I'm old and apparently a wuss too.

[colt_saa]

You are not a wuss.

Magnums are not for everyone and that is nothing to be ashamed of. It is always good when a man knows his limitations

The 357 J-Magnum revolvers were never meant to be fun. They were meant to get your butt out of the bad situation you stumble on when you turn down the wrong street

When and if I make that wrong turn, I want the most power that I can handle. I want to know my projectile will get through that barrier and I want to know that I will be going home.

My J-magnums have only fired magnum ammunition since 1996 because I want to master that little powerhouse of a revolver.

 

[Peak53]

You seem to have stumbled on to the answer to the age old question: "Why are there so many .357 J-frames out there in such good condition?"

 

[JTurn317]

I've fired a single cylinder of 125 gr .357 magnum out of my 640 Pro. My hands were a little sore for days. I've been carrying it with .38 special Gold Dots since then. I'm looking for the GDSB but can't seem to find them, of course I'm not looking overly hard.

 

[sparkyvega]

Not a wuss.

I shoot a couple hundred rounds of mid to heavy loads in N-frames and an X-frame every other week, so I'm very recoil tolerant. The most miserable 5 rounds I've ever experienced were in a 3" J-frame PC M60 .357 Mag. Damn, that hurt, and the trigger guard cut my trigger finger knuckle mid-cylinder. Absolutely brutal! I won't ever do that again!

 

[malph]

Try experimenting with different grips. The grips that are right for you can make a big difference.

 

[white cloud]

I own three of the "magnum" J frames. They are among my favorite revolvers but I usually carry them loaded with .38+P ammo. However there are times when I want .357 power in a small package. That's where these little guns shine.

I think it is important to find a load that "shoots to the sights" and that you can hit with.

 

[STCM(SW)]

I changed the grips on my M640-1.
Have shot 357 Mags with no hurt but do
have it loaded with Buffalo Bore +P 38 specials.

 

[wrangler5]

I like the magnum sized J frames for their slightly longer barrel which gives a substantially longer (percentage-wise) ejector rod throw, that comes much closer to fully extracting a 38 Special case. Which is all I shoot.

I did load and shoot one (1) 357 Magnum round when I got my first magnum J frame, just to say I did it. Even with the cushiest Pachmayr grip available it was unpleasant in the extreme. I keep the 357 rounds for the Marlin carbine.

 

[Carrier]

[FONT=&quot]One of the guns I inherited from my brother was a S&W model 640-1with 2 inch barrel 357 Magnum and aftermarket laser grips. I've had this gun for quite a long time and today I finally made time to shoot the gun. I shot .38 Specials first and was impressed with the accuracy. I then loaded it with .357 Magnums. Holy ****, the kick was brutal. Shooting .357's was not fun at all, it was more like a punishment. After 5 rounds I went back to shooting .38 specials.
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Getting old sucks.

 

[BigBoku]

FWIW I found the comfort level of the "old style" CTC LG 105s as seen on your gun to be horrendous, I switched to the LG 405s which for me were 100% better.

 

[Wood & Steel]

.357 ammo is not for the faint of heart. I much prefer to shoot .38 special and enjoy my time at the range.

But put .357 in a full size steel gun and it becomes a whole new ball game. My stepdad's Model 19 shoots .357 like a 640 would shoot wadcutters. Makes a HUGE difference when you step up to a full size steel gun with a 4" or greater barrel.

 

[mbliss57]

I shoot (carry) a 640 Pro in 357 magnum with 357 magnums every time I am at the range. I don't find it a problem. Of course 38 spl is less recoil. I do have a problem with the Ultra lights Sc, Ti models. 360PD etc. They are abusive. I bought one of those and sold it 4 weeks later. But the steel J frames I find ok as a CCW to shoot. I don't take it to the range to have fun like i would with my 66s or 19s or 686 or even my Ruger GP100. But for why it is built I think S&W did well. I carry mine more than any other revolver. I have observed anecdotely that everyone has a different tolerance for recoil especially in snubbies. I also think the 357 magnum recoil is a bit sharper for lack of a better description than even the larger bore revolvers. I have .44 mag, 4606 XVR and a 500SW all in 4" or shorter. I shoot all of them and don't plan to sell them. Yet I sold my SC/TI 360 PD almost immediately after shooting 2 or 3 cylinders from it.

 

[girvin02]

The grip can make a huge difference in comfort. It's hard to beat the Uncle Mike's that came on these guns, when it comes to managing recoil.

 

[Oracle]

No wuss, from another old coot, I will be 70 in a few months.

I bought a model 60 Pro Series 3" in a J frame for my carry piece. It definitely lets you know when a round is fired. But it is an excellent carry piece.

I had a model 629 and a model 29, 44 magnums both 6 1/2". I liked them so well I bought a model 629 in 3". The first time I fired it Mother McCree I thought it had blown up in my hand. We are now used to each other and I am impressed with its' accuracy.

If I buy a magnum revolver I only shoot magnum rounds in
them, but that is just me.

 

[usmc2427765]

When you become a "senior shooter", you can move to rimfire and watch the online videos of the young idiots blowing up guns, dislocating shoulders and sigeing eyebrows etc. You have earned the right to sit back and enjoy watching the children play.

 

[Oracle]

Not a wuss.

I shoot a couple hundred rounds of mid to heavy loads in N-frames and an X-frame every other week, so I'm very recoil tolerant. The most miserable 5 rounds I've ever experienced were in a 3" J-frame PC M60 .357 Mag. Damn, that hurt, and the trigger guard cut my trigger finger knuckle mid-cylinder. Absolutely brutal! I won't ever do that again!

Ha! The same thing was happening to my trigger finger, I carried band aids to the range. I finally managed to kind of mitigate the damage by gripping as high as possible and changing my trigger finger placement.

 

[Oaktree45]

Not a wuss.

I shoot a couple hundred rounds of mid to heavy loads in N-frames and an X-frame every other week, so I'm very recoil tolerant. The most miserable 5 rounds I've ever experienced were in a 3" J-frame PC M60 .357 Mag. Damn, that hurt, and the trigger guard cut my trigger finger knuckle mid-cylinder. Absolutely brutal! I won't ever do that again!

The grip actually took some skin off a small area on my thumb during recoil. Not enough to actually bleed but the top layer of skin is gone for sure. This morning my thumb knuckle is sore and I don't know if it is from shooting or just arthritis. I'll be turning 75 in a few months so this gun will go back into storage. When I go to the range I want to have fun and not try to prove how macho I can be.

 

[shocker]

Remington Golden Sabers and Speer Gold Dot Short Barrel .357 loads are mid-range. They have more oomph than +P .38's but don't hammer you as hard as full blast .357 ammo.

Best Regards,
ADP3

I've shot Golden Sabers and while I agree they are a definite step down from say American Eagle 158s I'd still want to shoot them out of a 3" K-frame.
Golden Sabers powerwise pretty well match my preferred handloads, 125 gr bullets at around 1200 fps. That's out of a short barrel 66-8. No thanks to shooting 357 out of a J-frame.

 

[HOUSTON RICK]

I keep in practice with 357 on my S&&W 340PD. I would not call it fun, but then it is not supposed to be. I figure if I do it right, if needed, it will bother the bad guy more than me. 10 rounds at a time is more than enough!

 

[haywood]

Been there, done that, got the T-Shirt. I used to shoot nothing but 357 Mag. Couldn't understand what was so bad. Then my hands got old. No more 357 from the light guns. Now it's a 4" steel ported gun with rubber grips.