Feral Hog pistol in .357 magnum

A

Andy Blozinski

New member
I'm not looking for pistol model suggestions. I already know which one I would get. I'm pretty inexperienced at hunting, so I'm looking for one technical suggestion. Would a .357 magnum specifically with a 4" barrel be a decent choice to hunt feral hogs? I'm guessing with Buffalo Bore 180 grain bullets.
 
I guess it would depend how big your folks hogs are. Pigs worund here only get up to maybe 200 lbs on a huge one. I'd be comftorable with my old Dan Wesson 4'. If you live where there's 4-600 lbs pigs you may want something different.
 
I personally think a .357 handgun is light for oinkers, so I'd personally go with a 6-8" barrel gun and feed it the hottest loads I could find, probably 158 or 180 grain soft-nose loads.
 
"I'm not looking for pistol model suggestions. I already know which one I would get. I'm pretty inexperienced at hunting, so I'm looking for one technical suggestion. Would a .357 magnum specifically with a 4" barrel be a decent choice to hunt feral hogs? I'm guessing with Buffalo Bore 180 grain bullets."




To me a .357 will work with the right shooter, but you said you are inexperienced at hunting which sends up a red flag. Most folks do not start hunting with a handgun.

The internals in a hog are not in the same place as in a deer.

Length of barrel, if you are starting out, I would recommend a 6" barrel.

There are durn few 400 to 600 pound hogs running around the woods unless they have been pen raised and turned loose. In a year we are lucky to trap one which will top 300 lbs.

Caliber is choice, I prefer the 41 Mag versus a .357, the extra "umph" is nice. The .44 Mag in some pistols is not comfortable to shoot for some folks and I do not like the extra noise.

For shooting hogs up close, as when using dogs, a .41 with a 4 5/8s barrel is my preference. For longer shooting, a minimum of 6" and preferably 10" barrel.
 
I hunted with a 357 dan Wesson for hogs for 20 years growing up in florida. I hand loaded 170gr speer sp and 180gr hard cast and shot factory federal 180gr hard cast. Corbon also has a 180gr sp 1200fps. I used a 8" barrel so velocity would be a little higher but the federal load will do the job and is a very mild load . My hand loads were 180gr at almost 1300fps. Not a good one handed load to shoot. Both will kill 350 lb plus hogs with the hotter loads breaking both front shoulders on a 382lber. Heres some you can buy from underwood . There ammo has chronographed well for me in shorter barrels in different cartridges. .
http://www.underwoodammo.com/357magnum180grainlfngcboxof50.aspx
 
Depends on if you can shoot your chosen revolver.

I shot several moose and a buffalo with a 4" Model 28 using 150 Gr LSWCs. (Lyman bullet 358477). That mold may be hard to find but 158 LSWC are easy to find.

Last I heard moose and buffalo are bigger then hogs.

Its more about shooting in my book.

Shoot a bunch of bowling pin matches with your revolver with full 357 loads. Get to where you can clean the pins off the table with one cylinder in reasonable time, you're good to go.
 
With a scope, yes but marginally, and keep your shots under 50 yards. With iron sights, no - not unless you keep your shots very short (under 20 yards; maybe 25). Just not enough sight radius to ensure a good hit.
 
russian hogs vs henry 45 colt

needles to say I had to scope my henry at 25 yrds I can stack them,50 yrds I cant see,bummer ,anyway I went hog hunting with it an a buddy,came up on some averaged 200-300 lbs they get really big here in ms., 75 yrds out shot a boar dead in the head between the eyes,bout 300 lbs.,that bugger grunted an shook his head walked off a bit an ran off,i was using 250 swc 1,400 fps, I don't like loosing an animal, so they got the hog dogs an we found him about 1.5 miles from where I shot him,he was shot right where I said I hit him,this rifle does not like 300 gr. bullets,it shoots all over,200 gr. shoots the best but I figured that was to light for a hog
I wont be hunting hogs no more with this rifle,if I cant get a clean kill I normally use a 6x284 with a 87 gr.bthp @3200 fps an do a behind the ear shot ,an im 2 to 300 yrds, away so I can wait for the shot they don't see me,that head shot should have dropped that hog,not bounced off im sorry I didn't mention my henry is the big boy 45 colt
 
Quote:
needles to say I had to scope my henry at 25 yrds I can stack them,50 yrds I cant see,bummer ,anyway I went hog hunting with it an a buddy,came up on some averaged 200-300 lbs they get really big here in ms., 75 yrds out shot a boar dead in the head between the eyes,bout 300 lbs.,that bugger grunted an shook his head walked off a bit an ran off,i was using 250 swc 1,400 fps, I don't like loosing an animal, so they got the hog dogs an we found him about 1.5 miles from where I shot him,he was shot right where I said I hit him,this rifle does not like 300 gr. bullets,it shoots all over,200 gr. shoots the best but I figured that was to light for a hog
I wont be hunting hogs no more with this rifle,if I cant get a clean kill I normally use a 6x284 with a 87 gr.bthp @3200 fps an do a behind the ear shot ,an im 2 to 300 yrds, away so I can wait for the shot they don't see me,that head shot should have dropped that hog,not bounced off im sorry I didn't mention my henry is the big boy 45 colt

What am I missing? You say you can't see at 50 but you shot a hog at 75?
At 75 yards a 240 grain cast bullet bounced off a hogs head?
WOW.
By the way. Where do you hunt hogs where you can see them at 200 to 300 yards?
 
Everyone thinks they are Marshall Dillon and Wyatt Earp with a pistol and Elmer Keith is their religious figure.

I went and watched at a modern pistol range for some time since I had some time to kill. The folks cannot hit a target at 7 1/2 yards with a 2 hand grip.

All they do is bang, bang, bang, as fast as they can. Then you hear the double tap over and over. When you look at their targets, there are no holes in the targets.

Then these folks wonder, how can I not kill critters with a pistol.

Along with a Hunters certification, a certification of marksmanship should be required to receiving a hunting license.

In all honesty, if you cannot shoot a 95 at 25 yards and 85 at 50 yards, offhand with a pistol, you do not need to hunt critters with a pistol.....
 
it's all about shot placement

Shot placement rules the day. If you can place your shots with the 357 into the vitals it will work fine. If shot placement with that gun at the distances your hog is at are iffy it's a problem. You can kill hogs with a 22 if you place the shot right. I have had one run off wounded from a poorly placed 3006 hit. So how well can you hit with the four inch 357? That's the question.
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Yeah, like I said, .357 magnum is underpowered for larger hogs when it's coming out of a handgun.

I'd steer clear and go for a 10mm or .44 magnum option.
 
Use the handgun of reasonable power that you can shoot very
well with.
Most handgunners have a hard enough time with a .44 magnum.
If you can shoot well with the .357 using good loads then that's what you should use.
How many game animals have you taken with a handgun?
With a rifle?
How long have you been hunting game?
 
Never hunted before. I was thinking 50 yards or less. I'm not sure if I'll get a scope for it or not. I plan on going with someone experienced so I can learn. I'm not a fan of the concept of putting out food and target shooting. I want to learn how to track and actually hunt. I figure this will end up with me close. I'm choosing feral hogs as the target because I see hunting them as doing everyone and everything a big favor. Well, except the hogs.
 
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