Best .357 for discreet carry...

[grcoffman104]

I carry a 66-3 2 1/2 in barrel in an S&W 21-32 holster. Rear sight blade scuffs my inner arm below the elbow at times. A 65 with gutter sights would help with the scuff problem and might let my eyes acclimate the target better in a quick draw and shoot situation. Something to think about if the S&W addiction dictates what you carry.

Find a friend with a fish tank.
Ask if you can snip off 2 inch of the tubing used for air from pump into tank. ( clear plastic treated with uv inhibiter)
Heat with hair dryer. Streach over hammer and snip off. Bevel end with sharp knife.
Now hammer will not knaw on jacket\shirt. Heat and streach over rear sight, trimming as needed. Gat is now defaced except for the pointy end. Sight still use able for combat as plastic is see through. Old Texas panhandle gunfighter trick from the 70's. K frames were eating holes in our polyester leisure suits jackets.
Your milage may vary.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk

 

[Muss Muggins]

Sometimes I carry a 60-14 2" with CT grips in a IWB holster. Recoil has never been a concern for me. I train with .38 SPL, shoot some carry ammo occasionally, and carry with Winchester .357 Mag 180 grain Black Talons (the originals). Unfortunately, my supply is beginning to run low . . .

 

[shawn mccarver]

I agree that the J frame is just ridiculous to shoot with Magnums.

My choice in this category? 3 inch 65 or 66.

 

[Groo01]

Groo here
I have found that there is little difference shooting a 38 or 357 from a similar weight or size gun for most people as the action type
and sight setup and shooter experience/training have more effect
than the difference in kick.
How many of you see people adj their grip each shot ?[Slow]
How many take a sight picture each time they shoot?[also slow]
How many slowly pull the trigger?[slow again]
The things we do slow things down more then the difference in kick.
The three most important things are #1 a grip that fits the shooter
#2 good hearing protection.
#3 good trigger control.
Even the sights are not so important at 5 to 7 yds or shorter ranges!!!!

 

[kaaskop49]

For a less violent mag load, I prefer the W-W and R-P 110gr Mag JHP loads in my snub .357s. Much more controllable than the 125 grain "planet wreckers." Of course, these rounds are "verboten" in the guns with titanium cylinders...

Kaaskop49
Shield #5103

 

[Erich]

I can fire the Rhino faster on target with full house loads than any other .357 I own. And it's lighter and pretty small. Before some wiseacre mentions his revelation that it's ugly, I'm not claiming it's pretty.

While I've used it for carry and no doubt will again, I don't generally need or want .357 Magnum power in a small carry revolver. (I use my 3" SP-101 most often for hikes up Bear Canyon behind the house.) The Rhino is presently doing house gun duty with minus-P .357 Magnum handloads that deliver 135-gr Speer short barrel 135-grain Gold Dots at c. 1130 fps.

 

[Bill In Texas]

My two favorites are the 60-15 Pro Series and a 66-2 because these are the two I own!

 

[Engine49guy]

When Magnum force might be required my personal favorite CCW has been this 2.5" Model 66-1 (shown right)


Alternate take is the Model 65-5 LadySmith


Recently had a buddy offer me a 3" full underlug Pre IL Model 60-? in .357 and although it was very tempting kept thinking that 3" J Magnum wasnt much lighter or smaller than my 66-1 but more importantly only offered five shots VS the K Magnum's six.

For daily CCW the J Airweight in .38 special is hard to beat but for Magnum carry prefer a K frame.

 

[Mtnfolk325]

I've gone to a 2.25" SP101 in a Mika for my EDC. The hammer has been shaved and I use Hogue Finger Groove Camo Lamo Grips on it. My current EDC load in the Barnes 125 Grain Tac-XP, practice is mostly hand loaded Mid-Range Cast .357's always followed with 10 rounds of Full Magnums. It is handful but can be mastered with some dedicated practice, I'm just too dang old and crippled up to chase brass or wear a belt gun for any duration anymore, so I've settled on Pocket Carry of a Magnum Revolver. I just dress for it and use a 1.75" 5 Stitch Instructor's Belt with Perry 3-Point Suspenders .....;o)

 

[Mulebuk Sam]

Before some wiseacre mentions his revelation that it's ugly, I'm not claiming it's pretty.

I would not call it ugly but it is different that's for sure and of course I'm sure you know why you can shoot it faster, low bore axis.

Now, after seeing the amount of parts inside those guns I can understand now why they have had so many QC problems. They went way over board. They can barely give them away, selling for almost half of what they where a few years back.

And good luck with customer service.
Now for my taste the new Kimber .357 comng out would be as radical in depature as I'd care to go, I'm a traditionalist.

 

[Chrisj357]

Best, or best?

I have never been a fan of stubbies. If you are going to go 3", why not go 4?

It was said this is a compromise, well not been a fan of compromise either.

This is my MOST of the time carry 4" 686 with .357. I do have a J frame 38+P that I carry in my pocket when in very light attire.

 

[Stopsign32v]

I have never been a fan of stubbies. If you are going to go 3", why not go 4?

