Description
Most 357 Magnum owners shoot far more paper than anything else, and paying defensive-ammunition prices to do it makes no sense. The Sellier Bellot 357 Magnum 158gr LFN is honest range ammunition at a range-ammunition price.
- What a Lead Flat Nose Bullet Is Good For
- Sellier Bellot 357 Magnum 158gr LFN Specifications
- Honest Notes on Shooting Lead
What a Lead Flat Nose Bullet Is Good For
A lead flat nose is the oldest bullet shape still in regular production, and it survives because it does two things well. The flat meplat cuts a clean round hole in paper rather than tearing it, which makes scoring unambiguous on a target. And it hits steel squarely and transfers energy without ricocheting back the way a round nose sometimes will.
At 158 grains and 1125 feet per second the Sellier Bellot 357 Magnum 158gr LFN produces roughly 445 foot-pounds. That is a genuine 357 Magnum load rather than a downloaded 38 Special in a magnum case, so recoil and report are representative of what you will feel with defensive ammunition. Practicing with a load that recoils like nothing teaches you nothing.
Sellier and Bellot has been making handgun ammunition in Vlasim, Czech Republic since 1825. The primers are non-corrosive and the brass is boxer primed and genuinely reloadable, which is not universally true of imported ammunition at this price.
Sellier Bellot 357 Magnum 158gr LFN Specifications
Bare lead has one practical consequence worth understanding: it fouls a bore faster than a jacketed bullet. At 1125 feet per second leading is mild and a bronze brush handles it, but if you shoot several hundred rounds in a session you will notice it before a jacketed load would show anything. Clean accordingly and it is a non-issue.
Some indoor ranges prohibit unjacketed lead because of airborne particulate, so check the rules before you drive out with a case of the Sellier Bellot 357 Magnum 158gr LFN. Outdoor ranges rarely care.
This is not a defensive or hunting load. A flat-nosed lead bullet does not expand, so terminal performance is straight-line penetration and nothing else. For carry, a jacketed hollow point in the same weight is the correct choice, and for deer a soft point.
- Cartridge: 357 Magnum
- Bullet weight: 158 grain
- Bullet type: LFN, lead flat nose
- Muzzle velocity: 1125 feet per second
- Muzzle energy: approximately 445 foot-pounds
- G1 ballistic coefficient: 0.171
- Case: brass, boxer primed, reloadable
- Primer: non-corrosive boxer
- Country of origin: Czech Republic
- Rounds per box: 50
- Manufacturer part number: SB357L
- UPC: 754908500758
Honest Notes on Shooting Lead
Buy the Sellier Bellot 357 Magnum 158gr LFN if you shoot a 357 revolver or lever gun in volume and want full-power practice ammunition without paying premium prices. It is also fine plinking and steel ammunition, and the brass is worth saving if you reload.
Skip it for concealed carry or home defense. A non-expanding lead bullet is the wrong tool there, and a jacketed hollow point costs more for good reason.
Skip it if your range bans unjacketed lead, or if you dislike cleaning. Neither is a defect in the ammunition, but both are worth knowing before you buy a case rather than after.
Comparing 357 options? The Remington UMC 357 Mag 125gr JSP is a jacketed alternative at similar prices. If you are buying a revolver to feed, the Taurus M65 in 357 Magnum is a durable stainless option. Sellier and Bellot publishes full handgun ammunition data on its own site.
MAG5 Firearms stocks practice and defensive handgun ammunition side by side. If you are setting up a revolver for both range and carry, ask and we can pair the loads for you.
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