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S&W Hand Ejectors: 1896 to 1961 All 5-Screw & Vintage 4-Screw SWING-OUT Cylinder REVOLVERS, and the 35 Autos and 32 Autos


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Old 10-06-2024, 10:14 AM
RM Vivas RM Vivas is offline
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Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by S&W ucla View Post
Phil Sharpe had a lot to do with the .357's development as did many others. Elmer Keith's part in the development of the 357 Magnum, this is what he said in "SIXGUNS". "Next we have the .357 Magnum Smith & Wesson cartridge. I worked with Doug Wesson on this development and sent him the first Keith bullets used in developing the load." S&W sent him an early prototype for testing and he published an article in the April? 1935 "AMERICAN RIFLEMAN".

I know what S&W said on the invoice (below )when they sent him his 4" 1950 Target.
"Mr. Keith.......assisted in the development of the .357 Magnum cartridge."
I was just reading some correspondence between S&W and Keith regarding bullet shape and the Keith bullet.

Keith was a little bitter that his design bullet had been slightly modified and the "keith" monicker lost.

I'll have to pull up the letter and see if I can post a copy. He sounds a bit put off by the matter.

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RM Vivas
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Old 10-06-2024, 11:07 AM
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Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Neumann View Post
I understand that police needed a more powerful cartridge to penetrate automobiles, in the age of Dillinger, Bonnie and Clyde, and others. The round is quite manageable in a full-sized revolver. It didn't hurt its popularity that Patton adopted one along with his Colt SA.

I haven't fired .38 SPL, including wadcutters, in over 50 years. You gotta' shoot what you carry.
Lieut. Col. G.S. Patton Jr. ordered his 357 Magnum revolver just 5 months after J. Edgar received the First Registered Magnum



I realize this is a bit of thread drift, but it amazes me that as America was just emerging from the Great Depression there was such a high demand for this very expensive revolver(so high that the Factory could not keep up).

As you will note in the order form above, this was priced at the exorbitant sum of $48 which included any Military discounts that were offered at the time. You might also have noticed that the price was approved of by DBW himself. That price is roughly 10% of what an individual's annual income was in 1935

Even back in the olden days, Smith & Wesson was making errors on their records. This carbon copy of the acknowledgement letter regarding the Lieut. Col.'s order mistakenly lists the revolver as having an 8" barrel

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Old 10-06-2024, 01:54 PM
BLACKHAWKNJ BLACKHAWKNJ is offline
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In "Sixguns" Elmer writes apropos of reloading:
"Somebody will think, hell he eliminated a few grains to get it into print so I'll just add a few grains and get his real load. Anyone doing that WILL get a real load-and most likely a new gun as well."
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Old 10-06-2024, 05:43 PM
JimFr JimFr is offline
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Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RM Vivas View Post
. . . . .He sounds a bit put off by the matter.

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RM Vivas
He was also vehemently “put off” when Lyman CHANGED his semi wad cutter bullet mould to have round-bottomed grease grooves, when his design called for square-bottomed grooves.
Lyman said . . . .and rightly so . . . .this change was to improve bullet release from the mould blocks.
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Old 10-06-2024, 08:12 PM
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Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31  
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Don't have any bullet release problem with my square groove moulds .
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Old 10-06-2024, 08:44 PM
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Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31  
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Default Anybody load for....

Quote:
Originally Posted by otis24 View Post
The term "magnum" is a champagne term. I had heard that maybe it was the president (?) of S&W who was a champagne conniseur? Magnum is the next bottle size above a fifth (750ml).
...the .358 Midas?
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Old 10-06-2024, 08:51 PM
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Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31  
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Default Well......

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Yup- I toned-down the quote for the censors...
Well Poop. There goes another one.
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Old 10-06-2024, 08:51 PM
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Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31  
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Quote:
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...the .358 Midas?
The .381 Keg......Ben
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Old 10-06-2024, 08:59 PM
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Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31  
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Default I think that it is now.....

Quote:
Originally Posted by rct269 View Post
Not to change the subject, but the biggest scam in the ammunition world is "+P".

Ralph Tremaine
Before everybody got so soft there was 'standard' loading and +P that was a 'stiffer' load. Now you can hardly tell the difference in bought ammunition. I remember many years ago I was shooting .38s at the outdoor range and as a couple of guys were walking off, one said, "He's shooting +Ps now." The difference was that obvious.
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Old 10-06-2024, 09:21 PM
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Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31  
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Default Of course we all know.......

....that unlike the boring rest of the world, there is absolutely nothing 'standard' about American naming conventions. The designation can hang on any of a dozen parameters, then to make everything perfectly clear, there is a catchy name attached. Some examples:

Powermag, Action Express, Avenger, Bull Dog, Bushwhacker, Supermag, Gyrojet.

And rifles:

Bee, Hornet, Badger, Mach IV, Zipper, Spitfire, Fury, Wolverine, Edge, Buckhammer, Hushpuppy, Alaskan, Beowulf, Thunder Saber, Tyrannosaur.

VERY few metric designations are creative, like Grendel and Shooting Time Westerner. Probably American origin.
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Old 10-06-2024, 09:45 PM
Muley Gil Muley Gil is offline
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Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31 Why is it called the .357 Magnum? UPDATED 05OCT24 Best(?) answer #31  
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Anyone who has ever shot the old standard Remington 158 grain lead semi-wadcutter knows that it was loaded with a soft lead bullet. 50 rounds through my S&W M27 3 1/2" resulted in the barrel looking like a smoothbore from the lead stripped off & left behind.

Old Elmer always pushed for a moderately hard Keith SWC, especially in magnum revolvers. Swaged soft lead bullets are much cheaper to produce though.
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