.357 Sig Vs. 40 S&W

Z

ZipTieNinja

New member
I have heard of the .357 Sig, and own a .40 S&W, but are there any true differences? How do they compare in terms of accuracy, price of ammo, recoil......

There is a drop in conversion bbl for my gun, and I am not sure what the true differences are. Would this be a better round for target shoting? Thanks for the help. :cool:
 
The price of ammo is much greater! The cheapest I have found at local gun shops would be no lower than 11.99. Although on cheaperthandirt.com you can find it much less but you have to pay shipping. I did pay 9.99 a box at a gun show not to long ago!

The recoil is very similar, it may be a little snappier. I say it is in between a .40 and .45. It pushes like a .45 and snaps like a .40! It is not as pleasureable to shoot as either of these rounds.

I have heard that the .357 sig 125gr bullet is the ultimate man stopping load! How much truth is in that, I don't know, but it does move at a higher velocity than a .357 mag load at any grain size.

I bought a Federal Arms drop in barrel for my Glock 23 and I believe it is more accurate than the stock .40 barrel. The drop in barrel has traditional rifling versus the hexagonal rifling of the Glock. This may be what makes it more accurate. I'm not totally sure on this. It is something neat to have, plus it is two guns in one. You can shoot two different rounds and only clean one gun and an extra barrel!!:cool:
 
Without getting over complicated. Take a 40 casing , neck it down
at the top where the bullet goes in to a 9mm and put a 124 gr JHP in it. Thats (not exactly) a .357 sig. It takes the same charge (type of powder and amount of powder) as the 40 and pushes the smaller bullet out. Alot of people think its the new
"snazzy" semi auto caliber. It is the rough equivalent in energy
to a 357 mag. The "sig" pushes the same gr bullet as the "mag"
with 90% of its velocity on an average.

The cool thing about the caliber is. It uses 40 cases and pressures to shoot. The only thing you need to do to convert a 40 to a .357 sig is change the barrel. Most of the time.
Same case = same magazine. etc.

Accuracy is theoretically better with more velocity. I would have to say it depends on the gun. The ammo and the shooter.
Some say 40 ammo isnt as accurate as a 9mm...I have yet to see the difference. shoot well
 
Eric, the .40 S&W case is too short to neck down for 357 SIG. 10mm would have the length, but you have the wrong size primer pocket. Only brass that works is 357 SIG brass.
 
Ditto what 357 sig said

I personally like the cartridge and think it shoots very well. The cost to me is irrelevant since I load it. It is a little cheaper for the bullets than for 40 but not much.
 
AHA !!! a perfect thread i can respond to with experience ..
my buddy has a glock 33 ( new ) in .357 sig, i got a walther p99 in .40 sw ...
we were at the range a few days ago and we taped quarters up on some cardboard and took turns shooting the quarters .. niether of us shot a quater dead center, HOWEVER, 5 out of six times, my friends glock 33 in .357 sig TORE a chunck COMPLETLY off of the quarter .. every time i shot the quarter, i only put a decent dent into it .. he was shooting cheap cci blazer and i was shooting an averagely priced .40 load...
we are both BIG TIME B@LL BUSTERS and he just cant stop calling my .40sw a PEASHOOTER ... oh well ..
 
Winchester 9mm 127gr SXT +P+ @ 1250 FPS
Pro Load .357 Sig 125gr Gold Dot @ 1400 FPS

.357 Sig has a fairly substantial speed advantage over even 9mm +P+.
 
Barrels..

So who makes a good .357 Sig bbl for the Beretta 96? I think it may be worth the cost, but I am not sure. I just got the gun not to long ago, and do not have time, money (I went x-mas shopping for big family...), or availability of ammo to shoot much. I have not even tried anything but 180 grain rounds....

I am tring to get better accuracy out of the gun. I shoot rimfire mostly, so recoil adjustment is what I am going through. I shoot large shot guns and rifles, so I am not recoil shy. I get much better groupd with a friends 38 sp revolver....

