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Occasionally I read about the consistent failure of cylinder extractors to fully ejecting .357 MAG cartridges in revolvers with less than 3-inch barrels. But most folks writing about their snub nose guns chambered in .357 never mention it. Is this really a significant problem in reloading?

They are a little harder than .38 Special in a SP-101 snubbie.

Excellent question! Here's the scoop....

On a pistol chambered in 357 mag that has a short barrel, the ejector rod is slightly shorter that one on a 4"+ barreled gun. The 357 case being longer than a 38spl case, requires more travel of the ejector than a 38 case in order for it to completely clear the chamber.
If the gun is dirty or the brass is old/split/stretched, it could definitely cause a problem if trying to reload QUICKLY.

Now comes the part where I speculate...

Since folks that own snubby 357 magnum wheelguns probably never shoot more than a cylinder or two of 357 ammo in any one practice session and pretty much NEVER in competiton, the extraction issue is a NON issue.
I imagine that most folks do the bulk of their practice with 38spl ammo (much cheaper and less abusive), 357 mag snubby owners aren't likely to even be aware that a potential extraction problem exists.

My .02

I have heard of ejection problems on short barreled 357 and 38 SPL due to the fact that the ejector rods are shorter in snubbies so the stroke is shorter. Pointing the barrel upwards and sharply hitting the ejector rod helps with the extraction. My experience with snubbies [Python and Det Spec] is limited, but it hasn't been a problem.

As others have said, the shorter ejector rod is a problem and the technique WildBill suggested often works. Not thoroughly cleaning the cylinder after shooting a lot of .38 Specials will make ejection of .357 Mags even more difficult. Since the .38 Specials are shorter, carbon residue builds up just forward of the end of the case and when the longer .357 Mag. case is loaded, this residue tends to make the brass stick.

It's not a difficult to clean the cylinder, but a couple of runs with a brass brush won't get all of it out. I like to use an over-sized brush on the cylinders, typically a .40 S&W, or one of my worn out .45 ACPs. This won't hurt the cylinder, but it does a very good job of removing the carbon residue.

Chas.