.45 vs. .357

**Abrams.357** · December 4th, 2006, 08:23 PM

What is the difference between the .45 ACP and .357 sig? ( in Glock 21/31)

**junyo** · December 4th, 2006, 10:38 PM

About 0.096".

**jdlv4_0** · December 4th, 2006, 10:52 PM

a .357 sig is basically a higher velocity 9mm. It's a 9mm slug on a necked down .40s&w case. Pending on the load the slug is usually heavier than a standard 9mm.

**G21.45** · December 5th, 2006, 12:01 AM

Not to mention the fact that the 357 SIG is highly impractical to practice with, shoots through just about anything you point it at: engine blocks, car doors, the sidewall of your neighbor's house, 3 people in a row, etc.

Two of my acquaintances rushed out and bought 357 SIG's back when they were all the rage 2 or 3 years ago. Their new pistols turned out to be tough to get cartridges for, tough to reload for, and expensive to shoot. They were, also, troubled by lots of recoil, and lots of chamber pressure, too.

Both of these guys have ended up trading their new 357 SIG's for 45 acp pistols; and I got to say, 'I told ya so!'

**DPB** · December 5th, 2006, 12:47 AM

I was going to say that ammo was more expensive, but I checked and it's not. Ammo price is comparable.

Assuming that .357 SIG ballistics are indeed comparable to .357 Mag (as advertised), then they are also comparable to .45 ACP. So the terminal ballistics would seem to be pretty close.

It is difficult to compare recoil, since there are few platforms that are available in both calibers. The .357 SIGs I've seen seemed to recoil "sharper" than .45s, but not necessarily harder, if that makes any sense at all.

If you reload, the .45 is a straight wall case, and the .357 is a bottleneck. Straight walled is simpler to reload, and the lower operating pressures will allow you to use the brass longer.

If you are planning to shoot a lot, here is another point to consider: .45 guns were pretty much all built to be .45 guns. Most of the .357 SIGs are built on 9mm platforms. Given that the .357 SIG operates at significantly higher pressures than 9mm, I would expect the service life of the guns to be a lot shorter, with more parts breakage along the way. Of course, this will mostly only be true with a hard use gun, and a quality .357 SIG will probably outlast the shooting 99% of owners will do with it.

**G21.45** · December 5th, 2006, 01:18 AM

Originally Posted by DPB

I was going to say that ammo was more expensive, but I checked and it's not. Ammo price is comparable. ...

This is the only part of your post that I disagree with. The rest of your comments are, mostly, spot on! Where, the heck, do you buy ammo? I certainly can't find 50 rounds of 357 SIG for 10 & change anywhere.

(A huge, $9.00 per box if I buy a case!)

PS: I don't want to get into terminal ballastics, tonight, other than to say that there ain't a 45 acp made that'll penetrate like a 357 SIG.

**DR. GLOCK** · December 22nd, 2006, 07:25 AM

Originally Posted by DPB

I was going to say that ammo was more expensive, but I checked and it's not. Ammo price is comparable.

Assuming that .357 SIG ballistics are indeed comparable to .357 Mag (as advertised), then they are also comparable to .45 ACP. So the terminal ballistics would seem to be pretty close.

It is difficult to compare recoil, since there are few platforms that are available in both calibers. The .357 SIGs I've seen seemed to recoil "sharper" than .45s, but not necessarily harder, if that makes any sense at all.

If you reload, the .45 is a straight wall case, and the .357 is a bottleneck. Straight walled is simpler to reload, and the lower operating pressures will allow you to use the brass longer.

If you are planning to shoot a lot, here is another point to consider: .45 guns were pretty much all built to be .45 guns. Most of the .357 SIGs are built on 9mm platforms. Given that the .357 SIG operates at significantly higher pressures than 9mm, I would expect the service life of the guns to be a lot shorter, with more parts breakage along the way. Of course, this will mostly only be true with a hard use gun, and a quality .357 SIG will probably outlast the shooting 99% of owners will do with it.

Like I said a $100 .40 barrel would have solved these "problems". If thier problem was with the caliber and not the gun.

**FRISteve** · December 22nd, 2006, 04:02 PM

Originally Posted by DPB

Most of the .357 SIGs are built on 9mm platforms. Given that the .357 SIG operates at significantly higher pressures than 9mm

I see/read this way too often. Riddle me this, Batman - what **are** the pressures of 9x19 and 357Sig?

Bet you all will be surprised.

**shermdo** · April 10th, 2008, 10:40 PM

Originally Posted by DPB

If you are planning to shoot a lot, here is another point to consider: .45 guns were pretty much all built to be .45 guns. Most of the .357 SIGs are built on 9mm platforms. Given that the .357 SIG operates at significantly higher pressures than 9mm, I would expect the service life of the guns to be a lot shorter, with more parts breakage along the way. Of course, this will mostly only be true with a hard use gun, and a quality .357 SIG will probably outlast the shooting 99% of owners will do with it.

If I am recalling things correctly there may be a bit of confusion here ... IIRC the .357SIG is a .40 cal case necked down to a take a .9mm bullet. Many of the most popular .357SIG handguns (Glock, Sig, XD) are nothing more than the .40 cal model with a different barrel. You use standard .40 cal mags for the .357 Sig rounds.

I do not own a .357 Sig but if I decided to purchase one I would probably buy a Sig .40 cal ad then order a .357 Sig barrel for it.

**DR. GLOCK** · December 21st, 2006, 05:14 PM

Originally Posted by G21.45

Not to mention the fact that the 357 SIG is highly impractical to practice with, shoots through just about anything you point it at: engine blocks, car doors, the sidewall of your neighbor's house, 3 people in a row, etc.

Two of my acquaintances rushed out and bought 357 SIG's back when they were all the rage 2 or 3 years ago. Their new pistols turned out to be tough to get cartridges for, tough to reload for, and expensive to shoot. They were, also, troubled by lots of recoil, and lots of chamber pressure, too.

Both of these guys have ended up trading their new 357 SIG's for 45 acp pistols; and I got to say, 'I told ya so!'

Why didn't they just buy .40 barrels?