Backwood options?

If you need a gun for 4 legged predators the SP-101 is a poor choice. A 357 needs barrel length to be effective. A typical 9mm load is more powerful than a 357 from a 2" barrel and about equal with a 3" barrel. A properly loaded 357 would be a good choice, but you need a minimum of 4"-6" of barrel or you are just making a lot of noise when you pull the trigger.

My personal choice is a Glock 10mm. Power equal to hot loaded 357 from a 6" barrel, but the same overall length and weight as a 3" Sp-101, but with 3X the ammo. A 4-6" barreled 357 is my 2nd choice.

ruger blackhawk 45 long colt w/ 4.625" barrel. weighs 36 oz. empty. put it in a 1941 tanker holster (rides in the center of your chest).

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There ya' go!

But please promise me that if ya go with the SP101, you'll get the 4-inch and at the very least, the 3-inch.
Trust me...you don't want the 2-inch.

get ya a chronograph and find out. cost you about a hundred bucks. then you will know!

fwiw

murf

KaceCoyote said:

Too big chief. Needs to be pocket carry small for me to carry on body whilst riding a dirt bike, I've got alot've protective apparel and straps running everywhere which complicates anything bigger.

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Sounds like a can of pepper spray made for the woodland creatures might suit you better.

Well if .44 mag is up for consideration, which is what I woods carry, then I'd vote for a 329PD, but that's def not in the SP101 price range.

I also live in Missouri and have never heard of a wild hog attacking anyone in this state. They are very wary here. So wary, in fact, that MDC pretty much has to use helicopters in order to find and shoot them. You are much more likely to be hit by lighting on a sunny day than to be attacked by a wild hog in Missouri.

Regardless, nothing wrong with carrying a proper gun in the woods. I vote for a 3" J-Frame Smith and Wesson in .357. Accurate, light, and powerful. Now be careful, the very act of riding your motor bike in the backwoods is truly more dangerous by multiutudes.

I am writing this with a smile and not trying to be onery. lol.

KaceCoyote said:

Which seems to indicate .357 is still quite formidable from a snub.

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Only if you can hit with one. Go rent one and shoot some full house magnums thru it rapid-fire at a 10 yd target. (rapid-fire being defined as no slower than two shots per second)

See if your group (pattern?) is "minute of charging hog or meth-head"

.357 isn't the last caliber I'd use on feral hogs, but it's damned near it. You'd be much better off with a .44 mag or hot .45 Colt with hard cast bullets.
Hogs are as tough as Ruger revolvers.

great hiking gun. some don't like them, but a lot do. Its all personal preference. To bad winchester got rid of the Partition gold 180 grain ammo.

A 357 needs barrel length to be effective. A typical 9mm load is more powerful than a 357 from a 2" barrel and about equal with a 3" barrel. A properly loaded 357 would be a good choice, but you need a minimum of 4"-6" of barrel or you are just making a lot of noise when you pull the trigger.

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My personal chronograph results with the Buffalo Bore .357 Magnum 180-grain hardcast lead rounds from my 2.25" SP-101 yielded an average of about 1,200 f/s. That's over 575 lb./ft of energy at the muzzle from a snubbie revolver, with a very heavy, sharp-edged, deep-penetrating hardcast lead bullet. No 9mm round can compare to that.

There are better choices for defense against tough, thick-skinned wildlife than a snub-nose .357, but there are also many worse choices. This same Buffalo Bore load from my 4.2" GP100 yielded an average of 1,285 f/s. That gives you about 660 lb./ft. of energy. But if you are going to carry a large, heavy, full-sized .357 Magnum like the GP100, you might as well step up to a .44 Magnum or .45 Colt.

kacecoyote, i would not recommend putting a gun in your pocket while riding a motorcycle or quad. you will wind up with a broken hip if you go down.

even carrying on your side will give you quite a bruise, if you land on it.

murf

Is concealment a priority for this application? If not, why not consider the GP100 instead with a slightly longer barrel, 4-5" ?

