In a turmoil !!!!

[95Road King]

I have a S&W 686(.357) I was going to buy a scope base for and set it up for deer hunting. What happen's??
    I walk into my local gun store today(I used to work there) and what's in the used case but a 71/2 " Super Redhawk .44 Mag. like new cond. that come's with a cordura holster. Price?? $350.00 OUT THE DOOR!!!
    What to do?? what to do??? I've been loading .38,s on 357 die's for yrs. I have no .44 stuff but that's no big deal!!
      Tomorrow is Mon. and I'm either going to order the base for my 686 or go buy the .44 Mag.
      You would think at 67 yrs. old I could make a decision.LOL
       Help---------Help---------------Help :?  :?  :?  :?  :?  :?

[knight0334]

I know the feeling..

I walked into my local shop to find a 45LC replacement of some sort for my two 45/410 derringers that got stolen..   the shop has a Interarms Virginian Silhouette 10.5" stainless in 99% condition with a $280 scope for $329(scope and gun) and a Taurus Raging Bull 454casull for $399.


damn decisions..  grrr

[Ron T.]

Roadking...

I got into the same kind of dilemna many years ago and went with the .44 magnum... and I've never been sorry.

I have a Model 19, 4-inch S&W Combat magnum (.357) that I loaded for and shot for quite a while, but then a new "love" came into my life, a then-new 3-screw Ruger Super BlackHawk in .44 magnum with a 7½ inch barrel.

I bought a set of RCBS carbide dies for the .44 and have enjoyed shooting it with mostly mid-range loads consisting of 10 grains of Herco with a #2 hard lead 240 grain semi-wadcutter that gives me about 980 fps as well as some 240 grain jacketed hollow-points with both mid-range loads of Herco and full hunting loads of H-110.

The .44 magnum is a very accurate round and a lot of fun to shoot... and, lets face it, a LOT more powerful with both calibers using "full loads".

Buying the .44 doesn't necessarily mean you will never shoot the .357 again, but... to be totally honest, that's what happened to me.  I haven't shot the Model 19 in over 30 years.

Be SURE to buy a set of CARBIDE dies for your new .44 magnun... it's a pure JOY not to have to use lubrication on those straight cases... and then have to wipe all the lub off again!


Strength & Honor...

Ron T.

[Graybeard]

Buy the scope base.

[95Road King]

Greybeard:
      I know from some of your post's you don't like Ruger's!!
  I probebly will stay with my 686 as the action is honed and very smooth!!
  I wonder how serious I am about hand gun hunting anyway?? I just like to go to the club and shoot a few hundred round's. :grin:  :grin:

[Catfish]

Road King,
    That must be a terrible problem to have. I feel very sorry for you. I have never had that problem myself. I guess that`s why I`ve got 2 - .357`s, 3 - .44 mag`s., 2 - .454`s and a .500 S&W, plus several pistoles for the Contender  and Encore frames. Go get the thing you can`t take all that money with you, besides it`s easy to replace the trigger spring in the SRH and make them desent, did it to a .454 which is a SRH.

[reakin]

$350 out the door for a "like new" Super Redhawk?  And its still there???  Man, I'd be on that in a New York minute!  Probably hurt something reaching for my wallet that fast!  You can't go wrong with a Ruger in my book (sorry Greybeard, just like Ford's and Chevy's, know what I mean?).  reakin

[safetysheriff]

I think Graybeard is right.....but maybe not for the same reasons.    At age 67 are you ready to handle that heavy handgun and the recoil of the .44 mag?     Those would/will be my concerns as I reach that age.

Take care,

SS'

[95Road King]

SafteySherrif:
      You make a good point and I've thought of the heavy recoil. I am a decent shot with target load's. I just loaded some stout .357 load's and will try them in A.M. I'll see how I feel after that. As far as weight of gun, no problem.
     MAN!! After reading your post I thought mabey I should go get a cane!!!!!LOL   I had to chuckle tho.
           

[oso45-70]

Safetysheriff,
 I'll be 71 years old Feb,8th and am still shooting 45 colts and 454s all with full blown loads and love it as much as i did  when  i was a kid.
I can't belive any one has more fun with their guns than i do.

95Roadking, Your still a pup have fun while you can. Not too sure we can do any shooting where we will be in the next life. Good luck to all....Joe.....

[safetysheriff]

oso' / 95RK'

As you can see from my signature, I have loaded a lot of rounds rather heavily.    In the summer I've had guys come to see what I was shooting because the .44 mag' I fire has a lot of concussion to it.     :grin: Yes, that's the way I like it .............. for now.  

I admit it sounds like I'm potentially going to be on pablum and Geritol at age 73,  :eek:  :eek:; but I'm just being honest.    I'm just admitting that we never know what life holds.  :shock:   I only hope that because my one elbow has had problems of a kind for years that I'll be able  to take heavy loads later on.    Others may feel the same.    

If I have to, I will step down to a .41 mag' and hopefully keep on shooting.          One never knows.

Glad to see you guys laughed at my candor.

Take care,

SS'  

ps:   if eye has not seen, nor ear heard of the wonders that God has prepared for those who love Him, then maybe the firearms won't rust, the ammo will be free, and the game will never run out!    otherwise, it may not be heaven!  :roll:    i only hope to be given the chance to find out.   :wink:

[papajohn428]

Buy the Ruger, shoot lighter loads until you're used to it, and use it for hunting, you'll have a blast!  You don't have to load for it unless you want to, and recoil shouldn't be that bad out of a gun that heavy.  Even if it bothers you, you can always shoot specials out of it.  But that's a deal like you'll never see again, I say go for it!  (And if you don't like it, you can always get your money out of it.)

BTW, I had a guy offer me one for sale, scoped, for $300.00 awhile back.  I could hear Murphy laughing when I had to tell him no, I'd just blown my last dollar the day before on a bunch of reloading components!  Oh, the agony.............. :roll:

Papajohn

[Old Griz]

:cb2: I'd get the .44. I've fired some .357s that were more of a pain to shoot than some .44s. Then, after you have—and shoot both—you can decide which one gets the scope, and which one is the fun gun.

I'm not one of those who say the .357 is not enough gun for deer hunting—one friend of mine has already killed three with his, and there are many guys here on this forum who hunt with nothing else. But, I have both, and I prefer the .44 for hunting. I just like the bigger holes and heavier bullets.

And as far as recoil is concerned—just hold the gun right! Wear gloves. No problem! (Not even for us old grey guys!)