The Ruger Redhawk .357

by
posted on October 13, 2014
rugerred357.jpg

My young friend was a tall and powerfully built man with good athletic ability. He was well-suited for police work, full of common sense and sympathy for the citizen, but unwilling to tolerate unlawful behavior. Let’s say he was “firm” in dealing with the inmates while serving his time in the jail division. Naturally, he was intent on getting out to patrol, where the rubber meets the road. We became friends and he barraged me with questions about guns and shooting. At the range one day, we shot several kinds of guns, most of them the various revolvers we were allowed to use. Inevitably the question came up—which gun do I buy? As always, I recommended as much gun as he could comfortably carry. In fast shooting sessions, weight soaks up recoil and you deliver more accurate rapid fire. A couple of days later, I saw what he had purchased.

It was a Ruger Redhawk in .357 Magnum with the shorter 5 ½-inch barrel. When Bill Ruger designed this gun, he wanted a big one for the American Sportsman. It was the company’s first large frame DA/SA revolver and needed a massive frame and cylinder to take the real magnum cartridges for which it was chambered—.44, .41 and .357 Magnum. I doubt if Mr. Ruger ever intended this brute to ride in a policeman’s holster. In .44 Magnum with 5½-inch barrel, the gun weighs 49 ounces. The .357 version has to be heavier, because far less metal is removed to make the barrel and cylinder. I am betting it was around 53 to 54 ounces. Now, that’s a heavy gun, but our hero strapped it on every day, when he went to work as a patrolman. And everybody giggled and pointed fingers at the young cop and his overgrown handgun.

Damned if it didn’t happen—the proverbial dark night and a long hallway with a man with a gun at the end. Reason and persuasion failed; the felon brought up his handgun and the deputy his (heavy) service revolver. He fired a pair that were as fast and accurate as any peace officer ever fired. Use enough gun.

Latest

heavy machine gun crew with DShK on tripod pointing in air above trees
heavy machine gun crew with DShK on tripod pointing in air above trees

Red Fifty: The Soviet 12.7 mm DShK Heavy Machine Gun

While the Browning .50-cal. M2 machine gun has been unequaled for more than a century, John Moses Browning’s genius design has had one significant 12.7 mm competitor: the Soviet DShK.

Support The NRA Youth Education Summit (YES) On Giving Tuesday

With more than 1,200 students having graduated from the program and over $700,000 in scholarships awarded since 1996, NRA's YES is an immersive leadership program for high school students eager to learn about the foundations of our nation, the importance of civic engagement and the role of the Second Amendment.

Rifleman Review: Remington 360 Buckhammer

Remington Ammunition's 360 Buckhammer is a straight-wall hunting cartridge that's designed to give deer hunters an ideal round for their Midwestern hunt.

New For 2025: EAA Girsan Witness2311 Brat, Match and MatchX

European American Armory Corp. (EAA) introduced an affordable variation of the double-stack 1911 design with their Girsan Witness2311 in 2023, continually adding additional chamberings and slide length options. New for 2025, the company is adding three new versions of the Witness2311 with the Match, MatchX and Brat models.

Review: Citadel Trakr

At less than 4 lbs., this repeating rifle is easy on the back while also being extraordinarily easy on the budget.

Freedom Munitions To Move Ammo Component Production To Idaho

Freedom Munitions has announced it will be consolidating its projectile component production from X-Treme Bullets out of Nevada into its Lewiston, Idaho, facilities.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.