KaceCoyote said:

So I find myself in need of a .357 snub of some description, primarily motivated by some encounters with boar around Southern Missouri. I've been eyeballing the SP101 pretty hard for this application, but my firsthand experience with Ruger's wheel guns. Research seems to indicate the SP101 is built like an armored dump truck, but is a tad heavy? What else is out there in roughly the same price range?

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Take Glock 29 with spare Glock 20 magazine.

arthury said:

Is concealment a priority for this application? If not, why not consider the GP100 instead with a slightly longer barrel, 4-5" ?

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Because it's large, heavy stainless "toad". The Glock 20 is superior in every way except it can't be used as peening hammer.

my thoughts were similar to others in the thread...I recently got a Ruger SP101, but with the spurless hammer, for a 'woods' defense gun while archery hunting; here in PA they passed a new law that residents with CCW's could carry during hunting season for personal defense purposes...

I wanted to eliminate the single action trigger so that I can argue that it is a self defense firearm and not a hunting sidearm (which is illegal to have during archery season) if approached by a wildlife conservancy officer; I know that a semiautomatic pistol 'fits' the description of a defensive sidearm better, but I wanted .357 magnum...

The S&W 640 is certainly a contender for this application. Small, light, rides easy on the hip, and chambered for .357 magnum. Just put some HC lead in there and, if you can hit with it, you are good to go.

The SP101 with 3" barrell seems to be a natural pointer if that makes any difference to you. Just recently acquired one.
Carried a 3" S&W J-frame for years for incidentals in the woods/fishing/etc. The small 3" barrelled revolvers seem just perfect for this type of duty. Compact and lightweight and accurate, either one of these two. With big hands, the Ruger seems the fit.

jmr40 said:

If you need a gun for 4 legged predators the SP-101 is a poor choice. A 357 needs barrel length to be effective. A typical 9mm load is more powerful than a 357 from a 2" barrel and about equal with a 3" barrel. A properly loaded 357 would be a good choice, but you need a minimum of 4"-6" of barrel or you are just making a lot of noise when you pull the trigger.

My personal choice is a Glock 10mm. Power equal to hot loaded 357 from a 6" barrel, but the same overall length and weight as a 3" Sp-101, but with 3X the ammo. A 4-6" barreled 357 is my 2nd choice.

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It's still quite effective from a snub.

murf said:

get ya a chronograph and find out. cost you about a hundred bucks. then you will know!

fwiw

murf

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I've clocked some 125 grain 1400fps stuff from a 2" Taurus 605. It was clocking well over 1200 fps. That's nothing to sneeze at and still enough for a piggy if you do your part. A heavy hard cast round with a short barreled powder would work fine.

Research seems to indicate the SP101 is built like an armored dump truck, but is a tad heavy?

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They are heavy compared to the aluminum/composite snubs, but shooting them with full powered loads is still manageable.

I wouldn't go any lighter for a 357.
The DA pull is a little heavy, but there are ways to lighten it up.

Muzzle energy doesn't kill animals. Open, bleeding holes do. With hogs, you need a big, deep hole. Hogs are very tough, and .357 is worse than marginal on a big hog. You're better off with a hot .45 Colt, .44 Mag, or even a hot .44 Special with a wide, flat nosed, hard cast bullet.
You do NOT want to wound a feral hog. They are built like a tank, ill tempered, will kill you (if they get the chance), and WILL eat you. Just ask my ex-girlfriend's late uncle.

Yesterday, 12:16 PM #17
skeeziks
Member


Join Date: May 4, 2010
Posts: 184
Quote:
please pontificate
Sure, no problem.... Rugers QC SUCKS!

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Are you serious? I have 3 Rugers and they are all great guns.

SP101 .357 2.25 in DAO
GP100 .357 6 in DA/SA
SRH .44 magnum 7.5 in

Great guns. I did have to send the .44 magnum back because the tolerance was too tight on the cylinder but works like a charm and they fixed it for free. I don't hold that against them.