The intellectual part of me recognizes that it is a 16% increase in ammo capacity, but I refuse to accept the notion of a 7-shot .357. The idea that, when picking up a revolver, I have to remind myself “no, no…you have one MORE” as I shoot seems to fly in the face of the last 85 years of .357.
And yet, I am wildly excited about the notion of 8-shot .357’s.
I am a conflicted beast.
(As an aside, I think that for someone who fancies the revolver [which does have much to recommend to it] for personal defense the .357 is pretty much perfect. Fur and claws deserve a .44, but a six-shot k- or L-frame size gun in .357 seems ideal in weight and size for maintaining civil discourse. Although I like S&W, my .357 of choice these days is the GP100. However, I do trot out my Speed-Six and Highway Patrolman from time to time.)
Would love to have a couple of wheel guns again. Got rid of mine in the 90s as I fell fully into the semi-auto camp. It’s crazy that a wheel gun cost more now than most quality semi-autos. I do regret selling my wheel guns!!
The S&W Performance Center R8 is a fantastic firearm.
Yeah, Id get one except i dont like 2-piece barrels and I dont want it made of alloy frame.
Now you have to get one…
https://www.smith-wesson.com/firearms/performance-center-pro-series-model-627
A wheel gun with 8 rounds in the wheel? I’m not so sure about that. Not because of a dislike for wheel guns (I own a S&W model 19 and back in the day when getting a carry permit wasn’t the issue it is now, I carried it while camping in Northern Ontario), but it’s more of a question of portability. A cylinder that holds 8 is starting to get a little fat for my tastes.
As for “fur and claws,” I would have no issue with carrying a .357 to deal with bears. But, two things have to be understood. (a) The objective is for the bullet to penetrate through the skin and fat to get to vital organs and bones. And, (b) bullet placement is also a serious factor. With that in mind, a .357 with solids like Buffalo Bore .357 Magnum hard cast 158-grain loads, would be fine for bears at close range.
What about the HMS and Buffalo Bore 180 grain variety. It’s what I’ve chosen for my 8-shot wheel guns and my 1894, which feeds them smoothly.
don’t forget the old iver johnson &hi standard 9 shot 22s.couple others if memory serves.at one point in time had em all, always thought the hiway patrol was to heavy a frame,prefered k or l. had full sets of model 29s both in 41 &44. 4 in bbls sure were fun at night muzzle blast would light up an acre or 2 especially if loaded with imr-4227. all gone now DAN
There have been a lot of 9 shot 22lr revolvers around for years. I think the point of this article was about an 8 shot .357. I don’t think a 22lr revolver compares to a .357, apple and oranges.
7 shooter, no. 8 shooter, yes. Maybe it’s an even number, odd number thing. My own OCD demands even numbers.
too funny, I thought I was the only one that didn’t want a 7 shot. I would gladly go with 6 or 8, but 7? not for me, thank you.
I will hand the Model 13 that sits beside the bed down to my heirs and assigns, when it outlives me handily.
And if someone would lneecap the lawyers at New S&W, and they got rid of the stupid frame lock, I’d think about getting a couple of new M65s.
Otherwise, it’s vintage S&W, Colt, Ruger, or nothing.
Six shots suits me just fine.
Personally, the 7-shot 686+ w/3″ barrel fits my needs well. I also have the S&W 69 as a 5-shot 44. I am quite comfortable with either in the woods of Montana.
If I had to choose one side arm it would probably be the 6″ GP100 in .357. As Bill Jordan said, if you can’t get it done with six rounds then there is big trouble.
Downside – I have been inside a closed building a couple times when a .357 was discharged. That has to be the loudest sound on earth and my ears are still ringing 20 years later.
Wanna learn about 8-shooters, start hanging out at ICORE matches; only very rarely is an Open gun not one, and more than a few non-Open shooters will have one as well.
The problem comes on the reload – aligning 8 long, skinny cartridges, and that includes .38 Special as well – to fit into 8 holes simultaneously and quickly is damn near a magic trick, which is why so many 8-shooters in ICORE use .38 Short cartridges – the cases of which are the same length as 9MM brass – in thicker (.043″-.045″) moon clips, coupled with fairly pointed or very round-nosed bullets (all made possible by a power floor of 125).
I ran a 627 for a while and the only place it was useful is ICORE; the 327 was – IIRC – made by S&W for the “tactical community” that wanted what they thought would be more reliable (revolver) with more shots (8) that had more horsepower than 9MM (.357 magnum).
As long as you can solve the problem completely in the first 8 shots they’re great, it’s needing 9 and up that’s the problem.
7 shot isn’t just fine – it’s better. If the cylinder stop is to be in the center of the frame where it belongs, and the slot in the cylinder should leave as much metal over the chamber as possible, you must have an odd number of chambers.
For fur and claws, a 200 gr hard cast lead bullet at 1100 fps should make an impression.
My son traded me a Taurus 608 for my 6 shot .357. Other than a rediculiosly long barrel, it is a nice shooter.
I’ve owned a Taurus 608 for 20 years and probably put 1000 rounds through it without a problem.
More than adequate for any bear roaming the lower 48.
I have revolvers in both pistol and revolver calibers. All are 6 shot and some use moon clips. They may not be as fast to reload as a pistol, but they are pretty damn quick. In completion they may drag behind the autos in reloading, however in the real world six should be able to do it. If you think that a 15rd + mag (and several of them) will be required then get a carbine with several 30rd+ mags. Handguns should be primarily defensive, you have one so you can fight your way to a long gun.