Anybody shoot a .357 sig in competition?

[45dotACP]

I saw a p229 at the local gun shop for a pretty good deal the other day, only thing is that it's in .357 sig so that got me to thinking...is that cartridge relevant for competition? I'd be interested to know if there are any shooters around here who use that strange little bottlenecked cartridge for IDPA or USPSA or 3 gun or whatever. If so, are there any characteristics of the round that you prefer? Or is it one of those cartridges destined to go to the "Well, that was a kinda funny cartridge when they still made it." bin?

Edited December 15, 2013 by 45dotACP

[shooterready]

I bought a used barrel to drop into my G23 a few years ago. I experimented with a few loads and could never really slow it down enough for gaming. It is a great round IMO. Necks split pretty quick, within a couple loadings. I now have acquired 3 buckets of brass over the past years. Just haven't done much more with it. You will have to reload. Ammo is tough to find and expensive. Best thing is, very few that shoot it reload. I still have shooting buddies give me brass on occasion cause they know I have dies for it.

[RadarTech]

If you look at the minutes for the USPSA BOD meeting this weekend, you will see that the use of .357 sig in limited was there for discussion.....

Let the gun games begin!

Edit: limited and limited 10

Edited December 15, 2013 by RadarTech

[kneelingatlas]

Every once in a while I think a .357 SIG open gun would be fun to play with, but then remember why I shoot 9x19 instead of .38 super...

[Racer377]

If you look at the minutes for the USPSA BOD meeting this weekend, you will see that the use of .357 sig in limited was there for discussion.....

Let the gun games begin!

Edit: limited and limited 10

I really, really hope it passes! I don't like 40, and 357SIG is cheaper to reload with jacketed bullets. If it does, I'm tracking down a G31 and switching to limited for a little while.

I shot an M&P357 when I first started USPSA - I liked it quite a bit. I have yet to own a 357SIG gun that couldn't out-group it's 9/40 counterparts. E.g. I had a G31 that was more accurate than any of the other 8 or so Glocks I've owned, the M&P would keep them significantly tighter than any 9/40 M&P I had. It has a reputation as being one of those cartridges with very good "inherent accuracy"

The bottleneck cartridge feeds as well as anything.

Reloading it is slightly more involved. Neck tension is a big deal because setback is one of the weaknesses of the cartridge. Once your press is dialed in, it's all good though. I didn't have any issues with the neck splitting, even after a good many reloadings.

I did enjoy reloading it more. No .380/38S casings getting mixed in with 9mm brass, no small/large primer sorting needed like 45, and even loosy-goosy Glocks fully support the chamber, so 357SIG brass doesn't get "Glocked," thus no need to roll/push through size like 40.

I liked the versatility as well. The production load I used was very mild, but the bowling pin load was HOT. The local bowling pin rules said the same thing as current USPSA, so even though the load was 175ish PF, the pins were set to the minor position.

I liked that no one ever wanted to take my brass.

Edited December 15, 2013 by Racer377

[WVSIGShooter]

Shot it a few times in USPSA production due to no 9. I like the cartridge but after a 32rd course you know you've been shooting

[JFlowers]

Every once in a while I think a .357 SIG open gun would be fun to play with, but then remember why I shoot 9x19 instead of .38 super...

Had one for a while. Found no real purpose or benefit, but no handicap other than the rounds lost in a big stick.

[chirpy]

One of our guys shot his .357 Sig in USPSA matches because that is what he carried. Once he was satisfied with his performance he made the jump to other platforms and divisions. Wasn't perfect but I had to agree with his reasoning.

Richard

PS: He did reload for economy sake.