Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns 357 Magnum for deer

Have a special 3 day doe season coming up and was thinking of using my S&W 586. Shots will be close out of a blind set up for archery hunting. What type of bullet and what weight would be best for this scenario. Have heard some people say the 357 is marginal for deer, but I think in this situation it will work just fine if I use the right bullet.

I killed 4 or 5 in the 1980s with an 8" Dan Wesson shooting a 158gr Speer softpoint over a full charge of 2400. IMO your comment about bowhunting is right on. I have always been primarily a bow hunter and using a set up for 15-30yd shots works.

The .357 is definitely marginal! On broadside rib shots I never had one exit. They would be lying under the skin on the off side. My longest shot was about 40yds.

If you are picky about the shots you take, and stick with good broadside shots, you should have no problems.

BTW USE HEARING PROTECTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The last deer I killed with it cost me the hearing in my left ear.

Good hunting,
405wcf

do your self a favor and either buy or borrow a 44 mag.The least i use is 41 mag and that is after succesfully killing a few deer with a 357.Can it be done with the 357 yes but done alot better with a bigger round

at archery ranges, a hard cast 160 or a 180 soft point should exit on broadside shots. bigger is better, but I wouldn't feel inadequately armed for whitetails with a .357. they aren't exactly hard to kill.

The 158gr Hornady XTP-FP is supposed to penetrate real good, better then the standard XTP. They are real accurate from my 686 with 2400 powder.

I have killed three whitetails with my Ruger Bisley .357, all with the factory Hornaday 158gr Gold Bond (or is that a foot powder--"Gold Something"). None ran very far, all were hit in the shoulder area or just behind the shoulder and angling across the chest cavity. One bullet exited; the rest were well expanded and did one heck of a lot of tissue damage. Range 25-40 yards in deep cover. I would say a .357 kills just fine at close range if the deer isn't running and you can place the shot. The Bisley's weight and 7 1/2" barrel help a lot. I shot one of these a second time because it was getting up after going down flat. Probably just a waste of meat.

It ought to be fine at archery ranges. The 586 is a fine weapon.

The .357 is definitely marginal for deer. Not to say it won't work, but if you are looking for a dedicated deer revolver, the .41 and .44 Magnums are head and shoulders better (the .45 Colt is also a better choice, particularly when handloaded). I've always veiwed the .357 as more of an all-around, woods walking round for general use on small game.....with the occational deer or hog a possibility....not as a planned deer cartridge.

However, from your post I get the impression you are not looking for a dedicated deer gun, but just want to take a deer with what you already have......and you already have a .357.

Assuming a new gun is not an option, you can make the best of the .357 with heavier loads. I'd suggest a hard-cast Keith-style bullet of 165 grains or so over a stout load of 2400. If you do not handload, another option is the Buffalo Bore loading of a 180 grain lead flat-point at 1400 fps. This is, in my opinion, the best factory load available for deer/hogs in the .357. Just keep ranges reasonable (50 yards) and take broadside shots and you should come out OK.

I do have a 45 Colt in a Ruger Vaquero and 44 Mag in a S&W Backpacker. It only has a 2" barrel and I thought that might be a touch loud out of a blind. Just wanted to try the 357, but from what i've been hearing maybe it's too much of a stunt. I would think those 180gr. Buffalo Bores would work though, shots will probably be 25 yards or less.

The .45 Colt would be perfect (Buffalo Bore also has some great loads for the Colt), but the .357 will also work with heavy loads. Just accept the limitations it has and don't ask it to do more that it should. At 25 yards, the .357 won't let you down if you place the bullet right.

Best answer here. the 357 will definitely work for deer, IF you are a good shot, and shoot within bow range. "they aren't exactly hard to kill" is also very appropriate..........

When hunting with a handgun, it�s more about the sighting equipment and the shooter than it is about the cartridge. With a scoped revolver, the .357 will cleanly harvest deer out to 100 yards. Take away the scope and you�re down to someone who needs to be able to shoot well. If we�re talking archery ranges, then it�s a cinch. And in .357 the last bullet I�d ever choose would be a hard cast bullet. The .357 is already at a slight disadvantage due to the bullet size, so you want to offset that characteristic, not accentuate it. I would use a 158 grain or larger JHP if I were hunting deer with a .357 and be confident that inside 50 yards, any deer I encounter is as good as dead.

140-gr Speer HP has been a one shot killer for me.
So has the 158-gr Remington FN JSP.
Remington makes a 180-gr load for hunting deer and hogs, a tougher bullet to stand up to rifle velocities.

Cor-Bon makes a real nice 180 grain jacketed soft point. Has worked very well on hog for me and should do just fine for deer at bow ranges.

ori..,

Those who say the .357 is marginal for whitetails are most likely marginal handgun shots or have never tried. Based on the figures, the 44 mag is probably better. But, I don't personally know that having shot deer with only the marginal .357. Yep, I have a 44mag and a 10mm but have always used the good ole .357

O

All my handgun deer have been killed with .41 and .44 magnums. If I were going to hunt deer with a .357 mag I would probably use the 158 grain XTP. If you can put one of those through a deer's lungs at 25 yards there's nothing marginal about it.

cra..,

yessir. it more about where you hit'em than what you hit'em with . . . at least with deer.

O

If I didn't have the option of a 10mm, .41Mag, or .45Colt to hunt with, I would have no problems with using a .357 for deer. I don't even own a .357Mag or .44Mag anymore. I use a .45ACP, .380, .38Spec, or 9mm for defense. Just another of many opinions.

Coming to this late to add my 2 bits worth. What Kevin says is dead on. I like cast bullets, but not 'til you get up over .40 caliber and even then, you've got to pick designs carefully that have a real large meplat. It's the size of the meplat, not the diameter of the bullet, that makes a hole in meat.

I haven't shot a deer with it yet, but my old SS 10" Contender barrel shoots really well with 13.5 grains of 296 under a 180 grain nosler handgun partition. That's next up on my to-try list.

In a heavier framed revolver, a 158 grain Hornady XTP under a max load of 296 is hard to beat. In a lighter gun ( I will shoot one with my J-frame some year just because I can ) I'd look at something like the 140 with the powder choice / charge selected to give about the same velocity as that 158 would give, don't want to speed it up so much it expands too much and doesn't penetrate well. It's a balancing act.

I'm a .44 magnum fan but if you've got a good .357, load it up and go huntin'! ... and of course, report back!

Tom

The Speers Gold Dot 158 gr with a Max Load of Win 296 is a hard to beat load in the 357 Mag for Deer Size Game.