Sig Sauer

The term 'caliber' can refer to the actual diameter of the bore in inches or to a name given to a particular cartridge. The name may reflect the actual caliber, or not. In the case of .357 Magnum the name is the true measurement, while cartridges like .38 Special and .38/40 Winchester, also known as the .38 WCF both refer to .38 caliber while the caliber is actually .400" for .38/40 and .357" for .38 Special.

What this means is that there are multiple guns that take different cartridges that can be described as ".357 caliber firearm". This would include guns chambered for .38 Special, .357 Magnum, .357 Maximum, and so forth, including several rifle cartridges, but, ironically, not guns in .357 SIG.

The .357 SIG cartridge is an approximately .40 caliber case necked down to .355" diameter. The .355" bullets are used in the 9mm family of ammo (9mm Luger and .380 ACP/9mm Kurz).

The name is a marketing gimmick. It alludes to the idea that .357 SIG gives similar ballistics to the very popular .357 Magnum revolver cartridge. The difference is that the shorter rimless case of the .357 SIG makes designing semi-automatic pistols for it much easier.

SIG Sauer does not presently make firearms in .357 Magnum, but does offer several models in .357 SIG.

The .357 SIG is a rimless bottlenecked pistol cartridge developed in 1994 by SIG Sauer. While it is based on a .40 S&W case necked down to accept 0.355-inch (9.0 mm) bullets, the .357 SIG brass is slightly longer (0.009-inch (0.23 mm) to 0.020-inch (0.51 mm))

.357 refers to the cartridge having similar ballistics to 125 grain .357 Magnum revolver round. SIG refers to SIG Sauer, the company which developed the cartridge.

The cartridge is not proprietary. Other manufacturers, such as Glock, also offer pistols in this caliber.

Most .40 S&W pistols can be converted to .357 SIG by replacing the barrel, but sometimes the recoil spring must be changed as well. Pistols with especially strong recoil springs can accept either cartridge with a barrel change. Magazines will freely interchange between the two cartridges in most pistols. .357 SIG barrel kits have allowed this cartridge to gain in popularity among handgun owners.

However, the .357 SIG is loaded to higher pressures than the .40 S&W and may not be suitable for use in all .40 S&W-chambered pistols due to the increase in bolt thrust.

C.I.P. and the SAAMI pressure limits for .40 S&W are 225 MPa and 35,000 psi.

According to the C.I.P. guidelines the .357 SIG case can handle up to 305 MPa (44,236 psi) piezo pressure. In C.I.P. regulated countries every pistol cartridge combo has to be proofed at 130% of this maximum C.I.P. pressure to certify for sale to consumers.

The SAAMI pressure limit for the .357 SIG is set at 275.80 MPa (40,000 psi), piezo pressure.

It's not the best to everyone. If someone told you it is the best, that was an opinion. It may be many people's favorite. I like SIG Sauer's just fine, but there are many other brands and calibers out there. It depends on what the use of a gun is.

This pistol is good if you want a full sized pistol that holds a decent amount of rounds. It is designed to hold 12 in the magazine. In California and some states citizens are limited to 10 round magazines.

This caliber is interesting because it started out with the .40 S&W case and necked it down and uses a 9mm bullet. It is not similar to the .357 magnum, mostly chambered in revolvers. It is a fast bullet as far as semiautomatic pistols go.

The sig does not make a 357 magnum in a semi auto, they do however make a pistol chambered for the 357 sig caliber. There are only two manufacturers, to my knowledge, that make a semi auto chambered for a 357 mag, Coonan Arms and Magnum Research Desert Eagle, all other 357 mags are either revolver or rifle.