This year im gunna start loading my 357 for whitetail here in Pa. Currently i have some old 158gr. hornady hallow-points(not xtp)I am thinking about byeing a box of 180's and loading them hot out of a 6' S&W19. My ranges probobly will not go past 50-60yds with this, and will be on deer prob. no more then 130-140lbs. I plan on using 24500, or imr4227. Any comments are greatly appreiated. Thanx in advance

180gr XTP's work great. I personally use 158gr LSWCHP's with 8-8.2gr of WW231 at approx. 1200fps. Work great as well. I would use 2400, its more versatile. Just becareful about loading a M19 hot because prolonged hot loads will shoot it loose. Otherwise, you'll have a good deer load.

cyberhick

At the ranges you mention, I'd pick the bullet that is the most accurate from your gun. I don't think a 180 or 158 would make a whole bunch of difference. I've only shot one deer with a 357 and that was with a 170 cast bullet. I prefer the lighter bullets out of a 44 Mag. 180's or 200 gr JHP's.
Greg

I have used the 180 XTP outta a TC barrel. They are very accurate and will run pretty fast. I am using them over a max load of W296.

Good luck and enjoy working up the load!!

I have managed seven 1 shot kills of whitetail in Ohio with a .357 Magnum using Sierra's 170gr Jacketed Hollow Cavity, using a model 686 with a 8 3/8" barrel and iron sights.
My prefered load was 13gr. of H110 which proved to be the most accrate for that particular gun.

This year I managed 2 tags using a .357 Maximum and 180gr HP XTP's, that provided a lot of stopping power for whitetails.

In my experience you should stay away from lighter bullets than 170gr in order to obtain full penetration.

The longest shots (2) were at 80 paces, and the remaining 5 were at more desireable shorter ranges.

My 2� worth.

I shot 2 deer in Ohio this year with 357Max using 180gr HornadyXTP's. I was impressed!!! It did a great job . I recovered one bullet that was a perfect mushroom and still weighed 159gr. It was a high-shoulder and spine shot that always drops 'em where they stand. I'm used too high horse-powered stuff and was impressed at the killing power of this bullet and caliber!

Dave Iams,
I was not able to recover the 180 HP XTP's because both shots were pass through hits.
There is really minimal damage to edible meat, but a lot of organ damage with this caliber.

I am glad to hear that the bullet prformed well and retained 88% of it's original mass.

Good Shooting!