Opinions on .40 vs. .357 sig for HD

[TheOne]

I just recently purchased a Sig P229 in .40 but also have a .357 barrel on the way. I've shot both rounds through the 229, and can honestly say that my shot was not noticeable different between the two rounds.

In terms of home defense I would like to get some opinions on the better round. I have read plently of articles and opinions but would like some feedback from those who use either round for law enforcement or home defense. I'm not worried about the cost of ammo, in terms of my life I would pay $5 a round if it meant piece of mind. Thanks in advance!

[5150bronco]

my opinion I would go for 40 cal over 357.

[Evo]

The .40 is an almost perfect home defense round, there are many, many stories around the web of LEOs making single shot stops or kills with .40, that's also why the FBI switched all their service pistols over to it. The Sig is a very accurate and proven platform and the .40 will stop anything human that threatens you or your family. I chose the HK USP compact in .40 for the same reasons, my wife doesn't like the recoil of .40 though so she has a Sig P226 in 9mm. Not as quite as much stopping power but she's a better shot than I am anyway and I'd be taking the first shot in most situations.

[nn3453]

Whichever you manage to make hits with. I'd focus on practice and training. Caliber wars come last. Handguns are hard to shoot effectively in a high stress adrenaline charged environment...even for experienced shooters.

[pitchbaby]

Glock 22 with a crimson trace for good measure does the trick in my opinion!

[Rob Roy]

Shot placement over caliber.

[pitchbaby]

Shot placement over caliber.

Ya, I'll stand behind this assessment as well.

[TheOne]

I appreciate the feedback so far, and one thing I do not take lightly is the importance of shot placement and situational shooting. I shoot often and have taken my fair share of courses as well. I will continue to shoot and feel each caliber futher and try to get some hard data.

[Acorn556]

I agree with everyone so far. I think you can look up the data on force and expansion and make a further discussion. I'd also factor in finding some defense ammo and availability. I BELIEVE 357 SIG is usually harder to find than 40. During the whole ammo crunch it seemed that 40 was easier to find for practice ammo at Walmart than anything though.

[thomasanelson]

40. If you needed the ability to shoot through wind shields or other obstrutions, the 357sig might be a good choice. In home defense, if you were to ever discharge your gun, you would want to think about what happens to the bullet if you miss your target. The 357 will go through a lot of dry wall before it stops....as will 40. I prefer a 45acp for handgun home defense. It has great close range stopping power and a big slug that will slow down faster if it hits building supplies. What ever you get, practice makes perfect and 40 is a lot cheaper than 357.

[BossHog]

Either will serve you well. Personally, I have 4 pistols chambered in 357 SIG and two of them (SIG P226ST & GLOCK 32) serve as my HD weapons.

[Sublime_AC]

They are both great calibers, I have an HK USP 40 compact and have a .357 barrel for it as well. The .357 has great ballistic capabilities but I would be very cautious about using it for HD as it can pass through a lot of stuff without stopping.

My HK USP 40 is kind of the odd gun out as I have decided to standardize on .45 and 9mm for most of my handguns. A gun without ammo is worthless and .45 and 9mm are generally much more available rounds, not to mention cheaper to practice with.

So from this point forward all my non-1911 handguns are 9mm... And of course the 1911's are chambered in .45...

[cineski]

I'll take a properly placed shot with a larger caliber than one with the smaller, though ;-)

[savasyn]

Something else to think about with an HD gun is what it would be like shooting indoors without hearing protection. Having never done so, I can only speculate myself, but I'm guessing that using a slower, heavier bullet will do less damage to your own ears(or your family's) than a super fast, light weight one.
I've fired .357 Sig out of a 229 as well and that is one LOUD round! I'll take .40 myself, though based on my speculation above, .45 might be better still. All of them are effective rounds when placed properly so which one will cause the least permanent damage to your ears when fired without hearing protection?

[Sublime_AC]

Honestly in a HD situation I will go for the shotgun first.. I'll take the stopping power of the 12 Gauge over ANY of my handguns any day of the week.. In the event that I can't reach the shotgun I will take ANY of my handguns, any caliber, any quality personal defense ammo available..