Glocker
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What does "MAGNUM" mean? Why .357 Magnum, .41 Magnum, & .44 Magnum. Is there a meaning for the word "MAGNUM" or not.
Magnum ?
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antediluvianist
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It's just the neuter form of the word "great" in Latin.
Sounds good, marketing-wise, and in fact the .357 (the real dimension, not .38 which is merely approximate) "Magnum" IS substantially greater in power than the .38 Special.
Sounds good, marketing-wise, and in fact the .357 (the real dimension, not .38 which is merely approximate) "Magnum" IS substantially greater in power than the .38 Special.
antediluvianist
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Just will add ; the case thickness and length and possibly a few other things are also different. You can't - shouldn't be able to - fit the .357 cartridge into a .38 special cylinder without it sticking out the back. Of course the reverse is very possible.
Bullet Bob
Member
The first cartridge to use the appellation "magnum" was the beloved .357 in S&W's premium revolver in 1935. Allegedly, Mr. Wesson, scion of the founder, was fond of wine. An extra large bottle of vino was/is called a magnum, and he transferred that to the .357, whose case was extra large compared to the parent .38.
Master Blaster
Member
DB Wesson loved champagne
The Bigget best Bottle of champagne was the Magnum.
So the new Biggest best cartridge was the Magnum Cartridge.
Thats it dissapointing No?????
The Bigget best Bottle of champagne was the Magnum.
So the new Biggest best cartridge was the Magnum Cartridge.
Thats it dissapointing No?????
Magnum just means a more powerful cartridge than one simaler to it...
there's .44 special and .44 mag
.38 spl. and .357 mag (not the same caliber, but the .357 was spawned off the .38)
IIRC there's .32 short, long, and magnum
.22S,L, LR, and mag
etc...
~TMM
there's .44 special and .44 mag
.38 spl. and .357 mag (not the same caliber, but the .357 was spawned off the .38)
IIRC there's .32 short, long, and magnum
.22S,L, LR, and mag
etc...
~TMM
DR
Member
Who wants to wildcat the .357 Jeroboam?
Master Blaster
Member
The Champagne Sizes
Split - One quarter of a standard bottle (187ml). Enough for one full flute, or perfect for a toast for two.
Demi-Bottle - Half a standard bottle (375ml).
Bottle - The standard size (750ml). Usually enough for 6 to 8 flutes.
Magnum - 2 bottles (1.5 liters). A great party favor.
Jeroboam - 4 bottles (3 liters). Named after the king of Israel 931-910 b.c.
Rehoboam - 6 bottles (4.5 liters). From Roboam, king of Judea 931-913 b.c.
Methuselah - 8 bottles (6 liters). Named after the biblical patriarch who lived 969 years.
Salmanazar - 12 bottles (9 liters). Named after the king of Syria 858-825 b.c.
Balthazar - 16 bottles (12 liters). Named after the Regent of Babylon 539 b.c.
Nebuchadnezzar - 20 bottles (15 liters). Named after the king of Babylon 605 b.c.
It's important to note that unlike still wines, which develop at different rates in their different sized bottles, the size of a champagne bottle makes little to no difference to the development of the wine inside. Because of the difficulty in moving such a large mass for riddling and disgorgement (a full Nebuchadnezzar weighs over 83 lbs!), most champagne houses mature their wine in magnums, later transferring the finished product to the larger bottles. Large or small, your favorite champagne should taste the same.
For festive occasions, nothing beats the impression of a 'Big Bottle' popping. But think of the pressure in a Nebu! The task of opening one of these is not for the faint of heart. Indeed, I suspect this may be a contributing factor to why the larger sizes are so rare.
Split - One quarter of a standard bottle (187ml). Enough for one full flute, or perfect for a toast for two.
Demi-Bottle - Half a standard bottle (375ml).
Bottle - The standard size (750ml). Usually enough for 6 to 8 flutes.
Magnum - 2 bottles (1.5 liters). A great party favor.
Jeroboam - 4 bottles (3 liters). Named after the king of Israel 931-910 b.c.
Rehoboam - 6 bottles (4.5 liters). From Roboam, king of Judea 931-913 b.c.
Methuselah - 8 bottles (6 liters). Named after the biblical patriarch who lived 969 years.
Salmanazar - 12 bottles (9 liters). Named after the king of Syria 858-825 b.c.
