I've been toting my S+W 586 357 Mag a few times each season for the past several years and Saturday evening a great opportunity to use it arose...

That afternoon I decided to go for a short hunt behind my in-laws house before our Christmas Family Dinner took place. They own around 20 acres on the edge of a huge Game Reserve. Well, it turned out to be a pretty productive hunt.

At around 5:15 PM a buck slipped out into a narrow shooting lane at 65-70 yards. He wasn't going to stop so I whistled and he stopped for a second to look my direction. I grabbed my Smith, cocked the hammer, and proceeded to aim as he started easing his way toward the the brush again and just before he disappeared into the thicket I fired off a round. He jumped and kicked when the shot rang out but, I wasn't completely sure I had connected. As darkness neared I eased my way out of the stand and started looking for sign. No blood, no hair, nothing but a track in the mud where he dug in as he ran away. I entered the thicket on a well used deer trail and still no evidence of a hit anywhere in sight. After I had made it approximately 50 yards into the thick brush a deer jumped out of a tree top and crashed through the brush as far as I could hear. My immediate thought was that I had wounded him and he'd laid down so I eased up to the tree top and found the bed where I had spooked the deer seconds before and still no sign of a hit in sight. I decided to press on alittle further to look for blood and if it was indeed the deer that I had jumped I'd back off and let him lay until morning. To my surprise after only traveling another 15 yards or so into the thick brush there he lay stone dead w/ a perfectly placed heart shot. The deer I jumped from it's bed was a different deer all together.

The buck traveled around 75 yards after the impact. The bullet went right through the shoulder, heart, ribs, and exited the offside. I'm really surprised that there was no blood w/ this type hit but, the entrance and exit holes were only around caliber size. I guess you can't really expect large exits and the internal shock as that of a high velocity rifle bullet when we're talking such slow speeds as that of the 357. Had I not connected w/ the heart there's no telling how far he'd have made it. I may try a different bullet next season and get away from the 158 Sierras. I've taken several hogs cleanly w/ 158 JHPs with out a hitch and penetration hasn't been an issue but, I think I'd like alittle more expansion than the Sierra provided. One instance is hardly enough to get an idea of how these bullets will perform so I may try to fill a couple doe tags and see how the Sierras fare. I may go back to the 158 Win JHPs next season. It's not the bullets fault by any means but, I would like to see alittle more damage to the internals.

The buck wasn't the biggest in the woods w/ only a little 13.5" wide 6pt rack but, I was tickled pink to get him for my first pistol deer.

Here's a couple pics of the buck:




Ya'll have a Good One,

Reloader

Nice Christmas present. If you're gonna be eatin' 'em, they're all trophy's! It's good you didn't give up on the track job too quickly.

I would have thought the Sierra bullet would expand more than you witnessed. You certainly got penetration at that distance.

Nice going! ANY handgun deer is a trophy to be proud of.

You've done extremely well this season, and you'll be enjoying the fruits of your labor all year long...

As to getting both expansion and adequate penetration from a .357 Magnum revolver, there's only one sure thing, and that's the 180 grain Partition HG. The front section is very soft, and the rear section will drive it through on any broadside presentation. The bullet will even expand when nothing more than ribs are hit.

Congratulations Reloader. That is a nice deer.
Can't eat the antlers anyway. I took several doe with my Dan Wesson .357 back in the mide 70's and had about the same bullet performance. I did see them fall due to hunting in a 200 acre grass field from a tree right in the middle of it. Dead is Dead. I did start using the XTP and got a bigger exit hole.
Take care and happy holidays.

Mike

Thanks, Guys. Yep, I'm sure he's gonna be a good to eat deer. He had a good bit of fat on him.

I soaked him in salt water for two days before taking him to the packing house. Saved the loins for me and the little lady of course .

quote:

I did start using the XTP and got a bigger exit hole.

Hey Mike, I may just have to give them a try. I still have about 1/2 a box of the 158XTPs in the reloading room. My first try with them didn't yield great accuracy but, I've got a couple other powders in mind that may do the trick.

