Sig P226

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Steve S.

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I have been very tempted by the P226 9mm as it is a shooter (from my readings), a looker (gray gun) and just melts into my shooting hand - great feel and design.
What I have seen looking at two different examples opened brand new before me is that the gray metal coating will flake of (very small flake/s on the sharp edges of the mag well) simply by wiping the factory oil off for my inspection prior to my potential purchase. Left are telltale specs of exposed bare shiny metal and disappointment. Also, I know the Sig name carries a premium but it appears somewhat overpriced for what seems to be a quasi-modular factory handgun.
For those that know, what has been your experience? Thanks.
 
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I have a 226 Legion SAO (single action only) that's a fantastic shooter. Sits on my nightstand and was my carry all winter.

Accurate, dead reliable, and reasonably easy to carry. Just heavy at 46 or so oz loaded.

I don't love the DA/SA as much as a whole but I would like another 226 in my collection if I see one for the right price as they are great guns.

If you are ok with .40 (maybe grab a 9mm barrel) they are still available around as tradeins for crazy cheap

https://www.sportsmansoutdoorsupers...6-40sw-dasa-police-trade-ins-(good-condition)
 
1K, brand new from the inventory of a local LGS. Opened in front of me (to purchase) seemingly being first to view as there was still some runny factory oil on both examples when they were removed from the plastic bag. When the oil was wiped away with a gun rag, there was tiny specks of shiny metal exposed on the front sharp edge of the mag wells (one on the first example and three on the second) - I saw the flake of gray from the first example on the rag, I did not see the others - there were no more examples to view and I did not purchase either as I considered them flawed.
I was just wondering if they were bad examples or the flaking was a common event. Otherwise, this handgun model was impressive.
 
Hmmm, interesting (and worrisome), that the new examples you saw appeared to be delaminating. That sucks.

All my SIG experience is with the old dull phosphate German-produced guns and I can say the finish would show wear on the sharp edges when they were still in the box.

That said, they are great guns and I highly recommend you find one you like.
 
The frames will look good for a while. The slides will rust quickly if not meticulously cared for.

My 226 was sent to Robar for Np3 within a year of duty carry. Their finish is bulletproof.

My 228 hasn’t been carried or shot nearly as much as the 226 was, but the sharp edges on the slide are worn shiny.

Fantastic guns the P-226 series, by far my favorite duty 9mm. You can’t go wrong with buying one, IMHO.

Stay safe!
 
I have a few 22x guns. The nitron finish is my favorite but still, holster wear comes quick. Then it stops and every thing stays the same except the frame rails. Local wildlife officers and state troopers have carried them for years. The new 320 shows cosmetic wear fast as well. I have a Glock and an HK with about a billion miles on them. Caving, crawling in brush, in water, rock climbing.... just about the worst case for external wear and both look better than my range used sigs. Carried in leather. Carried in nylon, carried in kydex. Now, the polymer on those two looks like hell But their metal has great finishes. The HK has a few marks and the Glock slide still looks new. I don't know about the newer darker Glock finish, all mine are gen 3 or before. The legion PVD finish is about the weakest IME. The wear is cosmetic and doesn't cause degradation of performance either in my experience.

I put the 226 up there with any gun made. Top notch. I let everyone try my 226/glock17/USP/ beretta 92/cz75/ and a 1911 when they are looking for their gun. But those are my "if they fit you, they are a great choice" guns. My local LE instructor has over 100k through his old duty 226. Triggers are generally very good in SA. DA is par for the lot. I'm no fan of DA triggers though. The SRT is nice but not entirely necessary IMO. For range use I like the hogue grips but they get slick with sweat. Mine with houges weighed 30 ounces. Heavier than every gun listed above but within 2 ounces of them all. My favorite are the stainless steel frame guns but yes, they are heavy.

In my experience, most expensive upgraded finishes look good new but actually suck if you use the gun. Sigs pvd is on that list. Beretta made a few black stainless guns that were the same way. The black would not stick at all. A friend fired one box of ammo through his and sent it back. Beretta refinished it and told him that the wear was normal and should happen again. He never fired it and traded for a normal stainless one.
 
Was the "gray" one a Legion? The newer Legion slides are finished with Cerakote Elite and seem to have a more greenish tint to them. The new finish should be tougher than the old gray PVD finish. My "old" P229 Legion had the PVD coating and had a ton of holster wear on the slide. From what I hear from others the flakiness or softness is a common problem with PVD. I never had any finish trouble whatsoever with Nitron. IMHO, if the Cerakote Elite holds up well, the Legion is well worth the premium over the "standard" versions. They are very ergonomic and fantastic shooters.

I really like the P320 too, but part of the reason I'm hesitant to buy an M17 is the PVD coated slide. I wish they would discontinue the use of that coating altogether.
 
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Had quite a few older P22X series SIGs (P220, P226, P228, and my current one, a used 9 year old P229). All of them saw considerable use yet never any problems with their finish or any excessive wear and tear to report. Have the SRT (along with the E2 grips), on the P229 and love it; a far better DA trigger than I found on any of my other SIGs.
 
I have 3 226's
Stainless, legion SAO with sig dot, and elite.

I have had the stainless the longest and currently serves as my competition pistol (same gun for the last 10 years)

The legion is the newest to me and I am still working things out. I feel like my old stainless with gray guns trigger has a nicer SA than my SAO.

