Double Tap's heavy .357 SIG? (147gr & 180gr)

[Inebriated]

So... I've got a good lead on a G33 right now, and I'm thinking I'll be using it as my hiking gun. Now, I've done "some" research on .357 SIG in the past, but not too much. I'm looking around at Double Tap's heavier bullet options, and they look pretty good. The 180gr is advertised at 1050 fps @ 441 ft/lbs, and the 147gr is advertised at 1296 fps @ 550 ft/lbs. Both from a 4.5" barrel. What thinks you? The 180gr has a darn good sectional density, and should penetrate well, as should the 147gr. Would you guys recommend anything else? The intent of this is to have a cartridge that is capable of anything the NC woods have to offer (tweakers and dogs being the most likely, but also the occasional black bear if I ever started hiking up in the mountains).

And before anyone get's caught up in the ".357 SIG aint no .357 Mag"... I'm not looking for .357 Mag performance. I'm just looking for a decent .357 SIG option.

Thanks for any input!

 

[Thompsoncustom]

And before anyone get's caught up in the ".357 SIG aint no .357 Mag"... I'm not looking for .357 Mag performance. I'm just looking for a decent .357 SIG option.

Maybe not but i can push a 173gr out of my 9mm over 1000fps so those speed are nothing to write home about. Double tap makes ok ammo but underwood's far surpasses most, tho he doesn't offer much in 357 sig. I would email him and see if he will make some heavy .357 as Underwood and buffalo bore only offer 125gr.

Your on the right track the heaviest bullet going as fast as possible is going to be the best for hiking it's just I think u can do a lot better than tho's numbers but maybe I'm wrong.

 

[Deaf Smith]

Inebriated,

If the worst you have to worry about is the black bear then I'd stick with the regular .357 Sig loads in your Glock 33.

1300+ FPS is nothing to sneeze at. Bears will not be knocked off their feet with any .357 Sig or .357 magnum load made so accuracy is more important as it will have plenty of penetration.

My Glock 33 uses CCI .357 Sig Gold dot ammo (as does my other two Glock .357 Sigs, 32 and 31.)

But if I wanted max power I'd got to Doubletap or Cor-Bon or Underwoods.

And the heaviest weight would be the 147, but then I'd be fine with the regular 125gr loads.

Deaf

 

[deadduck357]

.357 SIG is a great round. Only problem with it is the ammunition's industry hasn't done sht with it. Not a good array of bullet weights to choose from. Good to hear Double Tap has done something with it.

 

[Inebriated]

Maybe not but i can push a 173gr out of my 9mm over 1000fps so those speed are nothing to write home about. Double tap makes ok ammo but underwood's far surpasses most, tho he doesn't offer much in 357 sig. I would email him and see if he will make some heavy .357 as Underwood and buffalo bore only offer 125gr.

Your on the right track the heaviest bullet going as fast as possible is going to be the best for hiking it's just I think u can do a lot better than tho's numbers but maybe I'm wrong.

I'll talk to Kevin at some point about it. Funny thing is I've spoke to him a couple times now about .357 SIG at one point or another... it keeps calling me, but I don't commit.

I could always get the dies and some brass I guess, and try to find some heavier bullets and load some of my own ammo for up in the mountains. But I just can't find any non-125gr hard cast or fmj-fp bullets. I'll have to look around some. Also, wondering if the 5.3" barrel from LWD would up my velocity considerably? I'm planning on an extended barrel anyway, solely for velocity, but I actually have no idea how barrel length affects .357 SIG, outside of the numbers posted by DT and BB.

Inebriated,

If the worst you have to worry about is the black bear then I'd stick with the regular .357 Sig loads in your Glock 33.

1300+ FPS is nothing to sneeze at. Bears will not be knocked off their feet with any .357 Sig or .357 magnum load made so accuracy is more important as it will have plenty of penetration.

My Glock 33 uses CCI .357 Sig Gold dot ammo (as does my other two Glock .357 Sigs, 32 and 31.)

But if I wanted max power I'd got to Doubletap or Cor-Bon or Underwoods.

And the heaviest weight would be the 147, but then I'd be fine with the regular 125gr loads.

