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I am new to 357 Magnum. Just picking up one today, my first one. A Ruger
stainless police security six 3 inch barrel. Just like new. 350.00 with holster.
Anyway I have been reading about different bullet weights 125 gr. vs heavy
bullets. I have checked into Buffalo Bore brand and find in a 3 inch gun you
can get 1450 fps with their 125 gr. and 1250 or very close to 1300 fps with
their 180 grain. My question, why can't you just load every other chamber
with one then the other of them. That way you will have either the best of
both worlds or I guess the worst. Every other shot would penetrate very deep
and every other shot would just about blow up on contact. Tell me where I am wrong with this way of thinking. Thanks. Remember I'm new to this caliber.
 
You are thinking about it too much....A well placed round or two of anybody's .357 in any grain and nearly any bullet style will do the job. There is no need to worry about mixing loads trying to find a magic recipe...The best thing you can do is buy your gun and practice with it so you are efficent.
 
I should think pulling trigger on 3" .357 loaded with 1450fps rounds would really suck for the shooter. I use .38 or .38+P loads only.
 
I'm use to recoil. I shoot a Charter 44 Bulldog 19 ozs. with 200 gr at 1200.
45 Colt barrel 4 inches 300 grs chronograph at 1300.
 
The heavy bullets and the light bullets would impact at different places. It would be very difficult to aim.

I assume based on the discription of the fire arm you are considering social work not hunting.

For social work, the 125 gr hollow point is very highy rate in the FBI actual shooting results report.
 
The biggest problem would be that your shots would impact at different locations. Heavier bullets will hit higher than the lighter ones.

You really REALLY want to know where each shot will land -- without trying to count shots and remember if you're at a heavier or lighter round :rolleyes:.

There is a bad habit among some self-defense types to consider that the "3 shots, 3 feet, 3 seconds" rule is the only possibility for a gun fight and so a significant difference in point of impact wouldn't matter. That's very short-sighted (no pun intended). Firing a gun in a social setting is a very dangerous thing to do. We owe it to ourselves and the folks around us to be proficient with our sidearms and know exactly what we're doing when we pull that trigger.
 
The 180 hardcasts are for very deep penetration, usually for hunting. The light high vels offer more expansion and less penetration, but may not have enough penetration on a larger hoodlum. Split the difference between the two and you have your best choice-- the 158 grains that are the golden mean of the .357 and .38 Special.

Doing an alternation will give you different points of impact and isn't really necessary anyway.

VERY good choice on the revolver BTW. One of the best out there.
 
If you are looking at the 125gr. and 180gr. bullets why not check out the 158gr. bullet of the same design? It is about midway between the two and is the bullet weight the 357 Magnum was originally designed for. The trick is to find a good bullet design that you like and can shoot well and stick with it. If you mix ammo that impacts differently and recoils differently you may not be effective with the gun. About 30 years ago when I started out I passed on a new Ruger Security Six and have regretted it ever since.
 
Over-penetration of the 180 hunting bullet would make it unsuitable for SD use.

It would shoot clear through two bad guys stacked prison lover style, and still go on through a couple of typical home interior walls.

As others have said, the 125 grain JHP loads are superior in every way for SD use.

rc
 
IMO, the difference in points of impact are negligible at the distances a self defense situation is most likely gonna be in.
 
Most likely...?
There is a bad habit among some self-defense types to consider that the "3 shots, 3 feet, 3 seconds" rule is the only possibility for a gun fight and so a significant difference in point of impact wouldn't matter. That's very short-sighted (no pun intended). Firing a gun in a social setting is a very dangerous thing to do. We owe it to ourselves and the folks around us to be proficient with our sidearms and know exactly what we're doing when we pull that trigger.

I've got heavy and light loads that print a foot apart out of the same gun at ? yds distance. There's "most likely" and there's "should have been sure." I'd like to be sure.
 
Sorry, but I'm not one of those SD types that's all armchair talk and never practiced the principles...Due to my employement I have to qualify with a variety of weapons. The longest shot on our qualification course is 25 yards. I have qualified with no less than a dozen .357 weapons over the years using a variety of ammo. I have never had any trouble putting my shots in a standard B21 target no matter what grain of ammo I was using whether it be in .38 or .357....Personally, I don't envision many SD encounters past 25 yards....However, I have trained at great distances with a handgun. Matter of fact on my last range day, we trained at 50 yards shooting the B21 targets.
 
Sorry, but I'm not one of those SD types that's all armchair talk and never practiced the principals

Oh. Well then, that clears things up.

I, however, AM one of those SD types that's all armchair talk and never practices the principles, so everything I say or think comes from that perspective.




...

:rolleyes:
 
I am of the opinion that 180 gr is for hunting only. FWIW; I keep .38 +P in my HD/SD 686 because, if I had to shoot it at night without hearing protection it would definitely blind and deafen me.
 
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