Tell me this is a bad idea. Are they durable? Do they work?
For some reason, the concept of 357sig has always intrigued me. Not for the "knock down power", but something that would be fun to shoot at long range.
I hear you can buy a 40 barrel and drop it right in. Could you use the same magazines?
In general, a pistol that does .357SIG will do .40S&W without any issues as they are the same length and overall diameter. One is just necked down with a smaller bullet. They both take the same spring weights and magazines.
That being said, I don't think you gain much of anything by going .357SIG other than a lighter wallet. If you already have something in .40S&W, I would probably just get a .357SIG conversion barrel. The P229 was originally designed to handle .40S&W, so it'll handle .357SIG just fine as well.
Its your money and in the end you can buy what you want. But unless you have a ton of extra cash laying around or you just absolutely have to have a dedicated gun in .357SIG I wouldn't go for it. I have an SP2022 that I got originally in .40S&W. I was able to snag a .357SIG barrel for it without any issues. It's ok to shoot on occasion, but I don't really see the draw to it. Slightly less snappy than .40S&W all while adding significantly more blast and muzzle flash. It certainly sounds more intimidating, but I'd rather stick to my 9mm solutions.
If I had to have a .357 sig, the P229 would be my first choice in one.
3/15/2016
I just sold my P229 .357 barrel and am looking to sell my P226 barrel and remaining ammo.
They are durable, they do work, and they are fun. They are just too expensive to feed and reloading is more of a PITA than other pistol calibers.
Same here. So when I was impressed by my 320 full size but not enough to switch or tinker with my high thumbs position and a feller with three G31s want to swap and I took Gen 4 31.Originally Posted by shootist26
I like the cartridge. It's reputation for "inherent accuracy" intrigued me. Maybe that's so or maybe it's higher pressure ammo is manufactured more strictly, IDK. I've never shot a pistol as well at 50 yards offhand except for a 6" Model 28 perhaps and a custom 1911.
Recently I was shooting some close and fast drills Kevin B was putting me through with the sig bullets and then with my G19 and yeah it slows me down some. But it handles pretty close.
The penetration in testing of the Hornady 135 gr Critical Duty round has me planning to load that up for a woods pistol this deer season. Not as a defensive secondary but close range primary.
Last edited by JHC; 10-28-2015 at 01:26 PM.
“Remember, being healthy is basically just dying as slowly as possible,” Ricky Gervais
Agreed.
I have been contemplating this very thing. The new Sig Legion pistols are rather intriguing, and a pal just traded for a pistol in this caliber that he will use as a "truck gun"; so we have been playing with it.
I was interested in the .357 Sig cartridge because it is something I have next to no experience with, and learning new things is usually good. But after some research, I came to the conclusion that the .357 Sig is neither fish nor fowl. The ammunition is horribly expensive, not widely available, and can be problematic to reload. And as spinmove noted, all you're really getting out of the cartridge is more noise and muzzle blast.
That said, they say its trajectory is amazingly flat out to 100 yards. What little bit of shooting I've done with one supports this. So, shootist, if you're looking to do interesting things at long range with a semi-automatic handgun, forge ahead. If you're just looking to try a P229, I'd say get a 9mm or .40.
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I went through the .357 Sig love affair myself shortly after the caliber was introduced. I shot it through a P229, a Steyr M-357, and later, through GLOCK 31s and 32s.
As TC mentioned, while I generally have little love for the Sig Classic line anymore, if I was moving to an agency that mandated .357 Sig, the P226 or P229 would be my first choice. The caliber has some "wow" factor to it, and it felt "more accurate" at long ranges than .40 S&W (though I didn't ever really test it very scientifically at the time) - BUT it is LOUD, with a lot of flash, the ammunition is crazy expensive and pretty hard to find on the shelf (at least in areas I've lived). Reloading is more difficult as well, and, with the pressures at which typical loads operate, I'd be hesitant to reload a given piece of brass terribly often.
Frankly, I don't see the advantage of the caliber any more. If I need a "woods gun" I'll carry a .45 ACP or a N-Frame .44 Mag/.45 Colt. For everything else, 9mm does me just fine, with less "ouch" (either to the hands/wrists OR wallet) and more rounds in the magazine.
I carried one on duty for over ten years. Great gun, loud but nice gun. Our 229s did get beaten up and some broke but we never replaced the RSA so it was more than likely our own fault. My gun had more rounds than most but about six years into it I had it sent to Sig to be refurbished, never had a problem with my 229. The FAMS I know have something like 30,000 through their guns before they get replaced. In my area there is a trend away from the 357 Sig and a couple of places have had police trade in 229s in 357 for about $450.
From reading the OP, it doesn't sound like your desire for 357 sig. is based on anything practical. It's just a case of the "wantsies".
From a practical standpoint and, yes +P +9 mm Will do 90 to 95% of what 357 sig. will do even at longer-ranges. That said, for some reason I still like it. .357 SIG is the guilty pleasure.
The Sigg P226 and P229 are definitely the best, most solid, and reliable platforms in this caliber. The 226&229 mags will run both 40 and .357. The 239 requires dedicated mags.
Once upon a time, I was issued a P228 in 9mm. We shot 115gr +P+. The frame rails cracked. It was determined the frame cracking was caused because the slide was formed from sheet metal with a pinned in breach block. The cracking was cured by machining the slide and breach block as one piece and changing the model to P229. Then I was issued a P229 in 357 SIG while it seemed all the other agencies were going to 40S&W. The 357 SIG barks and bites more than the 9mm +P+ or the 40S&W. The ammo is also expensive and can be hard to find. I have never personally owned one. I guess that means I don't care for that caliber. Now it seems the trend is away from 357 SIG and 40 S&W back to 9mm.
Last edited by Little Creek; 10-28-2015 at 02:48 PM.
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