How and why (your favorite caliber)

Difficult question to answer. So I'll answer with the two calibers I reload most. The .38spl tied with the .45acp. I have more than one .38spl revolver and more than one 1911 chambered for the .45acp. I also have one treasured revolver chambered for the .45acp. I reload both by the thousands, mostly target level loads. Lead bullets rule in both. In the .45acp it's the 200 grain swc. The .45acp reloads run around 800 fps to maybe 850 fps. The hollow base wadcutter or the flat base wadcutter at 700 fps to 730 fps.

Both calibers/reloads are very accurate, gentle on the hands and economical. They work splendidly on small game, targets and tin cans.
 
Nothing. Most of my shooting is dry fire. :p

I don't think I have a favorite caliber.....my defensive armament is spread out from 9mm Parabellum, to .38 Special, to .45 ACP, depending on what time of year and what clothes I'll be wearing.

At one time 6.5 x 55 mm was my hands-down favorite.
 
.41 Magnum

It was the first centerfire pistol I ever shot, and evolved into a 30 year love affair with it and the firearms chambered in it. I probably have more .41's than any other caliber I maintain, including the .22LR. It's a bit challenging... finding components and data to handload, although more components have become available lately, which is nice. It's unusual... it's not a .357 or a .44... and more than once I've been told I must be mistaken, there's no '.41'

Now, if you are talking the pistol itself... I love my big .41 revolvers, but nothing takes the place of a .45 1911.
 
.45 ACP fired from a 5" 1911, 230gr @ 850 fps, give or take.

I just find it satisfying to shoot in a way that nothing else quite is. Thump, thump, thump.
 
38 Special !
Decades of NRA Bullseye target shooting and a dedicated model 64 S&W built for Bullseye Shooting by Clark Custom Guns , and mounted with a red dot sight .
2.8 grains of Bullseye powder under a 148 grain cast wadcutter ...Sweet !
Accurate with the nicest trigger pull , shooting tiny groups just puts a smile on my face....just thinking about shooting it makes me smile.
I'm smiling,
Gary
 
I've had dozens of handguns over the years, in a multitude of calibers, but I keep coming back to the 9mm. To me, it just feels right. Just enough recoil without having too much, cheap to buy, easy to reload, all around good choice for defense. Yup, 9mm is my #1 favorite. And, .38 special is a close second.
 
For me it's also .41 Mag. As a hand loader it's extremely versatile and can go from mild to wild. I've been shooting it for a little over 30 years in my revolvers and also in my Henry BBS for the last couple years. It takes care of business. But, as I get older and my hands are more beat up I'm really loving the .357 Mag just as much and actually shoot it more due to the lesser recoil and its versatility to shoot .38 Special as well. I also have this in a Henry BBS and love it. Funny thing about the Henry's, every time I let my friends a shoot them they fall in love with them and comment on how easy they are to shoot. It's great fun to show up next to all the AR's and semi auto pistols with Levers and revolvers and see people's reactions to my targets. Don't get me wrong, I shoot AR's and semi auto pistols a lot as well but it's nice to have a change of pace from time to time.
 
For me it would be the 9mm, it was the first caliber in any handgun I shot. It was my dad's and I bugged hem to death to shoot that pistol. It was freakishly accurate with Federal 9BP & 9BPLE in my pop's hands but with me at the age of 8 the only thing I remember what it was so cool to be shooting my dad's pistol. From the age of 8 to around 17 my dad and myself shot the snot outta that Browning, I really wish I had that BHP now. Anyway that is what infected me with the 9mm bug.
 
I don't really have a favorite as I like them all from 22 LR up to the 500S&W, but I tend to shoot a lot more 22 LR in handguns than the others.
 
My favorite now is my mod 16 32 long. Only shoot cast in it and it is a hoot to shoot. Have a 38/44 and it's a really nice gun only drawback is it's heavy. It to only get's cast bullet's. Not really a handgun crazy guy but the one's I do like, I really like. I cannot imagine being in a situation where I was hunting and ran into some bad thing I had to shoot and throwing down a rifle to use a handgun! :-) I also can't imagine shooting a bunny with a CF rifle other than maybe a Hornet with cast bullet's! One of my handgun's would be the choice for that. Of course if I ran into a man eater of some kind I would not throw down my 32 long and pull out my knife! :-)
 
9mm, suits my small carry guns just as well as my full size guns. Other than magnum rounds for the woods and 22 for plinking I have zero need for any other handgun caliber.
 
I bought into Skeeter Skelton's love of the 44 Special, and you know, it is a great round

bpEpMCT.jpg


zsol9tc.jpg


jCqNekV.jpg
 
I suppose I've fired more rounds of 38 Special than everything else put together. It started when I bought my first Model 19, and all I could afford for ammo were reloaded 38 wadcutters. Over the years just kept shooting some kind of 38. I reloaded them with a little Lee Loader, then a turret press, and now a Lee hand press. I picked up brass anywhere I could find it. I got no idea how many pieces of brass I've never even deprimed are around here, but it's a bunch. I don't know how many 38/357 guns I've owned. Smith & Wesson, Colt, Ruger, Taurus, Dan Wesson and probably some I just don't remember.

The lowly 38 will do anything I need a handgun to do.
 
I guess mine would be a 357 revolver. Like if for some reason I could keep only one handgun it would be my choice. Most especially as long as I could reload for it. The middle sized guns with 4" barrels aren't too big to carry but are the right size to shoot without being too big. But I shoot far more 38 Special ammo than full bore 357 stuff.

But I sure would hate to lose my 22s, revolvers and autos, 32 revolvers and 44 mag revolvers. The centerfire autos aren't that important to me.
 
My favorite caliber must be the .22LR. More than 50% of the handguns I own are in that caliber. The .22LR is fun to shoot. Now reasonably priced. No recoil. Can shoot all day. Still the same basic fundamentals with a .22LR as any centerfire. Still miss the X-ring with either ;)
 
22 lr for me. I'm relatively new to shooting -- only been in the hobby for a few years -- and it's the one I find myself shooting the most often. That must tell me something. :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top