.357 Sig & .40 S&W No debate please.

[Barang]

I don't have .357 Sig that's why I am curious how is it compare to .40 S&W. In terms of snapiness and recoil, are they about the same or one is more?

I'm very interested in knowing before I invest on one. Thanks in advance for your feedback.

[Changalang]

felt recoil is close. the 357 sig will have a little more recoil but mind you the .40 has more mass (bullet weight) to push out so like i said, the recoil is similar. you quickly get used to the recoil, granted the handgun is a good fit for your hands.

that being said 357 sig a cool round. great ballistics with good bullet options BUT it is much pricier to shoot, imo, if you dont reload.

.40 is very common and its easy to get loads of reloads or find boxes at gun stores for reasonable prices.

edit heres some good technical info for comparison of performance from both rounds:

jnb01 from THR
December 26, 2003, 11:57 PM
In .40 S&W, one can select effective bullet weights in 155, 165, and 180gr weights. IMO, this is already an advantage, as variety is a good thing!

As far as the 357 Sig "besting" the .40 in terms of hard barrier penetration, here is some data directly from Winchester's 2002 online LE catalog for their Ranger ammunition.

{Steel}

125gr RA357SIGT....Pen: 23.4 inches/ Exp: .41/ Ret. Weight: 125grs.

180gr RA40T......Pen: 17"/ Exp: .52/ RW: 178grs.

165gr RA40TA....Pen: 20.4"/ Exp: .48/ RW: 165grs.

{Autoglass}

125gr RA357SIGT....Pen: 10.3"/ Exp: .49/ RW: 81grs.

180gr RA40T......Pen: 12"/ Exp: .61/ RW: 153grs.

165gr RA40TA....Pen: 11.3"/ Exp: .61/ RW: 139grs.

I personally consider performance with regards to service caliber handgun projectiles, to be measured in terms of penetration and expansion. Here is some other various data comparing the two calibers using Ranger and Federal Tactical bullets, which overall, are widely considered the best two designs available. The test's are courtesy of Doc Roberts over on Tactical Forums, and David Difabio of ammolab. All results were obtained using 4-layers of 14.oz denim, and are from pistols with barrel lengths between 4 and 4.5 inches.

Federal Tactical 125gr 357 Sig: Vel= 1390fps/ Pen= 13.5"/ Exp= .62

Federal Tactical 180gr .40SW: Vel= 1000fps/ Pen= 12.4"/ Exp= .73

Federal Tactical 165gr .40SW: Vel= 1013fps/ Pen= 12.9"/ Exp= .65


Ranger 125gr RA357T: Vel= 1340fps/ Pen= 13.5"/ Exp= .63

Ranger 180gr RA40T: Vel= 910fps/ Pen= 14.2"/ Exp= .65

Ranger 165gr RA40TA: Vel= 1166fps/ Pen= 13.5"/ Exp= .66

For the sake of comparison, here is the data for the 127gr +P+ RA9TA through 4-layers of 14.oz denim, fired from a G19. Test is courtesy of ammolab.

Ranger 127gr +P+ RA9TA: Vel= 1219fps/ Pen= 14.8"/ Exp= .63

though the info is kinda old and bullet has improved, this gives you kind of a glimpse of the different tested performance between the two

[Bangzoom]

Lil tip

Sig P229 ...you can get it with both barrels

[mjmagee67]

357 Sig bottle neck pistol case pain in the butt to reload!!! Lube before resizing and then case growth during resizing and then possible having to trim. Eeeehhh no thanks.

[Mr. Gillious]

I have a Glock 23 sitting around and I barely ever shoot it. 40SW is snappy enough on it but manageable. (I'm more of a 9mm and 45acp type)

I swapped out the 40SW barrel for a 357SIG barrel and it was a lot more snappy. It was even louder too. The muzzle rised more but it was still fun. The recoil was just a bit more too.

357SIG is a fun round but I would never stock pile it

[Spyder]

If .357Sig was the same price and as easy to reload as 40, I would love it. As it is, it's much harder to find, more expensive, and a pain to reload. I have no interest in it.

Maybe one of the steel case companies should make it!

[Sky_DiveR]

My Google-Fu must suck... Anybody run across any specs on how the 357Sig compares to the 357Mag 125gr.?

[damon1272]

It is essentially the same as a 125 grn load in 357 magnum. Great round. Buy a gun that can switch the barrel like the 229. 357 sig you can shoot point of aim out to 100 yards. Great round but expensive compared to 40.

[Springfield45]

My Google-Fu must suck... Anybody run across any specs on how the 357Sig compares to the 357Mag 125gr.?

The 357 Sig was designed to replicate the Federal Hidroshock 357 Mag loads.

[Barang]

Ok, thank you guys. That technical data was interesting and the swaping of barrel was economical since I already have P229 ( I don't have .357 sig barrel yet ).

If the recoil/snap are similar then I'll stick to my .40 and wait until .357 sig's ammo price comes down.

[damon1272]

It won't ever be cheap. Practice with 40 load with 357

[C.G.]

In my case I perceive the .40SW to have a snappier, more powerful recoil then the Sig .357. I can double tap with .357 no problem, not as well with the .40. The only thing I don't like about the .357 is the night signature flash.

[Changalang]

btw OP like alot of the people in this thread have said, lots of common semi-autos like:
glocks
sigs
m&ps
SW XD
etc

can and will readily accept either factory or aftermarket conversion barrels to allow you to shoot both. Magazines MAY not be compatible between the 2 calibers. may.

[HPBrowningMK3]

Op, I have a number of hanguns in 357 sig, Glocks and Sigs. My favorite is sig 239 and it is snappier than 40sw. I havent had a failure to feed, fire or eject with it yet and I have fired more than 2,000 rounds with it. The round count inclides 1000 factory fmjs, 300 hollow points and the rest my reloads. I like it a lot.

[Barang]

Hmmmm.... I checked TGS and Osage for .375 barrel price, it's $160. Not bad, I'll think about it more. Thanks.