.357 mag or .44 mag That is the question...

[Scott58]

I'm Jones ing for a S&W 686 in .357, but since you said wilderness and big animal I'd be getting a .44.

 

[pmbiker]

357=dead
44=dead'r with almost triple the recoil energy in a similar firearm.

44 magnum (at magnum power levels) East of the Mississippi seems mostly for showing off or Richard measuring.

Again, if bears or big cats were an issue, gimme that cannon. Hoomans, whitetail, random varmints I feel well served with the 357.

 

[700 LTR 223]

Fellow gun patrons,

I have gone through the research and I have my own opinion on this topic but thought I would open it up for discussion. .357 vs .44 ... Carry weapon, home protection, muzzle flash wow factor, big animal protection while in the wilderness, lever action and SAA western shooting... Bring what you have for opinions and experience!

Aside from the big animal protection while in the wilderness I like the 357. Have a variety of 357s and one lone Smith 44 Mag. Unless I win my Henry 44 gun raffle this weekend the Smith 629 will remain my lone 44. I still like taking out the 44 a few times a year but I've fired many thousand more rounds of 357s through the years.

 

[davidwilso78]

I'm Jones ing for a S&W 686 in .357, but since you said wilderness and big animal I'd be getting a .44.

I like that my 686 is the 7 round plus model and has the 5 inch barrel. Still big and heavy and I can shoot it way better than the.44 I have access to. I am thinking I would feel safer and more assured with a gun I can shoot more accurately and have an extra round if in the wilderness

 

[davidwilso78]

Aside from the big animal protection while in the wilderness I like the 357. Have a variety of 357s and one lone Smith 44 Mag. Unless I win my Henry 44 gun raffle this weekend the Smith 629 will remain my lone 44. I still like taking out the 44 a few times a year but I've fired many thousand more rounds of 357s through the years.

Good luck on the raffle! The Henry .44s are very nice rifles and they have been mentioned in this thread. You also seem to be on my page... Shoot the guns and often. I have 3 ammo boxes full of 38/357 ready to reload this winter and then shoot them off all year long and repeat the process again.

 

[davidwilso78]

357=dead
44=dead'r with almost triple the recoil energy in a similar firearm.

44 magnum (at magnum power levels) East of the Mississippi seems mostly for showing off or Richard measuring.

Again, if bears or big cats were an issue, gimme that cannon. Hoomans, whitetail, random varmints I feel well served with the 357.

So much recoil... I typically just shoot my spicy 38+p rounds out of all my revolvers and save the .357 for the Rossi 92

 

[davidwilso78]

They made that in a .45 Colt, too...called it the 450 Titanium. I keep watching them when they come up on gunbroker. I keep telling myself I'm not getting suckered into buying another Taurus after my past experiences, especially for what those go for...but I have to admit that configuration is very appealing. Appealing enough that I keep watching them .

I had a Taurus Model 44 with a 6" barrel at one time. It had that stupid porting, too, and I could feel the blast pressure in the bridge of my nose every time I fired it. That full-size 6-inch gun was worse to shoot with magnum loads than my snubby 69. I've shot other ported .44s and none of them sent the blast back at the shooter like that design. It also had a nasty habit of randomly skipping chambers or not properly locking up the cylinder in double-action. I had a 605 that had similar timing issues, and that finally convinced me to start buying Ruger's and Smiths, none of which have exhibited those problems. Even with those experiences, though, if I ever found one of those titanium 450s for a fair price when I had money in my wallet, it would almost definitely go home with me.

I had thought of porting my 5in 686 or my 4.2 in SP101 and you are describing exactly why I never did it... Don't mess with perfection

 

[davidwilso78]

As a black co-worker once said, "graveyard dead"...

Wow... Never heard of graveyard dead but I might have to use that somewhere

 

[davidwilso78]

Adapt and overcome!

I have 4 different weight projectiles for my .45/70, cast for the oldies and cased for the newbies. Between BP, Pyrodex and 5744 powders with the different projectiles I have tuned in 2 of my three rifles. You would have 4-5 times as many options with the .44mag!

It sounds like you know what it feels like to have a weapon you will KNOW it will work for you, why stop at one? Eventually you will come to a max on the .357 but the possibilities of the .44 will exceed that maximum. GO FOR IT!

