Thursday, November 27, 2008

SIG P229, .40 or .357 SIG...

One of the advantages to the SIG P229 I lust after is that, though it comes as a .40 caliber, to shoot .357 SIG rounds through it you just need to swap the barrel. The magazines eat both varieties.

I could be wrong, but that seems to be the consensus. Even on SIG's website. Course, the internet has failed me before. I'll double check.

Now, getting a .357 SIG barrel is another matter. I suppose my gun shop can get one without problem.

Keep in mind, those that are brand spanking new to firearms, that the .357 SIG round is NOTHING like the .357 magnum round. Both are very powerful effective rounds at the receiving end, but the SIG variety goes in semi-auto pistols, and the magnum goes in revolvers.

Price is a big difference. Plain Jane retail .40 costs $20, .357 Magnum is $25, and .357 SIG is $30. Generally and comparatively. Your mileage may vary.

Say you conceal-carry a P229, and you have both barrel options and plenty of practice with each... Which caliber do you carry with you for emergencies? I don't know, I'd need to do a lot more research and I am not pressed for time in non-carry civil-rights-quashing state of Maryland. While the .357 SIG looks screaming on paper, it might be too much. Chime in if you have any experience with it.

If you look at just the numbers published by ammo manufacturers, and compile them by muzzle energy you get a table where .357 Magnum is generally near the very top, with .45+P and .357 SIG intermingling close up there in the same area of the top of the table. All over a swath of .40 caliber on the table, then the rest... 9mm and .38 and .380 at the bottom.

Rule of thumb for regular ammo; .357 mag is around 550 foot pounds, .45 is 400, .357 SIG is 475, 9mm is 350, and .40 is 425.

The lowly 'minimum' self defense round .380 is around 200 for the hotter stuff.

Energy is mass (in grains) times velocity (in feet per second) times velocity, all divided by 2 times 32.1739 times 7000.

Muzzle energy is NOT the be-all end-all measurement of cartridge efficacy, keep in mind. Colonel Cooper would rise up from the grave and hunt me down with a pistol shooting 230 grain full metal jacket .45 ACP if I maintained energy was the only measure.

My mind right now, while the .357 SIG is impressive, it's not THAT much more impressive.

Another future purchase/accessories idea is the .22 conversion kit for same. That's one gun that shoots 3 calibers with a quick takedown and swap out. Cool! Of course the conversion is pricey at $370. 1911 conversion kits run in the low $200s.


7 comments:

Anonymous said...

For less than the price of that conversion kit, get a Sig Mosquito. It is slightly large for a .22, and is pretty similarly sized to your 229. Plus, it has all the controls in the same place as a standard Sig handgun. But the big thing is that .22 conversion kits are notoriously finicky. A Mosquito will be a great practice gun, cheaper, and more reliable. Plus, when practicing, it is good to let your weapon cool down instead of constantly rapid firing-- thus swapping back and forth between two very similar weapons will be preferable to having to barrel swap mid-practice.

Sigboy said...

IMHO I had both barrels for my 226 and I found that I didn't use the 357 Sig barrel all that much. It was fun to plink at 100 yards but I was always afraid of the over penetration problem. I sold the barrel and just run the 40. I do like the conversion kit for 22lr though. That would be worth the money.

Anonymous said...

Having had the "thrill" of owning a 357 sig, I don't think it matters that it wasn't a P229. I found the 357 sig more hype than practical. The 40 cal is plenty.

I'm not ballistics expert but my trys at handling the 357 sig showed me that the 357 sig is esentially a flat nose 9 mm crammed on a 40 cal powder charge.

Anonymous said...

The only people I've seen that us .357 Sig is the Secret Service and other Federal LEO's. Frankly, .40 Smith/Wesson performs better,cheaper,and easier to find.

Go with the .40 S/W.

Anonymous said...

Texas DPS also carries Sig .357- I find the 229 very muzzel flippy with just the .40 S/W - I dont have the .357 stuff and have not shot it myself. I figured if it came to scrounging ammo- there would be more .40 around because so many cops and gangsters prefer it

GunGeek said...

Not a Sig... but I have a Glock 27 and it's easy enough to get replacement barrels for other cartridges for it. From more than one manufacturer, in fact.

Same kind of deal- just pop out the barrel and drop in the new one. If I go from 40 to 357Sig I can use the same magazines, but it really does feed better using the Glock 26 magazines when I switch it over to 9mm.

The barrels are under $100.

Mike W. said...

I just bought a P229 w/ a .40 & .357SIG barrel but haven't shot it yet. I'll post up a range report when I do.

Delaware State Police also carry the P229 in .357 SIG. IIRC they were the 1st to adopt .357 SIG as a duty round.