Ammo superstition

[zacii]

It seems like no one will hesitate to jump into a caliber war, defending their beloved choice to the death, as it were...

9 vs .40 vs .45, etc & etc.

But, when someone mentions the .357 mag, everyone devoutly lowers their head in profound agreement. It is the manstopper.

Not even Dirty Harry's .44 mag gets the reputation that the .357 has.

Is this a fact? A myth?

Or perhaps a legend born of superstition?

The .45 ACP comes close in reputation, being saturated with nostalgia and the romance of several tours of duty.

Admittedly, I don't believe that the .357 ever served in the armed forces. But for some reason people believe that it 'will crack the engine block of a truck'.

How is a legend born? And how is it that homosapiens, otherwise intelligent creatures, will bet their life and money on a myth?


Or is it true?



photo from public photo sharing site: flikr

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[C9H13NO3]

I have no idea how it starts, but if there were one round that were truly the best round for every situation, everyone would use it.

[Guantes]

While legend/reputation may be embellished or enhanced over time, they are usually born of truth. It is when the embellishments or enhancements exceed the amount of truth that there comes questions of the legend/reputation as a whole.

[glockman10mm]

For a cartridge to be succesful, it must produce a good balance of things that work well together for a given task. The combination of bullet weight, design, and velocity, are very , very destructive to human bodies. It posses all the qualities we want in a defensive cartridge in spades.

[Illusive Man]

.40 cal is the real manstopper. This is FACT. I was told this by a group of elves making .40 bullets under a magic tree using a secret method and formula that they got from a troll living under a bridge near a firing range.

[Sleipnir]

The .357 Magnum and the .45 ACP have many, many documented shootings under their belts. Most of those shootings resulted in the aggressor being incapacitated in short order if not outright terminated.

The .357 generally has less ammo per gun than most other pistols, therefore it's loud bark and horrific bite are advantages to firearms chambered in it.

I bought a 1911 and an SP101 as I love both rounds; that being said I'm pretty sold on a Glock 19 Gen4 being my next pistol due to it's ammo capacity and concealability.

[gasmitty]

When the .357 mag was developed in the mid-1930s, it easily defeated automobile sheet metal better than other rounds available at the time. Cars were a lot simpler back then as well, the underhood area was less crowded, and engine castings were a lot more brittle than they are today. A .357 zipping through a fender would probably stand a good chance of cracking an engine block in cars of that era! And it probably only had to happen once in order to gain that reputation.

[Guantes]

Another factor is that many .357 loads of today do not equal the .357 loads of yesteryear.

[Sleipnir]

Another factor is that many .357 loads of today do not equal the .357 loads of yesteryear.

My father knew an officer on his PD in the 70's that always had a steel core .357 handload as the first round. My father related to me a story that the said officer used it once on a old late 50's Ford truck that tried to hit him; he got out of the way, turned around, and fired a shot through the back. This round landed in and killed the engine. He also got a nice chewing out by the Chief for not using department issue rounds.

That being said I'm pretty (read definitely) sure they're illegal now.

As for me, I load my SP101 with R357M1 125 grain SJHP (1200+ fps out of my 2.25" barrel).

[Old School]

The load I carry in my SP-101 is the Golden Saber 125 grain .357 and it is loaded to 1220 fps and 413 ft. lbs. of energy at the muzzle and that is from a 4" test barrel not the 2 1/4". Not legendary by any stretch of the imagination. Yes I know there are hotter .357 loads and they perform better out of longer barrels.The fact is the Golden Saber 165 grain .40 S&W carried in my Glock 23 has a muzzle velocity of 1150 fps and a muzzle energy of 485 ft.lbs. out of a 4" test barrel.

What I really want is to find out what round Walker Texas Ranger uses to shoot those cars causing them to flip over and burst into flames. Now that is a round that legends are made of.

[Bubbiesdad]

9 mm was enough for Biggie and Tupac.

[glockman10mm]

Tupac spelled backwards is......caput.

[Hiram25]

Tupac spelled backwards is......caput.

[TedBeau]

When the .357 mag was developed in the mid-1930s, it easily defeated automobile sheet metal better than other rounds available at the time. Cars were a lot simpler back then as well, the underhood area was less crowded, and engine castings were a lot more brittle than they are today. A .357 zipping through a fender would probably stand a good chance of cracking an engine block in cars of that era! And it probably only had to happen once in order to gain that reputation.

I had heard that the "stop a car engine" test was one of the test that the 357 was initially designed to perform. I heard this many years ago, but do not remember the source or the supposed agency/group or manufacturer supposeidly making the request.

[azchevy]

.357 and 10mm.... my two favorite cartridges for personal defense