Just got my German Sig P226 Grade 1 with triple matching serial #s from SFRC a few days ago. Extremely happy with this purchase, thank you Ryan! Have not taken it to the range yet, but have handled it enough the past couple of days to make a fair comparison with my Sig P226 Combat. Since another cgn'r, mikey454, has already posted a review on his Grade 2, I thought I'd take the time to post a review on my Grade 1 so you guys can see the difference.
First of all, this Grade 1 is MINT! Obviously it has been shot, as you can tell by the slight wear on the side of the barrel hood, but other than that, there is no cosmetic wear anywhere. I think I got lucky and received a perfect Grade 1 specimen, I heard others were not as lucky as me. Enjoy the pics guys.
Love at first sight!
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Note the slight wear on the side of the barrel hood.
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Look at that shiny barrel crown!
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Nothing oozes quality like a "Made In Germany" stamp!
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The white lines and dots are just lint from cleaning!
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Note the shape of the German stamped carbon steel slide.
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Again, note the differences in shape and finish between German stamped carbon steel slide vs. US milled stainless steel slide.
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I tried to take the best pics I can with my Canon S95, too bad I don't have a digital SLR
It was late at night after a long 10 hr shift.
Onto the differences between the German Sig vs. US Sig.
Immediately, I was able to notice the difference in shape, I prefer the look of the German slide. It had more of a "shape" to it, if that makes any sense!?
The signature Sig line that runs from the end of the muzzle to the middle of the slide is way more pronounced in the German Sig, it's very ###y, kinda like a woman's waist. In fact it actually really reminds me of the lines on my HK USPs
The German slide also had a darker, wet-look finish while the US slide had a dark greyish dry-powdered finish look to it, that's the best I can describe it.
The German Sig had a steel guide rod with a hole in the middle while the US Sig had a polymer guide rod.
The German Sig had the old school style trigger while the US Sig had the short reach trigger, not to be confused with short RESET trigger, which neither gun has. Oddly I prefer the old school style trigger after dry firing for the last couple of days.
Mag release was just serrated on the German Sig and checkered on the US Sig.
Onto the feel of the controls and operation.
The way these two P226s point and aim are very identical, but a slight edge does go to the German Sig, as the stamped carbon steel slide is lighter, so to me, it feels better balanced.
The decocker on the German Sig is much more smooth and take less effort to decock the hammer.
The 2 BIGGEST factors for me is the trigger and frame to slide to barrel fit. The German Sig just puts the US Sig to shame.
Let's start with the trigger. I never had a problem with the trigger from the US Sig for as long as I have been shooting it. But since I have been dry firing the German Sig for a couple of days, I did start to notice a difference. They are very similar firing double action, firing single action is a different story. There is absolutely no creep in the trigger of the German Sig and about 1mm of creep in the trigger of the US Sig. The German Sig has a bit of take up, then you feel the wall, then it breaks extremely clean. The US Sig also has a bit of take up, then you feel the wall, then that 1mm of creep, then it breaks. I have never noticed it before, and I always thought that Sigs have a very nice trigger, I still do, but the German Sig just really takes it up a notch. I'm assuming the Germans maybe do some polishing before final assembly, I don't think they use differents parts, but I could be wrong.
Onto the fitment of frame to slide to barrel. The German Sig's slide to frame fit is very nice and tight, racking the slide is very smooth. Kind of like comparing my SA Operator to my Colt. The Operator has no "rattle" when you shake it and the Colt has a little "rattle". The German Sig being the Operator and the US Sig being the Colt. Those of you that own Colts know what I'm talking about. But what really surprised me is the slide to barrel lockup. It is extremely tight on the German Sig. I placed my thumb on the underside of the frame inside the trigger guard and placed my index finger on top of the barrel hood and squeezed hard. To my surprise, the German Sig had absolutely no movement. The US Sig's barrel hood moved slight and made a tick noise that I could "feel" through my index finger. I could not believe it. I racked the slide a few times on both and tried it again, same result. Surely this is something that should affect accuracy? I always did fairly well shooting the US Sig all this time. I wonder how well the German Sig will group?!
I hope you guys enjoyed my review of my German Grade 1 P226. For you guys looking to buy a Sig in the future, I would not buy a new Sig and pay over $1000. I paid $793 for my German Grade 1 P226 with triple matching serial #s. It almost could pass for a brand new gun. Of course, I know I got lucky in that it had no wear at all. Again, thank you Ryan from SFRC! I know you helped me pick out the best one you had.
