Best round all 'round

I was debating between the .357 and the 44 when it occured to me, the 44 can do anything the 357 can do and then some, so as good as the 357 is, I had to go with the 44. As stated earlier, it can be handloaded to any power level the shooter wants or needs and in a good handgun they are scary accurate.

9x19mm is the most widely used pistol cartride in the world. How did it not get mentioned on the list?

The .44Mag hands down. For the handloader, there is no limit. It can be loaded for everything from self defense, plinking and game of all sizes.

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Best all around by a mile...

No love for the 45 colt?
It's as good as the 44, if not better, with less pressure. It can shoot wimpish loads. It was designed to shoot through horses, in it's original form. It can shoot black powder for all you zombie types. Aside from the incredibly high price and poor choice in revolvers, what's not to like?

9mm can do all of that. And as the OP said, anything larger than deer or hogs and he'd use his .308.

When you throw in that qualifier, 9mm takes the cake in my opinion.

Anyone who tries to say the 9mm is the best "all-around caliber" has not shot enough handguns or needs to stop drinking the coolaid while reading nonsense on the internet. Seriously hunting with the 9mm is like swatting flies with a wet noodle. It is a good SD and target cartridge but that is it. The 45acp while being my favorite auto caliber is also not my first choice for hunting. The 10mm is decent but lacks bullet choice as does the .40 for they share bullets.
The 357 and 44mag are without a doubt the best "all-around" calibers in the handgun world. Loaded down for range and target, or loaded up for any game animal in North America. They are also good SD and HD calibers.

I own enough different handguns to be able to vote with a clear mind. I gotta go with the .357mag, and I'll even choose the gun, my 4" 586. I like my 44's, but .357 is so much cheaper to handload for,and a 125jhp loaded with universal is a great plinker. I could go on and on, a .22 is perfect too, but I can't see myself shooting a deer with a .22. I'll stay with the .357 as my choice. But, then there is the ...............................

I really like the new 327 magnum.

You take your 9mm and I will take my 357 and we will shoot coyotes or any other medium size game, at anything over 50yds, and see who hits it first and how many rounds it takes to drop it.

Since I like both semi autos and revolvers, I think I would go with 10mm.
Second choice would be .357 Mag (think Coonan).

In the real world, I am partial to .45, and that would include .45 acp and .45 LC.

The definition of an all around caliber isn't just about hunting.

The definition of an all around caliber isn't just about hunting.

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No, not JUST about hunting; but hunting does appear to be a part of it as far as the OP is concerned. The first part, in fact:

Hunting, self defense, sporting, plinking, pest control, etc.

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A gun chambered for 357 or 44 mag will have the benefit of being able to shoot 38special and 44special. for this reason I immediately narrow it down to 357 and 44. Obviously, 44mag is silly for self defense, but 44special is exceptional for self defense. 357 is the king of all self defense rounds according to FBI real world data. it's also adequate for hunting. But 44mag is a little more adequate for hunting.

I voted 44mag.

But I change my mind. The reason I change my mind is concealed carry. There's just no good concealed carry gun chambered for 44 mag.

357 is better.

Back in 1962 when I first started reading firearms publications regularly, I read an article touting the .357 mag as the most versatile handgun cartridge. I dont think any thing has come along to change that in the last 49 years.

gary

9mm or 45 acp. Readily availible, fairly cheap and versitile at the market. Limited hunting capabilities but good enough for self defense = good enough for hunting anything that you are close enough to. 9mm is cheap to plink with. I'm partial to the .45 but I think 9mm is the best answer to this question.

Well hunting and defense have kind of different parameters.

I've never heard of an animal shooting back, which is why low recoil is such a desirable trait for a defense platform, but animals do die harder than people, and they do tend to run, sometimes for miles, after beig fatally wounded. So you have to deliver a much more dramatic wound to a game animal than you do to a human who is endangering your life.

mine wentto the 44mag from a Mouse to Grizz. It can be used for everything hunting to self defence although it is hard to conseal a7 /12" barrel.

357. Nothing else needs to be said.

I'm thinking 41mag.

