.40 S&W vs. 357 Sig. Which is better?

[Preacher.]

Why are you limiting your choices to those two cartridges?

Well I wasn't necessarily trying to limit my choice, I just liked the 40 and 357 sig, but that don't mean I'm set on that. What did you have n mind?

 

[CPshooter]

I've read that .357sig is inherently more reliable at feeding ammo without jamming due to the necked design. Just something to think about since nobody mentioned it (maybe I missed it though).

 

[OilyPablo]

One thing great about buying a .40 semi-auto - if popular enough there will be or soon to be a .357Sig barrel for the same gun. I do it with my Sigs AND Glocks. Sweet deal, IMHO.

 

[Sport45]

Well I wasn't necessarily trying to limit my choice, I just liked the 40 and 357 sig, but that don't mean I'm set on that. What did you have n mind?

For a carry gun I prefer the size and capacity of 9mm and find them to be easier to control as well. (I also like .38 special snubs.)

.40 is snappy in a full size gun and I don't shoot it well at all in a compact. But that's just me. This may not apply to you at all.

 

[stevolene]

you sure? I'm no gunsmith but the extractor pin is straight on my 23 and curves inward on my 19, I would love to hear from a gunsmith, preferably a Glock expert that could tell me for SURE.... I could turn my 23 into a 9MM by changing barrel and buying 9MM mags

 

[2wheels]

My buddy did it with his G22 with a simple barrel swap, didn't even need to use 9mm mags.

 

[WoodchuckAssassin]

The .357 Sig is a very cool round that actually does preform a lot like the 357 magnum round that it was attemping to replicate. Still, I would have to go with the 40. Like several others have said, the availability just isn't there for the .357 Sig.

From a design standpoint, I really do like the Sig. It was made to help old-timers transition from the 357 revolvers to semiautos. Neat idea.

 

[OilyPablo]

you sure? I'm no gunsmith but the extractor pin is straight on my 23 and curves inward on my 19, I would love to hear from a gunsmith, preferably a Glock expert that could tell me for SURE.... I could turn my 23 into a 9MM by changing barrel and buying 9MM mags

Not sure who you are asking.

I was referring to .40 to .357Sig conversions (and 10mm to .357Sig!). Barrel swap ONLY. Same mags, everything the same. So you can really have BOTH easily.

As for going down to 9mm, I would think you would need a 9mm mag. And you couldn't do the reverse. Funny, my buddy did it with his Glock .40. Used new 9mm mags, had feeding problems and then (maybe unrelated) his slide lock spring busted in two and his slide fell off. He's Mr. Glock. Ah, perfection. We had a good laugh. Super easy to fix. We cleaned his 9mm Lone Wolf conversion barrel up a bit (super tight) and it runs like a top.

 

[ku4hx]

you sure? I'm no gunsmith but the extractor pin is straight on my 23 and curves inward on my 19, I would love to hear from a gunsmith, preferably a Glock expert that could tell me for SURE.... I could turn my 23 into a 9MM by changing barrel and buying 9MM mags

You don't need a smith to tell you what works. I bought a Lone Wolf 40-9 conversion barrel for my G27 and it worked perfectly through several hundred rounds. I sold it because I bought a G26. I also have a 357 Sig barrel for my G23 (fits my G27 too) and it's functioning has been flawless through a round count approaching 2,000.

If you want to swap the extractor et al, that's certainly not a bad thing. But if you do the research, you'll find successful barrel-only swaps all over the web.

Do I rely on swaps for carry or bedside table duty? Of course not since the original design has been changed. But that's not the point, a barrel-only swap can be most successful and if only changing the barrel works as you want it too then you can stop there

 

[greenlion]

Personally, for 99% of CCW purposes, I think a straight-walled case serves a better purpose than a bottleneck case. With .357 Sig, you get a hole just slightly wider than a 9mm, but not any deeper, but it comes at the cost of higher recoil and reduced capacity. I think if you want to choose between .357 sig and .40, I'd go with the .40.

I think you may be confused about what the .357 SIG is. It uses exactly the same bullet that the 9mm does, so it is not any wider than 9mm. The velocity increase over the 9mm should also translate into deeper penetration.

 

[m2steven]

I have a Glock 22 and 32. The 357 is much more accurate than the 40cal. It's a laser. I love the round and shoot reloads I find on the internet. The 40 is generally cheaper to get in new ammo and have no problems in feeling it's a really great round for self defense. The Glock 32 is so much more fun to shoot than the 22 I think because the round is noticeably faster and for me, more accurate. The recoil is different one from another but both are quite stout shot from a plastic pistol. Oddly enough my Glock 36 (45 cal) is easier to shoot than the other two. It's a hoss.

Besides, you can get a 40 cal pistol and put a 357 sig barrel in it and you're good to go with both calibers.