I just made a trade for a 10" .357 Maximum barrel. I have been interested in this round for a while, but I'm concerned about the light 170-180 grain bullets for hunting. Can anyone share their experiences with this round on deer sized game?

I've not taken any game with my Maximum barrel. BUT...have taken quite a few with the .357 Herrett and the 180gr SSPB bullet. The Max will virtually match my Herrett for velocity at any chosen bullet weight.

The 180 SSPBs work VERY well on deer...but I have not had much luck getting them to shoot from my barrel. It much prefers the regular pistol style bullets.

FWIW...mine LOVES heavy 200gr cast bullets!!

BTW...you can load the Max with Magnum dies.

Thanks Dan, I wasn't sure if the 180 gr SSPB would expand at Max velocities. What distances have you taken deer with them?

All my Herrett kills with the 180SSPB have been under 130yds. POI's have all been in the chest and exits are usually around 1.5" across.

I like the 180 XTP's in my Max for heavier and even the 158's do well on deer. I have some 180 SSP's loaded up but haven't tested in media yet, hope to soon. I have heard of them not working well at Max velocity so I am going to find out.

Used the my Max on a small buck last season. I hit him at the shoulder/ neck juction with a 180 SSPB. He went down on the spot, DRT. The SSPB's shoot better than the XTP's out of my 10" Contender.

Thanks guys! I'll have to try the 180 SSPB. The barrel will have some 180 XTPs with it, so I'll start with them. Has anyone tried Speers 170 gr GDSPs?

I have used the Speer 170's in my 357 Mag. They shot great out of it. I like the XTP's better.

I have harvested 13 deer with my 357 Max revolver. All were with the 158gr SJHP Remington bullet. I never had to shoot a deer the second time.

Were you getting pass throughs with the 158s Tig?

That's cuz the second shot always missed...hence the need for third, fourth, fifth.......shots!

About half the time the bullet passed thru and was not recovered. The recovered bullets crossed the animal and were found under the hide on the off side. Most had mushroomed well.



What?!?! I'm not from souther PA and need 3 and 4 shots. Heck most of the time I only put one cartridge in the cylinder. LOL<LOL

Mike Bellm has a nice article on his website about the 357 max, you might want to read that. I think it was the 180 grain bullets that he suggested.

Thanks RUG1, I read that article and it got me even more excited about the barrel.

Your welcome. I don't have a 357 max barrel yet, but hope to someday.

Well, I received the barrel today and was surprised at the length of the brass. The 357 Max brass alone is almost longer than a loaded .454 Casull round with a 335 gr bullet. This barrel is going to be fun!

I know they are a little more money but you might look at the 180gr partitions, I shot a big muley do with them out of a 357 mag and I didn't get a pass through but it knocked her down hard. Just for the record the doe was injured, she was on her feet but both eyes were blood red and she obviously had a severe brain injury from being hit by a car but the partitions have always shown themselves to be one of, if not the most reliable of handgun bullets on the market with jacket seperation never happening and expansion and weight retention are excellent, in fact the only negative is the cost.

Thats one of the first bullets I want to test in it. The price of the .357 Partitions is pretty reasonable compared to what I paid for .452 and .458 Partitions. They are expensive, but worth the money. I'm still not sure if I'm going to hunt deer and antelope with this round or just use it for varmints and plinking. It will be cheaper to shoot than the big bore rounds.

All the Max talk made me dig mine out this evening. Dropped it on a frame and will be making a trip to range with me tomorrow. Needs rezeroed but that won't take long hopefully...also found a box of 180gr Hornady Silhouette bullets I had loaded a while back. I'll burn through those then reference my old load data and load some newer stuff. Since this is the "minimum" allowed in WY...I may have to explore taking it along to fill a doe tag.

I look forward to hearing the results Dan.

I have killed over 12 dear from 100 to 175 pounds with the 158 JSP and about 7 with the 125 JHP. I never had to shoot one twice. The 125's do not always exit, which means 100% energy transfer. Eyeballs were extended on optic nerves, bleeding out of the ears. Hydrostatic shock was devestating. They are a bit loud, so I recommend hunting with electronic headphones.

Thanks for the info and welcome to the site tdgarry! I'll have to try the 158 JSPs.