The .357 Maximum, formally known as the .357 Remington Maximum or the .357 Max, is a

super magnum A super magnum is a longer and/or more powerful version of a " magnum" cartridge. Although the term "super magnum" typically refers to a handgun cartridge, created by lengthening an existing straight-case design, it can also refer to rifle and sh ...

handgun cartridge originally developed by Elgin Gates as the wildcat .357 SuperMag. The .357 Maximum was introduced into commercial production as a joint-venture by

Remington Arms Company Remington Arms Company, LLC was an American firearms manufacturer, manufacturer of firearms and ammunition, now broken into two companies, each bearing the Remington name. The firearms manufacturer is ''Remington Arms''. The ammunition business ...

and

Ruger Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc., better known by the shortened name Ruger, is an American firearm manufacturing company based in Southport, Connecticut, with production facilities also in Newport, New Hampshire; Mayodan, North Carolina; and Presco ...

in 1983 as a new chambering for the

Ruger Blackhawk The Ruger Blackhawk is a six-shot, single-action revolver manufactured by Sturm, Ruger & Co. It is produced in a variety of finishes, calibers, and barrel lengths. History In the early 1950s, Westerns were popular in movies and television. Colt ...

. Shortly thereafter,

Dan Wesson Firearms Dan Wesson Firearms (DW), part of CZ-USA, is an American handgun manufacturer. The corporate headquarters, customer service and manufacturing plant is located in Norwich, New York. Dan Wesson Firearms is known for its revolver expertise and for ...

and

Thompson/Center Arms Thompson/Center Arms was an American firearms company based in Springfield, Massachusetts. The company was best known for its line of interchangeable-barrel, single-shot pistols and rifles. Thompson/Center also manufactures muzzle-loading rifle ...

introduced firearms in this cartridge. United Sporting Arms chambered it in their Silhouette series single-action revolvers. It is a

.357 Magnum The .357 Smith & Wesson Magnum, .357 S&W Magnum, .357 Magnum, or 9×33mmR as it is known in unofficial metric designation, is a smokeless powder cartridge with a bullet diameter. It was created by Elmer Keith, Phillip B. Sharpe, and Douglas B. ...

case lengthened . Based on the .357 Magnum cartridge, a revolver or single-shot pistol designed for the .357 Remington Maximum will chamber and fire

.38 Special The .38 Special, also commonly known as .38 S&W Special (not to be confused with .38 S&W), .38 Smith & Wesson Special, .38 Spl, .38 Spc, (pronounced "thirty-eight special"), or 9x29mmR is a rimmed, centerfire cartridge designed by Smith & ...

.38 Long Colt The .38 Long Colt, also known as .38 LC, is a black powder cartridge introduced by Colt's Manufacturing Company in 1875. In 1892, it was adopted as a standard military pistol cartridge by the United States Army for the Colt M1892 revolver. The ...

, and

.38 Short Colt The .38 Short Colt, also known as .38 SC, was a heeled bullet cartridge intended for metallic cartridge conversions of the cap and ball Colt 1851 Navy Revolver from the American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 � ...

rounds. Intended primarily as a silhouette cartridge, such high velocity and energy levels have hunting applications.

SAAMI The Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Institute (SAAMI, pronounced "Sammy") is an association of American manufacturers of firearms, ammunition, and components. SAAMI is an accredited standards developer that publishes several Americ ...

pressure level for this cartridge is set at . Despite good performance, the high pressure and velocity of the cartridge caused

flame cutting Principle of burn cutting Oxy-fuel welding (commonly called oxyacetylene welding, oxy welding, or gas welding in the United States) and oxy-fuel cutting are processes that use fuel gases (or liquid fuels such as gasoline or petrol, diesel, ...

of revolver top straps, due to the use of light bullets, and the cartridge has since been dropped by all manufacturers who so chambered their revolvers. Single shot pistols and rifles (e.g.

Thompson/Center Contender The Thompson/Center Contender is a break-action single-shot pistol or rifle that was introduced in 1967 by Thompson/Center Arms. It can be chambered in cartridges from .22 Long Rifle to .45-70 Government. History Warren Center, working in his bas ...

) are still available in this caliber, and remain popular among handloaders. Unprimed brass is still produced every few years by Remington, and is also a stock item from Starline.Starline .357 Maximum brass
/ref>

Performance

Legacy

Guns designed for the .357 Maximum were built on a larger frame than their predecessors. Although Ruger only made about 7,700 Blackhawks chambered in .357 Maximum, the frame size has been used as a base gun to build bigger revolvers in

.445 SuperMag A super magnum is a longer and/or more powerful version of a " magnum" cartridge. Although the term "super magnum" typically refers to a handgun cartridge, created by lengthening an existing straight-case design, it can also refer to rifle and s ...

, .475 Linebaugh Long/Maximum, and .500 Linebaugh Long/Maximum. In the 2011 movie ''

Flypaper Flypaper (also known as a fly ribbon, fly strip, fly capture tape, or fly catcher) is a fly-killing device made of paper coated with a sweetly fragrant, but extremely sticky and sometimes poisonous substance that traps flies and other flying inse ...

'', Wyatt "Jelly" Jenkins (

Pruitt Taylor Vince Pruitt Taylor Vince (born July 5, 1960) is an American character actor. He became best known for his roles in the films ''Shy People'' (1987) and ''Mississippi Burning'' (1988). He also appeared in ''Jacob's Ladder'' (1990), '' Nobody's Fool'' ( ...

) uses a Dan Wesson Model 40 VH which is chambered in .357 Remington Maximum as his main sidearm.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:357 Remington Maximum Pistol and rifle cartridges Remington Arms cartridges Magnum pistol cartridges Wildcat cartridges

Performance

Legacy

See also

References