Favorite revolver cartridges

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32swl for fun
22lr for more affordable fun
38sw for all kinds of antique fun
32sw for a little less antique fun
22mag for a bit louder fun
38spl for Target fun
357 mag for hunting fun
41 mag for fun borrowed from a friend
44 mag for expensive hunting fun
460sw for really loud fun borrowed from a friend
500sw for numb wrists and a side of fun borrowed from a friend
 
.460 S&W Magnum-most versatile

Can shoot the following all out of the same gun.
45ACP- 350 ft/lb to 450 ft/lb.
45 Colt- 500-700 ft/lb
454 Casull - 1200-1800 ft. Lb
460 S&W Magnum- boom!!! Ouch!!!

Pretty neat what can be done with this revolver.
 
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.38 special or .44 special for targets.
.357, .44 mag, or .45 Colt for hunting.
.44 special or .22 lr for bumming around the farm.
9mm for ccw.
 
I have revolvers that shoot:

.22 LR / .22 WMR
.38 SPC / .357 Mag
.45 Colt

I shoot much more 22 LR than anything, primarily due to cost and that I have more .22 ammo on hand than any other caliber.

38/357 is arguably the most practical and versatile.

But the .45 Colt is my favorite to shoot. "Cowboy" loads are easy on the hands and ears but still let you know you're firing a substantial weapon, while Buffalo Bore Ruger-only loads get into 44 Mag power without the recoil impulse and muzzle blast that a 44 Mag brings. Always puts a smile on my face, regardless of the power level.
 
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RevolvingGarbage said:
I’m looking forward to loading up .45AR cases myself, also for a Webley. I’m really only lacking a proper bullet for the oddball throat/bore diameter combination. Which do you use? And have you ever tried hp-38/w231 for a powder?

Staying with the topic, though I have several calibers of revolver and more than one in the classic .38 Special chambering, the older and slower .38S&W has proven to be more enjoyable to shoot and reload for. It’s also seeing a lot more use in my carry rotation these days in my every day “small” guns.

It’s strictly enough cartridge for defense, low recoil and noise to shoot and slightly lower impact on valuable reloading components, and also has lots of historical relevance. It may be an unusual choice but the .38S&W is certainly my favorite revolver cartridge.

I’ll also add, there’s no reason why the same cartridge case couldn’t be loaded to near-or equal to modern 9x19 or .357 magnum pressure levels if a modern handgun handgun designed for the pressures involved was around to use it in.
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I found a bunch of cast 260 grain Webley bullets at a gun show, and shoot those. I think someone makes a mold for those, and they are more accurate in the Webley than conventional bullets, so they say. I find it to be true. I load them over Unique to about 690fps.
 
Keeping in mind I reload all my centerfire ammo:

1. 41 magnum (the most satisfying of the big bore rounds)
2. 32 long ( a lovely target load)
3. 22lr (you all know why)
4. 38 special (so versatile and comfortable)
5. 45 Colt (hugely versatile; it feeds my childhood memories of Roy Rogers westerns; and it does so well when I load it with black powder)

Nice to see so many mentions of 41 magnum and 32 long.

Jeff
 
For my favorite it would be a close tie between the .44 Magnum and .45 Colt. Then would come the .44 Special. I've not had much use for the small bore center fires, though still think about the Single Action New Frontier in .32-20.

Of course the .22 Long Rifle has to be in there somewhere. Not sure where, though.

Bob Wright
 
38 special
22LR

One revolver can use 357 but sux(to me) to shoot, so I guess not a favorite altho son has Henry BigBoy, that shoots 357..I guess if I owned that, 357 would be a 'favorite'.
Ruger Wrangler..fun..but can really shoot any 22 so.....
 
My absolute favorite to shoot is mild .44 magnum loads in my Super Blackhawk 5 1/2" barrel. 240 gr RNFP or SWC over 8.0 Gr. of Unique.

I also have other revolvers in:
.22LR/.22 Mag
.32 H & R Magnum
.38 Spl/.357 Magnum
.44 Spl/.44 Magnum
 
I would have to go with the 45 Colt, then the 45 ACP. 44 Special deserves honorable mention although I don't own one anymore. Finally I'd pick an old, discontinued round, the 38-44. The original +P 38 Special and the parent cartridge of the 357 Magnum.

Dave
 
BobWright said:
For my favorite it would be a close tie between the .44 Magnum and .45 Colt.
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Same here.
I own 4 revolvers. A .45 Colt, .44 magnum, .357 magnum and a .38 Special. The latter 2 rarely get out to play.
The .45 Colt is mostly shot with stiff hunting loads. More often than not the .44 magnum is loaded with .44 Special Skeeter loads.

I am considering adding .357 magnum to the carry rotation though.
 
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