357 Mag Hunting Ammo

[Bratch]

I’ve searched around but haven’t had much luck finding recent information.

What are the recommended rounds/bullets for hunting with a 4” 357?

I was turkey hunting with a buddy who recently caught a pig on camera so I added a 686 to my gear list for any shots of opportunity that may present themselves. I had some old PMC 158gr JSP in the closet so I loaded up with it.

What’s out there that might be better than this PMC? I’d prefer factory loaded since I’ll only need a couple boxes at most but I could reload if nothing is out there.

[ECVMatt]

I killed a couple of small pigs with a handload using 180 LBT'S. It was similar to this: https://doubletapammo.com/products/3...-solid-a-20rds

I have not had good luck with the 180 XTP'S expanding.

It did the job but did not kill like a .45 Colt or a .44 magnum.

I would have no problem using that load again on pigs.

[mtnbkr]

Federal used to (maybe still does?) have a 180gr LBT WFN load that was good for nearly 1200fps out of my GP100, but this was more than 20 years ago.

See what Buffalo Bore has.

Chris

[03RN]

JSP may not expand from a handgun. It's still not a bad choice though. I just looked at ammo seek. It seems your options are fmj, JSP, and blazer jhp. I'm not sure how the blazer jhp is. I'd rather have a jhp that doesn't expand than a jhp that doesn't penetrate.

Do you reload? XTPs, pulled 147gr hsts, and hardcast swc should all work well and are regularly available lately.

[farscott]

Federal used to (maybe still does?) have a 180gr LBT WFN load that was good for nearly 1200fps out of my GP100, but this was more than 20 years ago.

See what Buffalo Bore has.

Chris

Ahh, the old Federal Premium "Castcore" load. It was great for hunting animals tougher than deer. The 180-grain .357 with the larger meplat was a good round. Unfortunately the "was" denotes the fact that it is long out of production.

I would reload .357 hunting ammo, especially as so few rounds are needed. Heavy cast bullets with wide meplats to penetrate and break bones are good for pigs. Larger pigs are why I went to the .454 Casull back in the middle 1990s. That choice was overkill for the pigs and my wrists -- especially my wrists. A hard bullet with high sectional density at moderate velocity will do the trick.

[mtnbkr]

Ahh, the old Federal Premium "Castcore" load. It was great for hunting animals tougher than deer. The 180-grain .357 with the larger meplat was a good round. Unfortunately the "was" denotes the fact that it is long out of production.

I would reload .357 hunting ammo, especially as so few rounds are needed. Heavy cast bullets with wide meplats to penetrate and break bones are good for pigs. Larger pigs are why I went to the .454 Casull back in the middle 1990s. That choice was overkill for the pigs and my wrists -- especially my wrists. A hard bullet with high sectional density at moderate velocity will do the trick.

That's the one! It was also got me into reloading because it was expensive (for me at the time) and hard to find. I replicated that load and shot thousands of them through my GP100.

Chris

[OlongJohnson]

Ahh, the old Federal Premium "Castcore" load. It was great for hunting animals tougher than deer. The 180-grain .357 with the larger meplat was a good round. Unfortunately the "was" denotes the fact that it is long out of production.

I would reload .357 hunting ammo, especially as so few rounds are needed. Heavy cast bullets with wide meplats to penetrate and break bones are good for pigs. Larger pigs are why I went to the .454 Casull back in the middle 1990s. That choice was overkill for the pigs and my wrists -- especially my wrists. A hard bullet with high sectional density at moderate velocity will do the trick.

There's also the 165gr Cutting Edge for this. I especially like all copper if the plan is to leave all or most of the carcass where it lies. Lead doesn't do the vultures and coyotes any good.

[Bratch]

JSP may not expand from a handgun. It's still not a bad choice though. I just looked at ammo seek. It seems your options are fmj, JSP, and blazer jhp. I'm not sure how the blazer jhp is. I'd rather have a jhp that doesn't expand than a jhp that doesn't penetrate.

Do you reload? XTPs, pulled 147gr hsts, and hardcast swc should all work well and are regularly available lately.

I’m set up to reload but haven’t in many years. I’m about 90% sure I have everything I need for 357/38.

A quick search found these

https://missouribullet.com/details.p...y=10&keywords=

[Wayne Dobbs]

The Winchester 145 STHP works well on Texas whitetails and Texas a$$holes. It's been around a long time but I haven't seen anything to really surpass it.

[03RN]

I’m set up to reload but haven’t in many years. I’m about 90% sure I have everything I need for 357/38.

A quick search found these

https://missouribullet.com/details.p...y=10&keywords=

That looks good. I've used these and so far I've been happy.
https://rimrockbullets.com/xcart/-35...r-per-500.html