I stumbled on an interesting site that rates handguns. I take their ratings with a grain of salt, but there is a lot of good info to be had there.
www.genitron.com/

I just took a quick look but didn't see anything about how they came up with these "ratings".

I did a little research on the only revolver in his tests. He gives it a go - though he says that with 357 ammo it is uncomfortable to shoot.

S&W is having the same problems with the 360 series light-weights as they have with the air-weight revolvers. They break! It is common for gas cutting to erode aluminum frames and the air-weights have been breaking at the front of the top strap and through the threaded portion of the frame that connects the barrel to the frame. Apparently the 360 series suffers from the same problem. S&W tried to limit the gas cutting by cutting a notch in the underside of the top strap and gluing a piece of steel to prevent the erosion from the hot gasses but in doing that they further weakened the top strap!
The titanium cylinder erodes at the front from the hot gasses and the breach end of the barrel does too even though they are using "stainless steel". It is apparently not the same steel that Ruger uses in their guns.

For more details and pictures go here:
www.thegunzone.com/sw340pd.html

even using exotic materials they still can't make a light 357 Magnum that stays together.

I wonder how the polymer framed .357s like Ruger's LCR are dealing with it?

Pumpkinslinger wrote:

I just took a quick look but didn't see anything about how they came up with these "ratings".

Reliability and accuracy don't seem to be considered, but concealabillity, firepower, capacity and recoil seem to figure into their defense factor ratings. Top revolver listed is the Taurus 617 and top pistol is the Springfield Armory XDM in .40 S&W.

Hummm...I'll continue to carry my Kimber UCC II or my S&W Mod 19.