I have seen reference to forcing cones and cylinders before, but have never understood exactly what is meant. "Forcing cone" sounds like the throat area of the barrel in a shotgun. In a revolver, is the forcing come in the barrel or is it the end of the cylinder chamber?
357 MAG/ 38 Special opinions?
- Thread starter Senatormac
- Start date
I have seen reference to forcing cones and cylinders before, but have never understood exactly what is meant. "Forcing cone" sounds like the throat area of the barrel in a shotgun. In a revolver, is the forcing come in the barrel or is it the end of the cylinder chamber?
The forcing cone on a revolver is at the back of the barrel, just in front of the cylinder gap. The Ruger GP-100 comes with a five degree angle on the face of the cone. This works well for plated/FMJ bullets. Not so much for lead bullets. Eleven degrees is the preferred angle for shooting lead bullets. Any competent gunsmith can do it for you. If you own a GP-100 the two things you should do to improve the accuracy of your revolver is first have the cylinders checked for the proper diameter. As I understand it Ruger uses gang cutters to cut the cylinders. As the cutters wear the cylinders become narrower. The cylinders on my GP-100 were ridiculously tight. Three of them would turn a .358 sized lead bullet into a .355 bullet upon firing. I had the cylinder throats reamed out to .358. I also had my forcing cone cut to 11 degrees. I noticed an immediate improvement in accuracy when shooting lead bullets.
Spring replacement and shimming the hammer and trigger help with the trigger pull but if you don't check your cylinder throats and, if you intend to shoot lead, leave the forcing cone stock you are missing the two main things that will affect accuracy when you shoot lead bullets IMHO. I have a good friend down in California who always refers to Ruger revolvers as "kit" guns....with good reason. They are, never the less, excellent designs, they just need a bit of TLC. I have three of them, a the SP-01 in .22, the Ruger Gp-100 and a Blackhawk 45cap/45Colt. Great revolvers all.
Take Care
Bob
Spring replacement and shimming the hammer and trigger help with the trigger pull but if you don't check your cylinder throats and, if you intend to shoot lead, leave the forcing cone stock you are missing the two main things that will affect accuracy when you shoot lead bullets IMHO. I have a good friend down in California who always refers to Ruger revolvers as "kit" guns....with good reason. They are, never the less, excellent designs, they just need a bit of TLC. I have three of them, a the SP-01 in .22, the Ruger Gp-100 and a Blackhawk 45cap/45Colt. Great revolvers all.
Take Care
Bob
Gander ite. I missed the question regarding cylinder throats. For most modern revolver the cylinders are not cut straight through but are narrowed down in the front of the cylinder...the cylinder throat. Typically that is where the nose of the bullet would sit. You don;t want a situation where the throat is narrower than the barrel diameter. The throat will effective size down a larger bullet to whatever diameter the throat is. A revolver with tight throats, where the bullet is being swagged down to less than the barrel is never going to be able to shoot accurately. You don't see this happening much anymore but it does occur. If you are not much of a shooter than you never know that your gun might well be causing some of inaccurate results. In my case I could not push a .356 bullet through three of my GP-100 cylinders. Might work OK for undersized plated bullets but not so much for lead bullets. The other three cylinders would not let a .357 bullet pass through them.
Take Care
Bob
Take Care
Bob
I went with a Ruger Blackhawk Convertible 357 Mag - 9mm. With a set of faux stag grips it now has the 'cowboy' look I was looking for.
Ruger Blackhawk Convertible 357 Mag - 9mm c/w Altamont Grips.
Works really well when you reload for a rifle in the same caliber.
Marlin 1894C 357 Mag / 38 Spl
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https://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showthread.php/1682012-Marlin-1894C-357-Mag-38-Spl
I trolled Epp's web site 4-5 days a week all spring waiting for the new one's to hit the stores. When they showed, I was there the next morning to get my pick of the litter. ATM they are few and far between at most on-line retailers.
I primarily shoot 357 reloads out of the Ruger, I've shot a few rounds of 9mm just to say I've tried them. I have not tried 38 spl in the Ruger or Marlin. The Altamont faux stag grips are a bit meater than the factory, I get a better grip with the faux stag @ near max powder levels. My 357 Mag 158 gr reloads chrono graph at 1690 fps from the Marlin.
I like the SA revolver - lever action rifle companions
. I also have a Ruger Single Six 22lr / 22 Mag with a Henry H001TRP 'Small Game Rifle' 22lr companion rifle.I'm saving up some cash, my Marlin 1894 44 Mag / 44 Spl, 'needs' a companion Ruger Blackhawk in 44 Mag /44 Spl
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Marlin 1894 44 Mag / 44 Spl c/w Vortex Diamondback 2-7*35 BDC
- Location
- West Quebec
Definitely a plusWorks really well when you reload for a rifle in the same caliber.
Marlin 1894C 357 Mag / 38 Spl
Ha, good thing. My first restricted purchase is a package deal and includes one of each. A blued 6" GP100 and a 6" 686. Just waiting for the transfer to come through.
Unless one has had a barrel change, it would be prohibited wouldn't it? Or was there a Canadian legal version?
If buying new there is very little difference between the Ruger and S&W. Handle side by side to see which you like better. My GP100 was better built and had an equal trigger to the 686 I handled at the same time. If looking at something much older than usually the S&W is the better choice. However, the Ruger will take more of a pounding which is important if you're going to use high power loads all the time.
Nice, it will be interesting to hear what you think. Post a review after some range time.
Im in the market for another 357 magnum, the wife likes to shoot 38 special and i love 357 mag for target shooting. I looked at both the 686 and a gp100, the ruger is way smoother and better finish. Plus i don't like the smiths push cylinder release, rugers is way better with the pull. A blued gp100 6 " barrel is my choice.
Corey
Corey
Have you looked at the SP101? Might suit your wife very nicely.
If I’m not mistaken the barrel would be 1/8” too short and that’s just dangerous. So you’re correct, prohibited here in Nanny land. I looked into this a year or so ago. None were made to legal length for Canada.
