Hunting Forum

I love to demostrate the versatility of the .357 Mag revolver to a new shooter in a dramatic way.  I use my Stainless Steel Ruger Police Service Six with fixed sights and 4" barrel and load 6 rounds like this:

38 Wadcutter
38 Special
38 Special +P
357 Mag
357 Mag +P
357 Mag Max Load

The muzzle flash and decibel level of each round increases with each trigger pull.  The wadcutter makes a pop sound and has no muzzle flash at all.  The last round recoils a lot, has a huge bright white muzzle flash and is so loud, some people who hear it think the gun may have blown up.  After I finish shooting the 6 rounds, I ask the new shooter which level of power would they like to try.  Their answer tells me what kind of shooter they are.  If they pick #1, they are afraid of the gun.  If they pick #6, I'm afraid of them!!


(#3 or #4 is the answer a normal person will choose)

Another vote for a .357 mag revolver.  plenty of stopping power when loaded with SD rounds and can practice with cheaper and less powerful .38 spcl.  Also as already stated they are virtually fool proof, just point and shoot every time, most of todays revolvers, S&W, Taurus, Ruger, are 100% reliable and the simplest firearm to operate under pressure and very easy to learn to shoot effectively.

SEMPER FI 

 

I started all three of my daughters out with the .357, with reduced loads, when they were 8---9 years old. By the time they were 10--11, they had thier own .357s. My older two were very petite girls, however, my youngest was a big stappin' gal, and by the time she was 12, she was shootin' my .44 RBH, of course with reduced loads.  Niether of my older daughters got over 5'1" and 110 lbs. My oldest carryed and shot a .357 untill her passing. My middle daughter still packs and shoots a .357 to this day. Unfourtinatly, my youngest became a animal rights activist, and a full blown ANTI!
Oh well, two outa three aint bad!
Allen

and if you are in a fire fight,it makes one think there could be more than one of you,because they hear the 38 round go off,
and then they hear the 357 mag round go off.
just a good personal protection fact,that might help in keeping someone alive,when it is 2 or 3 scumbags trying to have there way with your wife or daughter.

Other than my usual "Amen" to Shilo's entry, I'll just add my usual comment about women and guns. Have them handle a LOT of guns ( with no pressure to buy any at that time - Think of going shopping for shoes) Every time she says, "Oh I like how this one feels." make a note. As with shoe shopping, expect her to fondle many dozens over a period of several months. Pretty soon the target zone will be bracketed and you can start having her actually shoot samples in that zone - with standard ammo, double hearing protection and no cute tricks - she's supposed to feel PROTECTED, remember. Only then is the time to get out the checkbook. Note that caliber and action type are irrelevant. Make it HER choice without your editorializing. A confident, well trained woman ( or man, for that matter) with a .22 is far more capable than one scared to pull the trigger on a 45.

My daughter, 27 recently bought a Walther PK380. It is not a big bore round,  but she can handle it very well, it groups good out to 12 yards. That is as far as she has really practiced. It is easily concealed and easy for her to operate. She says she recommends it to any female looking for a carry gun. CONFIDENCE is a very good thing when you're carrying for protection.

id go with a high point 9mm. hardly no recoil very easy to handle a relatively cheap but well made.

I can't agree more on the comment about the .357.  I carry a Taurus 605B and had excellent results from it.  It's my daily carry.  I shoot .38 the vast majority of the time for practice becuase it's cheap, and the occasional .357 cylider to keep the feel of it.  I carry the Hornaday .357 CCD rounds for dialy carry.

Unfotunately your second comment should never, ever be made during a conversation about self defense.  It is the most dangerous line of thinking that will end only in someone getting injured.  If the thought of the bad guys running a the mere sight of a weapon is in your head, then it will cause your reaction to be slowed.  If you have to draw your weapon, then you are all ready commited to shooting, and nothing will should stop you.  It doesn't matter what police reports or statistics show because statistics don't matter when it happens to you.  Most instances you are never going to be robbed or attacked or raped or murdered, but it does happen so.....

"Audacity!  Audacity!  Always audacity!"
Many of the old gun-fighters cited their ability to have won fights over ther lives to not hesitating.  "If you hesitate, you are dead" as some have said.  The surest means to defend is to be offenssive.  When a goon confrotns you, he thinks he is in command of the situation and of you.  His #1 goal at the moment is his own safety and if you go on a wild non-hesitating assault he is immediately thrown off balance.  He was no prepared to defend and has trouble altering his strategy on the fly.  By the same token, if you ever allow him to regain the initiative you are in heep-big trouble because he is not going to make the same mistake twice. 

A meek little 90 year old woman can drive away multiple teen punks when they attack her in her home by the above quote.  They are not expecting audacity form her, much less more audaciosness and they often leave with their tails between theri legs.  Accept that this is life-or death and that you may well get harmed in the process.  Decide that you are rightand then go ahead. 

As for the Hi-Point 9mm - my life is worth more than pot-metal el-cheap-os.  Will it work?  Probably.  Will it work when you desperately need it to?  Hopefully.

no body ever raped a 38.
enough said.