My biggest concern is I have issues collecting what I like. I have one .44 mag in my safe. Several .357s and 9mm... I will not stop at one I will get something smaller and larger and likely rifled...

 

[davidwilso78]

If you are gonna plink, reload, cast your own bullets.....get more mileage out of .357/.38 special.

But its still a wimp. LOL

I don't ever want to be on the receiving end of this wimp... But I get it. Bigger is better or so I have been told

 

[davidwilso78]

I think the .44 mag is better on critters.
Ran non endurance package Smiths so stayed w 240gr or lighter. Shot the heck out of em too.

But that was when powder and bullets were cheaper LOL

Even in Ruger stuff, 180s and 200s cranked usually what I ran.

Most of my shooting .44 mag has been 180s full throttle.

I have only shot deer and pigs with my .357 rifle... No issues with them going down. Cost is certainly a concern with .44 rounds going for $1 a round or so

 

[davidwilso78]

I like the .357 for hood, .44 for woods reply. I think plenty of folks with a .357 don't use it as a dedicated Magnum gun, and they see plenty of Specials.

If your revolver is intended for regular Magnum use, I'd say the .44 gives you more options with heavier bullets and more energy on tap. I got a cousin that takes deer with a .357, so I guess hunting does not absolutely demand the .44.

I've had wheelguns in both, but the .44 remains. Probably only because I've grown fond of shooting guns with more recoil....for some reason. I like the variety of choices I have in bullet weight and powder selection. From soft-shooting Special to max-load Magnum, it's a gun I enjoy shooting quite a bit. It is massive, however, and is totally impracticle for carry. If I had to use one revolver for carry, target shooting, home defense, it'd probably be a 3" .357.

I carry my Ruger 38 +p LCR in the warm weather and a 3in .357 Ladysmith in the colder months. I am very confident in my shooting and drawing skills on these guns. To me that is a very important factor... Confidence

 

[92FSTech]

I had thought of porting my 5in 686 or my 4.2 in SP101 and you are describing exactly why I never did it... Don't mess with perfection

I've never been a fan of porting. It doesn't help that much with muzzle control, and I've found it makes me more prone to flinch due to all the blast and flash shooting straight up into my face. My buddy has a Smith 629 hunter model, and the porting in that one is pretty well designed to where it's not so noticeable, but the vertical unshrouded holes that Taurus puts on their guns are pretty obnoxious.

It sounds like you're already pretty comfortable and proficient with your .357s. A 5" barrel also gives you some pretty decent ballistics with proper .357 loads, so you're getting the most out of the cartridge. The SP101 gives you a great carry option as well, while maintaining decent ballistics with a 4" barrel (I used to have a 3", and it's one of the few guns I've sold that I really miss). If you're not planning on going up against brown or polar bears, I'd say you've got your bases pretty well covered.

 

[davidwilso78]

Bingo! A good .357 magnum revolver is more than sufficient for hunting / plinking / EDC / home defense, for anything east of the Mississippi. I have a few Ruger GP100's, a 3" for EDC, a 4" for home defense and plinking, and a 5" for hunting (deer, mostly) and I have a Winchester '94 in .357 magnum (a 16" brush gun) that is a hoot to shoot and very accurate to 100 yards.
The good part is I can shoot .38's for light-weight plinking and target shooting with very minimal felt recoil.
If I am going out west of the Mississippi, I would want something bigger than a .44 magnum against brown bear or moose, like an Alaskan in .454 Casull.

The first person to bring up the mammoth... .454 Casull was the first big bore round I ever shot. 45-70 is a great choice also for Velociraptors

 

[davidwilso78]

They made that in a .45 Colt, too...called it the 450 Titanium. I keep watching them when they come up on gunbroker. I keep telling myself I'm not getting suckered into buying another Taurus after my past experiences, especially for what those go for...but I have to admit that configuration is very appealing. Appealing enough that I keep watching them .

I had a Taurus Model 44 with a 6" barrel at one time. It had that stupid porting, too, and I could feel the blast pressure in the bridge of my nose every time I fired it. That full-size 6-inch gun was worse to shoot with magnum loads than my snubby 69. I've shot other ported .44s and none of them sent the blast back at the shooter like that design. It also had a nasty habit of randomly skipping chambers or not properly locking up the cylinder in double-action. I had a 605 that had similar timing issues, and that finally convinced me to start buying Ruger's and Smiths, none of which have exhibited those problems. Even with those experiences, though, if I ever found one of those titanium 450s for a fair price when I had money in my wallet, it would almost definitely go home with me.

