357 Magnum Ammo

357 Magnum ammunition is a classic revolver cartridge familiar to most shooters, the .357 Magnum was introduced in 1934 and was one of the most widely used calibers for law enforcement until about 1990. In this role, it replaced a variety of converted black powder cartridges which often failed to perform as required in emergencies. While mostly out of favor for police work due to the adoption of semi-automatic pistols, the .357 Mag remains extremely popular for concealed carry and target shooting.

.357 Magnum ammo fires a medium weight bullet at a relatively high muzzle velocity of around 1,200 to 1,500 feet per second. Long guns chambered for .357 Mag achieve even higher velocities; the caliber is sometimes used in cowboy action shooting, where it is a highly effective, albeit anachronistic, choice. Unlike most medium-caliber pistol cartridges, the .357 Mag is powerful enough to use for some types of game hunting at close range.

Available factory-produced .357 Mag ammo runs the gamut from lower-powered, accuracy-oriented action and target loads and reduced-recoil defensive hollow points to "hot" soft points typically used for hunting game. In general, the .357 Mag offers good effective range and strong expansion potential, but also significant recoil.