Firing 357 Magnum from short barrel

[Naphtali]

Now that I have grips I with which I can shoot my 640-1, the next thing to deal with is muzzle blast. I have a box of Speer 357 "short barrel" Gold Dot.

From advertising hyperbole, Buffalo Bore touts their 125- and 140-grain TAC 357 ammunition, both Barnes leadless AND JHP versions, as having "midrange" ballistics, little muzzle flash, . . . and less muzzle blast than their competitors' similar products. I have been trying to find this ammunition - ungodly expensive, but if the hype is not hype, it'll be worth its premium - but cannot. Unless I buy a couple of hundred rounds of whatever I might choose, a great choice might become a mistake that I would obsess on for years.

Anyone who has tried these Buffalo Bore selections in a snubnose 357 - is their muzzle blast really less than others? If you find it so, how noticeable is the reduction?

 

[Texas Star]

Winchester's 145 grain Silvertip .357 gives about 1200 FPS from a three-inch barrel. I think that's an especially potent round for shorter barreled .357's. I personally want at least a three-inch barrel in a .357.

A detective here studied some shootings with that load. I think this included both 2.5 and four-inch barreled guns. The ctg. was issued by both FBI and Dallas PD for .357 users. He found that the load performed VERY well, and said it seemed almost to be overkill. That's the performance I want.

Those shootings were all of men. But I think the load will work well on most soft skinned animals and probably on alligators, too. Might want more penetration on pigs and bigger bears. Not sure how deeply this 145 ST penetrates on large animals.

 

[Robert B]

My vote/.357 135 gr Gold Dot short bbl

I have a catalog from Speer for 2008. Luckily, there full house 125 gr .357 was fired from a snub. They also list the 135 gr .38 +P round. The mag penetrates over 22 inches and only expands to.40 in heavy clothing. The.38 +P short bbl round penetrates 11 and expands to .57 in bare gel and heavy clothing. The fps is 1189 for 125 .357 from snub and 860 for short bbl load. The.357 125 works excellent from a 4 inch bbl. Doesn't expand well from snub. I think you are better off carrying the Speer short bbl load. Better expansion/penetration than full house.357s. So the extra magnum velocity doesn't really help you.

Flopshank tested the Speer .357 and .38+p short bbl loads. The.38 doesn't always expand through 4layer denim permagel but the.357 short bbl does. Therefore I recommend Speer .357 mag 135 gr short bbl load.

 

[Pdxrealtor]

Now that I have grips I with which I can shoot my 640-1, the next thing to deal with is muzzle blast. I have a box of Speer 357 "short barrel" Gold Dot.

From advertising hyperbole, Buffalo Bore touts their 125- and 140-grain TAC 357 ammunition, both Barnes leadless AND JHP versions, as having "midrange" ballistics, little muzzle flash, . . . and less muzzle blast than their competitors' similar products. I have been trying to find this ammunition - ungodly expensive, but if the hype is not hype, it'll be worth its premium - but cannot. Unless I buy a couple of hundred rounds of whatever I might choose, a great choice might become a mistake that I would obsess on for years.

Anyone who has tried these Buffalo Bore selections in a snubnose 357 - is their muzzle blast really less than others? If you find it so, how noticeable is the reduction?

YES! Without a doubt the BB TSB .357 125g (and the Barnes tac-xpd 125g) has NO muzzle flash, not just less. I've only shot the Remington UMC SJHP 'full house' loads from the same guns and .... talk about muzzle flash..

I prefer the Barnes TAC-XPD over the Buffalo Bore. Primers are softer, and the 'rated' FPS is 1200 out of a 2" barrel. Higher than a BB TSB. The Barnes kicks a tad bit less than the BB as well.

I'll be verifying the Barnes and BB loads in my 2.5" night guard, 2 1/8" 649, and 1 7/8" 340 M&P hopefully this week of next. I have the chronograph but decided I'd order the blue tooth adapter and inside lighting kit before I started to play with it.... those items arriving today!

 

[Naphtali]

Many thanks for the information of this reply. I think, though, you misread part of my reply. One of my main concerns is muzzle blast, muzzle flash being less of a concern. Nowadays, I am rather noise sensitive. The load I presently use is Remington's "FBI Load" +P 38 Special 158-grain LSWC-HP. For now it is my benchmark for muzzle blast.

YES! Without a doubt the BB TSB .357 125g (and the Barnes tac-xpd 125g) has NO muzzle flash, not just less. I've only shot the Remington UMC SJHP 'full house' loads from the same guns and .... talk about muzzle flash..

I prefer the Barnes TAC-XPD over the Buffalo Bore. Primers are softer, and the 'rated' FPS is 1200 out of a 2" barrel. Higher than a BB TSB. The Barnes kicks a tad bit less than the BB as well.

I'll be verifying the Barnes and BB loads in my 2.5" night guard, 2 1/8" 649, and 1 7/8" 340 M&P hopefully this week of next. I have the chronograph but decided I'd order the blue tooth adapter and inside lighting kit before I started to play with it.... those items arriving today!