opinions on 357 mag vs 38 spl ammo

[540olds]

Picked up my first revolver today, a s&w 686+, 4" barrel. I was looking at ammo, and the prices are pretty close for 38 spl and 357 mag. Price not being a factor, is one better than the other for target shooting.

[Huntington Guy]

For making holes in paper? .38 is cheaper and is kinder and gentler on your hands...I mean gun.

[bberetta1]

Exactly what Huntington Guy said. I would also add that the .38 will foul your cylinders faster because they are shorter than the .357. It shows up a bit more on the 686 vs. the 586. They make some good treated cloths (Birchwood Casey) to remove the fouling. They work great.

[Rubbermittens]

I use 38 in my 357s.

[Sherm66]

As it's your first revolver you're gonna want to get good with the looong trigger pull, sighting and grip of the .38 before you add recoil management of the .357. The "hottest" thing(in a gun way) I've seen as of late was a really petite, pretty, young lady whose back-up was a an Airweight .357. She got some gentle "are you serious" and "a little thang like you?" looks when she signed into the class. But she was really good with it.

[mickeyblueyes]

A 357 is a powerful round that will stop most North American animals. If you don't know read up on its history it's one of my favorite calibers. Save up and get a Henry lever 357/38 to match you revolver.

[MikeM]

I was at an indoor range once and a rso giving a quick lesson to some ladies asked me to switch to 38 because every time I shot the 357 they were jumping out of their skin. He gave me extra time to make up for it. The noise difference is staggering.

[richrx]

I have a 686 ssr 4" barrel and Huntington Guy is right it can be hard on the hands, but I haven't tried with the rubber grips yet but I am curious to see if there is a difference

[MikeM]

Mine has the rubber grips, I find it easier on my hands than my xds 45. But it does get heavy.

[pequa1]

somewhat off topic, but
.30 Carbine vs .357 Magnum

There have been discussions in the past about the comparison between the .357 Magnum and the .30 Carbine cartridges. The comparisons have all included .357 magnum pistol velocities though. Well I did some research and got the ballistics for commercial .357 Magnum ammunition fired from a rifle.

The results are:

. 357 Magnum Rifle M.V. 1830 fps 100 yds 1427 fps 200 yds 1138 fps
158 gr. soft point M.E. 1175 fp 715 fp 458 fp

.30 Carbine M.V. 1990 fps 1567 fps 1236 fps
110 Gr soft point M.E. 967 fp 600 fp 373 fp


The .30 Cal carbine does have a noticibly flatter trajectory, but not enough to make a huge difference until you pass 200 yards

In other words the two cartridges are more or less equivalent.

I only rarely shoot .357 out of my Ruger GP100. When I do its astounding the difference in recoil and noise to the usual .38s I shoot. Now if the above comparison is accurate, and I think it is, there are many Marines from WW2 that said the only use for the M1 Carbine was burning its stock for firewood as the enemy (being P.C.) would not go down consistently compared with a hit from a Garand. Reminds me of the Vietnam and current arguments of 7.62 vs. 5.56.
Back on topic, I always clean my firearms same evening after shooting, and even two boxes of reloaded .38s don't really dirty up my Ruger all that bad.

[HyFiveGuns]

I pretty much always use .38 rather than .357 mag loads for target shooting. Easier on the hands... easier on the gun, easier on the ears. I use FMJ rounds exclusively and don't see any difference in fouling. I use those Birchwood Casey cloths that someone else mentioned.

[Sig]

Call me crazy but I love shooting .357's from my 6" GP100. 38's just seem way too tame. My wife prefers 38's in her SP101.

[gripper 2.0]

I think once you start looking around you will find 38 is def cheaper than 357, but there is the cool factor of a hot 357 near dusk, and good choice on the 686 i have 2, wheel guns can get addicting

[Yaphank Kid]

Exactly what Huntington Guy said. I would also add that the .38 will foul your cylinders faster because they are shorter than the .357. It shows up a bit more on the 686 vs. the 586. They make some good treated cloths (Birchwood Casey) to remove the fouling. They work great.

Those lead away cloths work like magic. Just a warning to anyone who may use them. DO NOT use them to clean a blued gun, it will eat through the bluing almost instantly and ruin the gun.
I only use the cloth on my stainless handguns.

[Sig]

I think once you start looking around you will find 38 is def cheaper than 357, but there is the cool factor of a hot 357 near dusk, and good choice on the 686 i have 2, wheel guns can get addicting

I reload for everything I shoot. Cost is not a factor.