.357 vs ar-15 for general hunting and shooting.

[sbaker10]

I want three guns in the near future, a 1911, a ar-15, and a .357mag, However I am forced to think about what makes the most sense, eg, price to shoot, actual use, use if it becomes hard to find or get and so forth.

My upper budget is 800$ and I was considering a 1911 but its a slow moving bullet with a lot of drop , not useful for hunting really. However with an AR-15 I could scope it and shoot coyotes which is fairly important, I could hunt deer with it. and it would be quite a good home defense gun with lighter bullets. But a 30 round magazine at 40 cents a round is going to hurt, the bigger issue though is lifespan, generally I read an AR will only be within 3 moa for about 10,000 shots, that sounds like a lot but I want a gun that will last my whole life or at least that I wouldn't have to feel guilty about dumping some lead out of.

But I got thinking about my desire for a .357 revolver ever since seeing one in half life 2 for the first time. It would stop a person as well as a hog which are closer than I like to where I live. and there are a number of lever actions and even bolt actions for it meaning I could imagine I could scope one and take coyotes out to 250 yards and deer at about 100. In addition although purely psychological it would save me a lot of money as i wouldn't shoot through rounds in a revolver near as fast as a ar-15



for a summarized version.

Will any .357 rifle either lever or bolt action group at 6 inches or less at 250 yards?

What is the cost of repairing an ar-15 when it gets "shot out"

reloading, I want to get into reloading but which would give me cheaper reloads as 38 specials and .223 run about the same price new.


Yes I could get both, but I am a bit of a hoarder and would rather have a lot of ammo for one gun/caliber instead of a couple boxes for both.

 

[buck460XVR]

for a summarized version.

Will any .357 rifle either lever or bolt action group at 6 inches or less at 250 yards?

What is the cost of repairing an ar-15 when it gets "shot out"

First off, the .357 even in a carbine is NOT a 250 yard hunting round. Even with light bullets @ 250 yards you are looking @ about 4 feet of drop. Secondly, if one can afford to shoot out a AR with 10,000 rounds, they certainly can afford to replace it.

 

[Robert]

Might want to check you local hunting laws as well. In many places the .223 is not big enough for game like deer. But of the choices you give I'd get the AR.

 

[Coyote3855]

You need to prioritize your potential uses of the firearm. Regarding ammunition availability, all three calibers are on shelves in my area with a preponderance of .223 but one never knows about the future. Sounds like you have ruled out the 1911. The ability to have a handgun and rifle in the same caliber (.357) has some appeal, but as Buck460 notes the .357 in a carbine is not a 250 yard unit. I question its ability for medium sized game at 100 yards, although certainly deer have been taken with it at that range. Given your three choices, I would vote for the AR although I don't know if they are available at your price point.

 

[mdauben]

Will any .357 rifle either lever or bolt action group at 6 inches or less at 250 yards?

I'm thinking this will be very rifle dependent, but your best bet for that sort of accuracy might be the something like the Ruger 77/357 bolt-action. Do keep in mind that 250 yards is probably outside the effective hunting range of just about any safe .357 loading and you are probably looking at a 2 - 4 foot bullet drop at that range.

What is the cost of repairing an ar-15 when it gets "shot out"

I'm no AR expert but I admit I've never heard of this being an especial problem with AR15s (as opposed to any other rifle). I would imagine if you did manage to shoot out an AR, it would be the barrel that would need replacing. This is a relatively inexpensive ($100-150) cost (unless you are using premium match barrels) and can be done relativly easily by the home gunsmith.

reloading, I want to get into reloading but which would give me cheaper reloads as 38 specials and .223 run about the same price new.

On average, .223 components will run more than .38 or .357 components, espeically if you use cast bullets in the .38/.357 cartridges.

 

[jerkface11]

I would imagine if you did manage to shoot out an AR, it would be the barrel that would need replacing.

And the bolt. But that takes over 10k rounds. I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[denton]

Lots of good advice given already...

Here in Utah, where we have large mule deer, a 223 is legal, but not recommended. Probably the smallest round that is satisfactory is the 243, loaded with 100 grain bullets.

The 223 is a very nice match for coyotes. Remember, it was designed to produce a larger proportion of non-fatal wounds in combat.

My 357 lever action will do 2" groups at 100 yards. I think that is fairly typical. I use cast bullets, and the grandkids just love shooting 38 SPL in it. With cast bullets, the speed limit is 1200 FPS. I think that with full loads and JHC bullets, it's probably OK for deer out to 100 yards, maybe a little farther.

Of course, if you deer hunt with a revolver, 100 yards is a reach. 50-75 would probably be more like it.

There's a reason that most people who hunt at longer ranges use bolt action rifles.

 

[jerkface11]

The 223 is a very nice match for coyotes. Remember, it was designed to produce a larger proportion of non-fatal wounds in combat.

Great for whitetails and wild hogs too.

 

[strambo]

A high quality chrome AR barrel will go farther than 10k, then it can be re-barreled for minimal cost. You could also have an upper for hunting with a scope and a defense upper with a dot, never shoot out either.

 

[Armored farmer]

I have both the AR and the Marlin 1894c in .357.

