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Does anyone have any experience with a 1911 chambered for the .357SIG? Does this caliber produce any reliability problems?

In my experience, bottle neck cartridges in a 1911 are a "no go" for reliability.

If you want .357 mag performance from a 1911, go with 9x23 or 10mm.

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I have an STI VIP in 357 sig,hi cap, and it is just great. Never had a problem, failure, etc. It just seems like the energizer bunny when it comes to the range. I am thinking of contacting them for a 40 S&W barrell also.

Tony

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Tony T
The only guns I like are those with triggers..

I was referring to a single stack gun--The variable feed angle of rounds in a ss magazine during firing don't always work well with Bottlenecks.
I have no experience with bottlenecks in double column guns like STI's.
I would assume they may feed OK as evidenced by 9x25 and TonyT's testimony above.

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Thanks for the information. I was inquiring about a single stack, did not even think of the STI VIP, but it is a good idea. Good to know that it is reliable.

Why bother? You can have the same ballistics with the 9x23, or which ammunition is pretty cheap, and you have a higher magazine capacity.

Jim Keeney had a really nice thread in this forum a while back about a .357SIG 1911 that was nothing but a problem child. I don't have time to search for itright now but it is worth the read.

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Looks like I'll soon be finding out-- have one coming up that is a 1911 Commander-length gun in .357 SIG. My only concern is that it's a Commander, so, shorter stroked gun. Shorter stroke = smaller window. Add the hot .357 SIG and..... not sure what I've signed up for but gonna give it a try.

Ned, I am real interested in your project. A custom commander was my initial thought, with a government length as a second choice. I will be looking forward to see how it comes out.

I'll keep you posted. This is not something that's going to start taking shape in the next few weeks; more like the next few months.

In addition, neck tension is all over the place with this cartridge-the short neck doesn't grip the bullet well to begin with and most wondernines have a more or less inline feed that isn't completely sensitive to this, unlike a 1911. I think you could reload his cartridge and make it work with a combo of the right bullet and super crimp.

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There are two different things going on here - the cartridge itself, and the cartridge/gun combination. Other postings have addressed the combination already.

All of my LEO buddies and former LEOs like me, who still instruct at agencies that issue the .357 Sig, note my greater wear and tear on the guns.

I guess I just don't see the point. Not sure that anything is gained over the many other, and dare I say better calibers, in the 1911 platform.

IMHO, that is.

I have a .357 Sig Commander built on a Caspian frame and slide. It doubles as a 10mm, and the 10mm sees a great deal more use. First off, and this is all just my thoughts/opinions and not anything super scientific, until the last round in a magazine, the next cartridge is the follower for the round being fed. The Sig round doesn’t have anything up front for the round to “ride” into the chamber. This gives it a much more pronounced tendency to stovepipe. Dave and I “solved” this by both tuning the mags as much as possible and loading only 7 rounds in an 8 or 9 round mag. A 1911 feeding is a vicious thing, and problems that don’t occur in other makes of guns just stick out like a sore thumb in a 1911.

FWIW, I have contemplated the fact that Patrick Sweeney has a full-sized 1911 with 10mm, .40, and .357 barrels that works fine, and have a few ideas. Is it possible that a very relieved ramped barrel or a well “opened” feed ramp in a standard barrel would help the Sig go up the pipe? It doesn’t need a ton of case support, and bullet setback is a huge concern for me. Maybe a 5” gun is easier??? Who knows? I have spoken with quite a few folks who have one or have tried one, both builders and shooters, and nobody has said it’s been a trouble free go aside from Mr. Sweeney. They can be made to run, as mine now does, but I cannot trust my life with something that took so damn much work to get it right. My .357 Sig 1911 is a range gun only. Entirely the opposite of what I had planned. Oh well. Such is life. Want a trouble free 1911? Build it in .45ACP. There’s nothing lacking in that one besides speed, and they tend to run pretty well.


