Sig Sauer P226 Pistol

[mjfox6]

If a fellow wanted to buy a Sig Sauer P226 pistol, where would he find the best deal?

Sig Sauer is offering a $100 discount on the P226 for current and retired LE.
Law Enforcement Individual Officer Programs

 

[beersngars]

I have to second the P6. I bought myself and both my sons one for Christmas a few years ago when they were $265 each. Try to get a newer one as the feed ramps are a bit different and will feed hollow points better. The price is just hard to pass up. I have a nice Sig collection and would not trade any of them off. They are graet guns.

 

[Sigarms]

Maybe you or Joe, Sigarms, could clarify something. My Sig 226 is one I bought about 20 years ago, new, with 2 high cap mags and is clearly marked "Made in Germany". I don't know, but have been told, that some of the newer Sig 226 pistols are not of the same quality and are made somewhere other than Germany. Again, I don't know that to be true or not. However, if it is, I'd suggest Bird to look for a older NIB or LNIB Sig 226. They are certainly still available.

All of mine were made in Germany. Wasn't planned that way.

I've heard that most of the "newer ones" from New Hampshire have the slide made in the U.S. I don't know if this is fact or fiction, and I might of heard it wrong.

 

[Bird]

Sig Sauer is offering a $100 discount on the P226 for current and retired LE.
Law Enforcement Individual Officer Programs

Interesting, thank you. I'll have to do a little checking.

I guess I just suffer from sticker shock when I look at the prices on the guns. The City paid $50 for my S&W Combat Masterpiece and after nearly 25 years, sold it to me when I retired for $27.50. And my S&W Chief cost me $54.80, including a box of ammo, a holster, and sales tax. Of course those prices were 45 years ago.

 

[2manyrocks]

Of course, an oddity of the law is that if you qualify with an automatic, you can legally carry either, but if you qualify with a revolver, you can only legally carry revolvers.

I was going to ask what they were thinking with this one. I thought it was a lot harder to shoot a DA revolver accurately than an autoloader. Looks like this ought to be the other way around?

Look at the price of the Colt Python years ago versus what one costs today.

 

[gsganzer]

Bird,
I have a 226 and love it. In fact, I'm looking to buy either another 226 (Blackwater) or a 229 SAS. The only reason I'm looking for a newer 226 is because I want some rails on it for mounting a flashlight. My current 226 doesn't have rails. I might consider selling my old 226, if you're interested in it and don't have a need for rails. I don't know what a used one sells for, but I'm sure we can find some pricing somewhere that's fair to us both.

The Sigs are pricey, but are worth every penny.

I also have a Sig 230 (.380) that I've been very happy with.

If you're looking for new, you're best bet is to either buy one off Gunbroker or go to a local gun show. You'll typically find better pricing at the shows in FTW, versus Dallas.

 

[Bird]

I was going to ask what they were thinking with this one. I thought it was a lot harder to shoot a DA revolver accurately than an autoloader. Looks like this ought to be the other way around?

Yep, I agree, as far as easier to shoot the autoloader accurately. I can only assume the law is that way because the revolver is so simple and reliable while you need to know how to clear jams with the autoloader, disassembly, cleaning and servicing is a little more complicated, and there are many more accidents with the autoloader.

When I started on the police department, we were issued .38 spl. revolvers, either Smith & Wesson or Colt. But officers could carry anything they wanted on duty as long as it was .38 or larger, S&W or Colt. While officers were encouraged to learn to shoot pretty well, there was no requirement that they be able to qualify. They had to go shoot twice a year, but there was no pass/fail grade. The officers who carried automatics for the most part carried the old Colt .45s. And for the most part, the automatics went off accidentally in the locker rooms, in roll call rooms, and in the cars, and then when needed they wouldn't work. We had a lot of damage and a lot of injuries, but for many years, the chiefs were afraid to change that rule because they could imagine some officer getting killed and his widow saying, "If you'd let him carry the gun he wanted to carry it wouldn't have happened." But eventually we got a chief who prohibited automatics, which sure cut down on the accidents, and then the so called "vicarious liability" theory also required that officers actually shoot a passing score twice a year with the particular gun they were going to carry, by both make and serial number. That eliminated the .44 magnums since the recoil was too much for the old "practical pistol course" that required some rapid fire, rapid reloading, and continue firing.

But in later years, a number of the younger officers wanted to carry automatics that would hold 14 rounds instead of the 6 rounds in their revolvers. I've never been a fan of the "spray and pray" method of shooting myself. But the command staff decided we needed another study to determine whether we should be using automatics. Now I was commander of the Planning and Research Division which normally handled all such studies. I told them that I had a good crew of honest folks, and I'd let them do it with no comments from me, but that everyone knew that if it were up to me, I'd never allow an officer to carry an automatic, so they might want to assign that project to someone outside my division. So they assigned it to a guy who was known by all to love automatics. And you can guess the outcome. All the first batch of automatics received had to be sent back for defects.

Now I know the guns have been improved over the years and they're more reliable now than in the past. And in the past, the officers were not trained in the use of automatics. They could carry them, but the training went to the use of the revolvers that were issued. I think modern automatics are OK in the hands of a properly trained person who knows and understands his gun and how to take care of it, and is willing to spend the time to take care of it properly.

I knew the department started issuing automatics many years ago and even heard a rumor once that they had to qualify with an automatic, but learned that's not entirely true. The vast majority of the officers are carrying automatics now, and that is what is issued, but when I was at the Range Tuesday, a lot of officers showed up for shotgun qualification shooting and I noticed two sergeants who were carrying revolvers instead of automatics.

I'd like to have a 9 mm automatic for several reasons. 9 mm ammo is cheaper than .38 ammo, the current pistol course is designed for automatics, so I could shoot a better score with the automatic, and they're fun to shoot. But I don't need one, so I really can't justify the cost and may not buy one since they're so high priced.

 

[Bird]

I might consider selling my old 226, if you're interested in it and don't have a need for rails.

Gordon, I'll send you a PM.

 

[2manyrocks]

Thank you for the explanation. I didn't think about accidential discharges. My BIL said he was on a mission in Vietnam in an aircraft and this guy shot a hole in the bottom of the aircraft fiddling with his .45 before the crew took the weapon from the guy.

After you get the sig, then you'll want to shoot it. You'll go the range and see something else you like. Then you'll want that one, too. Then another one and another.... So you'd better save yourself from all this while you still can.

 

[parallel]

If you would like you could PM me. I have MANY Sig Sauer pistols and have multiple honest dealer contacts who have good prices.

Hear are a few of my favorite SIGs:

P226 .40 S&W with Crimson Trace laser grips and a Milt Sparks VMII holster

P239 .357SIG

P225/P6 with Hogue extreme aluminum grips and Barsto threaded barrel

P220 .45ACP with Crimson Trace laser grips

SIGARMS 556 SWAT with Trijicon TA11 ACOG and 551 style foregrip