|
|
Ruger 357 Maximum
I've always had a soft spot for the Colt Officer's ACP for a pocket gun. Really small and light yet shoots a .45 ACP.
|
|
Add Photo
Bookmarks: |
|
|
|
Ruger 357 Maximum
Chief, gotta agree with that it is certainly near the top of my list. The 375 H&H and 338 are both excellent calibers for anything moose/elk size up and are both fairly tame compared to others in their class. Especially the new family of 300 mags. I would take a .45 over a .40 any day but that is just personal preference. I used to have a smith .357 that was a great gun, I think it was a model 29 chiefs special. It weighed waaay to much for CCW but it was fun to shoot. My wife carries a .38 +p Smith Titanium 2" barrel and it is absolutely brutal. Only weighs 14 0z with laser grips.
|
|
Add Photo
Bookmarks: |
|
|
|
Ruger 357 Maximum
I am not much of a .40 SW fan either, but 10MM is one of my favorites. I even have an upper for my M16 that shoots 10MM.
BTW, for the Glock 27, I just bought a barrel to convert it to .357 SIG. I like the ballistics better.
|
|
Add Photo
Bookmarks: |
|
|
|
Ruger 357 Maximum
You are an exotic cartridge fan. Any Weatherby's ? I have never owned a sig but I think they are top notch. Never had a 10 mm but I came real close to picking one up for a pig hunt. I need to find time to shoot soon. I primarily collect antique Winchester lever guns now. Do you re-load thos 10's ?
|
|
Add Photo
Bookmarks: |
|
|
|
Ruger 357 Maximum
I shoot a few specialty (and former wildcat) cartridges. Among them 25.06, .357 Max, .445 SuperMag and 7-30 Waters. Why the .40 took off compared to the 10MM I will never understand from a practical standpoint. I have heard that it had something to do with politics and the FBI, but that is another subject.
I bought one of the first SIG 229s in .357 SIG because I am such a fan of the .357 Mag. Bottleneck rounds feed like nothing else...it is almost impossible to misfeed them. Since then I have bought .357 SIG barrels for other .40 pistols that I have. I even had a custom ported one made for an early SW Sigma pistol that was physically larger than the current Sigma.
I reload most everything that I shoot. Some cartridges like the .222 I shoot so seldom that I only use a Lee Loader, but there are others like 9MM and .223 that I shoot in volume and really need a motorized progressive. Right now, I use a standard RCBS press for everything.
Shooting seems to be such a popular topic with this group that I have no doubt that a special "firearms" forum would be well utilized. What about it, Dennis??
|
|
Add Photo
Bookmarks: |
|
|
|
Ruger 357 Maximum
I mostly just re-load for the weatherby. I used to re-load a lot of shot gun shells but with the light recoil clays loads and the lower prices I no longer do. The 25-06 is still a sweet one and very popular in some states like Texas as well as the .257 Weatherby. I have seen a couple of Model 94 Winchesters poping up lately in 7x30 waters. I dont useally collect anything modern in the lever guns but that one sounds interesting.
|
|
Add Photo
Bookmarks: |
|
|
|
Ruger 357 Maximum
I can tell you why the 40 S&W "took off".
1)It fits in a 9 mm platform,
2)It comes in a Glock,
3)Police issue pistols must nowadays be sized to the lowest common denominator (female hands)
4)Ignorant police administrators think it is more defensible in court than a 45 which is viewed as overly powerful
5)It exactly matches the ballistics of the reduced police load offered with the original 10mm
6) It works. It has excellent "one shot stop" numbers, especially with the 155 and 135 grain loads.
PS.. no I don't own one, and didn't carry one as a cop. But after watching a few bazillion rounds go downrange as a trainer, it is about as much gun as a non-enthusiast can effectively use.
|
|
Add Photo
Bookmarks: |
|
|
|
Ruger 357 Maximum
Mark I agree with just about everything that you said, but I just didn't want to open that wound again. However, I do believe that the "original" 10MM was the full powered version. It was then "neutered" at the request of a panel at the FBI that was investigating new rounds for the bureau.
I was bothered when they decided that the 10MM was "too powerful for the average FBI agent", after the tragedy where they had several agents killed that were using 9MM. I think that the 10 is very managable.
The writing was on the wall when they reduced the load. If you can get the same reduced ballistic performance from a round that is 0.1 inches shorter and will fit in 9MM size frames, then why not use the smaller cartridge?
I disagree with the original assessment and therefore have a hard time with the whole .40 SW history. It is not hard to envision the gun companies supporting this also when they stood to gain huge contracts for supplying new weapons. If .40 guns were adopted they would make more money by not having to retool as many production lines.
Anyway, that is water under the bridge. The .40 has earned it spot in the history books. I like my 10MM. I will continue to shoot it until I can't get brass anymore. I guess that I should see if I can bottleneck that cheap .40 SW brass for my .357 SIG. I reform cases for my 25.06, but have never tried for the .357 S. Any ideas?
About the question on the Weatherby...I do have a Weatherby but it is in 25.06. I don't shoot any Weatherby rounds. I would like to find a Winchester 94 in 7-30 Waters. If you hear about one please consider letting me know.
|
|
Add Photo
Bookmarks: |
|
|
|
Ruger 357 Maximum
Yoy might try the old western scrounger for brass and try gunsamerica dot com for a 7x30 model 94. As I mentioned I have seen a few lately. Go to Winchesters- Modern Lever. You'll want to check every few days as the good stuff useually sells pretty fast. I had thought here in Michigan a few years back that we would see a surge in 10 mm popularity after Ted Nugent was singing its praise but even that didnt seem to help out much. Is that weatherby a wood stocked MkV Deluxe ???? You will also a Weatherby Section as well as enough others to keep you busy looking for a week.
|
|
Add Photo
Bookmarks: |
|
|
|
Ruger 357 Maximum
The Weatherby is the MIV Deluxe, I believe. It was not really a very good gun when I bought it.
If you shot twenty rounds through it the shots would drift six inches or so at 100 yards. The first time I tried to sight it in the groups were large. Then the next day it was six inches off when the barrel was cold.
The front of the stock had a LOT of pressure on the front of the barrel. This was bad enough that you could see the whole action/barrel bend when it was screwed down on the stock. I took the stock off and milled out the inside of the foreend and glass bedded the barrel. Now it is OK shooting and I can certainly use it for hunting. It will now take 20 shots without drifting nearly as much. But I have a Ruger 77 Varmit Special in 25.06 that doesn't drift much at all. It is just the thing for the occasional, enraged, charging prarie dog.
|
|
Add Photo
Bookmarks: |
|
|
|