.357 ammo
 

I have a Smith L frame and with ammo getting harder to find I stumbled accross two boxes of Hornaday, 357 Mag, 140 gr FTX, LEVERevolution. The guy at the store says it is loaded for rifles, but of course will work perfectly in the revolver. The rounds have a small amount of plastic in the nose which I'm told, causes even more hollowpoint expansion. He made the comment that this would be terrific home protection round. I'm not promoting the .357 for a home protection gun, but are any of you familier with this round? Pros, cons? Thanks----------John

RE: .357 ammo
 

I personally like a .357 Magnum as a home protection handgun, though I prefer the 125 grain JHPs. The 140 grain load would likely be even more penetrating, so be extra careful downrange.

RE: .357 ammo
 

Agreed...A .357 is a great defense round, with 125gr jacketed hollow points...Those 140s may pass through, which you don't want in a personal defense round...

Keep your eyes open, things seem to be getting better...

RE: .357 ammo
 

As long as that little polymer tip doesn't get in the way (OAL?) of cylinder movement, should work just fine.
Pete

RE: .357 ammo
 

Not to go too far off topic but I must comment on the bullet weight of a .357 magnum that I use for home defense. I have a S&W M19 K frame and it's loaded with 158gr Federal Hydra-Shok's and I see nothing wrong with using heavier bullets with a .357 mag. for defense.

http://www.federalpremium.com/produc...un.aspx?id=326

RE: .357 ammo
 

My comment concerning the .357 as a home defense round was just playing it safe due to it seems a number of knowlegable people feel that the problem of over penetration is a valid consideration and I agree. However, it's also a definate man stopper. I know that the real reason for the small plastic tip is to keep them from going off in a tubular magazine, but have heard that it also aids in expansion of the hollow point. We live on a lakeand the neighbors are very rarely here so I'm not too concerned about over penetration, but break-ins are not uncommen so it makes sense to be prepared. Better to have one and not need it than....well you know how it goes..........John

RE: .357 ammo
 

I could type it all up but I think the link is better.

https://www.hornady.com/shop/?ps_ses...f609233f4562f3

I think the guy wanted to sell the more expensive ammo. I would prefer a heavier JHP (158) or a wad cutter.

Of course no one can change my belief that the 12 gauge is the ultimate home defense weapon as far as fire power. 8 rounds of 00 buck spell disaster for even multiple thugs.

RE: .357 ammo
 

Uncle Matt---Can't argue with you on the stopping power of a twelve guage. I just feel a handgun is much more concealeable, possibly easier to get to and in a state of extreme adrenalin rush, such as a situation where you are really going to use it, you won't swing it into a door jamb trying to shoot down the hall. Saw a show on tv years ago where they interviewed three different people who shot and killed an intruder in their home or business and the guy that used the shotgun started crying due to flashbacks about the clean up after the authorities left were more than he could handle. All three were completely justified cases of self protection, but the aftermath for the shotgunner was pretty grim. Just a thought--John

RE: .357 ammo
 

If you guys think that a 125 grain JHP will not penetrate multiple walls you guys are fooling yourselves.

The leverevolution ammo will make a great home defense round or any other situation that you would want to kill a living thing. The soft rubber tip squishes as it makes contact with an object, acting much like water would, and greatly increases initial expansion.

Take a look at Hornady's critical defense line of ammo as a comparison as it is not available in the 357 mag. It has the same soft rubber tip that the leverevolution line does but it is flush with the end of the bullets cavity instead of portruding past the cavity.

RE: .357 ammo
 

No, I think the the ultimate is my 10 guage Remington SP-10 Magnum semi-auto shotgun loaded with Federal 3 1/2 inch magnum buckshot with 18 pellets per round.

RE: .357 ammo
 

WhenI was in medical school I did a rotation on the surgical trauma team at a hospital in a tough area of Philadelphia. I saw a large number of patients with wounds from handguns but never saw one wounded by a shotgun. One reason for this was probably that more shootings occur with handguns than shotguns. The other reason was most likely that people shot by shotgunsrarely go to the ER, they are taken straight to the morgue.

RE: .357 ammo
 

The .357 is a perfect man killer. I talked to the Hornady reps at the SHOT show about the leverrevolution ammo, and their aim was to create a pointed bullet for lever guns. This ammo has a rubber tip that is soft, other plastic tipped ammo still has a hard tip. What they found during testing is that the rubber tip expands outward when the tip gets squished backward. This stuff will expand throughout a wide range of velocities, and the 30-30 round still expands on deer at 300 yards. When they moved on to other calibers like the .357 they found that it gives reliable performance as a self defence round. Hollow points are great but their one downfall is if the intruder is wearing heavy clothing, the hollow point can actually fill with fabric which thwarts expansion, the rubber tipped ammo blows right through heavy clothing and still expands as intended.