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The .357 SIG is an effective service pistol cartridge developed in 1994 by Federal Cartridge and SIG Arms. Like many other cartridges, it is misnamed, as it actually uses .355 inch (9mm) bullets.

It is only slightly inferior, ballistically, to the 10mm Auto and the two cartridges boast almost identical 100 yard trajectories. The .357 SIG's advantage is that it fits in medium frame (9x19mm size) pistols, while the 10mm Auto requires a large frame (.45 ACP size) pistol. Ultimately, of course, the 10mm can achieve greater killing power with its bigger and heavier 180 grain bullets.

Factory loaded ammunition is available from Federal, CCI/Speer, Remington, Winchester and probably others. The most common load seems to be a 125 grain bullet (JHP or FMJ) at 1350 fps. This delivers 510 ft. lbs. of muzzle energy (ME) from a 4" pistol barrel (Federal figures). That puts it only 100 fps and 70 ft. lbs. behind the .357 Magnum as fired from a 4" revolver barrel. The .357 SIG should be a very good "stopper" with proper expanding bullets. This is a flat shooting load for an auto pistol, with a midrange trajectory of just 3.1 inches with a 100 yard zero.

A reloader with a .357 SIG can do even better. The Speer Reloading Manual Number 13 shows that 13.1 grains of AA#9 powder can drive a 125 grain Gold Dot JHP bullet to a MV of 1287 fps, and 14.6 grains of AA#9 can drive the same bullet to a MV of 1437 fps. These high performance loads used Speer cases and CCI 500 primers, and were tested in a 4" pistol barrel.

Note: The complete article about the .357 SIG can be found in its entirety on the Handgun Cartridge Page.