New to revolvers. Need advice on .357mag snub purchase

[smurf hunter]

I am a big .357mag fan - but have a stupid question.

Why are you trying to find one weapon that's good for personal carry and home defense? Try shooting a snubby with a hot load indoors in the dark without hearing protection you'll be deaf and blinded temporarily. Hope your first shot counts.

I love my Ruger GP100. Aside from open woods carry it's a range or nightstand gun. It's very tough and trouble free. Does not have the sex appeal of nicer brands, but I wouldn't need years of therapy if I lost it while fishing either.

 

[jordanvraptor]

I am a big .357mag fan - but have a stupid question.

Why are you trying to find one weapon that's good for personal carry and home defense? Try shooting a snubby with a hot load indoors in the dark without hearing protection you'll be deaf and blinded temporarily. Hope your first shot counts.

I love my Ruger GP100. Aside from open woods carry it's a range or nightstand gun. It's very tough and trouble free. Does not have the sex appeal of nicer brands, but I wouldn't need years of therapy if I lost it while fishing either.

As opposed to a shotgun or M-4 carbine...?

I've fired guns in enclosed areas without hearing protection. Yes, you damage your hearing but its not like a flashbang or IED going off...

 

[smurf hunter]

As opposed to a shotgun or M-4 carbine...?

I've fired guns in enclosed areas without hearing protection. Yes, you damage your hearing but its not like a flashbang or IED going off...

Touche.

Snubbies are cool, but I'm not skilled enough to rely on repeat shots while half asleep and scared.
A shotgun has a better chance of hitting them the first time and a carbine is probably easiest of the bunch to quickly get repeat shots on target.

Just my arm chair analysis

 

[MikeE]

i've got one phrase for you

SP101

a little heavy, but tough as nails.

The SP 101 is a great revolver. I like it better than my snubby S&W686, i really hate to admit. Mine is 2" DAO, very good carry gun (but a belt gun, not pocket carry). 38's really easy to shoot, .357 no problem at all - it's really in its own class, different than any j frame.

 

[PlayboyPenguin]

I own more than a few .357mag pistols, and I have to say that they are the most painful gun to shoot that I own...and I own snubbie .44mag revolvers. Since you are goiing to carry it I would rule out a .44mag anyway since it is a little thick and heavy. Unfortunately the S&W m627 is just as thick and about as heavy as a .44mag since they are built on the same frame. You might want to look for a S&W m60 with a 3" barrel (like the one I have pictured below) since you will be using it as home defense. The extra inch of barrel will give you a bit more powder burn and a longer sight radius and does not really make the gun any harder to conceal. Rugers are nice guns but they are a bit bulky for my tastes and I do not like the tang style grip frame. I want a true grip frame.

 

[Billy 4 HP]

My daily carry is a Smith & Wesson 640 .357 Magnum (J-frame), 2 1/8 barrel. My wife shoots it with .38 special loads. It's a gun I'd bet my life on. I have owned it for 15 years so fortunately it's a pre-lock model. My wife has smaller hands which is a consideration when your talking hefting up a medium to large frame revolver.

I also have a Ruger Security Six SS in .357 Magnum 6" barrel. This is a model I have either owned or had access to for over 30 years. If you can find a nice one, I would jump on it. As previously stated, built like a tank, has adjustable sights and will last a lifetime.

Any of the current offerings from Ruger or Smith & Wesson are good, the only thing you will find people saying consistently bad is the lock on the newer S&W's have been "reported" as having faults, but they can be modified and / or disabled. S&W's have a higher price tag but not necessarily better quality than their Ruger counterparts, IMHO...

 

[lucky guy]

i've got one phrase for you

SP101

a little heavy, but tough as nails.

I have a 3" ruger with CTC laser grips and a trigger job. Great shooter but I don't shoot a ton of 357's through it, not more than 15-20 rounds at a time. If she's like most people it'll be too much recoil for her and she'll more likely practice with 38's, and if so she should shoot 38's. When you shoot 38's with a 2" barrel you're down in the 3-4" 9mm/380 range, so that opens up alot of options, Kahr, etc. without giving up any power.

One thought would be to take her to a store with a lot of selection and let her pick what she wants. Also, there used to be an indoor range up by Delta Park where you could rent handguns, might be instructive.

I agree with the post above about hot loads indoors and especially at night. Probably not going to go well, and it's pretty hard to practice that.

A home defense shotgun is not very expensive, the reduced level home defense loads are manageable and spit out 8-10 380 pellets every second or so. And there's nothing that says "Oh S--T" like the sound of a pump shotgun being racked!!

Good luck with it, let us know what you end up with.

 

[netsecsys]

Folks,

Thanks again for the input. I will be getting a Smith and Wesson Model 66 or 19-3. Depends on the price/condition ratio as to which one I'll get. I appreciate the recommendations from the folks on the board. I decided on the S&W route as I feel they were very well made back then. I like the attention to detail of them (Pinned barrels and recessed chambers)..seems to me the spent a little more time working them. I am not a big fan of foreign-built massed-produced stuff so, I pay more for the things I want (and willing to do so).

