Seville extended the length of the cylinder so the erosive gasses were contained and did not cut the topstrap. Most of the erosion was suppposedly caused by driving light bullet at max velocities. Another detriment to the gas cutting problem was the use of stainless steel. My Dan Wessons in 357 Maxi and 375 Super Mag never showed any propensity of being damaged.Originally Posted by GunnerAsch
Old enough to know better, young enough to do it anyway!
Men who don't understand women fall into two categories: bachelors and husbands!
We also ave DW's in .357 and .375 Supermags as no gas cutting issues. Never shoot light cast either.
"Come unto Me, all you who labor and are heavy burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28
Male Guanaco out in dry lakebed at 10,800 feet south of Arequipa.
As noted above,, the Ruger .357 Maxi got a bad rap in the media for a little flame top strap cutting. As such, Bill Ruger got pizzed, and dropped the production. Plus, he destroyed about 5000 guns. And yes,, it was mostly caused by folks hot-rodding a light bullet, using a hotter faster powder.
What has been largely ignored,, is the fact that other guns, by other makers have also had the occasional model get the same top strap flame cutting.
One of the original people who helped Bill Sr. & Bill Jr. develop the .357 Maxi still has one of the very first "off the line production" .357 Maxi's and shoots it a lot. He also developed a cast bullet designed just for the Maxi with a good friend just a few years ago. The cast bullet is called the "Bradshaw/Martin" and throws a 194 grn bullet, uses a GC, and when mated with IMR 4227 produces excellent accuracy & ZERO top strap cutting. Mountain Molds used to make the bullet mold, before they quit. Now, I believe Accurate Molds makes it.
I still have a Ruger .357 max. Haven't shot it since the mid 80's. Still in the original box.
Was never impressed with it as a silhouette gun. It wouldn't shoot heavy bullets worth a
damn.
leadhead
Leadhead, what was the twist rate in those guns? Could have that been the culprit or did it just not take a shine to heavies? I've been tempted to pay the $ for a used Ruger if I could find one for less than a fortune. Maybe a Magnum Research as I really like 35 cal guns.
IT AINT what ya shoot--its how ya shoot it. NONE of us are as smart as ALL of us!
"Leadhead, what was the twist rate in those guns? Could have that been the culprit or did it just not take a shine to heavies?"
I'm not Leadhead, but I'll add a little info.
I'm not where I can relate the twist rate in the Ruger .357 Maxi's, but I can say the gun was actually developed for the heavier bullets. The lightest bullet from the factory offerings that were commercially available, was 158 grns. Most were 180 grn.
Not surprising since it was developed by Elgin T. Gates the head honcho of IHMSA for Silhouette shooting.
Old enough to know better, young enough to do it anyway!
Men who don't understand women fall into two categories: bachelors and husbands!
I don't know how true it is but I have read, several times, that heavy charges of slower powder and lighter (125gr range) were the culprit for top strap cutting. Smith and Wesson tackled that problem with their super lightweight frames by adding a stainless steel appearing tab under the top strap. It is a shame that Ruger discontinued the 357 Maximum. It would have been a huntin' six gun for sure.
IT AINT what ya shoot--its how ya shoot it. NONE of us are as smart as ALL of us!
"It would have been a huntin' six gun for sure."
The surviving 11,000 or so of them sure are good hunting guns! But some have been sacrificed by their owners to be converted into a custom caliber.
"Not surprising since it was developed by Elgin T. Gates the head honcho of IHMSA for Silhouette shooting."
David Bradshaw was the person who worked on the Ruger .357 Maximum with Bill & Bill Jr. He published an excellent article in G&A magazine about it back then.
I traded my Saville 10" gun for an El Dorado 10" My El Dorado eventually shot loose, so sent it in to have the cylinder bronze bearings replaced. During the time I had occasion to talk to the two owners, they were a hoot.
I shot the 200 grain RCBS in both guns with 296. The Seville did not have the replaceable cylinder bronze bearings and the El Dorado had better sights for my use, as I recall, they used the Jim Rock Iron Sight Mfg sights, including an under cut partridge front sight. Sort of like the 353 FA silhouette gun, but about half the price.
The Saville and El Dorado both are fine guns. We had several IHMSA members with guns at Seville when they were seized, tried to get the guns back for the owners but the ATF said they could not find the paperwork.
“There is a remedy for all things, save death.“
Cervantes
“Never give up, never quit.”
Robert Rogers
Roger’s Rangers
There are three kinds of men. The one that learns by reading. The few who learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence for themselves.
Will Rogers
Interesting - never heard of that revolver but reminds me of a sign we used to see in a San Antonio eating establishment.
Seville dair dago
Tousand buses inaro
NoJo dems trux
Summit cowz
Summit dux
Extra credit if you know which local restaurant had it on the wall.
Don't think Elgin Gates had anything to do with the Ruger guns, only the developement of the 357 max. cartridge. IIRC, Gate would add (weld) a section to the front of the 357mag cartridge and played with length and finalized on the 1.610" length.
A heck of Silhouette revolver would have been the Ruger Hawkeye single shot pistol chambered in 357 Max. Think I read once that there was one (1) built. Would like to find a beat up one and stick a .357 tube on it, chambered in 357max.
Would love one of the Maxi's in 445 Super mag but keeping my Maxi origional.
Rapier,, I used to go by the El Dorado shop and visit with Russ & Forrest. Great guys. Just a few years ago,, I stopped by Russ's place,, and had his wife take a picture of me, him & my El Dorado. Russ passed away 10 days later. I have the last picture of him & one of his guns.
rockrat,, yes,, there was (1) experimental Hawkeye in .357 Maxi.
Even a rough "beater" Hawkeye will cost $$$.
The bullet I was shooting in the Ruger 357 maxi was the Lyman 358627 215 grain SWC. I don't remember the powder
or charge, but my spotter told me the bullet would vortex at 150 yards and at 200 yards, the bullet was making about
a vortex circle of around 2 feet in diameter. After the match, I hade him shoot a few so I could observe this. I never
saw anything like it then or since. I retired the Ruger soon after. Still have it in the original box in my safe.
leadhead
"The bullet I was shooting in the Ruger 357 maxi was the Lyman 358627 215 grain SWC. I don't remember the powder
or charge, but my spotter told me the bullet would vortex at 150 yards and at 200 yards, the bullet was making about
a vortex circle of around 2 feet in diameter. After the match, I hade him shoot a few so I could observe this. I never
saw anything like it then or since"
Interesting. Makes me wonder if the bullet body was too long or too short to match the twist rate. Something that may not show up until shooting at longer than "normal" distances. (Normal, meaning the folks who think 50 yds is a LONG shot for a handgun.)
Kinda like trying to get a full wadcutter to be accurate at 200 yds.
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