why I always keep a 357

[Jbotto]

In 2012, when all my similar aged friends and I were turning 21, we were all shopping for handguns. Lots ended up with plastic 9mm's and I was the oddity with a wood gripped 3" SP101. Wore it daily for 3 years and shot it only as a DA, I left the hammer alone. I have since traded it for a 4" GP100 so I can keep a really handy .357 but no longer carry it daily. I'd much rather have a striker fired gun on me for personal defense, but I will never be without a .357mag in my "collection." One of my favorite cartridges to shoot, and favorite to reload. When that SP101 was traded, it had over 2000 rounds through it, and very few of them were .38's.

 

[SIGSHR]

IMHO a 4'-6" 357 is as close to an all round revolver as we'll ever get. WCs for target practice, 357s for SD or hunting for the truly skilled.

 

[reddog81]

Similarly:

I will always keep a .357. And 10 more .357's. And a handful of .45's, a couple .40's, a truckload of 9mm's, one .32 Wadcutter is probably enough, a dozen .22's, a .460 Mag, a cache of 10mm's, many .38's and assorted other goodies.

.380's-- don't need any of those.

This sums up my feelings. Other than the .460(which I don't have yet...), I can check all the other boxes even the lack of a .380.

 

[Armybrat]

Only have four .357 wheel guns left. They'll do me just fine. (gifted my Ruger Service Six and S&W Model 13 to my sons years ago)

 

[BigJimP]

I will always rely on my 1911's as a primary carry gun ( for last several years its been a Wilson Combat, 5", im 9mm ).....

.....but I have kept a model 686-1 in a 6" ...with .357 mag in it, and lately with Hornaday 158gr XTP 's in it.., ...and a speed loader in my nitestand..../...i think its a great option if I am ever woken out of a sound sleep...

 

[stormyone]

The 357 mag was my 1st love. It will always have a place in my heart and more often that not, on my belt.

 

[mavracer]

I will always have a few 357s around, but it's mostly nostalgia.
While a 3-4" 357 wheel gun is a pretty good "jack of all trades" I would propose my anti thesis that it really isn't "great" at anything.
While my 2 3/4" speed six with it's slick as snot DAO action and custom XS big dot front sight is about as good as it gets for a defensive 357 wheel gun, my Sig P229 40 S&W is nearly the same size and weight, offers similar ballistics and accuracy and carries twice the ammo.
My 686 SSR is probably the pinnacle of service revolvers, but scores from my IDPA shooting shows it pales in comparison to any duty size auto for SD/HD or any combat.
My 6" GP100 gets enough ballistics to make it a acceptable hunting gun and a good target gun. However my 44 specials and 45 Colts are equal to any task without ringing my ears like the 357 does and my 6" model 14 Smith is just as accurate and there's no need for 357 power just to poke holes in paper.
Yep I'll never get rid of my 357s but they sure spend a lot of time in the safe.

 

[briandg]

only a fool dismisses a .357 as inadequate in any way. I saw a grizzly that was taken down with one. It kills bad guys, deer, anything from snakes or rats to most continental us game with proper handling and proper loading. It requires a little more skill, imo, to fire a DA revolver accurately, and I think that any inadequacy is on the part of a shooter's ability, not the round itself, or the pistol.

Why anyone could believe that a round of nine is better, or even five fired with only one hit is beyond my comprehension. the shooter who carries only six had better learn how to use it and be better than the guy with fourteen.

I think that I'm just as seriously dangerous with my trooper as I am with my glock.

 

[Longhorn1986]

My Model 65 stays by my chair in the living room as part of the welcoming committee when someone I don't know knocks on our door. My Model 60-9 often finds itself slipped into my pocket on hot summer days. As much as I love .45 acp, .357 is still my top SD caliber in handguns.

 

[Longhorn1986]

.357 magnum....when you care enough to send the very best.

 

[Onward Allusion]

Yeah, I would have to agree on 357 wheelguns. Going back to the proverbial "if I can have only one gun convo" it would be a 4" S&W 627 or even a 4" Taurus 608.