This will primarily be used for around the house for my wife (loaded with 38 Special if she gets too much a kick out of 357mag..pun intended). We are out in the woods and you never know what type of critter she might meet. She gets pissed carrying the shotgun around the yard. It may be used as a CCW for me if I get bored of my Les Baer on my hip. Right now, I just got the itch for a nice wheel gun (It will be my first revolver)

Thanks again.

- Netsecsys
Semper Fi

 

[netsecsys]

I own more than a few .357mag pistols, and I have to say that they are the most painful gun to shoot that I own...and I own snubbie .44mag revolvers. Since you are goiing to carry it I would rule out a .44mag anyway since it is a little thick and heavy. Unfortunately the S&W m627 is just as thick and about as heavy as a .44mag since they are built on the same frame. You might want to look for a S&W m60 with a 3" barrel (like the one I have pictured below) since you will be using it as home defense. The extra inch of barrel will give you a bit more powder burn and a longer sight radius and does not really make the gun any harder to conceal. Rugers are nice guns but they are a bit bulky for my tastes and I do not like the tang style grip frame. I want a true grip frame.

Sweet looking gun, BTW. Thanks.

 

[Blov]

Thanks again for all of the input. I have been swayed towards the direction of older (pinned barrel and recessed chamber) S&W Model 66 or Model 19. I like the looks and the workmanship of the older stuff. Steel frame w/o lock is the direction so far...

Thanks!

The 66-1 is hard to beat and it is going up in price. It has a little more heft then some which helps with the recoil. I have had Rugers but always go back to the Smith's, I just prefer them. If you stay with the P/R barrel S&W you won't go wrong.

 

[netsecsys]

Well, ended up buying a 66 no-dash with a 4" barrel and a 66-1 with a 2 1/2". I was looking at a Combat magnum but it was way too much for one gun (that I have not fallen in love with yet). Both are pinned and recessed. My wife is excited and so am I. Should be here at the end of the week. I had a talk with my 1911 and let her know that we might need a little time apart...

Thanks again for your guidance!

 

[Blov]

Congrats and how about some pics!

 

[netsecsys]

Thanks. I'll be pumping up my elbow this weekend working on polishing the 66 (thanks to Playboy Penguin's nice video of polishing expertise) Here are the auction pics:

 

[Blov]

Very nice, I have a 2 1/2 and a 6 inch. I love the older smith's! Looks like you did good, I would love to also have a 4".

 

[netsecsys]

Very nice, I have a 2 1/2 and a 6 inch. I love the older smith's! Looks like you did good, I would love to also have a 4".

Thanks. I am excited. I'll be taking them out for exercise this weekend. Now to find a nice holster...

 

[netsecsys]

Got both of the guns in this past weekend. Both in great shape. The 66 4" was incredibly smooth and feels like it had a trigger job. My wife made me wait until she was off work today to go shoot them.

First time shooting a Model 66-1 (dated 1979) .357mag with a 2 1/2" barrel was quite the kick. I'm thinking I'll be getting some pachmayrs (vs. the pretty wood combat grips current) for it. My wife tried it but had been pre-warned by the shock waves she received from my shooting it the next booth over. Need to adjust the sights on it and get a white outlined blade. It is quite the hand cannon. (got a couple hundred rounds down range with my Les Baer 45 after trying out the .357mag and it felt like shooting a 9mm).

My wife loved the Model 66 (dated 1974) 4" and was having a great time with .38spl in it. She was able to handle the .357mag in it but had more fun with the .38spl. She suggested that I sell the Model 66-1 and get her another 66 4"..because, she said: "One is none..."

Thanks again for all of your input.

 

[Blov]

Sounds good, keep in mind that the k frame 357's were not designed to have a steady diet of full power loads. Practice with 38 and load 357 for defense was how they were intended to be used. Doesn't mean you can't shoot 357 but shooting a 1000 rounds of corbon isn't recommended. BTW if you think the 2.5 kicks try shooting a ruger lcr with 38+p or the new one in 357, ouch.

 

[netsecsys]

Thanks for the info. Makes sense to do 38spl for target and 357mag for defense. Yeah, I don't think I'll be putting as many rounds through the 2 1/2" as I do my 1911.

I don't even want to think about shooting 357mag from a lightweight framed 2 1/2"..seems like an insane idea to have that combo.

 

[Blov]

I have shot the lcr and the ne smith bodyguard. Not pleasant but great to carry.

 

[wjv]

I prefer a dedicated .38 revolver instead of shooting .38 out of a .357. The reason is cylinder fouling. Every time you fire a revolver, it leaves deposits in the cylinder chambers. Since the .38 is shorter, it leaves those deposits starting at the very edge of the brass. The .357 has longer brass, so the leading edge of the brass goes farther into the cylinder. If you shoot both .38 and .357 in a revolver, you MUST make sure that you clean all of the cylinder chambers thoroughly to prevent the .357 cases from becoming difficult to extract.

I prefer to have dedicated .38 special revolvers (442, SP101, 85CH) and a dedicated .357 revolver (GP100).

On a side note: Many of the rifles chambered for .357 will also chamber and fire .38 special rounds. I know for sure that my Marlin does. But again, one must make sure that you clean the chamber well to mitigate the chances of .357 brass from sticking.