Deaf

Yeah, I'm kind of thinking I'll just keep whatever carry load I go with (Hornady XTP 147, most likely) for any hiking outside of bear areas, since there's nothing here with terribly thick bones/skin/fat. Then switch to a heavy FMJ if I hit the mountains. Because like I said... tweakers, dogs, and coyotes are more of a threat in my area than any bear ever will be. I'd actually rather be a few feet from the bear than the tweaker... at least bears are somewhat predictable lol.

.357 SIG is a great round. Only problem with it is the ammunition's industry hasn't done sht with it. Not a good array of bullet weights to choose from. Good to hear Double Tap has done something with it.

That's what is keeping me from committing to .357 SIG. I am into reloading now, and I know what I'd LIKE to get out of the cartridge, but last I checked, there was a very limited selection of bullets. Maybe that's changed. I'd like to get a 180 grainer moving as fast as possible, but I'm not sure if the bullets are out there.

 

[Thompsoncustom]

there was a very limited selection of bullets

Any Idea what your bore slugs at? Probably not since you don't reload for it yet but there might be more bullets available then you think, just not for .357 sig.

I quickly looked over at Glocktalk and the gun I'm using here in .357 sig slugged at .3555 so same as my 9mm.

Now you just need to think outside the box a little for really light bullets you can use 380auto which are going to destroy on impact because there going to be way over driven, you can use any 9mm bullet, and most .357 mag/38 spl they might be need resized.

In my 9mm I have one bullet I cast that's for 380auto and one for .357 mag but they both work great in my 9mm.

I think these days if you have a 10mm or .357sig you need to reload to get the full potential out of the round.

 

[Corpral_Agarn]

I usually just load up with Hornady 147 gr and call it good. We have black bears and cats where I like to hike and ride horseback.
I have only once seen a bear not run from the sight of humans or yelling so I am not so much worried about the bears here. Cats have pretty thin skin and in 20 years or so that we have been going only once has a cat attacked one of our horses. (Pretty nasty cut down through the shoulder muscle, but it healed nicely and you can hardly see the scar).

Like the OP said, around here its the weirdos/tweakers/pot farmers that concern me. But I don't feel too undergunned with my 11 rounds of .357 Sig (plus reload or two) if I did have to "confront" a bear or cat. But I don't buy into the magic bullet mentality when it comes to stopping any angry animal (humans included).

 

[rbernie]

As an aside to the main question, I feel compelled to note that while I like 357 Sig in general, but I don't like it much out of my G31s. The Glock just doesn't seem to have enough slide mass and slide resistance to handle the recoil of the 357 Sig particularly well. Maybe I'm just a baby, but I find it, well, not much fun to shoot.

I'm debating on a G20 build with a 357 Sig barrel, but that's about the only way that I'd shoot a nuclear 357 Sig load in a Glock. Right now, I'm having a lot of fun with a G20 Gen4 in 10mm, so the 357 Sig project is on the back burner while I play with the ten.

 

[Inebriated]

Any Idea what your bore slugs at? Probably not since you don't reload for it yet but there might be more bullets available then you think, just not for .357 sig.

I quickly looked over at Glocktalk and the gun I'm using here in .357 sig slugged at .3555 so same as my 9mm.

Now you just need to think outside the box a little for really light bullets you can use 380auto which are going to destroy on impact because there going to be way over driven, you can use any 9mm bullet, and most .357 mag/38 spl they might be need resized.

In my 9mm I have one bullet I cast that's for 380auto and one for .357 mag but they both work great in my 9mm.

I think these days if you have a 10mm or .357sig you need to reload to get the full potential out of the round.

I don't have the gun yet. Still working on getting a deal from a friend. But I'm sure I'll end up loading if not immediately. My only concern using 9mm bullets is the neck tension... Everything I'm seeing pretty much states that 9mm bullets aren't shaped right for .357 SIG cases to take have proper neck tension.

I usually just load up with Hornady 147 gr and call it good. We have black bears and cats where I like to hike and ride horseback.
I have only once seen a bear not run from the sight of humans or yelling so I am not so much worried about the bears here. Cats have pretty thin skin and in 20 years or so that we have been going only once has a cat attacked one of our horses. (Pretty nasty cut down through the shoulder muscle, but it healed nicely and you can hardly see the scar).