Hmmm... Titanium 450. I will keep a lookout for one of those at the gun show. Seems like a good balance especially if you have a SAA already

 

[davidwilso78]

I've never been a fan of porting. It doesn't help that much with muzzle control, and I've found it makes me more prone to flinch due to all the blast and flash shooting straight up into my face. My buddy has a Smith 629 hunter model, and the porting in that one is pretty well designed to where it's not so noticeable, but the vertical unshrouded holes that Taurus puts on their guns are pretty obnoxious.

It sounds like you're already pretty comfortable and proficient with your .357s. A 5" barrel also gives you some pretty decent ballistics with proper .357 loads, so you're getting the most out of the cartridge. The SP101 gives you a great carry option as well, while maintaining decent ballistics with a 4" barrel (I used to have a 3", and it's one of the few guns I've sold that I really miss). If you're not planning on going up against brown or polar bears, I'd say you've got your bases pretty well covered.

This discussion has really been helpful in showing me to appreciate what I already know about my abilities and that what I have is certainly enough for a majority of my challenges... otherwise it is going to be about shot placement which no one has actually brought up much

 

[davidwilso78]

I like the .357 for hood, .44 for woods reply. I think plenty of folks with a .357 don't use it as a dedicated Magnum gun, and they see plenty of Specials.

If your revolver is intended for regular Magnum use, I'd say the .44 gives you more options with heavier bullets and more energy on tap. I got a cousin that takes deer with a .357, so I guess hunting does not absolutely demand the .44.

I've had wheelguns in both, but the .44 remains. Probably only because I've grown fond of shooting guns with more recoil....for some reason. I like the variety of choices I have in bullet weight and powder selection. From soft-shooting Special to max-load Magnum, it's a gun I enjoy shooting quite a bit. It is massive, however, and is totally impracticle for carry. If I had to use one revolver for carry, target shooting, home defense, it'd probably be a 3" .357.

Some of the .44s I have seen would really only be good in a chest holster. But that is okay to me because there are some really nice chest holsters out there!

 

[davidwilso78]

I have handgun/lever gun combinations in 357, 44 mag and 45 Colt. The 45 is my favorite but that wasn't listed as
an option so was ignored. Can't miss with 45 handloads out of a Marlin 1894 Cowboy Limited. Hornady published load
with 250 gr XTP over 20.2 grains of 4227. Took that deer hunting but didn't take a shot.

Thanks for adding this caliber. The basis of the conversation is my girlfriend has a 3in .44 mag in my safe and now that I have shot it a few times I am tempted to buy a rifle and/or a matching revolver with a longer barrel ... But the why is my hesitation not to mention it might cause me to need a bigger safe

 

[davidwilso78]

My father, and I both have 44mag revolvers.
Since he has aged a lot in the last 5 years I load him rounds just above a 44 Special velocity, he likes them because he can still shoot his 44mag revolver, and have a bit more punch than a 44 Special.

I've played around with 44mag for over 30 years hand loading.
I have a 300gr XTP load that has a velocity over 1350fps from a 6.5" ported barrel. That let's you know you shot something.
180gr XTP load that has a velocity over 1750fps in the same revolver.
240gr velocity around 1450fps same revolver.

I also load a 240gr at 1200fps I call it what Dirty Harry called his a light magnum load.

You can do a lot with a 44mag caliber.

I had this debate years ago when I was younger, and I had to choose one firearm to hunt, and for self/home defense because funds were tight starting a family.
I went with the 44mag because you can load it however you want it. You can download it to 357mag power, or full 44mag power.
It just made more sense at the time. I still have that 44mag revolver yet.
I also got into reloading because it was so much cheaper than buying ammunition back then. Started out with a IIRC $59 Lee single stage press kit. Had everything I needed except dies, powder, primers, and brass. I still have that press around somewhere.

Memories are a wonderful thing.

This is a great story and very understandable. I started with .357 because my father in law is obsessed with them and eventually my son will have his collection and mine

 

[davidwilso78]

I can't recall the exact model but I'm running a vortex scope.

I am part of a Facebook group of peep sight users... Vortex scope is more my style but I like the cowboy style long distance shooter style