Waning interest in magnums

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I love to shoot and have always loved the low pressure rounds, 38spl 45 acp 45 Colt. I have a few 357's and have never owned a 44 magnum. Just not my cup of tea. When people whip out the 460 and 500 at the indoor range I'll just pack up and leave.:banghead:

I guess it's each to their own, but my shooting is for enjoyment and not pain. I'm to old to be worrying about bragging rights anymore.
 
I never was afflicted by magnumitis and always preferred loads that were relatively mild for a given caliber. If I felt I needed more power, I just went up in caliber! The only gun I routinely use full-power ammo in is my daily carry weapon, a Glock 19.

Lately I have been enjoying a trip to the past with my single-action Ruger Vaqueros. Have one each in .357 and 45 Colt. Although these are weighty guns I use target-level loads in them.

I have no quarrel with those who like a hefty kick from their guns. I enjoyed it a bit years ago, but age and arthritis make a difference in a persons tolerance of heavy recoil. I have just as much fun with my reduced loadings as others do with their magnums.

Ron in Texas
 
I still love my 357, but about 2 months ago I realized that I couldn't go on without a S&W in 44 special. :uhoh:
 
Shot my 1961 vintage M-29 today

I bought it used in 1978 and I don't think I have shoot more then 200 hot rounds in it.
Most of the loads have been close to 45 ACP in power and that is plenty for my enjoyment and keeping the pieces from needing replacement.
 
I am becoming addicted to the .454 Casull the more I shoot it, but still like the option of not shooting full blast loads. I still want to get a cylinder made in .45ACP.
 
For the Versatility my .357 magnum revolvers offer I'm wiling to tolerate the extra snap when shooting full charge loads. I will admit, though, that I don't enjoy shooting full charge ammo in my K frames' as much as in my N frames.
 
I've only shot .357 out of a snubby, so no, I don't like Magnums much. I don't intend to buy a large revolver just to shoot Magnums, so I stick with .38 Special, .22 lr and .22 WMR in smaller handguns.
 
Hoppes, you're missing out, if you've only shot .357 out of a snubby. You should try it as it was intended, in an L or N frame, or a gun of that weight range.
Ruger GP100 is a great platform from which to launch tree-fiddy-sebbin mag. It's heavy enough to absorb recoil, has rubber grips standard, and isn't too heavy to carry and hold.
.44 mag from a Redhawk or Super Redhawk isn't unpleasant, but they're kind of heavy.
I like .44 special and mag. I can always download the mag to provide .44-40 or .45 Colt power.
For hunting whitetail deer, a .44 mag or .444 Marlin carbine is hard to beat.
The problem is that my .444 carbine beats my shoulder. I get purple shoulder withing 8 rounds.

I like .45 acp and colt revolvers a lot. Just like my .44 cap and ball revolvers, they have plenty of power without being punishing.

My first centerfire pistol was a Charter Arms Bulldog .44 special with the wood bulldog grips.
NOT fun to shoot with Federal 240 grain LSWCHPs.
I learned the value of Pachmayr compac grips with that one.
 
I never saw much use in making a powerhouse into a powderpuff. I shoot lots of 1000 ft.lb. rounds out of a .41 mag Blackhawk, and since jacketed bullets have gotten so expensive, I have taken up casting. I load them to the fastest I can without leading, around 1300 fps for a 210 gr. I also shoot a lot of lead from a S&W M66 .357 at full power, which is a bit down from jacketed loads.

That said, I practice constantly with a Ruger Mark II Target. If I neglect practice with a .22, I start flinching.

I notice that many of the recoil shy posters are using double actions. A friend has a Redhawk in .44 mag. I definitely don't like the shape of that grip compared to the Blackhawk. The single action rolls up and nothing hits the web of your hand. The Redhawk has that vertical surface that can really hurt. I imagine the S&W N frame would be similar.
 
Magnum

I dont have my Magnums for any bragging rights i have always used a magnum since i was 17 yrs old & i guess iam gonna tilli got to that big reloading shop in the sky i like a magnums performance always had& always will & iam not saying nothing bad about the standard calibers ive killed deer with them & owned a couple but iam just a magnum lover
 
I never saw much use in making a powerhouse into a powderpuff. I shoot lots of 1000 ft.lb. rounds out of a .41 mag Blackhawk, and since jacketed bullets have gotten so expensive, I have taken up casting. I load them to the fastest I can without leading, around 1300 fps for a 210 gr. I also shoot a lot of lead from a S&W M66 .357 at full power, which is a bit down from jacketed loads.

That said, I practice constantly with a Ruger Mark II Target. If I neglect practice with a .22, I start flinching.
Click to expand...

Why? If you are hunting with the round and need to ensure a clean kill at distance, or shooting IHMSA competition it makes sense. But if you are shooting paper targets, the paper has no idea how fast the bullet is going. You are adding extra expense in reloading and extra wear and tear on your joints and the firearm. Plus its giving you a flinch that you need to constantly work on as you admit here.

But its a free country and if you really enjoy your flinch Go for It.
 
