.357 for hunting?

turkeyhunter36089

I am thinking of taking up hunting with a handgun, and right now the biggest revolver I own is a .357 magnum with a 5" barrel. Is this big enough for whitetail deer, and if so, what size bullet would be best and what would be the effective range of this gun.

iwannausername

Where are ya? A 357 with stout loads (180grn hard lead) would be OK on our wimpy little deer here in N Florida ...

11b6r

First, check you state game laws. some states say a 357 is fine, some are looking for bigger. If legal, a heavy bullet, keep your shots at 50 yds/ less, should do fine for eastern whitetail. I use a Dan Wesson w/ a 12 bbl hunting laurel thickets- can't SEE 50 yds- has worked well for me.

tsavo303

Check your state regs, all are different
I would stick to under 50 yd shots, and use 158 gr soft points.
as with all calibers on the small side for your game, shot selection and bullets choice will determine your success

also a good reason to buy a nice Super balckhawk in .44 also! or an encore pistol in 30-30

and practice!!!

gotstolefrom

I shot using an 8" S/W until I moved up to 44 MAG.

We have the same 'wimpy' dear as in N. Florida. I hunt iron sights and in brush, so we are under 50 yard shots. I do hunt only with the longer barrels of a minimum of 7". The longer sight radius helps me, and every inch of barrel is a help for burning heavy charges of powder.

Using softpoint and gas checked lead of 150gr and up did well for heart/lung shots. I did not have any collapse immediately, but trailed less than 25yds. I did recover two hollow points from entrails that had entered from the front quarter of the chest but did not expand. If I recall, the load was about 17gr IMR4227 (compressed), but check your load tables. The failure may have been the bullet, because the charge was hot enough.

If you don't hand load, lean towards the hottest and heaviest you find that you can shoot well. The shorter the barrel, the less 'slack' you can have in your load. It has to fully develop in that 5", not impossible, but a condition that may take a bit of trial and error to find.

A 5" hunting gun isn't found as often as the longer barrels. SO you will have to be a better HUNTER to keep your shots as close as possible, and hit the most vulnerable kill zones.

BEST OF LUCK, PATIENCE, AND BULLET PLACEMENT
ENJOY !

wtroper

I agree with the prior posts. A 357 is adequate ---- if you put the right bullet in the right place. Heavier bullets are important, but depending on the brand of your revolver, you might be better off with a 158 gr "good" bullet that shoots well in your specific gun than a 180. I would likely lean toward the one that was most accurate for me in my revolver.

I hunt exclusively with handguns but I use mostly 41 mags. I am comfortable on deer sized animals out to 100 yds or a little more, but I am shooting a 210 gr XTP from a scope sighted FA revolver @ about 1600 fps. I might suggest that you consider a dot sight on your revolver if your ranges are to materially exceed 50 yds. They are easy to use and much more precise than open sights for most of us. Otherwise, practice, practice, practice, and then practice some more.

Good luck and good hunting.

Sig220_Ruger77

Plenty big for deer. I would reccommend looking at Winchester's 180 gr. partitions. A little spendy, but they perform very well on deer.

Jon

A J Christ

.357 works fine for white tail deer. More of where you put the bullet than anything else. I've had good sucess with 158gr hollow points and also found a 125gr soft point to work. hat was a side shot, went through both lungs, deer walked about 20 yards and then ended up in my freezer.
Practise and when you can hit a coffee cup every time at 50 yards, you are ready to go. Place your shot well and you will do fine.

tsr1965

The 357 in the hands of a good pistolero can be effective for deer. Keep your shots as a rule at 50 yards and under. For ammo, unless you have patience to wait for a "no heavy bone shot", I would go with a good 180 grainer, either the partition as mentioned, or a hard cast( I believe Federal makes one). If you can wait it out, and put it behind the shoulder, and not on it, then a 158 will do the trick. With a pistol, since you have not got the high speed shock effect of a rifle(speed kills), you should always try to put it thru the vitals, and have two holes...one going in, and one going out. that is why I will opt for the heavier load.

john in jax

Ditto on all the great advice above - - Cor-Bon has a strong 180grn hunting round

http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/productview?saleitemid=471105&t=11082005

dcs shooters

I've taken a few deer here in Ohio with my Dan Wessom 8" and red dot loaded with my 158gr.HP out to 100yds. Like the others said you have to know where your gun hits, and make good shots.

turkeyhunter36089

Thanks for the info. I will be in south Alabama, so nothing over 220 lbs live weight. Also, Alabama just requires centerfire mushrooming amuntion.

iwannausername

Dude, thats like 2x a Fla deer!

quote:Originally posted by turkeyhunter36089
Thanks for the info. I will be in south Alabama, so nothing over 220 lbs live weight.