.357 mag... Too much for me

[Joe13]

Working on 4.

I agree with 2, a vast majority of times. In my home though, I'd rather have the option to not kill a teenager doing something really stupid - like breaking into my house.

1&3 applies to those it does. I have proven before though that I can cover 20' and swing a bat faster then most can aim and pull off a shot - I'd be willing to bet my life on it more often then not. I don't count on it though, that's why I have firearms.

 

[Joe13]

Quick open safe between where I sleep and the bedroom door. Opens in less then 2 seconds.

Girls would be within 25' when I pulled the trigger while in the house most likely.


--------

So a few assumptions seem to be being made.

1. That anything less then the largest caliber I can shoot is "not going to get the job done" - if it were, I'd need a .50ae or s&w500 I'd guess.

2. That my hearing has anything to do with this - a pair of pioneer 15" subs took care of that a long time ago. My girls are not big fans of noise, which is why I'm having a hard time getting them interested in shooting at all.

3. That the .1% of possibilities are 99% likely. - ie, if a group of people storms my house intent on hurting everyone in the house, I'll be lucky just to take them with me if at all.

But banter back and forth spawns ideas, so the more the merrier.

 

[Certaindeaf]

Use what you feel will get the job - a 38 +p is has a lot of positive attributes - controllability, less noise, the flash in the middle of the night, the fact that your family members probably can handle the revolver as well. Yes a 357 Mag has a reputation as being one of the best cartridges for self defense - however if you find it is too much odds are it will take a while to get good with it - if you think it is too much that is a choice that only you can make. By the way I use 38 +P in my model 15 snubby and don't feel under gunned, again that is my personal decision. Look at Hornady Critical defense.

I'd just use good ammo out a 9mm.. 15-19 shots of 500+fpe.. compared to six at 250? though I do carry a .38 snub most of the time.

 

[jluck]

I'm sure your girls will be just fine with a split second of noise vs a robber or rapist.

 

[John H]

The .357 mag however (basic Blazer target stuff) darn near deafened me; my ears rang for a few minutes!

Just wait to you use some good stuff.

 

[Joe13]

I'm sure your girls will be just fine with a split second of noise vs a robber or rapist.

For arguments sake - would you tell a small female (120-140) that she absolutely should carry a .357mag over a .22, .380, 9mm etc because it will make the difference between being robbed and raped ?

It seems like there is a double standard in the community.

A large man "must" carry a magnum or .45acp to be able to effectively protect themselves and others; where it's seems that women get told to carry something manageable and much smaller.


My grandfather would hunt full grown deer with just a .22lr on his ranch. He didn't need anything larger because he knew where to shoot and when. Seems like a 2 legged 200lb threat would be a comparable target as a game animal.

 

[Certaindeaf]

Everybody "should" (wimmens included) carry powerful and effective weapons. Yes, some are loud and heavy and a 100yr old arthritic grandma might not be able to operate/field a given piece. what was the question.. again? this is a recurring theme that we all must deal with given our respective abilities and "needs".
There are certain constants though.. hence the first sentence.

 

[Sgt Nambu]

Deer's not hopped up and charging with a machette.

 

[Medic!]

Adrenalin gives both tunnel vision and hearing.
I have taken deer with a .357 pistol. Did not hurt my ears. I've also calmly put down a deer on the side of the road near Biggs with my .38 special. My ears rang all the way through Idaho! Felt like they were bleeding.

I've read cops involved in shootings, claim there semi auto pistols were malfunctioning. The report was just a pop and the guy didn't stop.
The perp was found dead six miles down the road. And the gun cycled fine. What do you think happened?

As stated above. My .300 win mag rifle never hurts my ears when I've taken Elk and Deer. And I don't get too jazzed up like some of my friends [When shooting at a deer . My friend standing next to me, cycled every round through his bolt action rifle, without pulling the trigger].

.357, /44 mag/ .300 win mag. All the same when your blood is flowing!

 

[Joe13]

[When shooting at a deer . My friend standing next to me, cycled every round through his bolt action rifle, without pulling the trigger].

Now that's funny


Ok, ok - I'll grow a pair and man up

 

[Certaindeaf]

And don't be silly.. no disrespect to your Grandpa, but hitting a crab apple at your leisure with a .22 is kinda different than defending your life from a rabid and very often armed berserker. Yes, that's the constant and you will be mightily glad (woman or not) that you have the most powerful weapon and ammunition that you can use.

 

[Joe13]

And don't be silly.. no disrespect to your Dad, but hitting a crab apple at your leisure with a .22 is kinda different than defending your life from a rabid and very often armed berserker. Yes, that's the constant and you will be mightily glad (woman or not) that you have the most powerful weapon and ammunition that you can use.

No offense taken of course.

"rabid and very often armed berserker"

Got confused for a second, I thought you were trying to describe me at first

 

[Medic!]