I actually use the .41 for big game hunting. I have shot several mule deer, and hope to get an elk one of these days. Usually the elk are just too far away, so the .338 win mag gets the call. Shooting an elk with a powder puff load might be easier on the wrists, but the elk is unlikely to be impressed.

I would guess that less than 10% of the shots out of my .41 are at paper. The rest are targets like milk jugs at 100 yards, rocks up canyons at unknown distances, shooting contests with eggs (we call it the redneck easter egg hunt). And by the way, I don't have a flinch. That is what practice with the .22 is for.
 
Intrest in Magnums

I really never understood why anyone would flinch shooting any gun really
i have shot magnum guns all of my life & i don't flinch my Handi Rifle kicks but its not that bad my wife even shot it 2 times yesterday & my daughter even shot it once & it didn't kick them that much they told me
 
With enough practice, I learned to NOT flinch with magnum ammo, even in an SP101. Now, a Smith 340 shows me my limits of recoil tolerance, but I mean, K frames and Blackhawks are NOT a problem with full house ammo, not for me.

That said, my plinking and target shooting with K frames is .38 special wadcutter. I love accuracy and don't need to burn 14.5 grains of 2400 when 2.7 grains of Bullseye will do and a pound goes a LOT farther. :D .38s are easier on mid weight frames, too. Rugers, i don't worry so much about Rugers.
 
It's not a matter of flinching, just that the snubby I have doesn't soak up the recoil very well. I don't see the point of bruising my hand, and can't afford to spend $700 for a huge gun just to make .357 feel like .38 Special.

Easier and cheaper just to stick with the Specials.
 
trapper500 said:
I really never understood why anyone would flinch shooting any gun really
Click to expand...

Me neither. Recoil isn't exactly a pleasant thing but some people seem to be more sensitive to it than others. I get all kinds of side effects, my palms are killing me, wrists don't feel quite allright, but flinching is not an option. Once you have a sufficient routine, you just shoot and (more or less) hit what you're aiming at, regardless of the caliber or recoil. I definitely don't like the effects of recoil but flinching isn't an option. You squeeze the trigger and whatever happens afterwards, happens and there's nothing you can do about it.

I've flinched, many times, but rarely if ever anything else about shooting has made me feel as stupid as that. In my book it's second only to an ND.
 
the first handgun i bought was a 357 , then a 44 magnum i like it to bark! but its not alot of fun when your hands start to bleed, but i have found that with the proper fitting grips this can be overcome. i have two mod 27s and they shoot realy good the weight keeps them from kicking, nothing like a k frame with hot loads
 
Aw, I guess I am the oddity, I have learned at 27 that shooting the big bores at slower vel is a lot more fun than seeing how fast you can make your 357 go. guess I had mag fever, but it does seem so much easier on everything (including me) to load down a bit. I will say i have a 454 Puma carbine, but I load it with 405gr to 1400, don't really the point anymore in pushing it. That being said, i still have 3 boxes of HSM (350 gr 2300fps) that go to the range every time and watch their 405 gr buddies get shot off. Just not the ticket for me anymore. I do have some hot reloads in 357, but they get shot 1-3x a year when I am feeling spunky, and carried back country. I much rather enjoy the loads that will allow me to shoot all day.

I guess that may be a difference too, many people go to the range for an hour, I usually make a day trip out of it...

But nothing to do with age...
 
Spent enough time in the outdoors hunting and hiking to really appreciate the .357 magnum for its versatility with small game to medium game hunting. The magnum load has its place. I mostly plink and shoot with .38s, but nothing there has changed with me, always preferred an accurate, mild load for plinking. I handload, so I can do the same with .45 Colt, heavy loads for the field, milder for the range. However, it's not that I've mellowed with age, I've never though shooting heavy loads was all that fun at the range.
 
357s are fine in a 686/GP100. Smaller than that, the gun hurts too much for my hand. For my 3" 686, my favorite is 125 grain 38+P. I usually add a couple dozen full power 357s to a shooting session.

Full power 44 mag is fine in a 7.5" Superblackhawk. In a 4" Model 29, I prefer 44 mags loaded to 44 Special + P levels. I don't hunt, so I could easily get by with shooting 44 specials.
 
Ahh, sort of.

I don't find much reason to load at the top of the loading tables anymore.
I'm more likely to load minimum loads with light for caliber bullets.

I also realize I need custom grips that fit my hands, or I can't hit anything with these loads.

I've always felt that the increase in velocity you get by squeezing the last ounce out of a caliber was a waste, unless the caliber is marginal to begin with, like 9mm or .357.

I tend to like bullets between 260 grains and 350 grains with minimum for caliber powder charges. While light for the calibers, .500JRH, 500 Linebaugh
and .500 Linebaugh Maximum, .475 Linebaugh those big cases tend to still
generate a lot of velocity, even using minimum powder charges.

I've always liked .451 Detonics/45 Super level loads in .45's. I shot a LOT of them, and they are like an old friend I just feel comfortable with.

Rifles are more of the same. No need to squeeze every ounce out of a .375 H&H, or 30-06, or 7.62 X 54R.

And yes, I have .22lrs to shoot to check and see if I'm flinching.
 
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