# .357 sig



## Medic15 (May 7, 2009)

Hello all, 

Im new to the forums, and handguns in general, just had a question I cant seem to find an answer to...

Im looking at purchasing a handgun and have been looking at different manufacturers websites and Im noticeing that many offer several different calibers ie 9mm, .40, and .357 sig, and I am familiar with 9 and .40 but what is .357 sig and how does it rank/compare to 9 an .40? Any insite is apprieciated.

Medic15


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## YFZsandrider (Feb 28, 2009)

The short explaination- .357 sig is a "necked down" .40 cal, meaning that it is .357 caliber in front of a .40 caliber casing. IMO, 357 sig is a fun round to shoot, but it does have a lot of snap, its pretty expensive as well. One of the cool things about the round is that, being a .40 cal on the back end, they can be loaded into a .40 cal magazine, and only need to have a .357 sig barrel swapped in the gun to fire. Someone else could fill you in on the ballistics.


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## Todd (Jul 3, 2006)

Welcome to the forum!

If you haven't already done so, please take a few minutes to familiarize yourself with the forum guidelines.

http://www.handgunforum.net/misc.php...rum_guidelines

Here's a pretty good break down for you: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.357_SIG

If this is your first handgun, stick to the 9mm.


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## literaltrance (Dec 24, 2008)

Wikipedia has a pretty good page which explains a lot of 357 SIG details, including a good photo of the cartridge:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/357_Sig

YFZ is right, it's _basically_ a 40S&W casing necked down to fire 9mm bullets, although NOT exactly. As the page explains, a 40S&W casing is just shy in length of being able to be used as a 357SIG casing, and 9mm bullets are just a little too round/short to be properly seated in a 357SIG casing. These are tiny, subtle differences but I imagine they're crucial when it comes to function and safety. One incredible facet about the 357SIG is the several reports of its consistency in regards to recoil/pressure/accuracy. I have often wondered....if this is true, why hasn't there been more of an effort to research and isolate a lower-recoil load and use it for competition?

As far as shooting it, well...I like it!  YFZ was also gracious enough to point out the similarities between 40S&W and 357SIG casings allow most handguns to fire both with a simple barrel swap. I do have this setup for my P229 and end up practicing with 40S&W and carrying 357SIG. I should mention, 357SIG has slightly higher pressures than 40S&W (40000 PSI vs 35000PSI if I remember correctly) and because of this there is concern about whether or not a stiffer spring is needed for the 357SIG. I personally think this depends on the quality of the firearm and the load you are shooting. I am comfortable enough shooting 357SIG target and self-defense loads out of my P229 which has a spring for 40S&W pressures. Many people have done it and there have been no significant reports of substantial, additional wear to the firearm when people have done this. I will NOT however, shoot Buffalo Bore's 357SIG through my P229 without a stiffer spring. Something about Buffalo Bore rounds makes them ridiculously powerful.


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## Todd (Jul 3, 2006)

Todd said:


> Here's a pretty good break down for you: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.357_SIG





literaltrance said:


> Wikipedia has a pretty good page which explains a lot of 357 SIG details, including a good photo of the cartridge:
> 
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/357_Sig


Is there an echo in here? :smt033


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## Medic15 (May 7, 2009)

Thanks for all the insight!!!


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## literaltrance (Dec 24, 2008)

Todd said:


> Is there an echo in here? :smt033


LOL damn how did I miss that? My apologies.


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## Guest (May 7, 2009)

For a _complete_ list of handgun cartridges, try this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_handgun_cartridges

Scott


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## YFZsandrider (Feb 28, 2009)

Hey Dr. Jones- My father has a p229 that he picked up a 357sig barrel for and loves the caliber. Since then, he's purhcased a HK P2000 sk(sub) in .357 sig. talk about having some snap! poly sub-compact throwing those things around.

kinda cool, he purchased it through bud's, I believe, when they were throwing in a .40 barrel with the purchase as a promo.



"One incredible facet about the 357SIG is the several reports of its consistency in regards to recoil/pressure/accuracy." 

I'm reading that correctly? You're saying it has very good accuracy and consistency, but the recoil puts it out of the market for competitive shooting??? clarify that if you could


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## Mdnitedrftr (Aug 10, 2006)

I love my .357 sig, but I wouldnt recommend it for a first gun.


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## Bigpoppy (Oct 19, 2008)

I just acquired an M&P in 357Sig a couple of weeks ago and I too read all of the reviews saying that possible follow up shots might be difficult. It has not been the case as far as I am concerned. The S&WM&P Platform is very good in my opinion. The M&P357Sig is no harder to shoot accurate follow up shots than the M&P9 in my opinion although I am 6ft.4in 280lbs.


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