It depends on the revolver. I had a 2 5/8" barrel 686. It was painful AF to shoot that. I sold that gun after a few years because of my tendinitis. I literally hurt me to shoot. I never had that issue with any of my 357 magnums.

Really? What kind of grips were you using?

The factory grips. This was the evil bastard:

Attached File

That's not a 686.

But I agree that those grips are not pleasant. I've shaped mine a bit which helps but I still prefer better grips

357 Magnum.

I also have to vote a medium frame (686, GP100, Python) .357 to start. If you aren’t looking at this being a primary carry gun I’d recommend going with a five or six inch barrel.

If you start reloading the cost of ammo becomes mute.

I hate full power .44 Magnum loads, but that's me.

I dislike full power .357 Magnum in small revolvers, but that's me.

Colt revolvers look great and usually gain value over time, but I am a S&W guy through and through.

I think .357 is a better option.

It’s like you read my mind!  I like 44 Special and light loaded Magnum.  I also love 38 Special and medium 357.  I’ve got several Colt wheel guns but my “heart” belongs to Smith.

Do you handload? If not, 357 magnum, full stop.

A 357 magnum will chamber, 357 magnum, 38 special and 38 short colt. A 44 magnum will chamber 44 magnum, 44 special and 44 Russian.

The real question is, do you want to hunt deer at over 50 yards? If not, you don't really need a 44 magnum. With that said, if hand loading, 44 Magnum vs 357 Magnum is like 12 gauge vs 20 gauge. Sure, the factory ammo is of certain specs, but 44 magnum can be loaded down to 357 magnum or below, while 357 will never be as powerful as 44 magnum.

I prefer the recoil impulse of a giant bullet going slow. I went with 44 magnum.


ETA: For my purposes, the real question was 41 magnum vs 44 magnum. In my calculation, if hand loading, a 44 magnum can be reduced to do exactly the same thing 41 magnum can do, but the opposite is not true.

If you don't hand load, I wouldn't get a 44. 357 magnum and 38 special are the most widely produced revolver cartridges, and can be found practically anywhere for a reasonable price. 44 magnum and 44 special are harder to find and tend to cost a lot more.

Both calibers are extremely versatile when hand loading. I'd give the 44 magnum the edge, just because 44 Russian can be downloaded to practically 9mm power factors, while 357 magnum can't be safely loaded to 1000+foot pounds. With that said, my goal is to end up with something with similar muzzle energy to a stout 357 magnum, but lobbing a giant bullet (300 grains). I figure this will give excellent penetration at my maximum range (approximately 50 yards). If I'm being honest with myself, for my purposes, 41 magnum would have been ideal and 357 would be sufficient. For my competition load, I'm shooting for a 180 grain bullet at 750 fps in a 44 Russian case, which is lighter than a 9mm NATO.

I recently faced the same question.  I chose the 357 magnum for general utility and to return to reloading.
I was looking at new Colt Pythons, but this appeared in the used case at the local gun store, and for less $.

I shoot all standard and a lot of the Magnum Caliber's well, really well... Not so with the .357Magnum or .357Sig rounds... The recoil impulse is a harsh jerk upwards as opposed to the .44Magnum that mostly "Pushes" the recoil back into the palms, wrists, and elbows (for me anyways.) I believe it's that very same snappy and muzzle up recoil impulse that maybe gave me flinch with the .357Magnum Rounds. It reminds me of a similar impulse the .40Cal gives off but not as pronounced. My first Glock was a Glock 27Model I had shooting/vetting and training with the 155gr Gold Dots thru her... Those recoiled in that gun just like a full house .357Mag. I went back to the ball 180gr I normally trained with the G27 with and it became almost a laser again and the recoil didn't both me.

Looks like a 629
It says 44 mag right on the barrel.

If you reload then a "true" .44Special like the M24 I pictured below you are gonna love it. Because of the chamber throats/position in the Special's cylinder makes the .44Specials much more accurate than shooting .44Special thru a .44Magnum as I have multiple examples of both. They are plenty accurate to shoot quality .44Special pills thru the M29 and M629 Maggies as are the .44Magnum pills the M29 and M629 they were designed for.

But this M24 outdoes them load for special load for sure. So if you are going to Reload then go for the .44Special chambered Revo. I harp on the Reloading because Factory .44Special because it's price matches or exceeds that of .44Magnum coupled with less availability.

Either way, the .44Special is truly a "Special" chambering/cartridge... From soft sauce up to "Keith Specials" and all in between are still pleasurable, accurate, and capable of taking either steel ram silhouettes or dangerous game 2 and 4 legged azzholes from bad breath distance to over 100 yards.




The M24's big brother the M29 is a super quality piece that shoots both chambering's nicely. Both the M24 and M29 are Lew Horton Special's and my favorite large caliber pistols ever. It took me a long time to procure both models. The M24 just shoots the Specials more accurate than the M29 does/can. Just my experience and as always, YMMV... Good luck getting the model you want, etc...



And a final pic/mix along with a 6.5"...

i've had a 686 for a fair bit and enjoy shooting it.  like the 357 and it doesn't hurt that you can throw .38 special in there too.  makes plinking a little cheaper

This, but reloading is the way to go with any magnum revolver.

Been shooting, reloading and casting the .41 Mag since I was 19 in 84'.
Attached File


OP, I would suggest the .357 Mag by the sounds of your needs.  Gave my wife my Colt MkIII Lawman .357 (along with a RIA M200) for when I'm not home (she has others too)