Reloading 357 sig

About all I know about it is, it has a very short case neck.

So bullet selection is critical.

Typical 9mm bullets will seat so short the ogive curve will be pushed down inside the case mouth.

They make bullets specifically shaped for the .357 SIG to avoid this.

rc

Your 40 plates will work for the sig, lube IS needed. I just got into this caliber and was looking into what I need. Some whine about loading for it but the need to lube and careful bullet selection and seating seem to cure most anything from what I have read.

Here's a little trick for 357 Sig: if you have a carbide 40 or 10mm sizer die you can take out the decapper stem and size the case body without lube. Then you can run them through the steel 357 die to size the necks and decap, and do it with minimal lube.

You will want a bullet with long, straight sides to grip the short neck. AA #9 is often preferred as a powder because it fills the case and won't allow a bullet to be set back upon striking the feed ramp.

You won't need the bulge buster. The bottlenecked case allows for essentially 100% case head support and still have reliable feeding.

I've reloaded .357 Sig for many years. I use a Montana Gold 357 Sig 125 grain bullet. My load is 7.0 grains of Unique. OAL is 1.140. I've found this load to be accurate and mild (for a 357 Sig).

The only thing different about loading 357 Sig is the need to lube before sizing. (And the need to tumble and remove the lube after sizing - at least I do.)

I'm an RCBS die guy. When I start reloading 357 Sig though, I had problems with the decapper snapping and other problems, the details of which I've since forgotten. I found a long discussion in a forum at the time of others who were having the same problem with RCBS 357 Sig dies. The consensus (in that forum) was to use Lee dies for 357 Sig. I bought a set (the only Lee set I use) and have never had a problem since.

Great round and easy to load for - just have to include the two additional lube and delube steps. I've never had the bulge problem. I do use a Lee factory crimp die as the final step.

357 sig is not as bad as some say to reload for... i use the lee die set. Lube every other case when resizing, then thumble in corncob to delube. I dont bell the case mouths. Because i use berrys 124 gr 357 sig bullets that are heavy plated to stand up to 1500 fps. The base of the bullet is round enough that it slides in easy. With no belling means i dont crimp either. I have never had setbsck issues in the 1000 + ive reloaded. Ive never been able to get aa 9 powder so i mostly use aa 7 and hs-6. Both work equally well, but wont prevent setback like aa9 might. I made some 95 gr loads this eeekend using 13.3 grains of aa7. They were just over 1600 fps!

Like said bullet selection is critical for this little round.

Dillon is the only mfg that makes carbide dies for this caliber. Well worth the money unless you like lubing the brass.

Dillon carbide dies for the .357 SIG used alone demand case lube, just as other bottleneck carbide dies such as the Dillon .223/5.56 and .30-'06 dies in carbide demand lubrication.

It is possible to avoid case lube with the .357 SIG by doing body and neck in two (or more) steps. As by first using carbide dies for the .40 S&W (I like the Redding double ring, the Redding push through as well as conventional .40 S&W carbide dies) to do the .357 SIG case body only then for a second stage the Dillon carbide .357 sig die used for neck sizing only will work. Depending on funnel opening while sizing the .357 SIG neck and the need to get all the neck tension that's there to be got many combinations will work some may not. A wide funnel opening 9x19 die say may not work for the second stage. A small base 9x19 as from AGW may or may not work better to size to the bottom of the neck and so get a good grip on the bullet in a specific combination. This is going beyond the book so check and double check to be sure any specific combination has ample neck tension, headspaces right, and feeds well.

As everybody knows bullet selection is critical and many bullets intended for the 9x19. 9x21, .356 TSW, 9x23 tapered cases and .38 Super +P (or oddballs 9mm Steyr et al) straight case don't align with the case and throat in .357 Sig. Many people will interchange brands and shapes of cup and core as well as lead cast bullets but this sometimes doesn't work with the .357 SIG. For cast bullets fat flat nose shorter bullets are necessary just as shorter nosed are mandatory in jacketed bullets - hollow point, truncated cone may work but not long round noses. Best to find an example of successful use in a reputable source rather than eyeball. I use a SAECO 377 mold and still think the bullet looks funny next to all the Keith Design or even the #130 gallery and #68 family in .45 ACP.

