Looking for caliber recommendations

The .357 is by far the most versatile. A others have said, the ability to shoot .38s for practice and magnum loads for hunting and self/home defense.

My favorite all purpose gun is the .41 magnum, but it's harder to get ammo for. Plus some of the suggested rounds, such as the Buffalo Bore .45 Colt can cost quite a bit. Check around on ammo prices and availability. That may be your deciding factor.

Also check on what can and cannot be used hunting in your area. The caliber may be fine, but the barrel length may or may not be.

Good luck and let us know what you get.
 
I understand what you mean, I'm a bit more accurate with most autos than revolvers. I'm sure there are many factors, such as my main revolver is a 357 snub. For all around carry, my PPS 40 is plenty powerful, comfortable, durable and reliable. Plus it really accurate. But for the OP, you would probably want a fullsize pistol. A glock22 or 20 maybe??
 
If you've ruled out the .44 mag, then I'd go with a 4" .357 mag. My personal preference would be a 4" stainless GP100. 4" barrel is short enough to wear on the belt comfortably, and long enough for a good sight picture. A 4" .357 is, IMHO, the "one to have" when "only having one."
 
Don't overlook the .327 Federal Magnum. Ballistically it's almost identical to the .357.

85gr JHP 1400 fps 588 ft lbs
100 gr JHP 1500 fps 500 ft lbs
115 JHP 1380 fps 486 ft lbs
All values measured at muzzle out of 5 in. barrel

Ruger makes both the SP101 in 6 rd capacity and GP100 in 7 rd capacity. If I remember right, they just came out with the Vaquero in .327. Or maybe the Blackhawk. Can't remember, it was one of the single actions though. Don't know how well a 115 gr .32 caliber bullet would stop a cougar though, and i assume that's what you're worried about in South Dakota. On the upside though, you can shoot .32 H&R Magnums or either .32 S&W for practice.
 
Don't overlook the .327 Federal Magnum. Ballistically it's almost identical to the .357.
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I'm sure this will be a viable round eventually, but for now:
1. Gun choices in this caliber are extremely limited.
2. Good luck finding ammo locally.
3. Because it's so new ammo is gonna be expensive, too.

Sorry, just trying to be practical. (And that doesn't always work.)
 
Well...given that this will be your "first" handgun, I would suggest the .357 Magnum.

Reason is, you can save the various "hot" Magnum loads for hunting and/or personal defense and should you wish, use .38 Special loads for practice.

This flexibility, to me, makes the .357 Magnum very "practical" indeed...if one chooses to go with a revolver, that is. I have always thought of the .357 Magnum revolver as "two weapons for the price of one."

Yes, you could go with an even more powerful caliber, but given that it would probably be harder to shoot, possibly not as "flexible" and certainly more expensive to feed, would you really be gaining all that much? Just something to think about.
 
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OR, get the Ruger .357/9mm Convertible, and have 3 guns in one. Then you can shoot .38s, .38+Ps, .357s, then swap cylinders and shoot the cheap Russian 9mm stuff! (Jacketed 9mm loads actually do pretty darn good. I got 2 for CAS and they are both tack drivers with .357 loads.)

OR, just stick to the GP100 and have a bunch of fun with that!

I just wish they hadn't changed the grips on the GP100. I loved the old ones. They were very comfortable and sure did look a lot better.
 
Don't overlook the .327 Federal Magnum. Ballistically it's almost identical to the .357.

85gr JHP 1400 fps 588 ft lbs
100 gr JHP 1500 fps 500 ft lbs
115 JHP 1380 fps 486 ft lbs
All values measured at muzzle out of 5 in. barrel
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Did you seriously just propose an 85gr .32 caliber projectile as a worthwhile hunting cartridge?

The OP stated:

For hunting it will be a backup piece. I will also use it for personal defense but here it has to be big enough for hunting if you are going to carry it while hunting even if it is not your primary hunting weapon.
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And, it must make a minimum of 500fpe.

The .327 barely makes 500fpe with the lightest of projectiles... and fpe is not an indicator of penetration or momentum at all. Usually, the inverse is true. A .32 caliber 85gr JHP is a wretched hunting load for anything other than skunks and coyotes. Increasing bullet weight by 30% to 115gr will aid in penetration and bullet mass retention, and probably be more lethal to anything that is actually dangerous (2 or 4 legs), but is an illegal loading in his state since it falls under the arbitrary 500fpe rule.

