I have never hunted with a handgun b4 and my wife wants to try it ,What would yall say the shortest barrel length would work.Longest shot would be maybe 50yds. Thanks for any and all input yall have.

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Thanks ,Jeff

You might want to check your state game hunting regulations, they might set a minimum barrel length. I'm not a hunter but I THINK Arkansas is 4 inches minimum.

I check that out here also.4 inches minimum here . Just want to see what yall think would be best.4 is good for home def. and if will work well for hunting (deer/hog) then she can use the same gun for both.

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Thanks ,Jeff

You are going to have to check the hunting regs in your state. Here in Ohio minimum barrel length for deer hunting with a handgun is 5 inches.

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Guy-Harold Smith II

What do you plan to hunt with a 357, deer? I've done it, got a half-dozen deer over a period of years back when I was a high-school/college kid in the late 60s and early 70s, only gun I had was a Model 27 357 6.5" I found that the caliber was barely adequate. No deer I shot (and all shots were within 60 yards) got away, but each and every one of them ran and had to be tracked, sometimes for several hundred yards. Too much work, too much uncertainty and I'd not do it again other than in a survival or dire emergency situation. Nowadays I use a 500 S&W for any sort of big-game hunting, including deer, and personally consider a 41Mag to be about the minimum. But that's just me......

I had the same question for myself that the OP has. I have a couple 686's sitting around,6" barrels and was thinking of hunting deer and pig with one. Now I'm not sure. I have read of 357 taking deer but never knew any details about the hunt. I'm not keen now in my fat fifties to go trapsing all over the county looking for a deer I shot. Does anyone know how a 357 would be for hogs?
Believe it or not I have read (on the internet) of some being taken with a .22lr ( shooting them in the ear??) and calibers on up. I saw a pic of a fellow who used a Glock 22(40S&W) on a hog at 10yds. Maybe I'll be selling a 686

Chuck

You can get on the Gamo website the I guy takes a 600 pound hog with a .22 airrifle. Pretty dumb, but you can do it.

.357 will work for deer and hog but you have to do your homework on ammo. I would go 180 loads for sure. Corbon ammo makes some good stuff.

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The kool-aid Sigma drinker

Personally I would go 4-inches minimum, but check your laws first. In reality I would get a 6 inch if possible. I can understand the relucatance of some to use .357's for deer, but if you use the right bullet and not go beyond the revolvers limits of say 50 yards, then you should be ok. If the grip doesn't bother her in size, than I get either a Model 28 or a 686.

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Vaya con Dios

I agree but wuth the new Hornady LEVERevolution I thiught it my work better now than in the past.I have never tryed Hornady LEVERevolution as of yet.I like my 41 mag but have never hunted with it,I may let her try it for hunting,she can shoot it just fine also.She just likes her 357. thanks again everyone

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Thanks ,Jeff

i'm totally with MTKTM here...i hunt boars for example and would not even consider 357 mag.i use a scoped 500 mag.i too would use a really hot 41 mag.for say deer size game but those boar are big,heavy and can be tough to bring down....

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KK4EMO

Personally, I'm all about the .41, but I've seen it done just fine with a .357 mag. That being said, it needs to be approached like bow hunting. In other words, know your limitations (or in this case your wife's), and stay within them

I prefer at least a 6" barrel. I shoot it better. I also think you'll want to give that .357 as much barrel as possible. Of course, you will have to check appropriate regulations as well.

Remember, practice taking your shots in the same manner as you will take them in the field. If she will be using shooting sticks or a rest in a stand, whatever. Do not think that she is ready just because she can hit something at 50 yards off of sand bags on a bench.

When she can put 50 consecutive rounds into 8 inches from round one, replicating whatever shooting stance she will be using in the field, I say go for it. Just remember that things get complicated with a handgun exponentially when it comes to range (at least it does for me).

With enough practice, I see no reason she can't do it ethically. If she isn't ready, then all bets are off.

Chubbs

If your going to do it then do it right and get a 357 maximum. Here is my Dan wesson, also have a ruger blackhawk maximum as well as a seville maximum

I've taken quite a few white tails with a 4" .357mag at distances from 20-80 yards. I've used several different types of loads, starting with 160gr hard cast SWC handloads, which I found to be fairly dismal and had to track the few that I shot with those quite some distance. I tried 158gr XTP-HP's and actually had pretty similar results -- and both were pushed to the max velocities.

