YouTube weenies vs .357 Magnum...

The more weight in a snub, the better the ability to bring it back on target faster than the 38 sp.
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Yeah, I know alot of people put huge stock on fast recovery shots.
But if your little ole revolver only holds five rounds, doesn't it make sense to slow down just a wee bit and make EVERY SHOT count. You could use up all those precious in a matter of seconds, and did you stop to evaluate the actual situration, look for secondary targets, etc?
 
Getting a gun designed for 357 will most likely be a little heavier and easier to control when shooting 38s out of. That is one reason to get a 356 and shoot 38

Second reason would be the light weight rugers pretty much making 357 lighter than most companies 38s and you really dont lose much going for one of those.

Third reason would be for the ability to shoot both rounds instead of just 38s. Why buy 2 guns when you can get 1 that takes the place of 2 without sacraficing much. No everyone has the money to drop on two different revolvers. Expecially if they want quality revolvers. I have a model 10, 686, and 69. I never pull out my model 10 anymore because I have those 357s to shoot out of. I dont understand why it would irk you. The reasonsing is there. It would be like asking you why you bought a rossi instead of the colt, smith, kimber. Because you can buy 2.5 rossis for that. Not trying to bash Rossi. Im just trying to make a point.
 
I like J frames. I wanted a 3"J frame with adjustable sights. That means a model 60. I sent it to S&W and got the J frame tune up. I put some Pachmayr Decellorator grips on it. It is absolutely wonderful for me. Plain old 38's are lots cheaper. Everything I put in it goes "bang". It imobilizes serpents with shot shells. Mainly I just love to shoot it. I have found the Winchester White Box 110 grain JHP to not recoil that bad. Shoot what you like to shoot, I do.
 
TruthTellers said:
The only snub .357 revolver worth shooting .357 in, IMO, is the Ruger SP101. It's weighty enough to make it tolerable to shoot .357, whereas the airweight S&W and LCR is stuff I don't even want to try.

If I have to carry a snub that's not an SP101, I'd rather carry a very lightweight .38 for two reasons: 1. the lighter weight is more comfortable and 2. they cost less than .357 snub revolvers do. I know people won't be surprised to hear me say something like that, but for a revolver whose only purpose is for concealed carry, maybe a stash gun somewhere on one's property, I don't think it's sensible to spend $100 or more for something that has a limited intended use.

But, this topic of .357 snub revolvers is the reason that I love the .327 in a pocket revolver because it is lower recoil when using proper ammunition, but only Ruger is willing to make .327's and were I to buy a snub .327, I want it to be like a S&W Bodyguard with the DA/SA trigger.
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Guess I'm gonna have to have a talk with my 2.5" M66 and 686.
You Two are not worth shooting!
 
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I've got a .357 SP101 I purchased for the express purpose of shooting 38+p loads because a steady diet of +p's through my J-Frame 38 isn't the best for the gun. I guess that just makes me a weenie though being that I don't want to abuse my guns? :confused:
 
I think some are missing the point, and I gotta say I agree with it, on the whole.

The point is why buy a magnum just to carry .38s in it?
I buy a magnum to carry magnums.
If I want to carry .38s, I'll carry a .38.

As far as a snub .357 goes, even with the shorter barrel you're getting more performance downrange than you are with .38+P in a 4-inch barrel, as a rule.

And if you decide there's no advantage to magnum loads because the short barrel degrades velocities too much, that same barrel will also be degrading .38 velocities if you drop down to those in the same gun for carry.

Emphasize FOR CARRY.
Not for casual range plinking.

Obviously does not apply for those who, for whatever reason, can't control full magnum loads.

Just reverting back to the idea of buying a magnum to carry magnum loads & buying a .38 if you only intend to CARRY .38 loads. :)

But then I'm also the guy who sees no practical point to developing rabbit plinking loads in a .30-06, or dropping them down to .30-30 levels.
I buy my .30-06s to shoot full-bore .30-06 ammunition, and if I want to chase rabbits or deer I use a .22 or a .30-30 to begin with. :)
Denis
 
Guess I'm gonna have to have a talk with my 2.5" M66 and 686.
You Two are not worth shooting!
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Me too! Although I no longer have my 2.5" 66. I was out shooting my 686 2.5" just last weekend. The 686 and 66 have always been my favorite snubs.
 
#20
In The Ten Ring
Senior Member


Join Date: January 26, 2018
Posts: 368 Detective Harry Callahan carried .44 Specials in his Model 29 because "it gave him better control."

That's good enough for me!
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no, he did not.

"Callahan states the use of a "Light Special",..... In the audio commentary on Magnum Force DVD (Warner Bros. Entertainment, 2001), John Milius (who wrote the story and co-wrote the screenplay), said that this was misinterpreted during filming, that "it's really not supposed to be a light Special, it's just supposed to be a little lighter .44 Magnum load." implying he uses a specially prepared Magnum round firing a slightly less heavy bullet....This is consistent with his statement in The Enforcer that he favors the gun largely for penetration".
 
I think some are missing the point, and I gotta say I agree with it, on the whole.