Anyway, what can I do to get the best accuracy? 357 sig ammo seems to be taking a step in the right direction.... Right now, I get 4 inch groups at 25 feet! :eek: I can get 1 ich groups with my Mk 2 Ruger at that distance just messing around. Might have to start a new thred, "Accurising Beretta 96"... :rolleyes:
 
Thanks for the correction...question. Why do people offer conversion kits..for 40's that only have a barrel? Same overall
bullet length as the 40? Longer case/shorter bullet? = 40 length?
shoot well
 
357sig vs. 40sw

Carry a SIGp229 in 357sig. I must say I was very impressed with the 40sw and carried one for years. Both of these rounds grade very well in my book. Although some say they can tell the difference in kick, I feel very little difference. My oppinion would be to buy the 40 and get the addidional 357 barrel. Cant hurt and will increrase the resale value. Both rounds are much more impressive than a 9mm, which I would only used in a silenced weapon.

Gook luck

Brandon
 
ZipTieNinja

I have Hogue grips with the finger grooves on my 96. This seems to help hold on to the pistol and reduces recoil. Are you getting 4" groups at 25 feet or 25 yards.

The Beretta is a combat design pistol and should give 2"to 4" groups at 25 yards. At 7 yards or 25 feet your groups should be tighter.

Even at 7 yards a 4" group free handed ain't bad. Some here will tell you they can hit the head of a pin at..... anyway combat or self defense these would/are good groups. plunker
 
jearne, with respect, you are wrong . . .

You said:
"But it (.357 Sig) does move at a higher velocity than a .357 mag load at any grain size."

That's simply untrue! Top-end .357 Sig loads have velocities similar to low-end .357 magnum loads.

For example, Remington's 125 grain .357 Sig JHP has a muzzle velocity of 1350 FPS, while Remington's 125 grain 357 magnum SJHP has a muzzle velocity of 1450 FPS. Similarly, Federal's 125 grain .357 Sig FMJ has a muzzle velocity of 1350 FPS, while Federal's 125 grain .357 magnum Hi-Shok JHP has a muzzle velocity of 1450 FPS.

Therefore, for these standard ammunition brands -- all 125 grain bullets -- the magnums velocity and energy is superior to the .357 Sig's -- AND THE DIFFERENTIAL BECOMES EVEN GREATER IF LOADS AT THE TOP-END OF THE SPECIFICATIONS ARE CONSIDERED.

I like the .357 Sig, and this post does not "bash" that round. However, it is inaccurate to suggest the .357 Sig provides generally provides greater velocity or energy than the .357 magnum.
 
Um, you are comparing apples and oranges.

The huge .357 Magnum velocities are almost always from 6"-8" test barrels, while the 1350 FPS figures for .357 Sig are from a 4" test barrel. From comparable barrels, actual chrono data invariably shows that velocities are about the same between .357 Magnum and .357 Sig for 125gr bullets. What .357 Sig can't do is match .357 Magnum ballistics with heavier (147-200gr) bullets, so it isn't nearly as versatile.

Don't own either, just an observation.
 
Speaking of barrels.......Does anyone know where I can get a drop-in .357 sig barrel for a Glock 23? I know I've seen them somewhere, but I don't remember where.
 
Brian48, I have not seen that make of barrel before. I have heard and have good reports on Barstol and Olymipa Barrels. Freedom arms either makes the olymipa or makes a fairly good barrel.

Barstol is probably the most expensive barrel. I believe the $120.00 price from your site is more than the others. Olymipa barrels are around $90.00. Sorry for spelling plunker
 
ZipTieNinja -

The $125 - $150 for a drop in barrel would probably be better spent for ammunition for your .40 S&W. There are really no significant performance (on-target) differences between the rounds. The hype is one thing--the differences in effectiveness is another. (I'd give the same advice to a somebody with a 357 Sig contemplating a .40 S&W barrel--except you would probably save some money on ammunition.)
 
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