It was said this is a compromise, well not been a fan of compromise either.

This is my MOST of the time carry 4" 686 with .357. I do have a 38+P that I carry in my pocket when in very light attire.

How does that work for concealed carry? Hiding a 4" 686 not only would be hard to do but very uncomfortable I'd imagine getting in and out of a car.

 

[Chrisj357]

How does that work for concealed carry? Hiding a 4" 686 not only would be hard to do but very uncomfortable I'd imagine getting in and out of a car.

Untucked large shirt and that waist band kidney paddle holster does great. You have to get used to it in the car, for longer trips I take it off and keep it in the console. It is very comfortable to carry and it's very comforting to have my favorite shooter with me most of the time, the thing is a tack driver and (to me) almost no recoil so follow up shots are instant

 

[BAM-BAM]

I have never been a fan of stubbies. If you are going to go 3", why not go 4?

It was said this is a compromise, well not been a fan of compromise either.

This is my MOST of the time carry 4" 686 with .357. I do have a J frame 38+P that I carry in my pocket when in very light attire.

Not to start a fight....... but isn't carrying a handgun in itself a compromise of convenience over a much more effect firearm ........... a rifle.

I see you will compromise 'when in very light attire"......

What I will agree with is that if you are going to carry an L-frame.... might as well do it right................. with a 4 inch!!!!

 

[Chrisj357]

Not to start a fight....... but isn't carrying a handgun in itself a compromise of convenience over a much more effect firearm ........... a rifle.

I see you will compromise 'when in very light attire"......

What I will agree with is that if you are going to carry an L-frame.... might as well do it right................. with a 4 inch!!!!

At least n FL a handgun is not a compromise, its the only legal way to be armed. We don't have open carry unless you can prove you are on the way to a gun use activity.

Well, I didn't say I like it a lot, but if the choice is no gun or the J-frame, I'll take the J-frame, I mean, that's why I bought it, for when the 686 is just not practical

 

[Mehutch]

Well I carry either my S&W 2.5 686-4 7 shooter loaded with Rem 125gr SJHP, and or my Colt Defender 45 ACP with Win Ranger-T 230gr. I don't think a 2.5 or 3" barrel makes any difference as the 125g or 230g are passing through the lungs and heart followed by 7 more of the same.
I don't know about you but... if the time comes to use force I want every advantage I can and shoot at the time. 357 mag or 45 ACP is what I carry, not because I am a big machesmo guy, it is because I practice hard and long for this 63 year old guy who wants to go home alive.

 

[BigBill]

I just watched a game changing police video. The bad guy in the back seat hand cuffed had a pistol in his boot that he hid under the seat when they searched him a second time. He freed his handcuffed arms from his back so he's handcuffed in the front of him.

My point is during the fire fight the suspect ducked down in the rear seat of the cruiser. Both Leo's fired 47 shots and hit the bad guy 3 times. Now if they had 357 magnums they could of shot through the trunk through the back seat and hit him.

Seeing this video surely makes me think about a 357 or 41 mag for sure.

 

[Groo01]

I have never been a fan of stubbies. If you are going to go 3", why not go 4?

It was said this is a compromise, well not been a fan of compromise either.

This is my MOST of the time carry 4" 686 with .357. I do have a J frame 38+P that I carry in my pocket when in very light attire.

The three in barrel give speeds near a 4 in and the shorter length
helps to keep a car seat from pushing the butt [grip] into your ribs.

 

[M29since14]

Everyone has their opinion on the 340PD but it usually ends with "...not much fun to shoot".

I thought the comment from Houston Rick regarding the 940 was interesting, since it mimics my own opinion on 357s in really short barrels; viz., nothing much gained by the .357 compared to a 9x19 operating at the same pressure in the same barrel length. The added bonus of the 940 is that the extractor rod actually comes pretty close to throwing the short 9mm cases free of the gun. But since none of that was the question, I would probably say my choice tends toward a 340PD or M&P340 with 125 gr. ammo. The 340 is bearable with 125s, barely usable and vicious with 145s, and intolerable with 158s.

That's my story and I'm sticking... well, for now anyway.

 

[Mtnfolk325]

RE: 9mm vs 357

Everyone has their opinion on the 340PD but it usually ends with "...not much fun to shoot".

I thought the comment from Houston Rick regarding the 940 was interesting, since it mimics my own opinion on 357s in really short barrels; viz., nothing much gained by the .357 compared to a 9x19 operating at the same pressure in the same barrel length. The added bonus of the 940 is that the extractor rod actually comes pretty close to throwing the short 9mm cases free of the gun. But since none of that was the question, I would probably say my choice tends toward a 340PD or M&P340 with 125 gr. ammo. The 340 is bearable with 125s, barely usable and vicious with 145s, and intolerable with 158s.

That's my story and I'm sticking... well, for now anyway.

FWIW, I have an LCR in 9mm for the days when my hip won't tolerate the weight of the SP, stoke it with 147 HST or 115 Tac-XP depending on activity & destination ...... I do shoot the SP better.