The point is why buy a magnum just to carry .38s in it?
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No, you missed the point that they buy the magnum gun because in many cases it is heavier than the same gun in 38 Spcl. Particularly noting the Ruger LCR. They do it because they feel even the moderate recoil of +P ammo is more than they can handle in the 38 revolver. So they think the extra couple ounces will help. Where personally to me I have never seen an issue with recoil, and bought the 38 Spcl. +P LCR because of the lighter weight, and the belief that a good +P round is "enough" for any situation I may encounter.
I still want to get a light 357 snubbie just 'cause I think it would be fun. But then again I also shoot a 10" barreled 45-70 Contender pistol.:eek:
 
I earlier stated that I'm a devotee of the Smith
& Wesson Model 15 which has always been a
.38 Special.

But in the modern market for Smiths and Rugers,
not as many desirable models are offered in .38
Special, only .357, so many buyers get the .357
and just shoot .38s.

When or if I was in the market for a "pocket"
revolver, Smith or Ruger, I'd lean toward the
.38 Specials only. But if I came on a really
nice, used of course, .357 I'd scoop it up.

Colt caught criticism when it re-introduced
a version of the Colt Cobra but in steel because
it was only .38 Special. I thought that .38 was
fine and dandy but when Kimber introduced its
K6 (Colt Detective Special size) it was in
.357 which was probably a good marketing ploy.
 
I get IRKED when people are claiming they are shooting a real gun when they are shooting a Rossi (Smith wanta-be)!Ha Ha!:D

I have a youtube video showing me shooting Buffalobore out of my LCR, so I'm not in your "weenie" category!... but I still carry +p .38's in it most of the time unless I'm walking in the woods.
 
I have a youtube video showing me shooting Buffalobore out of my LCR
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Yikes! I exceeded my recoil limit just shooting the regular range ammo in an LCR. IIRC it was Magtech 158 grain .357 magnum ammunition.

Some 125 grain .357 magnum was okay but I doubt I'd go thru more than half a box during one range session.

IMhO it's no fun if it hurts.
 
DPris said:
I think some are missing the point, and I gotta say I agree with it, on the whole.

The point is why buy a magnum just to carry .38s in it?
I buy a magnum to carry magnums.
If I want to carry .38s, I'll carry a .38.

As far as a snub .357 goes, even with the shorter barrel you're getting more performance downrange than you are with .38+P in a 4-inch barrel, as a rule.

And if you decide there's no advantage to magnum loads because the short barrel degrades velocities too much, that same barrel will also be degrading .38 velocities if you drop down to those in the same gun for carry.

Emphasize FOR CARRY.
Not for casual range plinking.

Obviously does not apply for those who, for whatever reason, can't control full magnum loads.

Just reverting back to the idea of buying a magnum to carry magnum loads & buying a .38 if you only intend to CARRY .38 loads. :)

But then I'm also the guy who sees no practical point to developing rabbit plinking loads in a .30-06, or dropping them down to .30-30 levels.
I buy my .30-06s to shoot full-bore .30-06 ammunition, and if I want to chase rabbits or deer I use a .22 or a .30-30 to begin with. :)
Denis
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I do not buy magnum rifle cartridge's and load them down to handle recoil. I simply buy a smaller cartridge. My 38 is a 38-44 Outdoorsman. Nice and heavy and a 6" barrel. I've tried 357's in the past, sorry but for me they kill on both ends. never have another 357 to shoot 357's out of. Tried a 38 spec with 2" barrel, I think it was a detective special. Never gonna shoot on of them again ither, stung my hand pretty well with factory ammo. I would not buy a revolver for self defense anyway and DA revolver's are my choice for about every thing. They only hold 6 rds at best and my Shield holds 8!

If I was going to buy another 38 I would only look at 357's handguns with 6" barrels. And in that I'd shoot 38's with cast bullet's. Now if I were in a pinch and was attacked and only had that 357 with 38's in it, 148gr wadcutter's will turn things around or not even a 500 Smith will help you. I have to shoot a gun I'm comfortable with! 38's in a 357 suit me fine. Your opinion may vary!
 
Is it possible, maybe, that the person who bought a .357 magnum snub had never encountered one before?

Is it possible that those who say "wow, that kinda smarted, maybe all of you should just used .38 +p" are just saying so because they expect everyone who is watching the video to be recoil sensitive?

Maybe the guy believes that the .38+p is just in general a better choice than a .357 round for the average guy, and that buying a .357 instead of a .38+P rated gun is simply a rational decision to leave options available?

Maybe some of those guys had really smart, legitimate reasons for making the choices, and suggesting that others not make the same choice is just exercising common sense, since there are so many people out there who don't believe in using common sense?

I don't watch videos in general, so I've never seen ones that you are talking about. I've watched too many videos on every possible subject, and honestly, I have no idea why anyone bothers to watch some of that nonsense.
 
I've tried 357's in the past, sorry but for me they kill on both ends. never have another 357 to shoot 357's out of. Tried a 38 spec with 2" barrel, I think it was a detective special. Never gonna shoot on of them again ither, stung my hand pretty well with factory ammo.
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Sweet mercy. :o
 
As an aside, I keep my colt trooper in the guest room, it's the full sized .357 revolver. I keep it loaded with .38 +p. I really don't think that God intends for me to die because I shot a bad guy with the wrong ammunition. I'm sure that something far stranger is in my future.
 
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