mrawesome22
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357SIG vs .357Magnum
- Thread starter mrawesome22
- Start date
juliet charley
New member
A 357 SIG versus 10mm would probably makes sense. The 357 SIG every bit as close to the 10mm in performance as it is to the .357 Magnum (the 10mm basically mirrors the .357 Magnum's performance). Since the 10mm is normally an autoloader round like the 357 SIG, you wouldn't have to deal with autoloader-revolver differences muddying the waters.
From Double Tap's website:
357 SIG - 125-grain - 1450 fps
10mm - 135-grain - 1600 fps
.357 Magnum - 125-grain - 1600 fps
From Double Tap's website:
357 SIG - 125-grain - 1450 fps
10mm - 135-grain - 1600 fps
.357 Magnum - 125-grain - 1600 fps
Peter M. Eick
New member
Lets see, One can be had with 8 3/8" barrel N frame revolvers that can toss a 158 at 1550 fps with decent ammo/reloads.
One can be had with a very reliable autoloader that can toss a 88 grn JHP at over 1700 fps with decent reloads.
Sounds like two totally different animals to me.
One can be had with a very reliable autoloader that can toss a 88 grn JHP at over 1700 fps with decent reloads.
Sounds like two totally different animals to me.
Lets see, One can be had with 8 3/8" barrel N frame revolvers that can toss a 158 at 1550 fps with decent ammo/reloads.
And you are going to carry that gun and that load when you go to town every day?
I've carried a .357 Magnum for CCW. It was a S&W 640-1. Great gun. 2.5 inch barrel. And I carried Federal 125 grain JHP's in it. That's the load that made the .357 Magnum THE police load. Seems like just about every department was issuing 4 inch revolvers with that load at around 1450 fps. It developed a reputation as the most reliable "stopper" with a single torso hit.
SIG wanted to make that kind of stopping power in an auto. So those velocities were their benchmark. Out of my G35, 1450 fps from a 125 grain JHP is right on the nose with "standard" .357 SIG loads. You can buy the Double Tap's and go even faster with both .357 SIG and .357 Magnum. But at some point you are passing optimal. We KNOW the 1450 fps loads worked great. Higher than that MIGHT work better. Or it might overpenetrate. Or it might make the guns so much harder to control that it wasn't worth the piddling difference. I'm not at all sure I would want to carry a .357 Magnum revolver with a 125 grain bullet at 1700 fps!
Now I love revolvers. And I'm not about to argue with you that a .357 Magnum revolver is a far more flexible handgun. I've loaded 110 grain screamers and 180 grain loads that could penetrate just about anything. If you want to hunt deer, the revolver is probably your choice. But the .357 SIG was never designed for any flexibility at all. It was designed to push a 125 grain JHP bullet out of a four inch barrel at 1450 fps. Without excessive pressures and without having a giant flash.
As much as I love revolvers, there is no way I can fire just as quickly as the auto with a four inch revolver and those equivalent loads. The .357 Magnum with 125 grain JHP's at 1450 is generally quite a handful out of a four inch duty gun. You get flash and cylinder blast. You get some speedy recoil that pulls you off target. The .357 SIG is no 9mm target load but a follow-up shot is pretty darn quick. And no cylinder gap just makes it more pleasant to shoot.
If you want to carry a .357 Magnum with 125 grain JHP's, then the .357 SIG is worth a look. If you really do want to carry 158 grain bullets, then don't bother. The SIG is a one trick pony but it's a pretty good trick!
Gregg
Deaf Smith
New member
Since virtually all .357 magnums are revolvers (not all, but just about) and all .357 Sigs are autos, then the '.vs.' is moot. The revolvers are harder to shoot fast and strait (at the same time), kick more for the same weight weapon, and hold less ammo, so well that settles the '.vs.'.
My only carry .357 is the 340 PD, cuase there is no .357 sig even close in size or weight (and it kicks a mite!) My Glock 32, on the other hand, kicks no where near what a M66 or M686 4 inch revolver kicks, and shooting fast it is so much easier to hit with.
The full size .357 magnum service guns had their day. Not saying they are junk or they won't do the deed, but the autos, like the .357 Sigs, are overall definatly superior for self defense.
My only carry .357 is the 340 PD, cuase there is no .357 sig even close in size or weight (and it kicks a mite!) My Glock 32, on the other hand, kicks no where near what a M66 or M686 4 inch revolver kicks, and shooting fast it is so much easier to hit with.
The full size .357 magnum service guns had their day. Not saying they are junk or they won't do the deed, but the autos, like the .357 Sigs, are overall definatly superior for self defense.
KALIFORNIST
New member
I would like to see a 357 sig based on a 10mm case instead of a 40 S&W case.I bet that would hang with .357 magnum a little closer then 357 sig does.
