357 Deer Loads

tagged for later, thanks

158 grain or 180 grain RNFP cast bullets. Lee's RF bullet looks especially good because it has a sharp corner at the leading edge instead of a rounded edge. Not sure how much 2400 but it should be about 15 grains for the 158's. Maybe 12 grains for the 180's?

I have used 158 and 180 xtps on deer. They do an excellent job. And yes you can hit bone or shoulder and still retain more then enough penetration.

D

sean1129 said:

Thanks to all who have responded. I've gone with the 180 grain wide nose flat points from Cast Performance, the ones with a gas check. So far all is well, but I'm still experimenting...

Click to expand...

Good choice IMO. This data (180gr Cast Performance WFNGC-1657 fps) I posted in post #4 was generated with Lil'Gun. I get about 100 fps less with W296/H110...

What velocity will you be looking at Sean? It matters because some bullets won't hold together after 1600+ fps when hitting the deer.

I don't use a.357 for deer but have killed one with my 6" Blackhawk in .357/.44 Bain & Davis. I probably used the same Hornady 158 XTP-FP as Vlad357. It flattened the deer from 46 yards and will take velocities of 1800 fps without fragmenting. I didn't recover the bullet as it passed through the deer.