For those of you that are sure you want a German P226 but are undecided about grade 1 or grade 2, now you have reviews on both and are able to make an informed decision whether or not to spend that extra $100 for the grade 1 over the grade 2.
Happy Shooting!
Cheers.
First of all, this Grade 1 is MINT! Obviously it has been shot, as you can tell by the slight wear on the side of the barrel hood, but other than that, there is no cosmetic wear anywhere. I think I got lucky and received a perfect Grade 1 specimen, I heard others were not as lucky as me. Enjoy the pics guys.
Love at first sight!
Note the slight wear on the side of the barrel hood.
Look at that shiny barrel crown!
Nothing oozes quality like a "Made In Germany" stamp!
The white lines and dots are just lint from cleaning!
Note the shape of the German stamped carbon steel slide.
Again, note the differences in shape and finish between German stamped carbon steel slide vs. US milled stainless steel slide.
I tried to take the best pics I can with my Canon S95, too bad I don't have a digital SLR
It was late at night after a long 10 hr shift.Onto the differences between the German Sig vs. US Sig.
Immediately, I was able to notice the difference in shape, I prefer the look of the German slide. It had more of a "shape" to it, if that makes any sense!?
The signature Sig line that runs from the end of the muzzle to the middle of the slide is way more pronounced in the German Sig, it's very ###y, kinda like a woman's waist. In fact it actually really reminds me of the lines on my HK USPs
The German slide also had a darker, wet-look finish while the US slide had a dark greyish dry-powdered finish look to it, that's the best I can describe it.
The German Sig had a steel guide rod with a hole in the middle while the US Sig had a polymer guide rod.
The German Sig had the old school style trigger while the US Sig had the short reach trigger, not to be confused with short RESET trigger, which neither gun has. Oddly I prefer the old school style trigger after dry firing for the last couple of days.
Mag release was just serrated on the German Sig and checkered on the US Sig.
Onto the feel of the controls and operation.
The way these two P226s point and aim are very identical, but a slight edge does go to the German Sig, as the stamped carbon steel slide is lighter, so to me, it feels better balanced.
The decocker on the German Sig is much more smooth and take less effort to decock the hammer.
The 2 BIGGEST factors for me is the trigger and frame to slide to barrel fit. The German Sig just puts the US Sig to shame.
Let's start with the trigger. I never had a problem with the trigger from the US Sig for as long as I have been shooting it. But since I have been dry firing the German Sig for a couple of days, I did start to notice a difference. They are very similar firing double action, firing single action is a different story. There is absolutely no creep in the trigger of the German Sig and about 1mm of creep in the trigger of the US Sig. The German Sig has a bit of take up, then you feel the wall, then it breaks extremely clean. The US Sig also has a bit of take up, then you feel the wall, then that 1mm of creep, then it breaks. I have never noticed it before, and I always thought that Sigs have a very nice trigger, I still do, but the German Sig just really takes it up a notch. I'm assuming the Germans maybe do some polishing before final assembly, I don't think they use differents parts, but I could be wrong.
Onto the fitment of frame to slide to barrel. The German Sig's slide to frame fit is very nice and tight, racking the slide is very smooth. Kind of like comparing my SA Operator to my Colt. The Operator has no "rattle" when you shake it and the Colt has a little "rattle". The German Sig being the Operator and the US Sig being the Colt. Those of you that own Colts know what I'm talking about. But what really surprised me is the slide to barrel lockup. It is extremely tight on the German Sig. I placed my thumb on the underside of the frame inside the trigger guard and placed my index finger on top of the barrel hood and squeezed hard. To my surprise, the German Sig had absolutely no movement. The US Sig's barrel hood moved slight and made a tick noise that I could "feel" through my index finger. I could not believe it. I racked the slide a few times on both and tried it again, same result. Surely this is something that should affect accuracy? I always did fairly well shooting the US Sig all this time. I wonder how well the German Sig will group?!
I hope you guys enjoyed my review of my German Grade 1 P226. For you guys looking to buy a Sig in the future, I would not buy a new Sig and pay over $1000. I paid $793 for my German Grade 1 P226 with triple matching serial #s. It almost could pass for a brand new gun. Of course, I know I got lucky in that it had no wear at all. Again, thank you Ryan from SFRC! I know you helped me pick out the best one you had.
For those of you that are sure you want a German P226 but are undecided about grade 1 or grade 2, now you have reviews on both and are able to make an informed decision whether or not to spend that extra $100 for the grade 1 over the grade 2.
Happy Shooting!
Cheers.
