.357 ammo question

[kdsmith]

Hello and thanks in advance for any words of wisdom.
I am planning a trip out west on a mule deer/ elk hunt and have decide to take my .357 Rossi SS as a side arm. I have been directed to use hard cast ammo but thats about all i know at this point. Does anyone recommend a brand or weight to use?

My only other option is my .45 Judge but I'm way more accurate with the .357

I have considered trading in my Judge for the Taurus Tracker in .44 mag but at this point I'm already over budget for this trip and not real sure how accurate the .44 will be.

 

[Remllez]

Try Buffalo Bore or Double Tap they have what you need for heavy hard cast gas checked .357 loads. Mind you these are loaded close to the original .357 loads and are bad medicine for anything they hit!

 

[kdsmith]

Thank you Sir, I wasn't sure if it could handle Buffalo Bore or Double Tap.

 

[Strykervet]

I think the .44mag would be much more useful than that Judge. It certainly should be more accurate. Lots of heavy loadings for it too.

Many of the 158gr. loads will work well too, for everything from finishing a game kill to defense against anything up to black bear (but bear spray works better against them, and likely you will only see the tail as it runs in the other direction --it's all I've ever seen of them!).

 

[RinkRat]

I have to ask ... On this subject I have read and *been told* that my S&W Model 19-4 will handle anything over 125gr better and to *stick with the 158gr or better yet the 180gr* ammo?

So do you think I can run the DoubleTap 180gr or 200gr WFNGC Hardcast once in awhile while hunting or hiking in the woods?

 

[Tony_the_tiger]

I have some 200 gr .357 corbon hunter hardcast. I havn't shot it but it looks like it might serve your purpose.

 

[oldbear]

I carried a M-19 or M-66 to work daily for more years than I care to think about. I still believe that these are the finest all around combat revolver ever produced, yet they have their Limitations, these are K frame, 38 special, revolvers that are capable of shooting .357 Magnum ammo some of the time and I see no need to take the chance of stressing a barrel or frame. If you want to shoot big time hot loads get an L or even better an N frame that's what they were designed for.

 

[wlewisiii]

I like the American Eagle (Federal) 158 gr JSP, otherwise I've been very very happy with every BB product I've used. I'd have no trouble grabbing a box of their 180 gr. load and heading out the door.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

If you're worried about that Rossi handling those hot loads produced by BB and DT you might want to look at the 180gr Hard Cast load from Federal, Part #P357J. It's a good load that's accurate in most revolvers. They also have a 180gr round that's loaded with a Swift A-Frame bullet, Part #P357SA. I've heard it's a good load and will expand but I have not shot them myself.

Remington also has a 180gr Hard Cast .357 Magnum load and Winchester has a 180gr load that uses their Partition Gold bullet. The Winchester load is known to expand while continuing to penetrate deeply.

All that said I think the Federal Hard Cast load is probably the best choice for a standard pressure load.