Question about hunting w/ .357 mag

[DigMe]

Some of you probably saw my thread about hog hunting last week with my Blackhawk .357 mag. Today I was in the gun shop looking for some more 180gr cast core cartridges or something in a similar weight and the guy behind the counter asked what I wanted to use those for (they didn't have any btw). I told him hog hunting and he said "You can't hunt hogs with .357. You won't get enough penetration." I informed him that you can indeed hunt hogs and that I had dropped two the previous week and that the 180gr castcores had gone right through and sometimes out the other side.

Anyway...that got me thinking. What's the smallest weight of .357 that I could hunt and consistently drop hogs with (assuming decent shot placement)? I simply CANNOT find the 170 to 180gr cartridges locally (I ordered them last time). The largest that anyone has is 158gr and that's usually in hollow point. Do you think the lighter calibers would have sufficient penetration and if you use a lighter bullet what weight do you use?

At the moment ordering cartridges is kind of a problem for personal reasons and it will be through May or June so I'm curious to know if 158gr or maybe even 142gr is viable but at the same time I don't want to waste my hog hunt outings trying out ammo that I'm going to find is ineffective.

Discuss.

brad cook

 

[P95Carry]

Whilst the 180 is probably the choice ''par excellance'' . I do think the trusty 158 is still in there. I would happily use a top load round with my Lyman cast gas check SWC in this weight.

The other option too is making these into modest HP's ... it doesn't need too much metal removed ... maybe 1/16" wide by 3/16" deep .. tho forget what this removes in weight terms .. probably end you up with a 145 perhaps.

Thing is .. it's not so much that they expand and go over caliber, like std HP's ... more that over penetration is reduced and more shock IMO. They ''stop quicker''

I doubt these would fail to ''work'' .... but again ... they would IMO need to be good ''top end'' loads, with 2400, N-110 or H-110 ... really push 'em!

 

[Brian Williams]

I use my own cast LSWCGC that weigh about 165gr and they are great. I have heard alot about Hornady 158 gr XTP soft points. push them with a bunch of 2400 and whoohoo what fun.....

I have also heard a lot about using Lil-gun in 357 and have a pound and want to try it soon.

 

[Preacherman]

See this thread in the Hunting forum - might be what you're looking for?

 

[Jim March]

The problem you'll have with 357 158 JHPs is that most are loaded fairly light - often around 1,300fps from a 4" or even 6" barrel.

Georgia Arms loads the Deerslayer hotter, closer to 1,500, and that might work. But even then you're marginal as the JHP will collapse on a hard skull hit and absorb some of the energy in doing so.

Now, a 158grain hardcast hot hunting load should be fine.

Remember: a genuine Russian Boar can run 600lbs plus. Most US "wild boar" have a lot of escaped farm pig blood in 'em but in both California and Arkansas, genuine Russians were imported for hunting and got loose and every once in a while you're going to see a "throwback" to those bloodlines.

THAT is the day you're going to be very glad you stuck with top-grade hardcast.

And you still better make a damned good shot .

 

[DigMe]

jim,

There are Russian boars in Texas as well. This land has been in our family for a looong time though and there have never been reports of anything that size. The first boar that I finished off with a round through the head last week definitely had some domesticated in it...it was mostly pinkish white with black spots all over. Most of them out there are fully black or dark brown. I wish I'd taken pics of the white one though.

Preacherman,

Thanks for the link...I totally forgot that we had a hunting forum here!

To everyone else,

I don't reload so all the talk of powders and whatnot is completely lost on me. Thanks for the opinions though!

brad cook

 

[jc2]

Check out Buffalo Bore's .357 loads--a little pricey but good stuff.

 

[DigMe]

Check out Buffalo Bore's .357 loads--a little pricey but good stuff.

Overkill for my needs. I'm looking for something that can be had locally as well.