OP:

Meplat (diameter of the flat face of a bullet) and mass are the tools to use in a hunting handgun. Not necessarily hollowpoints or high velocity. A .44 special is quite comfortable to shoot. A 240gr .44 special at 1000fps will stop anything you come across in South Dakota or even the Colorado/Wyoming area.
 
Meplat (diameter of the flat face of a bullet) and mass are the tools to use in a hunting handgun. Not necessarily hollowpoints or high velocity. A .44 special is quite comfortable to shoot. A 240gr .44 special at 1000fps will stop anything you come across in South Dakota or even the Colorado/Wyoming area.
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This is the type of "new information" that I am looking for. I am looking to broaden my range of choices so that when I go shopping I am not strangled into one or the other.
 
There are a few ways to try to calculate a bullet's effectiveness, kinetic energy being one of them.

Kintetic energy is: .5 x Mass x velocity squared / 7000 / 32.175. KE tends to favor high velocity, light bullets, and does not take bullet diameter into account.

The Taylor Knockout factor was developed by an African big game hunter. TKO= Mass(in grains)x Velocity (in FPS) x diameter/ 7000. This results in a number between 1 and whatever, the theory being that the larger the #, the more "powerful" the load. This method favors large diameter, medium velocity, heavy bullets.

Thornily Stopping power is: TSP = 2.866 x Velocity x Mass/7000 x square root of diameter . This favors moderate diameter, medium velocity, mid-weight bullets.

None take into account bullet design, but for handgun loads for big game, its commonly accepted that a hardcast, flat point bullet provides the best results.
 
The .41 Magnum is a great cartridge. I'd recommend it and reload. It'll do all you need to ask of a handgun from targets, plinking, or killing.
 
Whether the .357 Mag, the .44 Mag or whatever, it has been shown here that either one of these are certainly potent enough for your needs.

But don't take our word for it! Go out and shoot these yourself and decide which one "feels" best. After all, this will be your gun.



A .44 special is quite comfortable to shoot.
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Based on personal opinion?

A 240gr .44 special at 1000fps will stop anything you come across in South Dakota or even the Colorado/Wyoming area.
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Possibly, but does this "fact" make this particular caliber the all around best choice? Debatable.

Of course, I have never understood the idea of hunting game with a handgun. Keeping one around for backup, perhaps. But, as a primary?

Call me crazy, but I generally consider this the domain of shotguns and rifles.

To the OP-

As I have mentioned before, you stated that this will be your first handgun. I am not sure it would be a great decision to go with the most powerful handgun you can find. After all, accuracy and the ability to shoot the darn thing is every bit as important as caliber size. What good is an extremely powerful round if you cannot hit something with it? Lets not forget flexibility. This can be important as well...particularly at the range. If you do not enjoy shooting the gun (due to recoil and/or ammo cost), then chances are you will not practice with it all that much; Hence, no real gain in ability with the weapon.

If power is your only thing, why not just go with a Smith & Wesson 500 Magnum? Mere power is easy. But power, along with ease of shooting, all while remaining "practical" and multipurpose in nature, is not so easy.

Given this, I still vote for the .357 Magnum.

But, again...this will be your gun, not mine. Just my .02 cents.

Of course, you could skip all of this nonsense and simply use the money towards a nice .308 caliber rifle (assuming you do not already own one).
 
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From what I've read and has already been stated other forum members I believe your best choices are 357 mag, 45 colt, &41 mag. You need to decide what kind of power you want and how much recoil you're willing to tolerate.
 
Some good information here about the .44 Special. It's a great cartridge for target shooting, self-defense, and hunting deer sized game. To me it has less recoil than the .357, and is a lot of jun to shoot. One of the following is by John Taffin, another Skeeter Skelton. One compares it with the .357.

I'm not trying to sell anyone on it, but I found the articles interesting.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BTT/is_171_28/ai_n6123166/

http://www.shootingtimes.com/handgun_reviews/ST_44spcldue_200911/

http://www.snubnose.info/docs/44v357.htm

http://www.darkcanyon.net/The_44Special_A_Reappraisal.htm

Have fun and good shooting.
 
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