Accurate wheelgun for target/trail carry

[Galeth005]

i would say the ruger gd100 in 357 mag or the ruger sp101 in 357, both are excelent guns as far as accuracy are concerned and both handle really well, the sp is a 5 round  while the gd is 6 round , i just got my borther a gd100 in 357 for his graduation in 4" barrel.  the sp is more of a carry gun while the gd is more of a target gun

[mx451]

....you know...I do already have a .41 mag and I have dies for .357 for maybe I should look at that caliber.   .357 is cheaper than .44 or .45lc to load and buy off the shelf.  But there is something about the larger calibers that seems to draw my attention...The .41 is a Redhawk so Im familiar with Ruger.  Though Im told the trigger pull is better on the GP 100s, is that true?

[gunman42782]

Well, I think all of these have been mentioned already, but Ruger GP100 or Blackhawk in caliber of your choice sounds like just what you want. 

[alfsauve]

S&W 686, .357Mag.   I'd go with 6" barrel as a compromise between target and trail.

[Michael Bane]

The gun in my battery that would most perfectly fit your needs is my S&W .44 Special Mountain Gun 4-inch. Of course, that gun was never made by S&W...mine is a one-off created by master pistolsmith Hamilton Bownen from a .357 frame, a 696 .44 Special cylinder and a rebored .357 Mountain Gun barrel. PERFECT trail gun! Super accurate! Takes hot .44 Special loads with ease! Sorry!

The 329 works great with .44 Special loads and 240-gr and lighter .44 Magnum loads...mine had the lock seize on a 255-gr Buffalo Bore Keith load. It's a darned easy gun to carry, too. The 3-inch blue M-24 (.44 Special) and M-29 (.44 Magnum) are sweet, as is the 629 "Emergency Survival Kit" .44 Magnum 3-inch.

I come down on the side of the .44s for versatility.

Michael B

[Sponsor]

[ellis4538]

I think S&W made some L frame 44 spls (5 shot) for something a bit more potent than the .357.

Richard

[Bill Stryker]

My mother gave me a 4" barrel S&W Combat Magnum (aka M19 later) when I graduated. I carried it daily in Vietnam and later when I went out for a walk in the woods or hunting. It is a .357 but you want to shoot .38s for practice and carry .357 for business. I am very partial to this revolver for the use you mention. I have found it to be accurate, reliable and portable with .38 and .357 loads. I have other revolvers -- but this is the one that usually gets the call.
It is a good night stand revolver as well, but I use a SIG for that now.
Back in the day when I got the Combat Magnum we did not know you were supposed to use .38s for practice. So, I went to the PX and bought a bunch of boxes of .357 and practiced with that for a long time with no problems. I did have some access to military .38s for the old 3 gun (.22, .38 and .45) target shooting as well now that I think of it. I reload the .357 cases for .38 power level target loads. When the .357 cases split at the mouth, I just trim them back to .38 length and reload away again.
The M19 is no longer in the S&W catalog -- that's too bad. But if you see a used one in good condition, I'd snap it up if I were you.

[CJS3]

The gun in my battery that would most perfectly fit your needs is my S&W .44 Special Mountain Gun 4-inch. Of course, that gun was never made by S&W...mine is a one-off created by master pistolsmith Hamilton Bownen from a .357 frame, a 696 .44 Special cylinder and a rebored .357 Mountain Gun barrel. PERFECT trail gun! Super accurate! Takes hot .44 Special loads with ease! Sorry!

The 329 works great with .44 Special loads and 240-gr and lighter .44 Magnum loads...mine had the lock seize on a 255-gr Buffalo Bore Keith load. It's a darned easy gun to carry, too. The 3-inch blue M-24 (.44 Special) and M-29 (.44 Magnum) are sweet, as is the 629 "Emergency Survival Kit" .44 Magnum 3-inch.

I come down on the side of the .44s for versatility.

Michael B

Taurus used to make a 3 in. barreled 44Spl. that would have been a perfect trail gun.

[mx451]

I am still trying to decide what I want.  I have decided that I want a 4" or shorter barrel.  I have my eye on the S&W 686 and 620 .357s.  Both are 7 shots which I never thought I would want....they are called "6" guns after all.  One more round is one more round though.  The smiths are attractive guns and the trigger pulls are sweet.  One thing about the GP100s is that they are rock solid and alot cheaper so its hard to rule them out too.  I was thinking 4" or shorter so I could occasionally carry the smoke wagon in leu of my Glock 26 or commander .45 if the mood strikes.  Also Im still thinking .357 because I have dies and all of the components.  Although I guess I wouldnt be the first to carry a .44 for CCW (occasionally to mix it up) if thats the way I go.  Its times like this I wish we had a range here that rented guns to try out. 

[2HOW]

MB  has a great idea, the mountain gun in .44 mag is my pick and on my list . Shoots specials , as good and managible as a .357 although the sweetest wheel gun I ever had was a GP 100 . Its a toss in my book.