I would like to see a 357 sig based on a 10mm case instead of a 40 S&W case.I bet that would hang with .357 magnum a little closer then 357 sig does.
There is - it used to be used primarily in competition shooting. The 9X25 Dillon.
the .357 sig is not as powerful as the .357 mag,
That's true if you consider the top end .357 Magnum loads. Especially if you also add in the heavyweight slugs. But the point of my post is that the .357 SIG is the same velocity as the original .357 Magnum loads that established the reputation of the cartridge as a man-stopper supreme. If the standard is a 125 grain JHP at 1450 fps, the SIG can do that easily. (It can actually go quite a bit faster if you look at what Double Tap sells. I keep wondering if we will see an official .357 SIG +P some day.)
As I said before, the 1450 fps load out of the Magnum worked great at stopping bad guys. We don't know for sure that pushing it another 200 fps will actually result in higher stopping power. It might, it might actually make it lower in stopping power. (We do know for sure that it makes the gun harder to control.) So whether the .357 Magnum has more "top end potential" doesn't really matter if you are talking a CCW or duty gun.
Gregg
When one looks at both rounds performance from 4" barrels, we see the following:http://www.winchester.com/products/catalog/handgundetail.aspx?symbol=USA357SJHP&cart=MzU3IFNJRw==
http://www.winchester.com/products/catalog/handgundetail.aspx?symbol=X3576P&cart=MzU3IE1hZ251bQ==
http://www.federalpremium.com/ballistics/Ammo_Search.aspx?act=choose&firearm=2&s1=1
http://www.federalpremium.com/ballistics/Ammo_Search.aspx?act=choose&firearm=2&s1=1
http://www.remington.com/products/ammunition/ballistics/results/default.aspx?type=pistol&cal=13
http://www.remington.com/products/ammunition/ballistics/results/default.aspx?type=pistol&cal=5
http://www.speer-ammo.com/ballistics/ammo.aspx
From these ballistics, it seems that a .357 SIG normally runs about 100fps slower than a .357 Magnum in 125grn bullets (Remington Golden Sabers and Speer short barrel loads being the exception). Cor-Bon .357 SIG actually outperforms the same company's Magnum by 25fps.
http://www.dakotaammo.net/products/corbon/convjhp.htm
When one moves into the more exotic manufacturers (Double Tap and Buffalo Bore) the .357 SIG can be brought up to the level of other manufacturer's full power .357 Magnum, but then again these makers load the Magnum to levels that create an even wider margin between the two.
http://www.buffalobore.com/ammunition/default.htm#357sig
http://www.buffalobore.com/ammunition/default.htm#357
http://www.doubletapammo.com/php/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_32&products_id=79
http://www.doubletapammo.com/php/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_27&products_id=48
What I think it all boils down to is that in most cases, a .357 SIG approximates the ballistics of a .357 Magnum from a snub-nosed barrel (which in and of itself has proven itself to be very effective). While the .357 Magnum does have the ballistic advantage, I think the real question is one of platform rather than caliber. Personally, I prefer a revolver for reasons more than just the caliber.
http://www.winchester.com/products/catalog/handgundetail.aspx?symbol=X3576P&cart=MzU3IE1hZ251bQ==
http://www.federalpremium.com/ballistics/Ammo_Search.aspx?act=choose&firearm=2&s1=1
http://www.federalpremium.com/ballistics/Ammo_Search.aspx?act=choose&firearm=2&s1=1
http://www.remington.com/products/ammunition/ballistics/results/default.aspx?type=pistol&cal=13
http://www.remington.com/products/ammunition/ballistics/results/default.aspx?type=pistol&cal=5
http://www.speer-ammo.com/ballistics/ammo.aspx
From these ballistics, it seems that a .357 SIG normally runs about 100fps slower than a .357 Magnum in 125grn bullets (Remington Golden Sabers and Speer short barrel loads being the exception). Cor-Bon .357 SIG actually outperforms the same company's Magnum by 25fps.
http://www.dakotaammo.net/products/corbon/convjhp.htm
When one moves into the more exotic manufacturers (Double Tap and Buffalo Bore) the .357 SIG can be brought up to the level of other manufacturer's full power .357 Magnum, but then again these makers load the Magnum to levels that create an even wider margin between the two.
http://www.buffalobore.com/ammunition/default.htm#357sig
http://www.buffalobore.com/ammunition/default.htm#357
http://www.doubletapammo.com/php/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_32&products_id=79
http://www.doubletapammo.com/php/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_27&products_id=48
What I think it all boils down to is that in most cases, a .357 SIG approximates the ballistics of a .357 Magnum from a snub-nosed barrel (which in and of itself has proven itself to be very effective). While the .357 Magnum does have the ballistic advantage, I think the real question is one of platform rather than caliber. Personally, I prefer a revolver for reasons more than just the caliber.