Ya'll have a Happy Holidays

Reloader

Reloader, nice deer and shot. Always a great satisfaction when using a handgun.
I remember back when I practiced hunting coyotes and then took my first deer in the early 80's.
Though I now have other guns, I still have that first hunting revolver a 8" Colt Python w/4x Leupold.
Over the years I have tried several different bullet weights from 125's to 180's and finally settled on 180 grain jacketed HP. Just felt like I was "hedging my bet" in the peneration dept. with the heavier bullet if I "goofed" my shot.
Lastly from my experience using the .357, rarely does the deer show a sign of being hit, usually just takes off running, and very little blood even from a heart or double lung. So always very important to watch the direction the deer was last traveling and to follow up on your shots, most will be found inside 75yds.
Be careful, it can get in your blood.
Again nice deer.

Nice job on your first pistol buck Handgun hunting is just awesome

Nice buck with a handgun! Mike is right. Try the XTPs and I think you will get better performance....not that this one was bad. I use them for all my handgun hunting and they work well.

Hey Reloader, Congratulations on a fine Buck.

I'm a bit surprised you were able to get complete penetration with the 158gr Sierra " JHP ". I don't remember that ever happening to me, but the older I get the more some of the older memories fade.

I always recommend JSPs and primarily Gas Checked Hard Cast Lead for Deer with the 357Mag to have a better opportunity for Exits.

Finding them can be tricky without a Blood Trail. Sure glad you had good luck finding yours.

Continued good hunting and clean 1-shot kills.

I will always favor full penetration .It would be easier to get penetration and expansion with a 44 mag. You certainly demonstrated the benefit of tracking after you shot even though you were not sure of the hit ! May this be the first of many !!

I'm impressed!

Most of the time I cannot hit any of the targets at the local range with my pistol(s)

Congratulations on your buck, always good to do it with a handgun.

Congratulations and welcome to the world of revolver hunting! It is an amazing thing to see how little damage a revolver does isn't it! My first buck with a .44 S&W many years ago required an autopsy to find any damage... it wasn't the only one like that either. I have seen much greater damage since by using Hornady XTP bullets pished as fast as possible. I also try not to reach out too far with the handgun. It was a nice Christmas present, and you should be proud, it no small achievement. Well done on the follow-up.

Good on ya.....

Congratulations ,i killed several hogs and feral game with my king cobra 357 and black talons but i dont cosiderate the 357 suitable for big game .You see Bill that we even have trouble with your powerful loads of 45colt with the charging boar.Juan

The Speer gold-dot is also another great pistol bullet, may want to check em out.

Congratulations! Nice buck.

I am also a fan of the XTP bullet for handgunning deer. One thing to consider when shooting deer with a handgun is shooting to hit bone. You don't get the hydrostatic shock effect with handgun velocities. A good front shoulder shot breaks down the skeleton and the deer will usually be DRT. This is especially true when shooting lead bullets and with jacketed hollowpoints as well when they fail to expand. Meat damage is minimal due to slower moving bullet.

Thanks guys, it really was a good experience. Heck, it was as much fun as shooting a much bigger buck with a rifle.

Thanks for the suggestions, come spring I will probably put a few different loads down range and see if I can find a pretty accurate load out to around 75 yards. I feel the 357 is probably more suitable for close range work (say out to 50).

Yes, I could see this getting pretty addictive. So far I've taken several hogs and this deer by handgun and each experience has been quite exciting.

I could definitely see myself moving up to the 44Mag, but my only concern is the noise. I've shot a few 44s and the recoil is definitely tolerable but even w/ ear protection they seem much louder than my 357s. I'm a big fan of hearing protection as I've always worked in the construction industry and have had several good friends lose a good bit of their hearing. I always shoot my 357s w/ hearing protection except for the game animals I've taken with them and even then I had ringing ears for a bit after the shot.

Does the sound of the various 44Mags you fellas use in the field bother you much? I guess I could just wear some game ears but you know how annoying that can be while in the field.

Have a Good One

Reloader

quote:

Originally posted by Reloader:
...Does the sound of the various 44Mags you fellas use in the field bother you much?...

Huh? Speak UP!

I like to use the Sonic Ear Valves with the 44Mags and especially with the 20" 350RemMag. They can make your ears a bit sore until you get used to them being in there, but they work well and don't cost a months pay.

I shot a big sow with my 41 mag. JHP rem bullet. It was only about 20 yards and i got full penetration. The bullet clipped the heart. She still ran about 60 yards. It was fun. I was kinda spooked when she started doing her death cry and my ears being blown off i couldnt tell where she was.

Man I sure wish it could happen up here. Nice hunt.