Just talked to my dad today and he's going to pick me up some Remington 180gr semi-jacketed hollow points while he's in Houston this week. They are 20 bucks for a box of 50 at Bass Pro Shops. I'll let ya'll know how they perform if I see any hogs this weekend when I'm out at our place. I'd still like to find a local source but my dad is in Houston fairly regularly and a box of 50 would last me a good while if I'm just using them for hunting/ranch gun purposes and not target shooting. He could be my middle man...that's almost as good as local sources.

brad cook

 

[ChopperKen]

Back in 89 I used my Dan Wesson 6" 357 With 158gr hollowpoints on 2 hogs when I visited my brother down in Georgia.
One shot stops both times..
Ken

 

[Marshall]

Standard 158gr JHP will work fine. I have downed Hogs with them as well as larger game, nodda a prob.

 

[Mannlicher]

I shot a fair sized hog a few weeks back with a Model 65. We were raabbit hunting at dusk, and he just showed up. The range was about 35 yards, and he took off across an open feed lot. The first shot missed, went right between his legs. Second shot slowed him down with a torso hit as he was shifting into high gear. The third one was through his heart, and anchored him. The load was WW factory Silvertips, 145 grain. I like a heavier bullet also, but that was what I had in my CCW revolver at the time.

 

[DigMe]

Cool...I'm liking what I'm hearing. I guess I'll have to try the 158 gr rounds after I run through the box of 180gr sjhp's that my father's picking up for me.

brad cook

 

[VonFatman]

Sounds like a blast!

I've never hunted hogs but would love to some day. It would be great using one of my handguns for big game. I've only shot two deer with a handgun...a "sorta handgun"...my T/C Contender 7/30 Waters.

I expect my S&W would be more fun.

Good post.

VonFatman

 

[Marshall]

DigMe,

Let me put a caveat on my previous reply. Yes, I have taken Hogs with a standard .357 158gr load. However, Hogs and Bear have a tendency to be able to take lead and continue to continue. A well placed shot and being prepared for another shot is more important than size or weight of bullet. Preparation and safety are always the utmost in importance when hunting anything.

I am sure you know this already and that's the reason you're here asking questions. I just can't, in good conscience, give an answer as I did and leave it at that.


Practice, practice, practice.





ps I now use a .44 Mag for Hogs but, a .41 Mag would the perfect hangun caliber, I just don't own one.

 

[cratz2]

I think it comes down to your own personal experience and how larget the hogs you're shooting are... While I have every faith in heavy loaded 180 Gr loads, I think something like a 210 Gr cast 410 Magnum would be a touch better and if you ever have a close call, you might feel the need to make the jump to 44 Magnum or 45 Colt.

As far as semi jacketed LSWCs... don't they carry them at Walmart? Last time I bought 357s was from Walmart and they were Winchester white box semi jacketed LSWCs... Also had HPs for about $1 more.

 

[Mannlicher]

Cratz2 says"I think it comes down to your own personal experience and how larget the hogs you're shooting are... While I have every faith in heavy loaded 180 Gr loads, I think something like a 210 Gr cast 410 Magnum would be a touch better and if you ever have a close call, you might feel the need to make the jump to 44 Magnum or 45 Colt.

and I agree. Although I have taken 'pigs of opportunity' with a .357, if I am going strickly for hog, I take a .44 Mag, loaded with Speer 270gr GoldDot Soft Points.

 

[DigMe]

Well, I admit my experience has been limited to this point since I haven't had my .357 that long...but so far I'm very pleased with my two experiences of putting them down with it. I'm out at our place again this weekend so hopefully I'll gain some more experiences that will confirm that.

brad cook

 

[Vern Humphrey]

If you don't handload, start.

If you don't cast bullets, start.

Lee offers a couple of nice semi-wadcutters in 158 grains, with a very wide meplat. I would be tempted to go with their C358-158-SWC, which is a gas check bullet, ideal for your purposes.

Lyman has the 358429 mould, a 170 grain semiwadcutter, and the 358430 195 grain bluntnose -- I happen to have one of those moulds, and mostly shoot that bullet in my .35 Brown-Whelen.

I would suggest any of the bullets listed here, cast out of wheel weights and dropped into a bucket of water straight out of the mould would sail through both shoulders of any hog you're liable to come across.