Balthazar - 16 bottles (12 liters). Named after the Regent of Babylon 539 b.c.
Nebuchadnezzar - 20 bottles (15 liters). Named after the king of Babylon 605 b.c.
It's important to note that unlike still wines, which develop at different rates in their different sized bottles, the size of a champagne bottle makes little to no difference to the development of the wine inside. Because of the difficulty in moving such a large mass for riddling and disgorgement (a full Nebuchadnezzar weighs over 83 lbs!), most champagne houses mature their wine in magnums, later transferring the finished product to the larger bottles. Large or small, your favorite champagne should taste the same.
For festive occasions, nothing beats the impression of a 'Big Bottle' popping. But think of the pressure in a Nebu! The task of opening one of these is not for the faint of heart. Indeed, I suspect this may be a contributing factor to why the larger sizes are so rare.
Father Knows Best
Member
Ummmm ... you're wrong. Both the .38 Special and the .357 Magnum are the exact same caliber -- .357. The reason one is called a .38 is because it dates to the black powder era. The first S&W metallic cartridges were heel-based bullets, meaning the bullet was the same diameter as the outside of the case, but was stepped to a smaller diameter that fit inside the case mouth. The .22LR is the last cartridge in common use with this design.
Guns designed to fire heel based bullets were cheaper and easier to make, because the chamber was a simple cylinder. With a bullet that fits entirely inside the case, as all moden centerfire rounds so, the chamber has to be large enough to fit the case, and then reduce in diameter to the throat and bore. Despite the easier manufacture of firearms using heel-base bullets, heel-based bullets faded away because the bullet lube had to be on the part of the bullet that was outside the case. They picked up dirt, which led to malfunctions and jams.
When Smith & Wesson realized that the market demanded inside-lubed bullets, it could have gone either of two routes. It could have made the case large enough that the .375 caliber bullet would fit inside it, or it could shrink the bullet to fit inside the existing case. It chose the latter. Hence, we have a cartridge commonly called a ".38" but which actually fires a bullet that is only 36 caliber, or more precisely, .357.
When S&W introduced the new lengthened and more powerful version of the cartridge, it named it using the actual bullet diameter.
The same basic history explains in large part why so-called ".44" caliber revolvers actually fire .43 caliber bullets. The original Smith & Wesson .44 caliber cartridge used a heel-based bullet (the .44 S&W American). At the request of the Russian government, S&W changed it to an inside-lubed, straight-sided bullet, which became known as the .44 Russian, despite the fact that it was now only .43 caliber. The .44 Russian later was stretched to become the .44 Special, and later stretched again to become the .44 Magnum. All, however, fire .43 caliber bullets.
Wil Terry
Member
THE WORD " MAGNUM " WAS FIRST APPLIED TO CARTRIDGES BY THE BRITS IN
The very early part of the 20TH century.
It was NOT an original by SMITH&WESSON!!!
The very early part of the 20TH century.
It was NOT an original by SMITH&WESSON!!!
U
Universal
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...but that was with reference to rifles I believe...I am pretty sure the .357 Magnum was the first handgun round called Magnum.
Father Knows Best
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That's interesting, Wil. I hadn't heard that. What's your source? What cartridges were known as "magnums" before the .357?
nero45acp
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longhorngunman
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So basically if Colt had improved their .45colt's case to hold higher pressure back in the early twentieth century, and called it the .45 Magnum we would never have heard or had any need in the ".44magnum". 
turbonatr
Member
45 Colt case strength wasn't an issue in reaching the maximum power potential of the cartridge. Revolver strength was. If you have the right gun in 45 Colt, you don't need ANY gun in 44 magnum.
The 45 Colt: Dissolving the Myth, Discovering the Potential
The 45 Colt: Dissolving the Myth, Discovering the Potential
MachIVshooter
Member
From the sources I have on-hand, the first cartridge to be labeled a "Magnum" was the 500/450 3-1/4" Magnum Express, a British black powder cartridge developed in 1870. The next was the 350 Rigby Magnum in 1908, followed by the 275 H&H magnum in 1911. The .375 H&H, which is often misnomered the first, was introduced in 1912.
The .357 was the first American cartridge to bare the moniker. The first American Cartridge to sport the term magnum was the .270 Weatherby Magnum, introduced 1943.
Source: CotW
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