Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Have the .357 Magnum and 45 ACP Become obsolete?

dd-

For his sake, I hope your right.

Check it out.....


http://www.sportsmansoutdoorsuperstore.com/firearms-for-sale/best_selling_guns_2013.cfm

I have an awful lot of things that go bang, not one of which is on that list, i few so out of touch.

Don't feel bad I too have a lot of things that go bang and none my bangs are on the list either. I do have a Ruger single action but it's not on the list.

Current best-selling guns do not equate to best-selling cartridges.

Online retailer LuckyGunner.com, for example, lists their top ammo sales for 2013 in this order: 9 mm, 223 Rem, 45 ACP, 40 S&W and 22 LR. Most other lists I've seen from other retailers rank 45 ACP 1st, 2nd or 3rd, but seldom lower.

as a kid 9mm wouldn't have rated a second glance. A few had .45acp, but colt single actions in various calibers were mostly what people had.
then the kframs smiths.
I still think we are reinventing the wheel, a .22 in various denominations, a 30.06 rifle, and a .45colt wheel gun would cover most all bases. But then how would you justify all the other toys?
i should add a 12guage, or 20, but i had to be different and had a 16.

.45 ACP not obsolete, .357 Mag obsolete.

For the .357 to be obsolete either the role it served no longer exists, or something has replaced it.

Not really sure what revolver round has come along that has replaced the .357's role for small game, varmints, target practice, self defense up to medium sized game? Neither am I familiar with an auto loading round that serves the same purpose.

If this is true, then why is .357 mag brass backordered everywhere you look. Starline allocates their raw materials by demand. They say the .357 mag brass is in high demand. I have talked to them in the last 9 months.

It's a statement of opinion. BUT, I've owned (and still do) several 357 mags in both SA and DA, they all spit fire, are way too loud and shoot a tiny little bullet really really fast. .44 Spcl and .44 Mag are better stoppers for 2 and 4 legged critters, and IMHO don't belch flame and noise as bad as the .357, and to me the recoil is not as sharp. One of my favorite's is a 686 SS with a 6" full bbl and full under lug with the original S&W square butt combat grips. BUT, I don't enjoy shooting it so it sits in the safe. To me, the 357 mag died the day the 44 mag hit the market, IMO. Oh, and the brass argument falls flat, the Feds are the ones buying up all the ammo, brass, bullets, powder and primers right now� it's all part of the greatest political conspiracy our country has ever seen� and they know a lot of folks have 357 mags.

I'll just say look at all the 1911s out along with customs, Kimber alone sells god only knows how many guns a year, not to mention all the customs semi customs and other big names. I would say the 45 and 1911 is as hot as I've even seen it. Seems like a new 1911 is out every mth. Reason being, they sell like crazy and 99% of them are, you guessed it, 45acp.

The key with the .357 is to avoid the lightest bullets and slowest powders. With a 160-170 gr cast over 7 gr of unique you drastically reduce the bark but at 1100+ fps it's still a very capable load.

I suppose the most valid criticism of the .357 is that factory ammo choices are lacking in some of the best combinations. But on the flip side that's why I like the .357 so much, with a bit of lead and a bit of powder it offers quite a bit.

It ain't new but it's mine. Built in 1981, acquired by me around 1999.



Second from top. Others are SRH .44 Mag, Single Six Convertible .22LR/.22WM and SP101 in .327 Fed.



Holster was Dad's, a Kirkpatrick Santa Fe.

I think the point is that we on this forum are simply not typical gun buyers/owners.

Joe Average does not buy a 1911. It's too much gun and face it, it's a 100+ year old design. The .357 has fallen victim of the general disinterest in revolvers.

Really? Marines are buying a new handgun in 45 ACP and the Pentagon's follow on to the POS Beretta is going to be in 45 ACP..

The 40 IS a woman's cartridge. It was a toned down 10MM cause the wimmins couldn't handle the recoil when first offered to the FBI after they abandoned the even more effette 9MM

That which is in red HAS to be in the running for the best quote of the year.



It is a curious thing....When I go to the local gun store, I see that they are stocking a lot of .357 revolvers of various configuration. But when I go to the range, I rarely ever see another shooter using one. I have several, but I tend to shoot my autos more. But when I go to the woods, I tend to favor the .357.

I don't know what that says about the popularity of the .357.

The idea that the .45acp is not still popular is just...ignorant.

The .357 and the .45acp have both been talked to death many times over. IF one doesn't see a lot of posts about either, that wouldn't surprise me. The fact that we still do talk about them should tell you something....about them or about us.

You need a high-cap mag, because:

Only one round in seven, fired in a police/perp gunfight, hits anybody.

Only one bullet wound in three is fatal.

Ergo, you need 21 rounds to kill a man (unless you learn how to shoot).