Sound off if you haven't destroyed your K frame with magnum loads...

[Deputy25]

I carried a model 66 4 inch on the job for 16 years. Our issue ammo was either Remington 125 JHP .357, or Winchester 145 JHP Silvertip .357. My 66 digested thousands of rounds of this ammo during it's service life, and is still in fine shape today. Now I carry a Glock 31 .357Sig at work, and the 66 is my wife's house gun (loaded with .38+P 158 LSWCHP).

 

[Confederate]

Stainless is more resistant to blast and pressure than ordinary steel, but the light bullets will sooner or later take their toll on any but the toughest revolvers.

I found this reference on the Internet and it sounds accurate to me. It's in reference to the Smith & Wesson 19/66. The gun was envisioned by the legendary Bill Jordan, who, BTW, called the 19 a ".38 that can occasionally shoot .357." The site states, among other things:
.

If you keep your ratio of Specials to Magnums about 9:1, or one Magnum for every nine Specials, you'll be OK. The gun, while tough, won't take a steady diet of Magnum ammo. In particular the 125gr stuff. Only shoot 158 grain .357 ammo in this gun!!! That's straight from Smith & Wesson's mouth. ...

The lighter bullet causes a few things to happen.

1: It accelerates faster in the cylinder, striking the forcing cone MUCH harder than the 158gr bullet. Look at your forcing cone, you'll notice it's cut-out at the 6 o'clock position to allow the ejector rod to clear. As the gun recoils back, the bullet strikes the forcing cone at this 6 o'clock position and causes erosion and cracking over time. Your accuracy will go to hell and you need a new barrel.

2: the shorter 125gr bullet leaves the case before a 158gr bullet, casusing more unburned powder to fly forward and combust in the throat and barrel. This causes flamecutting on the topstrap and peening of the forcing cone. Again, very bad.

3: The recoil impulse of the 125gr loads are much sharper and severe than a comparable 158gr load, so it batters the gun HARD.

4: To be honest, the 125gr load is the most common out there, but it is not the best load. It is light and fast and while it expands violently, it tends to underpenetrate. The 158gr expands and has enough momentum to smash through and hit vitals.
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If you want to shoot lots of 125gr loads, get an L-frame or even better, an N-frame. Smith & Wesson started seeing lots of K-frame magnums in for warranty work in the '70s due to shooting 125gr ammo and issued an advisory to not do it.

And according to NRA associate technical editor C.E. Harris: "Of course, many shooters get a thrill out of firing full magnum loads and will plink with them for the sheer enjoyment of it. Heavy-frame .357 revolvers such as the S&W Model 28, Colt Python, and the Rugers seem to stand up fine to this treatment, but I wore out a S&W 19 by pouring thousands of full .357 loads through it. It would require retiming about every 1,500 rounds. Police armorers who service the K-frames tell me that's about par when shooting .357s. My Ruger [Security-Sixes] aren't as smooth as my old S&W, but have digested several thousand hot rounds, each without requiring any repairs. A friend has put over 8,000 rounds through his Security-Six, as a police firearms instructor, with no parts replacement." (American Rifleman, May 1979)

 

[BlindJustice]

Nope but my K-frame is a 617 .22 LR

 

[tipoc]

A few years back I settled on 158 gr. loads at about 1100 fps for my K frames. I'm more accurate with them than the 125 gr. loads at 1400 fps or so and with the right hp they are every bit as good at the job. Easier on the guns and easier on me.

tipoc

 

[Gary in Pennsylvania]

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Huh???

Oops. Sorry.

Wrong thread.

I own Rugers and don't have to worry about that!