I would say .357 Magnum, with .44 Mag. as an honorable mention. A medium-frame .357, or even a four-inch .44, can be accurate and powerful enough for hunting while still being a practical CCW (when downloaded). Auto pistols with this kind of power are generally pretty large and unwieldy.

I voted .357mag as the most versatile handgun cartridge. But in reality I believe it's the most versatile chambering since it allows .38 special too. .44mag/spcl come is second in my way of thinking only because the more powerful round is a bit harder to control and. .44spcl isn't as easy to find as .38 special.

Ideally I'd like a round that performs equally as well in a revolver as a semi, but I do realize there are limitations on performance in this regard. But again, the central interest is a universal round, regardless of the host firearm.

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The .22lr is about the only round that performs equally well in wheel guns and autos. Many revolvers require moon clips to shoot rimless cartridges and few autos do well with rimmed cartridges.

9mm can do all of that. And as the OP said, anything larger than deer or hogs and he'd use his .308.

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Keep in mind that in many states (not all), .357 Magnum is the minimum caliber for hunting said game.

Don't get me wrong, I think 9mm makes a great plinking and SD round (with proper ammo selection). I don't own a 9 currently, but would like to pick up a Hi Power or CZ-75 one day in that caliber. But you'll also probably have a hard time finding 180 grain hard cast semi wadcutters in that caliber. In other words, the .357s has a much wider envelope of performance potential with power levels and bullet selection.

To meet the OPs criteria, IMHO, the a 4" medium frame .357 would be the best fit. .38 for moderately priced plinking, can reliably fire shot shells for pest control, big and stable enough for hunting and small enough for concealed carry.

jad0110
Keep in mind that in many states (not all), .357 Magnum is the minimum caliber for hunting said game.

Don't get me wrong, I think 9mm makes a great plinking and SD round (with proper ammo selection). I don't own a 9 currently, but would like to pick up a Hi Power or CZ-75 one day in that caliber. But you'll also probably have a hard time finding 180 grain hard cast semi wadcutters in that caliber. In other words, the .357s has a much wider envelope of performance potential with power levels and bullet selection.

To meet the OPs criteria, IMHO, the a 4" medium frame .357 would be the best fit. .38 for moderately priced plinking, can reliably fire shot shells for pest control, big and stable enough for hunting and small enough for concealed carry.

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I would have to agree that a 4" revolver chambered in .357 mag would be the best all-around weapon for the reasons you had stated. One gets the hunting capabilities of .357 mag and the requirements of SD/HD (.38 spl +P) and plinking with 38 range rounds.

However, the OP asked about a best cartridge and not "one gun". In a one handgun cartridge scenario, I think the 9mm wins hands down. It is enough to hunt with, although as you had stated, not legal in most states. The 9mm is inexpensive to practice/plink with at $10/box and it is definitely powerful enough for SD/HD at 300-something ft lbs & 70% to 75% the momentum of a
357 mag.

Finally, one can carry 15 to 20 rounds in a 9mm semi-auto while the .357 mag is limited to 5 to 8 rounds in a revolver. I know many many folks will say that they would rather have 6 rounds of 357 mag, but I personally would prefer to have 20 rounds of 9mm in my gun if I didn't have a reload.

Anyone who thinks the 9mm is sufficient for hunting anything larger than coyotes has zero credibility as far as I'm concerned. Not to even mention the shooter's ability to hit anything smaller than a 55gal drum at 50yds with most 9mm service autos. Hands down??? I don't think so.

Remo223 said:

A gun chambered for 357 or 44 mag will have the benefit of being able to shoot 38special and 44special. for this reason I immediately narrow it down to 357 and 44. Obviously, 44mag is silly for self defense, but 44special is exceptional for self defense. 357 is the king of all self defense rounds according to FBI real world data. it's also adequate for hunting. But 44mag is a little more adequate for hunting.

I voted 44mag.

But I change my mind. The reason I change my mind is concealed carry. There's just no good concealed carry gun chambered for 44 mag.

357 is better.

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A bit of a pain but there are a few 5 shot .44 magnum revolvers.