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My response to 1911hand here on LTW.
http://www.louderthanwords.us/forum/vie ... highlight=

The original post from Pistolsmith.
http://www.pistolsmith.com/viewtopic.php?t=22637

It’s time for bed.

GOD Bless you all, and shoot safely.

~Jim Keeney

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Excellent threads, Jim. I appreciate all of the information and now have a little understanding of the obstacles that must be faced with the .357 SIG in a 1911. I, too, like the idea of a hard hitting, flat shooting round in a defensive 1911 platform. Yes, I do like the .45ACP, but sometimes it is fun to push the envelope and explore other ideas. I've never shot a 10mm, period, and am not quite sure what to expect in a Commander size weapon. Or, more accurately, how the recoil would feel. Obviously, the ballistics look good. Thanks again.

Sounds like you want a 9x23.

Factory Winchester loads push a 125 @1450 through my Commander.
Soft shooting and easy on guns. Feeds 100%.

The ultimate is a switch barrel gun where you can use 9mm para ammo for practice and 9x23 for carry. That is versatility.

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Anthony, Would you happen to know what weight recoil spring a government 9x23 uses? Thanks.

Many years ago a guy named Bo Clerk designed the 38/45, specifically for bullseye shooting using a 1911 chassis and to overcome the reliability problems of the 38 Special, then a very popular centerfire gun. I remember an article in I think Guns and Ammo where they made a point of how the gun reliably fed empty cases. What I would like to know is what made that cartridge so reliable and what makes the 357 Sig just the opposite?

The 38/45 was more reliable than .38 wad cutter for a variety of reasons.
It used readily available .45 mags, it was typically loaded to "target" velocities, which didn't require extra heavy recoil or mag springs, and if you had ever seen a 38/45 round you would have noted quite a long neck that held the bullet quite well upon its voyage up the feedramp. Bottleneck cartridges will usually work OK in a 1911 mag if you download to 5 rds, which is what Bullseye shooters tend to do.

It was a semi-popular conversion also because you could use a standard .45 breech slide and switch barrels back and forth. A .38 wad gun usually starts with a .38/9mm slide that is opened up to accept a .38 WC rim. The slide is dedicated to that caliber from that point on.

Hogplt, I use a 17 or 18 lb recoil spring in a 5" gun chambered in 9x23 in conjunction with a 19lb hammer spring. Works great.
My 9x23 commander has a 20 lb ISMI 5" spring cut to fit and a 23# hammer spring. Works great.

_________________
"The most effective armor is to keep out of range"-Italian proverb

CHECK OUT MY CUSTOM 1911 BLOG
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Thanks, Anthony.

I have a Ed Brown twotone class A bobtail Commander in 357 Sig. It is a "tweaky" little gun, in that everything has to be right to make it run well.

Fresh mag springs, my reloads (which are .010 longer than spec with Hornady 124 FP's), and a clean chamber are what makes it run right. You can't crimp enough to hold the bullet. You need the right neck tension, and there is a very short engagement length on the bullet. You have to use a minimum bell of the case mouth so as to damage as little of the engagement length as possible. My reloads do not shorten with multiple feed cycles.

Also, the sweet spot for 357 sig is 124 gr bullets. If you check the load data you'll see. It is very, very consistent and accurate with the right 124 gr load. Heavier and lighter bullets just don't sing in the cartridge like 124's.

I could go on and on about what it took to make it run. Bottom line is that it is a range/competition gun only and I would never carry it for serious use. I never found a factory HP that ran consistently in it. I don't know anyone who has a cold stone reliable 1911 in 357 sig. As noted in other posts above if you want to launch 9mm projectiles from a 1911, the 9x23 is a better answer, as is 38 super for that matter.

I will say this - whenever I shoot it people say "what the heck is that". 1350 fps from a little commander generates a pretty significant blast. As with a hot 38 super, there is little actual recoil, just a lot of blast.

I have been contemplating a 10 mm barrel though.