.357 Magnum in a SAA or Clone, NOT RUGER

[Virginia Gentleman]

I ended up getting a .357 Magnum Uberti made Taylor's & Company SAA clone in blue & faux case colors in a 5.5" barrel.  I will test it out with several types of .357 Magnum loads and report back how it does.  I am sure with all that extra metal around the cylinder and barrel it should not be much of a stress test with factory ammo.

[Fox Creek Kid]

Colt went to a floating firing pin in the early .357 SAA's because of primer flow. The Italian steel is good, but it's not as good as Colt steel IMO which in & of itself does not make it bad.  Ask any good CAS gunsmith and they'll tell you Colts are a joy to work on as are USFA's (post Uberti). Now mind you I have a ton of Italian guns so I am not biased IMO.

Having shot enough hot factory .357 Mags. in my life, especially the notorious Fed. 125 gr. load, I have seen too many S&W's go out of time from battering to trust the more delicate Colt style ratchet with hot loads. However, that is just my personal opinion. I wish Pettifogger or Coffinmaker would chime in here as they know more than me on this and I respect their opinion as maybe I am playing it too safe with the SAA. 

[Virginia Gentleman]

Handloader Magazine had an article on a 1st generation .357 magnum Colt SAA that had primer flow back from the larger fixed firing pin that would cause cylinder timing issues which was why they went with the smaller diameter floating firing pin.  The Uberti made guns have the smaller firing pin so I guess this is not going to be an issue with my gun.

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[Duke York]

USFA Peacemakers have fixed firing pins, unlike my 2nd and 3rd generartion Colts
My 18 month old USFA .357's have fixed concave firing pins to cope with the high pressures generated by the magnum cartridge.

All SAAMI ammunition will work fine in USFA's and Colt Peacemakers without ever shaking them loose, as can happen with small frame .357's.

I carried a Nickel 4" S&W #19 every day for over 30 years loaded with Federal .357 125 grain JHP. Now, while I fired several huindred of these and Factory WW 158 grain SWC , I always realized it was basically a .38 Spl that took magnums. If I had fired thousands of these heavy loads it may not be the tight gun it still is today.

In a Colt or USFA the .357 will do no harm, there will be no damage caused to the hand or any other part!
Remember, these are made in the USA of good quality steel and good quality parts (unlike some of the Italian guns)


Duke York
SASS 15978
USFA CSS 199

[Virginia Gentleman]

The Italians are using better steel these days from what I understand and compared to the steel of yesteryear it is modern and superior to 1st generation Colt steel and pig iron that the older guns had.  I will report back on how well it did on the range.

[Driftwood Johnson]

The Italians are using better steel these days from what I understand and compared to the steel of yesteryear it is modern and superior to 1st generation Colt steel and pig iron that the older guns had.

Howdy

Colt did not use 'pig iron'. The term pig iron refers to iron poured directly into ingots formed in sand in a pattern resembling piglets suckling from a mother pig. Pig iron is synonymous with cast iron. Pig iron has a high carbon content which makes it much too brittle for firearm use. Malleable iron, or Wrought Iron is what Colt used for the early 1st Gen SAA frames and cylinders. Malleable iron has been more highly refined than pig iron and has less impurities in it.

[Virginia Gentleman]

I stand corrected and thanks for the detail on what kind of iron it was.  In any event steel, especially modern steel today is infinitely superior to 19th century wrought iron in gunmaking, otherwise people could shoot smokeless in the early guns with impunity from catastrophic failure.

[ZVP]

 Not to argue or cause any hard feelings but I have some questions to your requirements.
 I can see no reason to feed asteady diet of "full house" .357 magnums through any revolver much less an import that is decidedly less stout than a Ruger. By steady diet I do not mean only aq few hundred but more like a competition regailia. As was stated elswhere the "little" parts will fail. The frame and cylinder will most likely never fail as they are manufactured of modern steels.
 A steady diet of thousands of full power .357's might cause a parts failure but where and why would a Cowboy Shooter use such loads? Too heavy for the spec's laid forth in the Rule Book , overpowered for the targets!
 I am guessing that you mean exclusively shooting full factory loads but how many? Where and what do you consider a steady diet? How many rounds?
 The manufacturer is the best source to answer the longitivity questions. They alone would have the engineering knowlege to answer this question for real!
 I think that there is no reason to set yourself up for failure, and if you intend to only fire such loads in a revolver, just buy the toughest revolver and buy a Ruger... least chances for a dangerous failure
 ZVP

[Cutter Carl]

The clones are tested to SAMMI specx. so magnum loaded would be safe. 

I'd shoot .38special if it were me.  Less sxpensive, less wear and tear on the gun and the shooter.  I'm a big guy and don"t enjoy magnum rounds in my modern Smith and Wesson that much. 

Remember a firearm is a machine, all machines expirence wear and tear.  A steady diet of magnum loads would cause that machine to wear
faster than lesser loadings.

[dogngun]

I have owned several different SAA's (Non Rugers) in .357 magnum and have not had any problems with any of them, at least none related to the cartridge...I like the SAA in that caliber and when I get another one, it will be a .357...

FWIW, the old stuff about the K frame S&W's came about in the 1970's due to the very high heat and pressures generated by the ammo at the time...such as SuperVel 110  and 125 grain magnum loads...that burned the top strap of the K frames and in some cases eroded the throats. There are NO commercial loads like that available today, and if you are fortunate enough to own a K frame S&W .357 magnum, you can pretty much count on your grandchildren shooting it someday...A lot of things become internet legends
and this is one of them...


mark

[fowler]

 Having had a half dozen of each Ruger and Uberti I prefer Uberti hands down!  Rugers just don,t feel right or look right. I shoot Uberti,s better.  I have never replaced a springs in my uberti,s ,but if I do it will be wire springs. They are easy to change and simple to work on. I shoot a 357 and 45 colt Uberti,s. In the 357 mostly 5grs. Unique with 158 swc. And in the woods 7grs Unique with same hardcast 158 swc. Love those Uberti,s. And yes I sent a ruger back for repairs.