The .356 TSW (Team Smith & Wesson) / 9x21mm TSW is a
centerfire
Two rounds of .357 Magnum, a centerfire cartridge; notice the circular primer in the center
A center-fire (or centerfire) is a type of metallic cartridge used in firearms, where the primer is located at the center of the base of its casing (i. ...
pistol
A pistol is a type of handgun, characterised by a gun barrel, barrel with an integral chamber (firearms), chamber. The word "pistol" derives from the Middle French ''pistolet'' (), meaning a small gun or knife, and first appeared in the Englis ...
cartridge designed by
Smith & Wesson
Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. (S&W) is an American Firearms manufacturer, firearm manufacturer headquartered in Maryville, Tennessee, United States.
Smith & Wesson was founded by Horace Smith (inventor), Horace Smith and Daniel B. Wesson as the ...
in the early 1990s.
Design
The .356 TSW is similar in size to a
9×19mm Parabellum
The 9×19mm Parabellum (also known as 9mm Luger, 9mm NATO or simply 9mm) is a Rim (firearms)#Rimless, rimless, Centerfire ammunition, centerfire, tapered cartridge (firearms), firearms cartridge.
Originally designed by Austrian firearm designer ...
or a
9×21mm
The 9×21mm pistol cartridge (also known as the 9×21mm GP, 9×21mm IMI, 9mm IMI, 9×21mm Italian, or 9mm Italian) was designed by Jager (Loano, Italy), then adopted and commercialised by Israel Military Industries for those jurisdictions whe ...
(21.59 mm exactly) albeit with a much stronger case allowing for higher pressure and as much as 40% more energy at the muzzle. It was designed to be used in
IPSC shooting events, but rule modifications specifically addressing its advantages were hurriedly established to make it irrelevant for competition. Due to renewed interest as a superior cartridge to
357 SIG
The .357 SIG (designated as the 357 Sig by the SAAMI and 357 SIG by the C.I.P. or 9×22 mm in official metric notation) is a bottlenecked rimless centerfire handgun cartridge developed by the Swiss-German firearms manufacturer SIG Sauer, in ...
, new production ammunition and caliber conversion kits for Glock 17 (Gen 1-4) and 19 (Gen 1-5) pistols became available in 2020.
See also
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.460 Rowland
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9mm Major
9mm Major, also known as 9 Major, ammunition is loaded much hotter than typical 9mm rounds, exceeding to achieve a power factor of 165. This classification benefits competition shooters maximum magazine scoring. However, it is not readily avail ...
*
7Н35
*
List of handgun cartridges
This is a list of handgun Cartridge (weaponry), cartridges, approximately in order of increasing caliber.
Table of handgun cartridges
Other cartridges used in handguns
Although not originally designed for handguns, several rifle and shotgun ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:356 TSW
Paramilitary cartridges
Pistol and rifle cartridges
Smith & Wesson cartridges