Best .357 Mag. CC round of these two

Dave270

Dave270

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I have pretty well narrowed my search for .357 mag. CC SD rounds to these two..
Either a 125gr Hollow Point or the Winchester 145gr Silvertip HP.
I will be using them in a Model 66 2.5 inch .357.. I don't expect to be shooting through car doors or walls, only clothing and flesh..
Which would you chose and why..

Thanks

Dave
 
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The regular 125gr will have a lot of muzzle flash in the 2.5" barrel. The Remington Golden Saber 125gr is a medium velocity round and works well in short barrels, the Winchester silvertip also works well in short barrels. Then there is also the 135gr Gold Dot Short Barrel round made especially for that application.
 
I'd choose a 125 gr load because I have a box of the Win 145 gr Silver
tips that I have chronographed from three different 4" 357s. Over 100fps velocity variation from five shots in all three guns equals poor quality factory ammo in my opinion.
 
I would imagine the Silvertips could vary from lot-to-lot, and these days I question QC at the factory for sure. But I've had good results with the Silvertips in all calibers. It's been several years since I've chrono them but they ran 1137fps from my 3" and 1310fps out of my 6" guns with very little SD when I checked them.
 
Between those two, the silvertips, but that it is if I was forced to choose. I still believe in handloading all my ammo, and that includes personal defense. What I would do is pull all of the silvertip bullets and handload behind my own loads. I have that little faith in the factory QC these days.
 
Silvertips are a good choice but I havent seen Winchester Silvertip .357 magums around for a year or so. I don't think they are generally available unless somebody has some older stock for sale somewhere.

The Federal Premium Vital-Shok with Barnes Expander 140 gr .357 magnum (Load # P357XB1) is one of the best loads currently available. They are sold as hunting loads but it is an excellent bullet design. I carry them in my S&W 340Sc snubnose revolver. I found them to be accurate and well-crimped. No bullet jump in the 340sc. It would probably be fine in the 2.5" M66.
 
I'm a huge fan of 145gr Winchester Silvertip .357 Magnum ammo. It's a good performer and it has a proven track record. I like the Winchester Silvertip ammo over Remington Golden Saber offering any day. That said I do like Golden Saber ammo in my 1911 in .45 Auto because it feeds every time...
 
I would choose the 145gr Winchester Silvertip above all other .357 Magnum ammo available, but, unfortunately, it's currently about as easy to find as gold selling for $35 an ounce.
 
Either the Federal 125gr jhp or the Remington 125 sjhp.
Both of these have worked in the past for several state and local police agencies. The Federal version had great QC and a rather large hollow point. The Remington was the first of the breed and due to it's semi-jacketed hollow point it tends to fragment and produce smaller secondary wounds in the wound track.
Personally though I like the aforementioned Golden Saber load for snubs! It's much more controllable and easier on the gun!
Dale
 
XTrooper said:
I would choose the 145gr Winchester Silvertip above all other .357 Magnum ammo available, but, unfortunately, it's currently about as easy to find as gold selling for $35 an ounce.
Click to expand...
Isn't that the truth. I have been looking for 145gr Silvertip ammo for the past 2 years with no luck. Even when it's supposedly in stock I get an email a day later telling me it's back-ordered or the price tag is $50 or more. I have a S&W M640 that just loves that ammo and all I have left is 75 rounds.
 
If I was actually going to depend on a 2 1/2" 357 for home defense i'd
probably load a hard cast 158gr swc to about 1200 fps rather than use
any factory load.
 
Dave270 said:
I have pretty well narrowed my search for .357 mag. CC SD rounds to these two..
Either a 125gr Hollow Point or the Winchester 145gr Silvertip HP.
I will be using them in a Model 66 2.5 inch .357.. I don't expect to be shooting through car doors or walls, only clothing and flesh..
Which would you chose and why..

Thanks

Dave
Click to expand...

You've answered your own question. Your shooting from a short barrel with no need for extensive barrier penetration. Load up with a quality 125 gr. JHP... Remington pedal point or else something from Speer, etc.
 
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