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If all I had was a 357 revolver I'd use it to 75 yds for deer with top level loads, like those available from Buffalo Bore or Underwood, but if hogs were in the mix, I'd think twice about carrying a 357 in the field.

Actually, I personally wouldn't buy a 357 handgun today, as there are so many more interesting options...A 10mm being one of those. Having up to 15 hard hitting rounds in your hand is a significant step up. The G20 is a decent balance overall and worthwhile getting used to it. Unless your hands are tiny, you can adapt to the Glock. I admit it's not comfortable, but in spite of that I have no problem shooting it well.

You can do some good work with a 44 Ruger SA, though mine is a 45. Even moderate 44 loads are more better than a 357

Now a 357 rifle is a very different animal...

I love 'em all!
Got 'em all and shoot 'em all.
.357 maximum, .41 magnum, .44 magnum, & .45 Long colt ...
The .357 maximum wins! Every time!
But if quibbling needs to be done, use the .444 marlin and let the elbows be the fulcrum!
Enjoy the smell of burnt powder.

I would definitely put a low power scope on whatever you choose. For me at least my ability to shoot consistenly well past about 30 yards goes up dramatically with one.

For deer hunting don't be concerned with fast follow up shots or hi-cap mags...won't be an issue.

I know where some are.

I once felt the same about the 41 Magnum. But, then I bought a 45 Colt & never looked back. I don't own 41 Mag anything now.

Most is bull, telling about boolit placement when most can't hit a gallon jug at 50 yards. True, prove me wrong. .357 shooters say where you hit a deer counts and defend it. It is all a wash. The amount of revolver shooters that can hit anything is so small past 10 yards it is funny.
The worst thing a revolver shooter will say is to hit the right spot. buck fever and shakes. long range.
Come here and I want to see any of you bust a gallon jug at 100 yards off hand.
The reason for large calibers is for a shot a few inches off. But .357 shooters are experts.

Sounds like the start of a fairy tale.
What survey,when, on what animals.what conditions.
NO and I repeat NO catridge has a 100 % Recovery rate(unless only 1 was shot in the so called survey ) ,whether rifle or handgun.
You are as full of it as a Christmas turkey.
You are truly a legend in your own mind.

funny how great minds come to the same conclusion, i have been using 17.5grains of 2400 with that 225-230grain bullet, wfn.
as to finding a .41, rjm kind of took care of that for me, just have to look in the safe.
this thread has made me think of something tho. I have a .44mag barrel for a thompson contender that i have never used, i am going to have to fire some stuff through that and a chrony just to see what the relative difference is.

i think quite a few people can do that. Watched a guy that posts on here regularly with too many letters pop a gong repeatedly at various rondy's with a 1911 off hand. but i don't think a gallon milk jug at 100 is all that much for someone experienced with a handgun.

I'm still trying to figure out why buck fever is such an epidemic in BFR's world. I guess it's all in who you associate with...

A .357 will do the job at that range - but if I were looking at buying a gun for that purpose, I would go with the .44mag or .45 Colt.

BFR's claim that the larger calibers will make up for poor shooting is pure bunk. His "everybody gets buck fever" claim is likewise bunk.

The real problem with handgun hunting is poor range estimation. The bigger calibers work better because they carry more momentum for better penetration at longer distances. When you use a round that doesn't penetrate well beyond 50yds, range estimation is critical. If that buck is standing closer to 75yds than you thought, penetration gets into "luck" territory. A bigger, more powerful round will make up for that to a point.

But a miss is still a miss.

I would recommend either, 357mag, 41mag or 44mag. Good bullets abound in any of them.
Get a good pistol, my recommendation is for it to have a low power scope, get a good portable rest you can use.
Nothing beats a steady rest for shooting game, for rifle or pistol.
Make sure you can hit a pie plate at 50yds consistently and then go kill something.

Sounds like there are pleanty of internet commandos here who will tell you what is "best".

I have used my 44mag RSRH on several occasions for killing deer. Used a 250gr bullet and a 300gr HP in it, they both worked well.

I have hunted with my 41mag but I haven't seen anything to shoot at when toting it.

Good luck! Get out there and practice and have fun with whatever you decide.

I don't know bfr, or do a lot of handgun hunting.. All of my game has been taken with a .44 mag. or 45 Colt.. But when I read his post on shooting game I guess I read "excitement" rather that a real case of the shakes associated with buck fever.. Don't you experience some excitement when you see a nice buck, or to a degree even a doe, and you know you are going to shoot?? I do, and I have shot hundreds of head of game.. Excitement is part of the thrill of hunting.. My excitement raises when I am trying to make a good shot with a revolver on a big game animal.. I do like a little more power rather than a little less.. As some one said range estimation is very important with a sixgun.. My last game was a doe antelope taken with a .44 mag, but a load on 10.5 grains of Unique and 235 gr. Keith style HP.. I had a friend with me, and he ranged it as I got set for the shot.. 98 yards.. When I knew that, I was little less tense as I knew the doe was well within my skill range.. One shot did the business.
Here we can't shoot over bait, and antelope are constantly moving around.. A good broadside shot is likely to change quickly.. When a guy is shooting over bait or a food plot at animals that are unaware of his presence, and a known range, the situation changes quickly.. A six gun of less power and range would work fine, and not used until conditions were right..

