145 STs as someone mentioned might still be a good overall round, not perhaps as good on stats as a 125, but one might think it could penetrate deeper if needed... I don't know.
Well, I can tell you personally, the 145gr ST's don't penetrate well at all. I killed 2 deer with them with the classic behind the shoulder and thru-the-ribcage shots. However, one time I was in my tree stand and a deer that another hunter had shot in the hindquarter came over and bedded down under my tree stand. I figured I would do him a favor and dispatch the doe with my 686. My aim was at the top of her back, angling down into the chest. At the shot, she got up and took off. I was astounded! Later that day, hunting on the ground in the same area, along comes a limping doe (yep, same deer) which I put down with a shotgun slug. In dressing the deer out, I found a perfectly mushroomed SilverTip in the heavy fat layer on her back. The bullet had not hit any bone and had been stopped by muscle and fat. I quit using the .357 for deer after that, and now use a .45 Colt which puts down deer with authority from any angle.
Don
