random thoughts shooting my "new" 357

[brew]

bought a used older model S & W .357 mag with a 6" bbl from the local chain store last summer for $289.00  It had a scope mount on it so I took it off and finally found a company back in South Dakota who had 1 used rear sight for sale.  Just got it last Thursday and put it on the gun.  Cleaned it up real good.  Had to shoot it so I took the chain store gift card i got for x-mas and bought some cheap 158 gr JHP for it to make it go boom.  Took it out Saturday afternoon and WOW!  First time shooting any 357 and was pleasantly surprised at the low recoil it had and how well it shot with the cheapie ammo.  After some adjustments with the iron sights i was putting all six shots within a snoose can lid size target at 12 yds.  Wife shot it and to no surprise to me was nailing clay pigeons consistently that i had placed on the backstop (she also shoots my S & W 44 mag well enough that I keep the gun safe locked most nights!).  Will have to look for some dies to reload it as we burned through 100 rounds in no time. I love those wheel guns.  On a side note I also found some Czeck loads for my 7.62 X 25 Tokarev that my grandpa brought back from WWII.  Its a true take home gun and is stamped CCCP 1939.  Hasn't been shot since 1986 so I had my reservations about firing it but everything went off without a hitch.  I think if I ever got into a firefight with it you'd be better off throwing it at someone than shooting it but it was cool having a piece of history in your hands !

[FC]

If the barrel in your tokarev is shot you can find replacements on gunbroker, most report them to be very accurate, I've only shot one and I was impressed with it's accuracy.

[brew]

the model of the .357 was a 586....

[brew]

FC----don't know if the bbl is shot out or not...can tell you that since coming "home" in 1944 i only know of less than 50 rounds shot through it since then....still have most of the rounds it came home with...kinda concerned about buying a different bbl cuz it is original and don't want to compromise that....thanks for the info....its cool cuz it doesn't have the import stamp or aftermarket "safety" on it....

[FC]

If all you were looking to do was shoot it I see no reason not to put a different barrel in, keep the old barrel if you want. Ammo is dirt cheap for a tokarev, I just bought 1260 rounds for $90! I think all the old ammo for those is corrosive so keep that in mind when cleaning it and get it well hosed out.

[brew]

yeah i'm not gonna do anything with it but shoot it every once in a while....I'll keep it clean after shooting any ammo through it....it's cool to me cuz i have my granpa's purple heart and documentation on where/when he was shot as well as the take home paperwork from the gov't allowing him to bring the pistol home....that's worth a lot to me-hopefully my grandkids can appreciate it as well.