A few Sig questions

A

Arkhog

New member
My local Academy Sports has a P226 and a P229 (both in .40) side by side. I noticed that the 226 says "made in Exeter, NH" and the 229 says "frame made in Germany". On the Sig website it says that the P229 was the first pistol to be manufactured in Exeter, NH. So, are they made here or there or both places?

The P226 has a solid firing pin positioning pin. The P229 sitting next to it has a roll pin. I thought that roll pins were used in the past on older models. Anybody?

The P229 is the gun that I have my eye on. It has night sights and is priced $799.99 while the P226 is twenty dollars more without NS.
 
B

bamaranger

New member
I'll take a shot at it........

First, I think the 229 was made initially in Germany, but then eventually in Exeter. Could be wrong about this, but I believe I have seen guns marked both ways.

The solid roll pins were/are characteristic of SIGS that have milled slides, as in recent P226's/some P220's, and all P229's. If you are looking at a P229 with a rolled pin, I strongly suspect you are looking at a pistol that has the wrong type pin and has been plumbed by a non factory trained armorer. P229 pins are a particular pain, as SIG used at least two different dia's in the course of production and its darn tough to determine which pin the pistol takes w/o the old pin on hand and the variety of new/replacement pins present to compare it to. (that's how I do it anyhow)

Roll pin pistols were/are SIG pistols with stamped slides and removable breech blocks, as in most P220's and all P228's and P225 also I believe. (I have never worked on a P225). There are actually two roll pins, one nested within the other. The pair is to be oriented in a particular fashion.

Finally, to further your confusion, P226's were all initially stamped slide/roll pin guns. When the P226 came out in .40, SIG went to milled slides/solid pins, to add mass to slide to deal with .40 recoil forces I'd think.

P220's were also all stamped/roll pin pistols until relatively recently. I can't say why the milled slide design has been applied to the P220-.45.
But......SIG has succeeded in making a big duty pistol, big and heavier.
 
R

Rinspeed

New member
Are you sure the 229 is not a 228. The 229 has never used the folded sheet steel slide that has two roll pins. The 228 is the same size as the 229. I think the reason they went with all machined slides on the US made pistols is because all the sheet steel slides are/were made in Germany. With all the millions Sig has invested in machining centers it just made sense to make the slides here. I prefer the older style Sigs myself.
 
D

DBAR

New member
Solid Pins, and Spiral roll pins are coming out of Sig now days. I've seen examples of both, and it doesn't much matter as to which pin is being used. The spiral roll pin is easier to change, that's for darn sure. The solid roll pin doesn't really offer any added benefit for me, but it is less likely to walk out, but then again, I've never had any pin walk out on me.

DBAR
 
D

DBAR

New member
I've seen a few in just the last couple of months. There has been talk that they where going to the spiral roll pins, but may just be talk, but they do appear to be useing them. I've seen 2 P229's that where both CPO, and one had a roll pin, and another had the solid pin. The dealer got 5 of them, all in .40 cal.

DBAR
 
B

BigJimP

New member
You should buy the gun you like the best ...but I think the pros and cons on the types of pins is something you'll never notice.

The difference in size between the 229 and 226 is really minimal --- although I prefer the weight and feel of the bigger 226 myself ( and I like it in all stainless especially ).

$ 20 / $ 100 / or even $ 500 over the life of the gun ....is petty cash ....buy the one you like the best and will be proud to own long term. I see far too many guys buy guns they don't like based solely on price ...and they say, "when they get better ...they'll buy the gun they want". We all have budgets ...but buying what you really want / and saving a few more bucks to get what you really want is often better in the long run. Have fun with the selection process ...
 
N

NJgunowner

New member
I started with a iwi 941rsl. Great gun btw, but its no Sig p226... Which I currently own. I really wish I had bought the sig in the first place! Then again I sold my IWI for almost what I paid for it so I don't feel too bad.

I love my p226. I have a few hundred rounds of target .40 to go through, then I'm going to buy the .22 conversion kit for it. I'll keep some good SD ammo at home in .40, and plink with the .22 stuff. :D
 
A

Arkhog

New member
New guns

bamaranger,
Academy Sports doesn't accept trade-ins or sell used guns. The 229 is a new gun with a spiral roll pin.

jeffg,
Not a 228. It is a 229.

BigJimP,
Good overall advice.

Thanks for the information everyone.
 
D

DBAR

New member
You don't have to keep any pins on hand. You'll probably never have to replace the pin. There are only a few reports of pins breaking from repeated dry fire. If your going to dry fire a Sig, invest in some good snap caps. The pin is only to be removed for a detail strip of the slide, and that isn't required very often. Maybe once or twice in a life time depending on the round count.

DBAR
 
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