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by North Country Gal » Sun Jan 06, 2019 12:01 pm
The 357 Maximum was, indeed, a revolver cartridge spawned by the sport of silhouette, back in the 80s. Both Dan Wesson and Ruger made revolvers for it that used extra long frames to accommodate the longer 357 Max cartridge. It became a very popular cartridge in the Contender and still is, to this day. Have owned a 357 Max Ruger and several 357 Max barrels for the Contender.
The 357 Max nearly went extinct because of a flame cutting problem on the top strap of the revolver. This was no inherent fault of the cartridge, however. It was caused by reloaders and even ammo companies offering 357 max loads using light 125 grain bullets, which greatly accelerated the problem. When used with the longer 158s or 180s, flame cutting on the top strap is no longer an issue with the Max. Sad to say, though, no one makes a 357 Max revolver, anymore.
Today, however, the Max is strictly a reloader's cartridge with no major ammo company offering it as a factory cartridge. Brass, though, is now available from Starline, last I heard.
The Max is a wonderful cartridge, by the way. Gets you up close to 44 mag energy levels without the recoil of a 44 mag. One of my first ever barrels for the 357 Max was a Contender. A friend who shot silhouette loaded the ammo for me. Great cartridge.
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