.357 mag handi rifle for deer

[indianadeerhunter2018]

Every time I bring this up i get bashed for not choosing a 44 but I'm going to bring it up anyway. What is the maximum range for deer with a 357? Ammo would either be hornady leverevolution, winchester JSP, or I could hand load some really hot xtp loads. Is 150 unreasonable? I read some load data and according to it I would have enough energy to kill a deer at 200 yards. Do I believe that's ethical? No, but if anybody else has taken deer at these ranges, I might rethink it.

[NSB]

I have shot and killed over 50 whitetail with the .357mag. revolver. This is not BS, it's a fact. They ranged in distance from 5 yards to over 100 yards. I have never lost one. The only deer I ever lost with a handgun was shot with a 44mag and it was a bad shot on my part. It doesn't matter about caliber once you get to the 357mag for deer....it's all about shot placement. A good shot with the .357mag is WAY better than a bad shot with the 44mag, or any caliber handgun for that matter. Most of the deer were shot with 158g Hornady XTP HP bullets. I have shot them with lighter and heavier bullets but have found the 158g to be the best compromise between penetration and expansion. I have shot a couple with cast bullets and used a 158g with good results...again, hit in the vitals. If anyone is bashing you on caliber, it's probably one of the internet/keyboard experts or someone who says "all the deer I shot with the 357mag got away" and that's a total of one. Also, they may be the worlds worst shot. Who knows? FYI, a couple of years ago I got bored with the handgun for a while and picked up a Marlin lever gun in 357mag. I shot six or seven with it and they all died reasonably quick within eyesight. I guarantee you, you are not handicapped with that caliber. One other thing, I own larger calibers. I just LIKE the 357mag a LOT.

[jmort]

^ This sure makes a whole lot of sense.

[Good Cheer]

Every time I bring this up i get bashed for not choosing a 44 but I'm going to bring it up anyway. What is the maximum range for deer with a 357? Ammo would either be hornady leverevolution, winchester JSP, or I could hand load some really hot xtp loads. Is 150 unreasonable? I read some load data and according to it I would have enough energy to kill a deer at 200 yards. Do I believe that's ethical? No, but if anybody else has taken deer at these ranges, I might rethink it.

With a handi, how far can you can seat the bullet out, increasing the powder capacity?

[Ben]

I owned a Handi - 357 Mag. rifle ( until I could get to the next gun show ), The rifling was somewhere between 1/4 and a 1/2 mile from the end of the case mouth.

Mine didn't shoot cast bullets worth a cuss.

Ben

[NSB]

I owned a Handi - 357 Mag. rifle ( until I could get to the next gun show ), The rifling was somewhere between 1/4 and a 1/2 mile from the end of the case mouth.

Mine didn't shoot cast bullets worth a cuss.

Ben

Great opportunity to get a reamer and make it a 357MAX.

[crazy mark]

I use 360 DW brass in mine. It gets the heavier bullets to the rifling.

[jmort]

.357 max brass will fit with a little trimming

[Lonegun1894]

I know this isn't a .357 Handi, as my Handi is a .44Mag, but I have taken a few deer and a lot of hogs with the .357 in various guns, ranging from a 2 1/4" Ruger SP101 to a 20" Rossi 92. The Rossi is the closest to what you're talking about using, and I have no qualms about taking either hog or deer out to 150yds with it. My longest shot so far has been a bit over 200yds, but it was on a hog that was wounded by a friend so it was a choice of take it or let it suffer. If it hadn't been wounded already, I would not have taken the shot. Just due to drop and everything else involved, I would say keep it inside of 150 yds, and preferably 100yds, and the .357 rifle will do great once you have an accurate load worked up. I use either the Lee 158gr SWCGC or the Lyman 358156 in mine, and still trying to figure out which is more accurate, but they are VERY close.

[altheating]

Based on my results using a Ruger 77/357 and the NOE 360-180, I would not be afraid to take a deer out to 150 yards. We are hitting gongs consistently out to 200 yards. Do I want to shoot a deer at 200 yards with the 357? I'm going to keep my 357 mag shots within 150 yards. I know I could poke one at 200 yards, but poking one and killing one humanly is two different things. Then there is the fact that some people should never shoot at anything at 150 yards. The abilities of the guy behind the gun makes a big difference.

[Ben]

Great opportunity to get a reamer and make it a 357MAX.

Already thought of that but mine had the SB-1 frame. I was advised against the 357 Max reamer for safety reasons.

For those unclear on how to differentiate between the SB 1 and the SB 2 frames , pull the butt stock off and look at the rear of the frame and compare yours with the photo below :

http://i1155.photobucket.com/albums/p545/Ben35049/frames_zps739dfbcc.png (http://s1155.photobucket.com/user/Ben35049/media/frames_zps739dfbcc.png.html)


Ben

[Whiterabbit]

.357 max brass will fit with a little trimming

Yeah.... a little trimming of the barrel =D



I owned a Handi - 357 Mag. rifle ( until I could get to the next gun show ), The rifling was somewhere between 1/4 and a 1/2 mile from the end of the case mouth.