 

[Hammerhead]

Yeah, maybe not the ultimate SD choice, but for me no other caliber is so satisfying when shooting outdoors at distance. Competed in IHMSA Field Pistol with my little 4" SA 357 revolver and knocking over the rams at 100 yards was just too much fun.

I think I'm going to put the silhouette sights back on it today and go play in the snow before it gets real cold.

 

[Nick_C_S]

My 686+ 3" bbl is my go-to carry gun. I am most comfortable with a revolver. And the cartridge has been proven thoroughly effective to boot.

 

[HighValleyRanch]

I've owned many .357 revolvers, but this has become my number one favorite and carry, the .357 LCR. What's not to love about a light revolver that can handle anything from powder puff to hottest magnum loads.

Pictured next to it is .38 snake shot, .38 +P Hornady critical defense, 38 +P HST micro with wadcutter profile, Remington .357 midrange swchp, and the hot buffalo bore heavy 180 grain keith hard cast flat nose .357 outdoorsman rated at 617 foot pounds out of this little guy (chronographed). That's a huge range of options.

Next to it is the S.L. Variant Longwitze speed loader made in Germany, a rare find in 5 shot J frame and fits the LCR perfectly.
I love being to throw this into my jeans pocket for when I walk the dog in the woods.

 

[rclark]

My first revolver was a .357 Single Action BH while in my late teens. At the time I thought it was a 'big' revolver. Well, compared to the .22LR revolvers I had been shooting it was. But one day me and a moose were side by side, me in the middle of a creek with a pole in my hand, and him on the edge... Looking 'up' at 'em I started to wonder if .357 would be enough, if I had to take 'em down. He went his way, I went mine, but from then on I started to carry a .44Mag in the hills. Now I carry .45 Colt. For a house gun and concealed is .44 Special. .357 is now just a range gun with 158 SWCs at around 1000fps.

 

[44 AMP]

Yes...there are times when being able to shoot THROUGH things someone is using for cover can be to your advantage.

By proper definition, if you can shoot through it, it's not cover, only concealment.

I thought I was done with the .357 in the mid 80s, had sold my 6' model 19, and even gave away my brass to a buddy. Couple years later, found a NIB model 28 6", the same gun my Dad had, and it just spoke to me. Since then, I've gotten a Ruger SA, a Marlin carbine, other M28s, and both a Coonan and a Desert Eagle in .357 Mag.

If, for some reason, I was limited to only one handgun, the .357 would be a good choice.

 

[kenny53]

I have two 357's. One single action, one double action. I shoot a bunch of 38's but love to shoot full power 357 rounds. Got to love the big boom.

 

[Doc Holliday 1950]

In 1970, when I became a AuxLEO, I had the choice of carrying a 38 special or a 357 in magnum revolver. The reason that i picked the 357 was the ability to shoot 38's, 38 specials, & 357 in mag ammo. There was/is no other revolver that give you the options that the 357 in magnum gives you. In reading the responses to my post, I saw that I was not the only person that felt like I did & has at least one if not more 357's in their collection. The thing that brought me back to revolvers was having a 7 shot 3" solid steel revolver that would handle just about any weight ammo that I would ever need for SD or for plinking. At 36 ounces, this is no featherweight, but at that weight, it eats up any perceived recoil.

 

[m&p45acp10+1]

I swear I do not collect them. They just seem to accumulate. Not counting the ones I inherited from my grandpa I have a Model 13 (came from my uncle for digging a levee on the back of his land.) A Model 28 that came from the estate of a retired motorcycle officer. A 686 Plus that I took home from the LGS used gun case. A Colt Trooper Mk.III 6 inch I purchased from the estate of a retired Texas Ranger Captain. There is a S&W 5 shot snub in the safe somewhere. I am unsure of the model number. I do recall it being a .357 Mag. My sister carried it for a while, and then returned it. (To take my G26).

My true love in the Magnums is the .41 Rem Mag. Though I have a single RBH for that. The .357 mags just seem to keep piling up somehow.

 

[kyguy1]

My first gun I ever shot was a .357 Ruger Sp 101. extremely loud, huge kick, great standby defensive round.