coot

Am contemplating hunting deer with 357- will it work & what size/kind of bullets to use ?

Ruger-Redhawk

In my opinion the 357 mag is to light for deer.I would go with the 44 mag, 454 Casull or the new 480 Ruger. I would keep 41 mag as a minimum cartridge for deer.Ruger Redhawk

VAhuntr

I too feel that the 41 mag is the minimum for deer but I'm sure with perfect shot placement a 357 mag will kill a deer.

halcon

In the carbine it isn't to bad short range but not much in a handgun in my opinion .

propmahn

if you reload get yourself some 180gr xtps from hornady (they provide good expansion and good penetration). also you need some 2400 and depending on what type of gun you have it depends on how much powder you put in there. ruger blackhawk and contender probaly work your way up to 15-16gr, slightly less in a gp-100. S&W and colts around 13-14gr.
if you havent bought anything yet though get a 44mag or a 45colt. i bought a gp-100 and now wish i would have done 2 things different, 1) bought a single action (double action is usless in hunting), 2) gone with the 44mag or 45colt
check out the paco kelly's writings on the .357 for hunting at www.sixgunner.com/backissues/default.htm you have to scroll down a little. good reading though, brought my hopes up about my .357.

if buying factory ammo, remington core-locts or if you have money to spend, winchester's supreme partion golds. stay with heavy bullets weights though for good penetration

soarkrebel

Man some of you guys think you have to have a hand cannon to kill a deer. i have killed four deer in my life with a 357 mag. s&w 686 4" and a 6". 125 sp bullet. i will testify to it's lethality. one did a 180 and hit the ground. i have seen all fall. i have a 41 mag but havent hunted with it. i have a 44 mag dont hunt with it either. the fbi released a list of most lethal handguns for law enforcement several years ago . the 357 mag had the highest one shot kill rate of any other carried duty weapon. you say it was popular then ,no, more dept's carried 38 spl +p ammo in 357mags. a deer is about the size of a human (probably lighter than some)it doesnt take a cannon. what caliber has been responsible for more killed people? the 22lr. bullet placement means more than anything.i have seen deer shot with 300 win mags run for a long way from a poor shot. i will defend my favorite hand gun caliber, go for it coot. just practice and practice more.

ths78

The 357 is a great deer cartridge. when fired out of a 6" barrel, it generally has a range of about 50 yds. 125 gr. bullets are great for broadside shots, but often won't penetrate a shoulder bone.

Handloads extend the range of the 357 on deer sized game considerably. CorBon offers a 180 gr SP that is good on deer out to 100 yds.

357 carbines are about as effective as a 30-30 on deer inside of 125 yds. And in my mind, the 30-30 is one of the best deer rounds ever.

Warren

I agree with soarkrebel and ths78, the .357 mag. is fine for whitetails as long as you do you part. I've taken 6 N.Y. whitetails with a handgun ( 3 of them with the .357). I use factory .158 gr. JHP's in my .357 mag. which has a 6" barrel and open sights. Keep the shots under 50 yds.

kentlyone

I have shoot deer and hogs with my 357, I use my own loads with a 180grn xtp. Like others here have said I prefer my 44mag or 454. 44mag and 454 will give you more knock down power and a little more range. I have also used my 45colt but still I prefer the 44mag and 454.

frizzellr

.357 Mag is fine for deer if you concentrate on shot placement and limit your distance to under 40 yards. I have a question for you guys that say the 357 Mag is too light for deer, how many of you shoot at deer with a .22 cal centerfire rifle?