A very good friend loads for the .357 Sig and he tells me it takes A LOT of pressure on the press arm to properly size the neck. (he has a RECB Rockchucker so it's a good heavy press) If you don't get the neck tension right you will not produce a good round because the neck is so short.

I've been loading the 357 SIG for a while now and find that it is fairly easy to reload... there are a few things to watch for ... I don't flare the brass, but I do chamfer the inside of the neck ... bullet seating can be a little tricky ... keeping the bullet straight without collapsing the case ... but once you get the feel ... it is no big problem.

Here is my process...
Lube the cases in a ziploc bag(OneShot)...
Run the cases through a Redding G-Rx die ... not really to remove bulges ...
Run the cases through a RCBS sizing die... finishes sizing body and neck
Tumble to remove lube ...
Prime...
Charge with powder... HS6, 800X, AA9, Longshot... others
Seat bullet... my favorite is the 124 gr Hornady XTP ... others

I use Blue Dot with excellent results!!

I recommend the Hornady dies, started with the Lee dies they gave issues with the shoulder not being setback consistently as well as pinching fingers while holding the bullet to make sure it was straight due to the need for minimal case flaring to ensure good neck tension. The Hornady dies have a really good bullet seating die setup. I was sizing in two steps, using the .40 to size the body and the .357 for the neck, but the Hornadys take such a small amount of lube I do it in one operation now. If you want to use plated bullets both Xtreme and I think Berrys offer 124 grain FP and HP that will work.I have used the Xtremes with good success. I use Hogdons CFEpistol with great results as my powder. I do use the Lee bottleneck FCD to minimize any chance of setback. As stated in a previous reply bullet selection and good neck tension are critical with this caliber.

357 sig reloading feeding problems

Decided to get autoloader again, mainly into large revolvers. Having trouble with reloading 357 sig. Trying 3 at time, release slide aim and gun fires, but
2nd won't fire, slide looks completely shut, firing pin indicator looks good, so eject bullet. Release slide and it picks up 3rd bullet and gun fires normally again. Done this 3 times all three times same 1st fires, 2nd don't, 3rd fires.
Reloading manual says overall length to be 1.140, set mine at 1.136. On 3rd firing did check 2nd bullet that didn't fire and it was still at 1.136 overall. Using Dillion dies. Shooting Springfield tactical XD. Had read using 9mm bullets can be problem, but using 125 gr. bullets designed for 357 sig, so that shouldn't be problem. Using new brass, had tried shortcutting and not sizing, but they would chamber properly, so all the new rounds trying has be sized first. Would overall length cause this, wonder should seat bullets longer or shorter?

Cheeta ... pull your barrel out of the gun(this is the case gauge that you need to use) and do the so called plunk test ... the loaded cartridge should drop right in with a ....plunk! You can also see if you have the correct sizing looking how the cartridge sets in the chamber ... if it stick out too much you may not have pushed the shoulder back enough .... if it goes in too far then you may have pushed the shoulder back too much ... I check with sized primed brass before loading and again after loading .... if you find a problem you will know which stage of the process is causing the problem...

Heading to work, will try pulling barrel and check that out first thing in morning, thanks for info.

Rounds look okay. I did do several modifications before ever shooting pistol. Changed barrel with EFK FireDragon ported barrel, installed Springer Precision trigger kit and replaced hollow guide rode with solid. Don't have original barrel, sold it, so can't try switching it. Don't know if trigger kit could have anything to do, did have to modify trigger bar during installation per instructions.
Decided to experiment with snapcap I have, loaded snapcap then live round on top. Went out and shoot gun, it cycled the snapcap. But it wouldn't even try to fire. Just pull trigger and won't do anything. And again if you hold slide back and then release on snap cap it'll load and firing pin will hit. So thinking problem may be somewhere other than reloading.

Cheeta ... Yea ...sounds that you may have a gun problem rather than a ammo problem ...

the 357 SIG normally feeds pretty good ... the chamber is funnel shaped and helps with feeding ...