I would advise the AR for most general purpose......UNLESS you already own a .357 revolver or intend to get one soon. The handgun/carbine combo is awesome, but the .357 lacks long range(100+yd) accuracy.

I admit that the AR is fun to customize with so many options available now. If you get bored with it, you can change it up.

 

[dogtown tom]

sbaker10 .....But I got thinking about my desire for a .357 revolver ever since seeing one in half life 2 for the first time. ......

 

[MAKster]

You can get hot 357 mag ammo from Buffalo Bore that is equivalent to 30-30 but I would think you would be limited to about 150 yards.

 

[gamestalker]

For long range shooting, be it hunting or target, the .223 will dominate. At 100 yds. a .357 mag. will take care of deer sized game, if you can put the shot in the right place, that is. I've seen what my .357 mag. reloads do to mule deer at 100 - 150 yds. out of a 4" wheel gun, so I know a rifle version would do the trick. But it's not a good option beyond 100 yds., and definitely not the best option of the two.

The best option of course, buy both, and take up reloading, then you can afford to shoot the barrel out of the .223.

GS

 

[627PCFan]

You might look at a shotgun combo with bird barrel and rifled slug barrel. Covers everything your looking to do.

 

[d2wing]

.45 is not legal here for deer. Both .357 and .223 are and I have shot deer with both. The AR is going to have a lot more range and accuracy and be more effective as a hunting round. I also like the .357 for sneaking up on deer at very close range, 40 yards at the very max, and closer is better.

 

[PistolPete45]

For all around shooting A 357 is a fantastic round . Revolvers and lever guns , same ammo. The reloading is a snap and not being blow back dependent you can load hot or a 38 load for targets / plunking . If you plan on a war,,,

Ar15 would be the way to go .

 

[mboylan]

.223/5.56 is a very marginal deer cartridge requiring closer shots with premium controlled expansion bullets. It is illegal to use as a deer cartridge in several states and rightly so
.

 

[87hurricane]

Honestly, none of the pistols/rifles you listed would be great for deer hunting. A .223 will take care of a deer, and so will a .357, as long as you're close, I'd say 100 yards or less. If you want something to have fun with, all three will serve that purpose. If you're reloading, .45 and .357 will be cheaper and easier to reload.

 

[gym]

It's comparing apples to coconuts. There is no scenario where you will only be able to have 1 gun to do all those things, "unless it's a movie". Close range they all work for everything, but so does a hammer.

 

[Warp]

Worrying about 'shooting out' an AR style rifle and thus feeling guilty about shooting it is beyond silly.

With a quality rifle you are talking a minimum of 5,000 rounds before you even have to consider possibly swapping a part for the sake of continued reliability. And you are talking well more than 10,000 rounds before you even consider having to replace the barrel (we aren't talking highly competitive match shooting here).

By the time you can afford to put a particular number of rounds through the rifle, the expense of replacing parts will be inconsequential. I mean, if you wanted to be really aggressive with replacing things earlier than necessary, you'd replace the bolt (maybe $80) and some minor stuff at 5,000 rounds, and the barrel at 10,000+ rounds (ballpark of $200 to $250 maybe for a good one, say a BCM). Now compare that to the cost of 5k-10k rounds of ammo...magazines...cleaning supplies...range time...eyes...ears...optics...accessories...and it's almost literally nothing.

If you are worried about cost per shot, none of these three cartridges are any better than the others.

 

[hso]

10,000 shots

What else besides and AK are you ever going to fire 10,000 shots through?

Why are you compelled to shoot any more than you would with a different rifle? How many rounds you send down range is completely up to you so you can limit how much you shoot.

If you don't want to limit how much you shoot then you'd have to replace any barrel after that much shooting if you wanted to maintain out of the box accuracy. At least with an AR it will be cheaper to change the barrel out.

 

[bpl]

The AR is the most versatile, IMO.

.357mag is a 50-75 yard deer cartridge. The Buffalo Bore loads, which I have bought and shot and currently have two boxes of, are not the equivalent of a 30-30. I have a Winchester 94 Trapper in .357mag.

 

[Ironclad]

If you want something for deer and coyote hunting and HD, get an AR in .308 / 7.62. Its more expensive, but it will actually do all three jobs.

 

[DC3-CVN-72]

I'm not sure you can do what you want with 1 gun. I have a RUGER M77/.357, bolt rifle & I LUV it. I got one of the 1st. ones. It's the only gun I've bought new & paid list price for. When I saw it on RUGER'S web site I had my LGS order me one. I have not put a scope on it yet, but even with iron's this gun is better than I am. I have a few .357 MAG revolvers & like having the same ammo for both guns. something tells me your not going to buy just one gun, so I say get the RUGER M77/.357 just incase they stop production of it.

 

[Caliper_Mi]

AR.

.223 or 5.56 upper for coyotes, HD and plinking.

300BLK, 6.5 Grendel or 6.8 SPC upper for larger game.

Buy the receiver blocks, barrel nut wrench and torque wrench and build it yourself. Rebarrel when/if needed or desired. AR's are truly quite simple to work on if you have any kind of mechanical aptitude.


If you want a rifle that you'll never wear out in your lifetime, look to a lower pressure cartridge that can be shot with cast bullets. .30-30, .45-70, .22LR, etc (all for their own uses, of course!)