.357 Magnum

About .357 Magnum

.357 Magnum is a lengthened .38 Special run at far higher pressure, and that relationship is its best feature: any .357 revolver also fires .38 Special, so one gun covers cheap low-recoil practice and full-power defensive or hunting loads. It works in that direction only — .357 will not chamber in a .38 Special cylinder.

In a lightweight snub-nose revolver full .357 loads are genuinely punishing, and many owners end up carrying .38 Special +P and are better served for it. In a 4-inch or longer barrel the cartridge comes into its own, and out of a lever-action carbine it gains enough velocity to be a legitimate short-range deer cartridge.