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Buffalo Bore 125g .357 mag ammo safe in 686?

Dash4+

Dash4+

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I am getting ready to take out my 686 plus out to the range tomorrow and I bought a box of Buffalo Bore 125g 357 mag rounds and it's rated at 1700 fps out a six inch barrel at 802 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle. This is pretty much the hottest factory 357 mag round you can get these days and I was wondering if these rounds would be safe to put through my 686? Has anyone here shot them before out of their smith? and if so has it caused any damage or concerns at all? Thanks.
 
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Call me a Skeptic but the only way I see a 125 grain 357 Magnum hitting 1700 fps out of a 6 inch barrel is if that barrel is a Smoothbore. I've reloaded the 125 grain Hornady XTP with 21.5 grains of H110 and this freakishly flashy and LOUD boomer of a load only produced 1470 fps from a 6 inch Dan Wesson with the B/C gap set to 0.0035 inch. Yeah, I could have loaded another 1/2 grain of powder and maxed out the load but based on experience I think that would only yield another 30 fps at best.

The bottomline is this, don't believe ANY claims for a certain velocity until you've actually tested a particular ammunition over a chronograph yourself. Because there is a LOT of manipulation that isn't documented in order to Hype the numbers because so many suckers out there buy ammo or powder based on some mythical velocity claim.
 
scooter123 said:
Call me a Skeptic but the only way I see a 125 grain 357 Magnum hitting 1700 fps out of a 6 inch barrel is if that barrel is a Smoothbore. I've reloaded the 125 grain Hornady XTP with 21.5 grains of H110 and this freakishly flashy and LOUD boomer of a load only produced 1470 fps from a 6 inch Dan Wesson with the B/C gap set to 0.0035 inch. Yeah, I could have loaded another 1/2 grain of powder and maxed out the load but based on experience I think that would only yield another 30 fps at best.

The bottomline is this, don't believe ANY claims for a certain velocity until you've actually tested a particular ammunition over a chronograph yourself. Because there is a LOT of manipulation that isn't documented in order to Hype the numbers because so many suckers out there buy ammo or powder based on some mythical velocity claim.
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Agreed, However I never said I believed those specs. Just what the round was rated at the factory. And the gun they got those ratings from was a Ruger Gp-100. And let's say even IF the BB rounds was TRULY that powerful, would the 686 be able to handle it is the question.

However, seeing how there several variables, I'm pretty sure I'm not going to get those specs that Buffalo Bore claims, BUT STILL. Better safe than sorry, the only dumb question I can ask is the one I didn't ask is my philosophy. And I don't wanna blow my gun up as well, lol.
 
one eye joe said:
THE 686 WAS BUILT TO WITHSTAND THE USE OF ANY FACTORY .357 MAGNUM AMMO. IN THAT RESPECT, IT WAS BUILT TO OVERCOME THE WEAKNESS OF THE MODEL 66. YOU WILL HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH THE BB LOAD TOMORROW……
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Thanks for the advice. But I don't think you needed to caps lock to answer my question. Do you need a hug?
 
I think it would be tough to blow up a 686 with factory ammo, even BB. IMO it's the strongest .357 S&W ever made. In a K/L frame anyway.
 
In a word....

Dash4+ said:
Agreed, However I never said I believed those specs. Just what the round was rated at the factory. And the gun they got those ratings from was a Ruger Gp-100. And let's say even IF the BB rounds was TRULY that powerful, would the 686 be able to handle it is the question.

However, seeing how there several variables, I'm pretty sure I'm not going to get those specs that Buffalo Bore claims, BUT STILL. Better safe than sorry, the only dumb question I can ask is the one I didn't ask is my philosophy. And I don't wanna blow my gun up as well, lol.
Click to expand...

In a word yes. Won't hurt anything. In fact I wish I had some light jacketed bullets just to see what they shot like. One thing I know when you get around that range is that it HURTS!:eek:
 
scooter nailed it, the advertisd fps/ft-lbs data is usually obtained by using longer than average barrel lengths.

The 686 was built to withstand Magnum loads. So, shoot as many as your budget allows you to.
 
Their description for that load says safe in all steel revolvers including J frames.

Yes, they do show 1700 feet per second out of a 6 inch GP100.

Notice the 4 inch L frame beats the 5 inch N frame by 60 fps?


Patrick
 
Hapworth said:
One eye Joe is called that for a reason; caps lock are so he can see when he's typing helpful answers to people who've asked for them...
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THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT, Hapworth ! ! ! THAT WAS VERY KIND OF YOU TO JUMP IN, ON MY BEHALF. IN HIS DEFENSE, THE OP JUST FELL OFF THE TURNIP TRUCK. HE ONLY HAS 18 POSTS. I LIKE HIS ATTITUDE, HOWEVER. NEVER BE AFRAID TO ASK A QUESTION, EVEN IF YOU THINK THAT ITS "DUMB". WE WILL TREAT YOU AND YOUR QUESTION WITH RESPECT…….
 