Once again, I must agree with Shiloh!! I picked up a Hi-Point, .45acp in a trade. Thot that I had made a good deal. Boy was I fooled. Just about every other shot would hang up on the ramp. I took the barrel out, steepened the ramp a bit, polished so there was no way a round could hang on it. Cured the problem, but, I'll be durn if I could hit a bull in the hinney at 10 paces with that sucker!!! Now I'm lookin' for another sucker to trade it to!!
As we all know, wimmen are just as finnicky with thier weapons, as they are with  thier shoes.  We have severasl .380s', and my lady won't use any of them. If we go out shootin', she will shoot every hand gun I have---except those .380s'!! If she goes out joggin', walkin' or kayakin' normally she will eather have one of our Ruger Single Sixs' .357s' or her Browning Hi-Power in her fanny pack. If we are huntin', she will be wearing a shoulder harness with one of our 1911s'.  She is quite comfortable shooting any hand gun we have, includeing my custom .40 revolver!
Allen

Keep looking bretta,amt,davis,charter have some very seriuos contenders in 9mm 45 also check out some of the new rugers.. they go well with the ladies.

38 spc, ultralight... Ruger lcr is a good one. No hammer to catch, light weight so it'll actually get carried... Which is a draw back for the 357's, they are typically heavier and thus less likely to be carried... But what about a taser? Better at putting a man down, use immediately notifies authorities of an incident, cheap and easy to use. ANY hit is a fight stopper rather than just a center mast hit, as I am sure Shiloh can attest, as well as most leo's on here.

You know, a real Taser, not those silly little "stun devices" would be a great defense weapon. They are expenssive and you can't really practice with them since each "shot" costs about $50, but let me tell you from personal experience as a Taseree that it is instantaneous and probably has a better immediate fight-stopping record than any handgun. It short-circuits the goon's major muscle groups at the speed of electricity and gives him a 3-5 second introduction to what death by electric chair must be like. It can be shocked again and again as long as the darts are in him, and you can even then touch him with it for a similar effect. The down side is that the instant it is over, he is able to function like new again. In my experience and from tales some LE have told me, many really bad guys will fight all day long when a pistol is involved but as soon as the Taser comes out they will throw their hands up and stop. Something about electricity scares a lot of bad guys worse than bullets. Just be aware that you really need top-quality in a "tazer" and you need about 24+ watts of power. Do not get sold on the voltage. Voltage does nothing except get the wattage to the target. It is wattage that shorts out nerves. If a "tazer" seller spends a lot of time touting his unit's voltage, just ask the wattage. If he can't tell you, he doesn't know what he's talking about. If he tells you anything less then the 20s consider it a fun little toy. In the "tazer" game, start shopping with the real ones at Taser International. Check the laws though since in some States they are illegal for civilians, and in some others you must get licensed. I would encourage anyone wanting to carry one to get educated by a Security trainer or something on them since they are extremely effective ONLY when used right and useless otherwise. Also, take a hit with one to see what happens so you know what the goon will do when hit. You can specify a 2-3 second hit if you like. I took a full 5 second ride with the M-26 and am pretty sure I saw eternity's far side at some point.

I'll take you word for it Shiloh, as I'm not about to try it out, any more than I'd like to take a hit from a .357 Mag to see how it feels.


One drawback to the tazer, the goon is still alive and able to testify against you in court as to his version of the events that led up to his getting buzzed.  Well, in most cases he's still alive.

Tazers are expensive, but real tazer international brands are cheaper than a pistol, even cheap one, however, as Shiloh mentions you can't practice. Vjp does mention a downside, but the flip side is you also have no shooters remorse. Most people who are forced to kill and shoot someone end up with remorse, similar to survivor's guilt, that is typically worse for women to deal with than men... It's actually a part of what makes up/causes PTSD for soldiers...

If you watch, sometimes you can find sales, a local gun shop was selling them for 175 this spring

FYI: A tazer is a class E felony in Wisconsin. My friend is an officer and prefers the tazer for the required carry non-leathal weapon. He told me they were $20 per shot but perhaps that was the departments cost or I'm forgetting. In winter time with thick coats they may not penetrait, once my friend had one not penetrait when one of the probes struck the perpatraitors cell phone. If the political winds shift to the right in November and the WI legislator proposes the CCW bill again, there will likely be something allowing tazers for permit holders. There was something in the last one vetoed by Doyle.

Shiloh is absolutly correct in my opinion, I have been teaching handgun safety and basic firearms training to civilians for 25 years, the first rule is the handgun MUST fit the persons hand correctly or they will not be able to shoot accuartly if they have to reposition there hinad to put the first pad of the index finger on the trigget the grio does not fit, revolvers are more flexable with after market grips, they are simple to operate, and I have had a 2 inch 38 Smith and Wesson for 25 years this is the gun I carry most of the time, for its size, you cannot beat the concealablity and hitting power in that compact package. When I take women to the range 90 percent like the 38 it fits there hand better and low recoil, the only caliber semi auto most women like is the 380 Auto, Again because of fit, and low recoil

I bought my wife one of the baby Beretta's in .32 acp. (She was wanting a new diamond ring at the time) They appear to be made for ease of use with the tip-up barrel. It may not have been the biggest or best pistol to get her, but the next month when she pulled it on a man trying to car jack her at the gas station...it was big enough, along with her tellin' him she would efin kill him, to cause him to retreat with his hands in the air. Keep in mind she is a red-headed cop's daughter from Louisiana, so that dude got quite the surprise!!!

She got the new ring later...I ain't that stupid!!LOL!!!

On the Beretta Tomcats, be sure to keep the grip panel screw snug.  They tend to work loose and this allows the trigger bar to slip off the spring and put the gun out of action until it is repositioned and the grip panel and screw tightened again.