Sig P226 .40/.357 Thoughts?

I picked up a used stainless 40S&W P226 a long while back just to have something in another caliber when 45acp was hard to come by on store shelves. A few weeks ago, on an impulse, I picked up a 357Sig barrel for it. I got to shoot it last week and was a little underwhelmed.

I guess I was expecting some loud, large recoil like I heard from 357 revolvers. The recoil seemed less than the 40S&W to me and the noise didn't seem anything greater than other 40S&W or 45acp rounds. The foot pounds supposedly is much greater on the 357Sig than the 40S&W but I will have to go on faith because it didn't seem anything different.

So my question is to others what are your experiences shooting 357Sig? I know all the arguments that a 357 revolver has hotter loads than the 357Sig and that the 357Sig was designed to match a specific revolver load. I picked up the barrel for additional caliber options and for fun so it isn't a really big issue for me but was surprised when I shot it.

45acpForMe said:

I guess I was expecting some loud, large recoil like I heard from 357 revolvers. The recoil seemed less than the 40S&W to me and the noise didn't seem anything greater than other 40S&W or 45acp rounds. The foot pounds supposedly is much greater on the 357Sig than the 40S&W but I will have to go on faith because it didn't seem anything different.

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Howdy Pard!
While I don't have a sig, my pardner has a similar situation with a Sig 229. He got the Sig 357 barrel and Sig 357 rounds. Basically, you and my pard share the same sort of setup in two different models of Sig.

Okay, with that preamble out of the way, let's talk about the round in question.

From what he tells me, the round is constructed in this way: You have a .40 cal cartridge crimped down on a 9mm slug. So the recoil or bang won't be different from a .40 cal S&W. The slug will fly at greater velocity and produce better penetration (like you'd see from a .357, but it ain't a .357 round. With me so far?

So the feel won't be different from firing a .40 cal, will send a 9mm slug down range, and achieve greater velocity and penetration. But it ain't a .357, which is why they specify that it is a Sig .357 round, not a .357 round per se.

Hope this makes some sort of sense, and that I've explained it clearly enough. It ain't easy when translating what my pardner is telling me with the T.V. blaring while he cleans his weapons! LOL!

Blessings,
M-Taliesin

Ammo loadings vary widely in .357sig. It is the highest pressure spec round you'll find in commercial pistol ammo. Few Ammo Manufacturers really want to push it that far. Pick up a box of hydra-shok for it, and you'll see what it's really like. It punches harder than my 1911.

The bullet is lighter, but the pressure (should be) even higher than a .40. Once you read about it, you kinda wonder if it's wise to hold it in your hand next to your face...

I roll my own.

G31, btw.

Ballistics Comparisons:

Velocity
Load No Caliber Muzzle 25 Y 50 Y 75 Y 100 Y
P357S1 357 Sig 1350 1266 1192 1130 1078
PD9HS5H 9mm 1060 1026 996 970 946
P40HS1 40 S&W 1000 972 946 923 901

Energy in Foot Pounds (To nearest 5 Foot Pounds)

Energy
Load No Caliber Muzzle 25 Y 50 Y 75 Y 100 Y
P357S1 357 Sig 506 445 395 354 323
PD9HS5H 9mm 337 316 298 282 268
P40HS1 40 S&W 400 377 358 340 324


Thanks for the info. I went to Federal's web site and looked at some hydra-shok.
It does seem that 357sig does come close to the lighter load of 357 magnum. I guess I will keep the barrel just as something to have and shoot for fun. I don't see really carrying it that much unless the SHTF.

Ballistics Comparisons:


Velocity
Load No Caliber Muzzle 25 Y 50 Y 75 Y 100 Y
P357HS1 357 Magnum 1240 1187 1139 1098 1063
PD357HS2H 357 Magnum 1410 1331 1258 1193 1138


Energy
Load No Caliber Muzzle 25 Y 50 Y 75 Y 100 Y
P357HS1 357 Magnum 539 494 455 423 396
PD357HS2H 357 Magnum 574 511 457 411 373

VA State police use the round in their SIG P229's as to several other state police departments. Some federal agencies are reputed to use the round as well. Your stainless P226 is heavy enough to seriously dampen the recoil of any round it fires, hence it doesn't kick like the mule you might expect from a round that has "357" in its name. The naming of the round is a marketing stroke of genius on SIG's part, IMHO.

I'm a civilian and carry the round in a P229. I also have drop in .40 S & W and 9mm barrels for the same gun, so I can go with any of those calibers depending upon what's available and how much I want to spend. I certainly don't have experience shooting anyone with it, but the police agencies who use the .357 SIG seem to be very happy with it.

I think the bottom line is the round delivers more energy downrange than 9mm or .40 and even .45, albeit with a smaller hole. It comes close to lighter .357 revolver loads. The high velocity almost certainly improves hollow point expansion. You can get more powerful handgun rounds in revolvers, but the .357 SIG provides an effective defensive round in a semi-auto with more than a dozen rounds before reloading. What's not to like?

I chose the 45acp round because of size (including expansion), power with an eye at minimizing over penetration for safety reasons.

The 40S&W is a great round and adds capacity over the 45acp but the snappy recoil made it less desireable with additional time between followup shots.

The Sig 357 seems to have the advantage in capacity and power but I could get hot 45acp loads from doubletap or elsewhere to exceed it and approach 357magnum power.

.45 ACP 230gr. Controlled Expansion JHP 50rds$43.00


An excellent deep penetrating defensive load.

Caliber : .45ACP

Bullet : 230gr. Winchester ® JHP

Ballistics : 1010fps/ 521 ft./lbs. - 5" 1911




For the most part for me the Sig 357 round is a curiousity and something to play with. With it having seemingly less recoil than 40s&w I may try to get my daughter to shoot it to see if she can handle it. I would rather see her carry a 357, 40, 45 over a 9mm/380.

Thanks for the info on VA state police. It seems all police forces (in the US) are moving away from 9mm and toward something hotter.

45acpForMe said:

I chose the 45acp round because of size (including expansion), power with an eye at minimizing over penetration for safety reasons.

The 40S&W is a great round and adds capacity over the 45acp but the snappy recoil made it less desireable with additional time between followup shots.

The Sig 357 seems to have the advantage in capacity and power but I could get hot 45acp loads from doubletap or elsewhere to exceed it and approach 357magnum power.

.45 ACP 230gr. Controlled Expansion JHP 50rds$43.00

An excellent deep penetrating defensive load.

Caliber : .45ACP

Bullet : 230gr. Winchester ® JHP

Ballistics : 1010fps/ 521 ft./lbs. - 5" 1911




For the most part for me the Sig 357 round is a curiousity and something to play with. With it having seemingly less recoil than 40s&w I may try to get my daughter to shoot it to see if she can handle it. I would rather see her carry a 357, 40, 45 over a 9mm/380.

Thanks for the info on VA state police. It seems all police forces (in the US) are moving away from 9mm and toward something hotter.

Click to expand...

I would argue that the .40 S&W doesn't have a snappy recoil. It's already a watered-down 10mm that has been neutered.