Go back and tell the clerck I said he was woose. I have a PD 329 which is the .44 mag. of that gun and have no trouble with it and heavy loads. But, then, I also fired 45 rounds of .500 S&W full house loads over sand bag at one setting. I love big handguns.
The .357 would make a good carry gun because you would not notice the recoil if you were useing it for self defence, and the semi would also make a nice carry gun, easier for most people to shoot, but heaver to carry.