While I have never shot that specific Buffalo Bore round, I have shot at least 7 or 8 other BB rounds (including the 158 and 180 grain .357 Magnums) and each and every one of them has chronographed to at least what they state out of a specific barrel length and most s slight bit higher. If BB states it will do those velocities I would believe them. I go by what I test personally (I do own my own Chronograph and routinely test loads) and have YET to catch them exaggerating. For you nay sayers, buy or borrow a Chronograph and then you will believe! The ONLY Company's listed velocities out of said barrel lengths that I have NOT found exaggerated are Buffalo Bores. Speer Gold Dots are at least very very close to what they state, but the Winchester, Remington and Federal offerings are usually a great disappointment - maybe with the exception of the relatively new HST loads. Although I have not personally chronographed the HST's yet, I know others that have and have had stated velocities matched.

I have personally spoken with Tom Sundles (owner of Buffalo Bore) several times and he is adamant that his bullets do not exceed SAAMI spec's and will NOT harm a gun that they are designed for in as long as the gun is in good mechanical condition and rated for the round you shoot. I do not know how or have the means to test pressures so on that I will have to accept his word - but like I've often stated, I have yet to catch any mis-quoted data from him.

I would however expect this load to be a bit unpleasant to shoot and between that and the cost I doubt anyone would shoot all that many of them. Make sure you wear BOTH plugs and head muffs - LOUD!! The 125 grain Magnums (not just BB's) are known to erode top straps and forcing cones and I personally don't shoot those anymore. I stick to 158 grain at a minimum and use the BB 180 grain Hard Cast SWC for Bear Country. Probably the best .357 Mag against a bear! And YES...... his velocities are dead-on.
 
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Just for your info.....

K frame guns like the model 19 had a flat machined at the bottom of the forcing cone. Lighter bullets caused this to crack.

Even if it didn't crack a 19 was not made for continuous duty heavy .357 loads. People were advised to shoot mild rounds for practice and save the heavy duty stuff for the real thing.
 
chief38 said:
While I have never shot that specific Buffalo Bore round, I have shot at least 7 or 8 other BB rounds (including the 158 and 180 grain .357 Magnums) and each and every one of them has chronographed to at least what they state out of a specific barrel length and most s slight bit higher. If BB states it will do those velocities I would believe them. I go by what I test personally (I do own my own Chronograph and routinely test loads) and have YET to catch them exaggerating. For you nay sayers, buy or borrow a Chronograph and then you will believe! The ONLY Company's listed velocities out of said barrel lengths that I have NOT found exaggerated are Buffalo Bores. Speer Gold Dots are at least very very close to what they state, but the Winchester, Remington and Federal offerings are usually a great disappointment - maybe with the exception of the relatively new HST loads. Although I have not personally chronographed the HST's yet, I know others that have and have had stated velocities matched.

I have personally spoken with Tom Sundles (owner of Buffalo Bore) several times and he is adamant that his bullets do not exceed SAAMI spec's and will NOT harm a gun that they are designed for in as long as the gun is in good mechanical condition and rated for the round you shoot. I do not know how or have the means to test pressures so on that I will have to accept his word - but like I've often stated, I have yet to catch any mis-quoted data from him.

I would however expect this load to be a bit unpleasant to shoot and between that and the cost I doubt anyone would shoot all that many of them. Make sure you wear BOTH plugs and head muffs - LOUD!! The 125 grain Magnums (not just BB's) are known to erode top straps and forcing cones and I personally don't shoot those anymore. I stick to 158 grain at a minimum and use the BB 180 grain Hard Cast SWC for Bear Country. Probably the best .357 Mag against a bear! And YES...... his velocities are dead-on.
Click to expand...

Thank you sir/ ma'am. Your reply was very helpful. Well, everyone's reply was helpful. And I hear a lot of people saying that the .357 mag will beat up my hands/ wrist but I just let of some of those bad boys to test all the cylinders and barely even felt it. I guess I got strong wrist's/ hands perhaps? Everyone said that my wrists would hurt after I shot my Mossberg 12 gauge 500 pistol grip, Not even the slightest pain after slugs, buckshot and birdshot. I'm expecting the same with my S&W.
 
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Well this is looking like "Case closed" everyone seems to think the round is safe to be fired out of the 686. Thank you everyone for helping me get a piece of mind before I shoot these fireplugs. Very much appreciated!
 
Thanks for the advice. But I don't think you needed to caps lock to answer my question. Do you need a hug?
Reply With Quote
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one eye joe, has always up-capped all his posts. The man usually offers good advise and has interesting things to post. As we were trained to look for a capital letter to start a sentence, or proper noun it makes it very hard to read some of his posts.

One eye Joe is called that for a reason; caps lock are so he can see when he's typing helpful answers to people who've asked for them...
Click to expand...

Hapworth, thanks for the information, I did not know that.
 
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JUST TO PUT A CAP ON THIS CONVERSATION (PUN INTENDED), AS MOST OF REGULAR POSTERS FROM THE LAST 7 YEARS ALREADY KNOW, (BECAUSE I HAVE HAD TO EXPLAIN MYSELF SEVERAL TIMES), I'M A DISABLED VIETNAM VETERAN. I HAVE NO VISION AT ALL IN ONE EYE. I HAVE GLAUCOMA AND A CATARACT IN MY "GOOD" EYE. I TYPE LABORIOUSLY WITH A COUPLE OF FINGERS OF MY ONE HAND THAT WORKS. ITS VERY DIFFICULT FOR ME TO SEE LOWER CASE, SO I JUST USE CAPS. FORTUNATELY FOR ME, MOST FORUM MEMBERS INDULGE ME, AND SIMPLY ACCEPT ME FOR WHO/WHAT I AM……
 
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