No need to man up. I'm sure your more of a man than I am.
It's just that the brain is real good at focusing on a threat, and shutting down everything else.
It's a good thing too. Pain, loud noise and other distractions could keep us from the job at hand.

 

[40calruler]

And if you want to really rattle your grape, get a much more proper 2-3".. it'll literally set off car alarms from fifty feet.

I was sitting here reading this thinking about had the OP been shooting my Taurus 605 .357 snub nose it might have been permanent damage...Plus a really sweet fireball. I never shoot anything even .22 without hearing protection. I lost some hearing for life in my left ear when a idiot was cutting steel at a job and not paying attention he had the tanks right behind the steel he cut and punctured the tank...I assume that is how he did it. Either way I was up 2 stories on a piece of Iron turning bolts and that tank took off like a rocket and hit...and bent a giant iron beam. It was like a massive bell went off 20 feet below me. I do not plan on losing any more hearing so I even double up with plugs and muffs at times. .357 is just a round you do not want to hear without protection unless as others have said you are pumped up in protection mode for your family. Doubt I would even notice the sound then.

 

[jluck]

For arguments sake - would you tell a small female (120-140) that she absolutely should carry a .357mag over a .22, .380, 9mm etc because it will make the difference between being robbed and raped ?

Absolutely not, This was about YOU protecting THEM and a NOISE issue. Has something changed?

"Girls would be within 25' when I pulled the trigger while in the house most likely."

"I'm now a bit worried what it will do to my wife and daughters hearing after firing that thing in an enclosed space."



The double standard you might be perceiving might have to do with the convoluted questions,topics, problems and answers within this thread.

Is this still about a gun being loud? Is it about a defense gun for a female?

Gun too loud?= Make gun quieter, Use quieter gun, Have them wear hearing protection while at home.

Girls need protection gun?= I always recommend shooting something well vs. shooting something bigger poorly.

I don't think there is much more I can try to help with here.

 

[Joe13]

It was just a question. The original issue is still the amount of noise that the bystanders/family will experience when a shot is fired off in the house.

It just felt like there was a large pushback when a smaller caliber was discussed as a possible compromise.

But yea, it's going a bit round robin now.

Thanks for all the input and ideas.

 

[Joe13]

I was sitting here reading this thinking about had the OP been shooting my Taurus 605 .357 snub nose it might have been permanent damage...Plus a really sweet fireball. I never shoot anything even .22 without hearing protection. I lost some hearing for life in my left ear when a idiot was cutting steel at a job and not paying attention he had the tanks right behind the steel he cut and punctured the tank...I assume that is how he did it. Either way I was up 2 stories on a piece of Iron turning bolts and that tank took off like a rocket and hit...and bent a giant iron beam. It was like a massive bell went off 20 feet below me. I do not plan on losing any more hearing so I even double up with plugs and muffs at times. .357 is just a round you do not want to hear without protection unless as others have said you are pumped up in protection mode for your family. Doubt I would even notice the sound then.

Exactly.

Imagine being woken from a dead sleep with a .357 going off multiple times - cuz if I shoot it, one is never enough for me... Just sayin.

Telling my family to go to bed every night with hearing protection is obviously not an option.

 

[Joe13]

And in a majority of situations, my family would be less then 10-15 feet from a blast, in a house with hardwood and thin inner doors.

I woke to a burglar alarm years back and was so disoriented by the amount of noise that I could not even think beyond it. I yanked the speaker off the wall the next morning. ---if you think that is exaggerated by any means, have someone wake you up with 95+ decibels

 

[cowboygraphics]

When you are protecting your life or someone else I bet you won't even notice how loud it is if you are forced to pull the trigger.

If you are holding someone at gunpoint until the police arrive, you might want to explain how loud it is and toss some earplugs to the crook and tell him it's just in case he does something stupid. Make sure you get a picture of his expression for us...

I can hear it now:
"By the way, this is a 357 MAGNUM. Powerful and pretty darn loud ... here are some ear plugs for you <toss earplugs>. With this caliber, even I just wing ya, they will be big holes and you will probably bleed out, so I am going to put my earplugs in too - so I don't have to listen to your screaming"

 

[40calruler]

And in a majority of situations, my family would be less then 10-15 feet from a blast, in a house with hardwood and thin inner doors.

I woke to a burglar alarm years back and was so disoriented by the amount of noise that I could not even think beyond it. I yanked the speaker off the wall the next morning. ---if you think that is exaggerated by any means, have someone wake you up with 95+ decibels

I think maybe you did not exagerate it enough. Some alarms can cause you to just panic. I prefer the doggy alarms. They only go off when there is real problems..at least mine do. Also tend to be a lot more scary than any other alarm system. No matter the caliber you are using it is going to be loud enough that every neighbor you have will likely be calling the police....or hiding in the closet..or doing what you or I might do and grabbing a gun while telling the wife to call police and running to check up on you. even .380 without plugs will make your ears ring. If you cannot handle the idea that the gun will be loud then it should not be your weapon. I will take hearing loss over loss of a loved one any day.