I'd look really hard at that trigger bar ....

I have started reloading 357sig a few weeks ago and have successfully fired my handloaded rounds. For now I am using a plated bullet to keep my cost down until I have it all figured out. The bullet I am using is Berry's 124gr HBFP TP. The shape of the bullet do make a difference and I have found the Berry's is easy to load and make the 1.135" COL. This COL is also the suggested COL by Berry's. The Berry's has a diameter of .356, which also gives you more neck tension. This is my process:

**edit** My resize methodology is currently under review http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=773184
-Resize with Lee carbide 40S&W die
-Resize with Lee 357sig die without any lube
(please note that I have measured all my 9mm, 40S$W and 357SIG shellholders and picked the thinnest one to make sure the shoulder is pushed back enough)
-Normal priming
-I flare the brass using my 357sig expander die since I am loading plated not jacketed bullets.
-Powder of you choice. I have started with Unique and Longshot.
-I seat to a COL of 1.135"
-I use the Lee 357sig FCD crimp die. I try not to overcrimp it and try to get to a .378" crimp. The process I use with the Lee FCD is to lift the ram to the top with the shellholder in place. Screw in the FCD until I feel some resistance. Then screw the FCD in another 2/6 turn and tighten the nut.

Please note that whatever process you follow, make sure you create a few dummy rounds and then do the following tests:
-Plunk test
-Cycle the bullet through your gun without riding the slide. Make sure it cycles without any issues and check for setback. I don't expect no setback at all since even factory rounds will have setback. I was happy with a .003" setback after 5 cycles.
-Do the bathroom scale test. I'm not sure what the correct weight is you are looking for, but if I can push the round down to over 24lbs, then it is good enough for me. I normally do the cycle test first and then the scale test with the same dummy round. If it passes the scale test even after a very small setback, then you should be good to go.

Loading 357sig is a bit more challenging, but it is talso the main reason why I started reloading it. Another reason is also that it is fun to shoot.

Be safe and enjoy the 357sig reloading journey.

I don't flare the brass, but I do chamfer the inside of the neck

Click to expand...

+1 That's good advice.

I’ve found that AA9 works best for me when loading 124 and 115 gr bullets but if you use a lighter bullet, you may have to use a faster powder. I loaded up some 90 gr HP using AA9 and was surprised to find they were actually slower than the heavier bullets were because all the powder was not burning before the bullet exited the barrel. It produced quite a flash but was slower. I switched to Bullseye for the 90 gr and got the velocity up where it should be.

I tested a number of different bullets and brands and found that only the bonded bullets retained most of their weight. All other bullets, both jacketed and plated, fragmented or otherwise came apart on impact. If you plan to use your loads for self defense, don’t trust anything but bonded bullets such as Gold Dot, XTP or the Winchester Ranger type bullets.

Looks like my problem was in the trigger bar, on another site, seen where someone have same trouble. To check I held down on striker safety lever, then push down on the hump on the trigger bar. Should of springed back when released, it wouldn't. So I had to modify the back some to get it where it would spring back correctly. Won't be able to shoot until Monday, so won't know for sure, but hopefully that was the problem.

Cheeta ... check out this thread(Walkalong) .... deals with bullet seating and crimps ... also show where a cartridge should set in a barrel correctly.... worth reading all the way through...

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=506678

Very easy to get bullet set back which can ruin your day. Use bulky powders if you can find them to help prevent that, e.g AA9, IMR800X, Bluedot.

as noted,use specific 9mm bullets for 357 SIG. Also as noted,the Montana Gold, also Hornady XTP, and look for long enough lead bullets.

In addition to a bulky powder, (prefer AA9 but haven't found any for a while) I normally use XTPs and crimp with the Lee FCD.

Mike

Me and my daughter went out today and finished off the 30 reloads I had left. Didn't have any trouble, they all feed and fired normally. So was the trigger bar from kit that was problem. Looks like I'm good to go now. Now going to load bunch more and have some more fun with pistol. First time my 14 yr. old daughter shot semi pistol, she really enjoyed it. Only other pistol I had was the 460 S&W and she won't shoot it!