.357 Magnum is obsolete

[wheelgun28]

I dont think 357 is obsolete, but I feel 40S&W is going to be obsolete. I have two glocks that use it so I am not a real hater.

The 40 does nothing that other rounds dont do better.

9mm +p+ just as good a penetration and more rounds in the mag.

357Sig better penetration same round count as the 40.

Lets not even start on the 45s ACP, GAP...

So why do we need the 40S&W? Practice ammo for the 10mm? Police duty guns that dont over penetrate...

It had its moment in the sun when the 9mm was weaker and the 10mm to powerful.

Oh, thats why they invented to 40S&W, because some people at the FBI could not handle the 10mm, so in comes the 40 Short &Weak.

Yes, some of what I wrote is in jest or at least something to think about. I guess the point is that anyone can find a reason why something is no good or obsolete

 

[Doughboy Racing]

In Michigan you can not have a magazine that holds ore than 5 Rds while hunting in a autoloader so if you are in the woods dont hunt with one

 

[Knightrider03m]

.357 is a great round and IMO it is more practical than a .44 mag

 

[Brian894x4]

I used to have no respect for the .357 and carried one of my Glocks .40s as my primary woods gun. It wasn't until I started getting into revolvers and shooting .357s that I really started looking into their balistics in higher end rounds that were available, such as from buffalo bore.

I also never realized just how slow the .40 really is, especially in the heavier loads. I still like the .40 as a defensive round against humans and as a LEO round, but I now pack an old model 66 3" as my primary woods gun loaded with buffalo bore 158s or 180 hardcast. And that's backed up by either a Winchester or Marlin lever gun using the same ammo. Although usually left in the truck or at camp.

I took a .357 buffalo bore 180 grain hardcast and punched a hole clean through more than 1/4" stainless steel plate from about 30 feet out of a 16" barrel rifle. That sold me. And I've been carrying the Model 66 in the woods ever since. Every other gun I had just bounced off and barely made a dent. The model 66 won't punch through 1/4" steel, but it makes one heck of a dent and I'm pretty confident it will give bear and cougar hide and bone a run for its money.

I know the .44 mags are even better, but I'd far rather carry around a K frame on my long hikes in the woods than an N frame. Especially since these guns are more crutches than likely be actually used.

 

[ENGINE18]

thinking of changing my name to ENGINE.357

 

[WC145]

I've been to a lot of shootings over the last 34 years. Rifles, shotguns and handguns, you name it. Nothing and I mean nothing in the realm of handguns has been as devastating as the .357 Magnum 125 grain JHP. Make no mistake, other guns have killed more, especially the 9mm, but as far as just opening up a can of whoop ass on a human body, the .357 is hard to beat. YMMV.

Yeah, there's something to be said for a big exit wound.

I'm a big .357 fan. In fact, I'm in the process of transitioning from a Beretta 9mm to a S&W 586 L-Comp for duty carry. It makes more sense in my environment and the type of work I do. Power and accuracy are more important to me than capacity.

 

[semperfi71]

Not only is the .357 magnum obsolete so is the .41 and .44 magnum.

With the advent of the .475 and .50 caliber magnums there is no "need" to use and carry anything less.

Whatever the .357, .41, and .44 calibers do the .475's and .50's will do better.

Wait! Even the .475's are obsolete what with the .50's being produced!

Heh! Heh!

 

[flop-shank]

In Michigan you can not have a magazine that holds ore than 5 Rds while hunting in a autoloader so if you are in the woods dont hunt with one

A plug that fits within the spring of an auto's box magazine could be made to limit capacity, not unlike the plugs duck hunters use in shotgun's magazines.

 

[borntoraisehogs]

I mean no disrespect , and I acknowledge the proposition you state comes up now and then from some very experienced shooters . Most members of this forum have had their firends and neighbors try to convince them , revolvers are obsolete . The .357 is the ideal round for 95 % of revolver duties , and the revolver is adequate for 100% of my hand gun needs even though I enjoy shooting auto loaders . It seems strange so many see the .357 as an inadequate man stopper , but think the .44 mag is big medicine for the large game and dangerous encounters . The .44 mag in the woods is a joke compared the "obsolete" 104 year old .30-06 .

 

[AZ Desertrat]

It will take one hell of a long time for the .357 to just shrivel up and die!!!

 

[jhvaughan2]

If the .357 is obsolete what is the .38 special? The .38 is 80% of what own/shoot and 100% of what I carry.

However if the Supreme Being said I could only have one caliber it would be .357. As I'm sure others have said, the .357 (followed closely by the .45 colt) are the most versatile cartridges ever made. How can something so useful ever be obsolete?

 

[Horseless Trooper]

.357 will always be my first choise in a handgun cartridge if trouble calls. Although I currently carry a 6in. M14 Smith .38 for my duty gun(Adam-12 nostalgia and it really bothers the young guys) I have always considered the .357 Magnum to be the ideal law enforcement caliber if you can handle the recoil. As soon as I can pony up the bucks I am going to switch to a GP100 with night sights for work

 

[bmcgilvray]

"If the .357 is obsolete what is the .38 special?"

It's absolutely archaic! Sorta like me.

 

[rhodnett]

Discussions and theories such as this always bring many opinions to the forefront, and everyone knows that opinions are like ***holes....everybody has one. The .357 is a great and useful round and far from obsolete. In MY humble opinion, the 9mm and .40 S&W (Short & Weak) are the two most overrated rounds in the history of handguns. So there.

 

[cmj8591]

357 magnum obsolete? ROTFLMAO!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[animalmother]

Not in my book. The 357 and 10mm rule as far as I am concerned.

 

[79ipa]

hmm

from a 1 7/8 inch barrel double tap lists a 125 at 1425. I really doubt that that is obsolete.

 

[79ipa]

hmm

from a 1 7/8 inch barrel double tap lists a 125 at 1425. I really doubt that that is obsolete. I think that I am going to buy that m & p 340 after all! Do you guys think that occassional use of these bullets would be manageable?

 

[flop-shank]

DT 125s from a scandium gun?

No. I'm sure someone is the exception, but I shoot hard kicking guns and Remington 125 gr. SJHPs (R357M1) are too much for me out of my 360 PD. It's not a matter of being uncomfortable. It's that last time I fired five rounds, my right hand took a month and a half to recover. Speer SB .357 is likely to be the stoutest thing that will work and that's what I carry. YMMV

 

[M2MikeGolf]

Years ago, when Ruger introduced the Redhawk, a college classmate of mine told me that the Model 29 was now obsolete. I thought that was an odd thing to say so I reverted to a strict definition of what "obsolete" meant to help prove my point: Here's what Merriam-Webster defines as obsolete:

1 a : no longer in use or no longer useful <an obsolete word> b : of a kind or style no longer current : old-fashioned <an obsolete technology

I don't see the words "popular". One would have to determine a devices usage in order to decide whether it is obsolete. For instance, handguns in combat zones are used by the military primarily as backup weapons or more often issued to those very unlikely to engage in combat, so using that definition, would you say that all handguns are obsolete? Since the cartridge, and current weapons built to fire it, is commonly produced, purchased and used, then by definition it is not obsolete. Technology for revolvers continues, and they are used in a variety of environments. A better comparison would be a cartridge that is no longer offered or able to be manufactured. You may as well state that revolvers in general are obsolete, which I believe would be incorrect. Would you think the M2 heavy barrel .50 cal MG is obsolete? The US Army thought so, until operations in Afghanistan and Iraq began and EVERYONE wanted one. I won't even mention the .45 ACP since it would fire up a lot more opinions, but you may see my point. Sometimes "obsolete" may even be better.


RAK