I finally settled on using 145gr Winchester Silvertip component bullets in fairly hot handloads that average right around 1450fps out of my Ruger GP-100 w/ 4" barrel. I've shot 9 deer with those and have had really good luck -- noticeably better at killing quickly than the previous two loads. Also, these consistently show substantially more organ damage when compared to the cast and XTP bullets (in this caliber anyway).

FWIW

For hunting, go for at least a six inch handgun. Period. A .357 mag will work on deer, but a .44 mag is better. I hunt with both depending on how much "iron" I feel like toting. Keep your shots within forty yards....twenty-five is better.

Insteresting comments. Yes, bullet selection can make a difference, but just because a component manufacturer says that its bullet works well doesn't necessarily mean much. All but one of my half-dozen deer were all shot with hard-cast 160 SWCs loaded fairly hot. While they didn't anchor the deer, they invariably left a fairly decent blood-trail, would penetrate all the way through. I shot the other one with a handloaded Sierra 158 grain JHP of some sort, advertised at the time (about 1970) as being the cat's meow. It wasn't, penetrated all through and, while I did not recover the bullet, did not appear to expand at all from the looks of the wound-channel. I quickly went back to the SWCs, decided they worked better. The deer shot with the JHP went further than any of the others. I realize that might not mean much, but it did to me at the time.

A number of years back I got a deal on several hundred rounds of Winchester 145 grain Silvertip ammo, and still use it in one of my carry guns, a 357. Never thought to consider it for hunting though! Good information! However, as I said, my big game hunting with a handgun these days is done 100% with the 500. Happy hunting!!

Has any of yall tryed Hornady LEVERevolution in hand gun hunting. That is what I was thinking of letting her use. Input on that also welcome . thanks for all the great input so far.

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Thanks ,Jeff

My favorite pistol and load (other than .22lr) is a 38 Special/357 with all lead 148gr DEWC or 158 gr SWC loaded to 700-850 fps. Very accurate from a 4" 38/357 Smith revolver and Kills rabbits and such like ..now!
For dear size game your wife may fall in love with a Marlin .357 1894.
I wouldn't hesitate to use a 4"-6".357 revolver for an all-around survival gun, but not my first choice for hunting.

I havent used 'em for hunting, but from my own (unscientific, but ok for comparisons) bullet testing and from what I've seen of others who have also tested them, they give pretty poor expansion at hangun velocities even into things that typically make bullets expand violently (like water, ice, wetpack). I dont have a rifle chambered in .357 to test them at higher velocities -- but I wouldnt use personally use them for handgun hunting in this caliber.

Here is an example just into water...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRRrvL4b45g

Pretty consistent with what I've seen myself.

I know a lot will disagree with me, but I would only consider using a 357 on deer with a 6" gun or longer and at ranges associated with bow hunting, and in fact, would only take the kinds of shots an ethical bowhunter would strive to wait for - broadside double-lung hit or quartering away with an angle through the vitals. Under unhurried range conditions I like to see how well I can do with the smaller calibers at extended ranges, but when hunting my ethical position is to make sure to use enough gun/bullet/load at a reasonable range to ensure a quick and humane harvesting of the deer. I've personally taken deer with .41 mag, .44 mag. and 45/70 from handguns, and seen more shot with those and lesser calibers by others.

I also know of "hunters" who lose deer after hitting them with magnum high power rifle cartridges. If you're not patient enough to wait for an optimum shot commensurate with your skill level you shouldn't take the shot.

I know there are specialized handguns such as the TC (I own them, as well) that can be used to extend the effective range of the handgun, but realistically, for the average hunter in my opinion, hunting with a handgun should be approached as one would if he were hunting with a bow or a single shot. A lot of folks who frequent this forum no doubt shoot/practice much more than the average gun owner in this country, but I would have to guess that many who post here don't shoot nearly enough to be as proficient as one should be to hit a deer under field/hunting conditions with a 4" 357 magnum and be reasonably sure of a quick one shot kill.

YMMV