I Know the 357 Mag is border line on deer out of a revolver. Would shooting it out of a 10" Contender barrel be enough improvement in velosity to make it a viable 50 yard deer round? Thanks, Lone Hunter.

Lone Hunter,
I have taken deer with my 6" S&W 686 and Hornady 180gr. XTPs @ 1350fps. out to about 75yds.
Some of my friends are using 158s to do the same.
A well placed shot is the key, Well most of the time. Your not at a handicap by using a 357mag. by no means.
50yds should be no problem at all with a well placed shot, or 2 or 3 or all 6 if thats what it takes
I killed a deer at 20ft. a couple years ago with my 3" Ruger SP 101 in 357mag with the same load. I was running dogs and just about stepped on a nice 6 point buck in some thick brush. The deer came running toward me and bingo. I let all 5 rounds go in about 3 seconds and the deer dropped and never moved again.
Lucky shot? Hell yea, I didn't aim, I just pointed and pulled the trigger till the gun went click
BTW, I remember when I lived in Pa. when you could only take 1 deer per year. I left so many go to try to get a trophy on another day. Well that only works on Buckmasters TV show. I ended up getting sh!t.
Here in Va. ya hunt deer with dogs and can take 4 on a license. I don't really care about hunting deer with dogs but thats the way it's done here and I accept it.

I have never used one but the 357mag in a 10" TC is a different animal than a revolver. I have always been of the opinion that the 357mag is adequate for deer..... A good 158 or 180 load outta the TC is more than enough gun!

For my first handgun deer hunt in Illinois last year I had a choice between my Redhawk 44 Mag or a scoped 10" TC in 357 Max. (had to use magnums to be legal the cartridge case can be no longer than 1.4"). I used the TC and a 170 cast SWC to take a small doe at about 40 yds. She ran off about 50 yds and just folded up. It worked fine.
There are better choices, but having only a 357 wouldn't stop me from hunting.
Greg

357 mag is plenty for deer! Just go over to the Sixgunner website and read some of old Paco Kelly's articles on his adventures with the 357.

Out of a Contender, it should be no trouble whatsoever! I plan upon using an open sighted 6" S&W 66 w/Herrett target grips for damage permit deer this year, and do not feel undergunned at all