The Elite belongs to my wife, really and has been solid (except the stupid adjustable sights that have been replaced).

I have not had any issues with rust and I have to admit that I am not as diligent about cleaning as I should be.

They are pricey but solid choices imo. old ones seem to impress me more than new ones.
 
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Source? I've not heard this ..

Some gun magazine first. But,

Google "legion no longer using grayguns trigger" I wont link either of the forums but the one stating "dissapointed with Sig no GGI trigger" will show the differences. Has excellent pictures of the two as well.

Or look at any new legion. The MIM in-house "gray designed" trigger is hollowed out in the back. Or email Grayguns. I dont know that there is any difference in feel. It wasnt a knock. I'd take a better finish over the Trigger anyday.

Apologies to the OP for the sidetrack. Just stating the differences in the legion series. Either way the 226 is a fine firearm.
 
Some gun magazine first. But,

Google "legion no longer using grayguns trigger" I wont link either of the forums but the one stating "dissapointed with Sig no GGI trigger" will show the differences. Has excellent pictures of the two as well.

Or look at any new legion. The MIM in-house "gray designed" trigger is hollowed out in the back. Or email Grayguns. I dont know that there is any difference in feel. It wasnt a knock. I'd take a better finish over the Trigger anyday.

Apologies to the OP for the sidetrack. Just stating the differences in the legion series. Either way the 226 is a fine firearm.

Hmm, too bad. I REALLY like my SAO Legion trigger, haven't tried one of the "new" ones yet, though the 229 I looked at with the cerakote had a greenish tint to it over the beautiful grey of my 226.

Then again, I'm colorblind so what looks green to me might be blue to anyone else, for all I know
 
My earlier P-226 Legion does have the Grayguns P-SAIT trigger (not MIM, solid), says so on the box … It is the best DA/SA trigger on a production duty-size pistol that I've ever used.

My belief has always been that there are four classic pistols that any serious 9mm aficionado must own: a CZ-75B (or "pre-B"), a non-railed SIG P-226, a Beretta 92FS/M9 (original model, before plastic parts, "radiused" backstrap and "tapered" dustcover) and, of course, the Browning Hi-Power.

Here are three incarnations of the 226, an original KB West German, an early American two-tone cop gun, and, the splendid Legion:

zzzz226s.jpg

Still the king:

zzzzz226.jpg
 
Old Dog, I agree on your four classic pistols. My story is that I came across a fire sale that put a 20 year old 226 into the weapons locker. Over the winter I taught myself how to replace every spring and pin in the gun. I put a SRT kit into it, along with a new hammer. The gun runs like a fatboy after an ice cream truck. The gun is ok with 115s, but shines with both 124 and 147 on the hot side.

What a smashingly fun gun to shoot.
 
My earlier P-226 Legion does have the Grayguns P-SAIT trigger (not MIM, solid), says so on the box … It is the best DA/SA trigger on a production duty-size pistol that I've ever used.

My belief has always been that there are four classic pistols that any serious 9mm aficionado must own: a CZ-75B (or "pre-B"), a non-railed SIG P-226, a Beretta 92FS/M9 (original model, before plastic parts, "radiused" backstrap and "tapered" dustcover) and, of course, the Browning Hi-Power.

Here are three incarnations of the 226, an original KB West German, an early American two-tone cop gun, and, the splendid Legion:

View attachment 845616

Still the king:

View attachment 845617
Another vote for a vintage P226-
index-25.jpg :thumbup:
 
It might be slightly OT, but if they are still offering them...

There were a lot of police trade-in P229's in 40 caliber available not long ago.

I got one with three magazines and the box for $280 plus shipping and FFL.

If has plenty of holster wear on the slide, but the slide is stainless steel, so NBD to me. I bought it purely as a shooter.

It is only slightly smaller than a P226, and is an amazingly good shooter. I originally saw it as a great way to find out what the P-series pistols were all about, and by now it's one of my favorite service pistols.

If they are still available and the OP or anyone else wants to try them out, that would be a very cost-effective way to do it.
 
Old Dog, I "sort of" have those pistols, though they are inexpensive versions:

Beretta 92 "clone" (Taurus P99), CZ75 "clone" (Tanfoglio), Browning High Power "clone" (FEG Hungarian), and the slightly smaller P229 rather than the P226.

The FEG I bought barely used at a gun show in about 1988. The Taurus I bought brand-new in 1990. The Tanfoglio was Israeli surplus, and the P229 was police trade-in.

I'm saying this just to offer hope/encouragement to readers who may not have lots of money to spend. If you are patient, knowledgeable, and opportunistic, you can get what you want for less money, eventually.
 
a CZ-75B (or "pre-B"), a non-railed SIG P-226, a Beretta 92FS/M9 (original model, before plastic parts, "radiused" backstrap and "tapered" dustcover) and, of course, the Browning Hi-Power.

I'll buy that.

I'd throw in the G17 (at most 10 years younger than the 92) unless DA/SA was specified, and yes I have all those mentioned and a few more. But I agree that the 226 may be the top of that hammer fired heap. I might even throw in an HK too.
 
I have the P226 Legion SAO and love it, but I recently got to shoot a *beautiful* German P226 X-Five. Unbelievable. If I had an extra $4,000-5,000 laying around, I would pick one up in a heartbeat. One of the nicest shooting pistols I have ever shot, and that includes a custom STI 2011 and lots of custom 1911's.

That is my dream gun for sure.
 
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