Mine didn't shoot cast bullets worth a cuss.

Ben


Mine also (the rifling). Mine however, DID shoot worth a cuss. particularly copper solids in 38 special, and cast lead in 357 mag.


With a handi, how far can you can seat the bullet out, increasing the powder capacity?

How far can you seat out? All the way. That's not a joke, that's the serious answer.

-------------

I reamed mine to a max so not only was the rifing a mile from the case, but it was a mile and a half from a 38 sp case. And shot 38 specials well. So buy one, shoot 357 max, and take your deer at 200 yards if you can shoot that well. Only reason I sold mine is it weighed 8 pounds. But shot 250 grain Hornaday bullets to 1700 fps like a champ (357 max load only), so I couldn't complain how it shot.

[Whiterabbit]

mine was an SB1 as well. The problem wasnt the frame, it is the shotgun firing pin. Shoots OK, but then the primer has a tendency to flow back into the firing pin hole and lock the action. It will open just fine if you pull the hammer and dry fire on the spent primer, but it is not a robust solution for sure. This is even if you use harder military primers. I never tried a small firing pin sb1 but I bet it would be OK.

The reason I recommend an SB2 is ergonomics, not safety.

[Jim Flinchbaugh]

most handi 357's will chamber Dan Wesson 360 without issue.
Use a long boolit and seat it out to the lands in a 357 case , you can get some impressive performance
without reaming to Max

[NVScouter]

My friend is doing this and asked me the same thing. WY has two limitations as of the new regs 1.5" COAL OR 500ftlbs of energy at 100y. The .357 Mag with a 158JHP is 1.59" to perfectly legal, but only makes a bit under 400lb energy with a 158JHP @1200fpsMV at 100y. Bump that to my NOE 180 that casts at 188g to 1300fps from a rifle and it makes 500lbs @150y.

I have 100% confidence in that same boolit in my 357Herrett out to 300y. So what I can do at 300y a .357Mag should be good to 150y from a rifle if you hit the deer well. For giggles I ran the numbers on my .54 round ball and was amazed at how low they were, but starting out at .54 helps a ton.

[nekshot]

Ben I never saw one of those skeletal frames like that! I live in a sheltered world and that is a new one for me. Mass doesn't always mean stronger!

[Double B]

I have the same setup and reamed to max. It is my go to gun with 1680 and a Hornady 180 ssp seated out as far as I can go. If you reload it will be like a new gun for you. Still searching for a heavy cast bullet.

[Whiterabbit]

Searching for a heavy cast bullet? Easy, there are tons. Searching for a heavy cast bullet mold? Well, the designs are easy to find, the real trick is being first in line!

[Goatwhiskers]

Nekshot, the real difference in the frames is that the SB-1 is cast iron, the SB-2 is investment cast steel, that's why you don't put rifle calibers on the SB-1. Nice that it's easy to tell the difference. GW

[Double B]

I hear that Whiterabbit. I've tried Unique and 158 grainers but couldn't get them to group as well as the aforementioned combo. Really like to find 180 grain or larger mold to explore.

[Whiterabbit]

ranchdog 190. From NOE these days. Carolina Cast Bullets can make you up some on demand if you wanna try before you buy.

[Bullshop]

ranchdog 190. From NOE these days. Carolina Cast Bullets can make you up some on demand if you wanna try before you buy.
As well as The Bullshop. When Michael (Ranch Dog) was in business he sent us one of each of his designs for this vary purpose. He was getting many requests for samples but didn't have the time to supply them so he asked us if we would be willing to supply that service for him. We have all the Ranch Dog designs available.

[nanuk]

My 2 357Mag Handies are small firing pin SB1s and sometime this year, I hope to make one a Max, and the other, I'll fit to an SB2 and ream to 35Rem with a Rim recess so I can use 303Brit brass, or 358Win with a rim cutout for 356 brass (but doubt I'll ever find any... so may work with 444Marlin)

many SB1s are reamed to RemMax with no issues at all.

the SB1 is chambered in a 44Rem, and the breech thrust is 6811PSI using the highest pressure limits (CIP)
with the 357Max, 5048PSI using the hightest pressure limits (CIP)

so unless you are handloading to extreme pressures, the 357Max is still less hard on the SB1 than the 44RemMag.

I am not be the least bit concerned about pressures with the reaming to the Max on an SB1

now, as stated above, the large firing pin, if yours has it, can be an issue. Some use SR primers.
I have read about bushing the firing pin to smaller diameter, but don't know anyone who has done it yet.