The "excitement" is a result of adrenaline that enhances all the senses and creates a tunnel-vision effect that amplifies concentration.

Fine motor skills, like trigger control, tend to be over-amplified, but that is why repetitive practice is so much more important with a handgun, so that skill will be in muscle memory.

Sight alignment and target acquisition is enhanced, vision is enhanced, and time is stretched. Without these effects, we would have died out as a species long ago, but the adrenaline junkies survived... they is us!

If you don't feel that, hunting may not be your thing.

In that case sky diving is a proven substitute...

Excitement is one thing - but BFR speaks of (all) handgun hunters going to pieces and unable to make a killing shot. And then he implies that the answer to that is going to a bigger caliber...

I have hunted with them all. I guess I fall under the term "hard core handgun hunter", I love the challenge.
From 22, 357, 41, 10mm, 44mag, 454Casull. I have come full circle and back to the 44mag for all my hunting needs and back to open sights. Its light enough to carry all day but still have plenty of power. I am a reloader for all my hunting rounds and like a bullet to expand rather than a solid. There is two schools of thoughts on this and have found the newer controlled expanding bullets drop em quickest. It also keeps my loads down to a mid level and still opens up the bullet. I don't have to push them as fast and in turn keeps my accuracy up for longer range shots. My longest handguns shot in my carrer was two years ago at 175 yards on a large mature doe. I hit her with a 240XTP on a broadside shot and she dropped like a bag of sand. It was a bang/flop as if she was shot with a 300 Win Mag. I'll post some pictures. The full story is on Hornady's web site since I use Hornady components. Shows that a 44mag handgun has plenty of snot even out past the normal range.

175 yard Handgun shot story at Hornady Web Site

Some of you guys might have already seen this on the S&W forum but I'll post the link too. It gives a little more details.
S&W forum discussion of the hunt.

Here are some pics. Obviously I do practice long range handgun shots (alot) and don't recommend them unless you are very confident you can make them.









Another critter taken with my trusty S&W classic 22. I took him in the neck.

He was such a nice grey fox and since it was a handgun kill, I had my taxidermist mount him cleverly under a black bear I killed years before. I think it came out great.

[img]http://i272.photobucket.com/albums/jj182/TheMystro1971/Foxmountnet.jpg[/img]

I have a couple of fine old .357 mag revolvers, and if pressed, would not be afraid to use them on deer - assuming I was very sure of the shot, good rest, un hurried shot, etc. I like them better as defensive weapons. Dad discouraged 3 mean drunks with one of them one day at his shop, and I will always own that revolver. A 5" N frame is also a fine vintage piece, and I would not be afraid to load it heavy.

I messed a little with a long barrel 41 in college, drinking the silhouetter's Koolaid about shooting flatter - which does matter at 200 yards. But in the end I bought a .44 S&W Classic, and will always own a couple of them. They shoot very well, and make bigger holes than a .357. Shoot clean through critters, too. I find the 5" Classic, like MS, to be a real well balanced gun, even with heavy loads, and not bad to pack.

I've since added a .480 Ruger, and I may go for a .475, maybe even something bigger, to make bigger holes

I've got euro pistols, single shots, 1911's, and other flavors, but in mind handgun hunting starts at .44 caliber.

Love the .45 Colt, it's my favorite but my next single action is going to be a Blackhawk in .41 Magnum, and I'm looking forward to it. That's not to take anything away from the .357 Mag though, it would have zero issues taking deer, heck I know people who with one shot from a G17 downed a deer quickly, which is to say that deer aren't that hard to kill.

bfr..,

A survey was done long ago between the .357 and .44 mag. The .357 lost 50% of deer hit while the .44 had 100% recovery

HORSEFEATHERS!!!

That must have been a survey of wannabe pistol shooters or arm chair hunters. I was a conservation officer for six years in the state you claim to live in. During that period (1970s) every officer in the state carried a 4" M19 S&W .357. With that superb weapon we killed wild dogs, finished off crippled game including deer and bear and even a few scumbags. Not one of us ever complained about lack of fire power. In fact, I only heard complaints when the department switched to the .40S&W.

One winter I carried a 1917 S&W in .45ACP under my jacket as a second gun. After using it in a number of situations, I traded it off as it was decidedly lacking in power compared to the .357.

I have personally killed enuff deer with that 4".357 to fill the bed of several pick ups, the longest shot being across Big Coal River about 80yds or so, and never lost one.

So, in my experience, the guy who says a .357 won't cleanly kill a deer either hasn't tried or can't shoot.

O

Fre..,

My guess is, if he really does own those monster magnums he claims to have, the Dude doesn't have buck fever but a world class flinch.

O