,000 psi. There is little worry using .38 Special ammo, even +P with 125gr ammo.

Additionally, the problems especially occurred with weapons that lacked good hygiene practices. Keep the bore free of lead residue, especially around the forcing cone and you're much less likely to see a problem.
 
There's nothing wrong with the 158g, but from everything I have ever heard, read, or seen with my own eyes, the 125g .357 magnum is the best for stopping aggressive human threats.
 
It may be time to challenge that widely held opinion.

The 125gr JHP succeeded in gaining its reputation when most JHP bullet designs were relatively unreliable below about 1250 fps. Remington's SJHP (Semi-Jacketed Hollow Point) was an early successful design when driven up to 1450 fps from a six-inch barrel.

Today's JHP designs use a completely different design philosophy backed up by a lot more research. I'd venture a guess that when tested, you'd be hard pressed to find much difference in wound effects between a Speer Gold Dot 125gr and 158gr bullet in the .357 cartridge.
 
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