Like the OP said, around here its the weirdos/tweakers/pot farmers that concern me. But I don't feel too undergunned with my 11 rounds of .357 Sig (plus reload or two) if I did have to "confront" a bear or cat. But I don't buy into the magic bullet mentality when it comes to stopping any angry animal (humans included).

Cats scare me more than any bear. So sneaky.

As an aside to the main question, I feel compelled to note that while I like 357 Sig in general, but I don't like it much out of my G31s. The Glock just doesn't seem to have enough slide mass and slide resistance to handle the recoil of the 357 Sig particularly well. Maybe I'm just a baby, but I find it, well, not much fun to shoot.

I'm debating on a G20 build with a 357 Sig barrel, but that's about the only way that I'd shoot a nuclear 357 Sig load in a Glock. Right now, I'm having a lot of fun with a G20 Gen4 in 10mm, so the 357 Sig project is on the back burner while I play with the ten.

I've yet to shoot any hot .357 SIG loads, but I could see where the Glock slide isn't exactly ideal. Is it just snappy? I bet a .357 SIG barrel in the 20 would be a real sweet shooter, though.

 

[rbernie]

Is it just snappy?

To me, it's a lot like shooting full house 357 Mag loads in a relatively lightweight snubby - it can be done, but you'll not likely want to do a whole bunch of it. I find the G20 shooting pretty hot loads to be much more comfortable.

 

[Inebriated]

Oh, ok. That's not TOO terrible. I could see it being unpleasant, though.

But you're right about the G20. I've shot some hot handloads through a friend's G20, and it stays pretty pleasant.

 

[Snowdog]

I'm shooting Underwood .357sig 125gr Gold Dot @ 1500-ish FPS (among, if not the hottest available) from my M&P40c using a Storm Lake barrel and find it comfortable enough for extended sessions.

I'm glad I went with M&P due to the ergos, but if the Glock really recoils that much more, then I guess that's something else I should be thankful for.

 

[Cycletroll]

Warning: the following is highly experimental and reflects loads not found in any manual. This info may prove hazardous to your health should you choose to follow it!

If your gun has the a generous throat (most factory Glock Sig barrels do) you can load Hornady .357 mag bullets (nominally .357 but in actuality most are .355-.356). The canneleure placement on 125gr, 140gr, 158gr, and even 180gr Hornady XTP's make for perfect COL for the Glock. The lip of the brass can be crimped into the bottom of the canneleure to provide great bullet grip so there are no neck tension setback issues.

IMR 800x works great for serious velocities. Power Pistol and Longshot work well too.

Out of a factory Glock 31 (with 22#recoil spring) I have loaded 140gr XTP to 1400fps, 158gr XTP to 1275, and 180gr XTP to 1175. These loads show no serious pressure sign with Remington brass and Rem 6.5 SR primers. The recoil is noticeable and will probably wear the gun out sooner.
It is important that any experimentation along these lines includes making sure heavier/longer bullets fit in the chamber without the bullet jamming into the rifling and of course all loads should be worked up carefully.
In my experience the .357Sig can be made to match the .357 Magnum in equivalent length barrel.

 

[481]

Warning: the following is highly experimental and reflects loads not found in any manual. This info may prove hazardous to your health should you choose to follow it!

If your gun has the a generous throat (most factory Glock Sig barrels do) you can load Hornady .357 mag bullets (nominally .357 but in actuality most are .355-.356). The canneleure placement on 125gr, 140gr, 158gr, and even 180gr Hornady XTP's make for perfect COL for the Glock. The lip of the brass can be crimped into the bottom of the canneleure to provide great bullet grip so there are no neck tension setback issues.

IMR 800x works great for serious velocities. Power Pistol and Longshot work well too.

Out of a factory Glock 31 (with 22#recoil spring) I have loaded 140gr XTP to 1400fps, 158gr XTP to 1275, and 180gr XTP to 1175. These loads show no serious pressure sign with Remington brass and Rem 6.5 SR primers. The recoil is noticeable and will probably wear the gun out sooner.
It is important that any experimentation along these lines includes making sure heavier/longer bullets fit in the chamber without the bullet jamming into the rifling and of course all loads should be worked up carefully.
In my experience the .357Sig can be made to match the .357 Magnum in equivalent length barrel.

There is something about IMR 800X that I like for "pushing the limit" (that's not a recommendation to do it) with the mid-bore service calibers. I have also had good luck with Herco of all things.