357 MAG REVOLVER FOR HUNTING WHITETAIL DEER

I am sure this group has kicked this question around before but since I am new to this group and plan to deer hunt with my GP 100 and I hope to also hunt with a New Model Blackhawk in 357 mag. this year, I wanted to ask how many people in the group hunt deer with a 357 , what guns they hunt with what loads they use and what range do they try to stay within when taking a shot at a deer.

Michael

My old thought was to use a good bullet and treat the 357 like a bow. 40 yards or so and under. However, there are guys that have proven my theory wrong on distances .....SCHunter for one

I load 17.5 grains of lil gun behind a 158 JHP and shoot in a 6" GP100 and a 10" Thompson Contender. I consider 50 yards or so to be about max for the wheelgun partially due to open sights but will stretch the T/C beyond 100.

Great read for the 357mag hunter.
http://www.handgunhunt.com/promo/membership/features/readNewArticle.php?oid=65&title=Hunting with Doug Wesson and the .357

I killed my first deer, with a .357, two seasons ago. I was using a FA 353 with a 180gr NP. I shot an Illinois doe through the shoulders at 80 yards; complete pass through. She went about 20 yards. My son shot a coyote with same setup, at 125 yards, with same results. Bullet construction and placement is key.

Just picked up a GP100 I'll attempt to break in this fall.

What are you stuffing behind that bullet, Kim?

SChunter proved to me on a forum hunt that the 357 with Barnes bullets is deadly on deer sized game.

In the 357 you want the best bullet you can buy. In a 45 it just don't matter if it is moving over 1200 fps

I am going this year with my n/m 357 black hawk for ammo I am going with 180 grain hard cast gas check rimrock slug (same as buffalo bore uses)with 13 grains of 2400. shooting over my chrono I am getting high 1290s to low 1300 fps. going to sight the red dot in dead on at 50 yards and keep that as my max shooting distance until I see how they perform...

It won't hold but 18.0 grs of H110 without bulging case.

Thats what I thought ;-)

You can get 'em moving right along from a Contender as well.

What weight Barnes bullet? I plan to use their VOR-TX 140 gr this year.

Winchester 158gr JHP from my Colt Python....

If using a hardcast, I would be willing to shoot further on deer with a 357 than with a jacketed bullets.

Exactly what Ernie said. Hard cast will extend your range in the 357. Wfn or swc will transfer a lot of energey and punch a nice exit hole. At closer ranges is will break a shoulder without issue.

Deer season is in full swing here in South Carolina...State issued doe tags will be good after Sept13....lts still a bit early for me to be in the woods. l prefer waiting til the middle of 0ctober when its a wee bit cooler...

Now on to 357s..l picked up a NIB S&W 686 Competitor in the Spring..And have been thinking it would make a dandy ''doe getter''..With Weaver type rail built into the barrel l think a 2x Leupold EER or 30mm UltraDot would make most any doe fair game inside 60yds...l have some 170gr .357 JHP Sierras that should be adequate

My wife's grandfather took several deer with his 6" barreled full lug GP100 before he passed away. That was a sweet shooter, it was about all the recoil he could handle but he handled it well. I think his longest shot was 40 yards and his closest was 2 yards (he loved telling that story!)

Redhawk,

I used the Federal factory loading of the Barnes 140 to take several deer, hogs and an exotic last year. Pass through performance on everything save for a shoulder shot Mouflon.

SChunter, what ranges were the pass thru's, what kind of shot angles were they?

Boot, broadside at 30, 33, 64 and 145

Wow! That's serious shootin at 145. I was just wondering about the terminal performance of the all copper bullets vs xtp's and was curious if the extra cost was justified. Massive wound channels seem to be a common comment concerning the barnes copper bullets, but massive wound channels WITH exits, may warrant a try.

i think exits are highly overrated. i think putting the animal down very very quickly is the most important thing. i've seen waaaay to many instances of no blood trail on many types of game with many types of bullets. the biggest fallacy i've ever heard was the notion that when i went to hunt cape buff that i needed to have an exit wound. no blood is the rule on large game. in the time it takes to get blood out any hole on deer sized game the animal can cover over 50 yards which in tight brush can easily be a lost animal. if ya get the damage to the lungs it'll bleed out it's nose long before it'll bleed thru the bullet holes and the blood reach the ground. remember, this barnes bullet out of a 357 is a 70 caliber weed whacker going thru the vitals. i care not if it lodges in the hide on the offside.

SChunter

What were you shooting the Barnes out of a revolver or a contender and what length barrel. Red dot sight or scope. I just ordered a Blackhawk yesterday and am trying to decide what type of sight to put on it.

RH - I was shooting the Barnes out of a 9" barreled FA, topped with a 4x Leupold.

A friend of mine from South Africa used his 357 loaded with 180gr FMJ bullets to heart shoot this red hartebeest. His name is Jacques de Beers and has used his Taurus no less, for 21 years to take more game then you guys can imagine. I would love to hear what he would say if you told him a 357 was not big enough for deer...

The 357 is more than enough gun for just about everything. When the animals get over 500lbs I just have a big bore itch. Doesn't mean the 357 wouldn't do it and do it well

I dropped my first deer with my GP100 EIGHT DAYS AGO. I had a broadside shot at a big doe at 28 yards. I aimed for the high part of her shoulder. The shot broke her back and she dropped in her tracks. Now I need to try a double lung shot to see how the Barnes bullet really works. I was using the Barnes Vor TX 140 gr bullet.

I have several customers and family members ,myself included,who have a lot of experience with the .357 magnum on deer sized critters-it works great,...shot placement critical ,you say,...well of course it is,its critical with ANY caliber,....I use what works,if I had failures with it I wouldn't be using it!,...johnw.

JOHNWILLIAMS What ammo do you use in you 357 mag when you are hunting deer?

Michael

JOHNWILLIAMS what load do you use in your 357 mag for deer? What gun do you hunt with? What range do you shoot your deer? Where do you normally try to hit the deer? Do you shoot open sights, red dot or scope.

I have been using the Sierra hollow cavity 140 gr. bullets-these are the older bullets -Sierra has a little harder lead in their bullets-or at least use to-I'm almost out of these though,...my Blackhawk-6 1/2 barrel is shooting these over 1700 f.p.s. using H110 19.5 gr. -this load is from the older speer manual #11

Do you shoot your Blackhawk with open sights, red dot or scope? What ranges do you shoot your deer?