Help; which P226 shall I order?

Which P226?

  • MK25 Navy!

    Votes: 17 47.2%

  • Internal extractor German-made Sig w/ night sights!

    Votes: 15 41.7%

  • external extractor German w/o night sights and E2 grips

    Votes: 4 11.1%
  • Total voters
    36
mr00jimbo

mr00jimbo

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I am looking for a P226 9 millimeter. Not interested in any other guns right now (sold a Sig, so I'm buying another one).
I figure I could walk into the local shop and buy a regular P226, one with night sights, and/or an E2 grips.
But I want something kind of special...I know it's a mass produced gun but whatever.

So I'm thinking of an MK25 "Navy" model, with the phosphated internals and the anchor on the side, and the certificate of authenticity, and yadda yadda yadda.

MK25 pros:
Milled stainless slide stronger than folded
Parts availability
Cool looking anchor :D

p226_navy_mk25_bty_r-tfb.jpg


Cons:
Exeter Sigs are apparently not as high as quality/have spotty reputation compared to German-made Sigs

P226 German - random model P226 with three serial #s, and proof markings, 100% made in Germany with night sights

Pros:
Old-school German Sig "balance"
Neat markings and barrel serial #

Cons:
Folded slide not as durable as stainless
Parts availability (especially internal extractor) compared to newer external extractor P226?
Higher maintenance - roll pins and all that stuff need replacing

P226-German-detail-R.jpg


Orrrr, as some what of a compromise...no night sights, E2 grips, milled stainless slide and external extractor but still made in Germany
77738.jpg



What say you?
 
I vote for the conservative look of German made w/internal extractor...
I have one and serve me very well, a 100% top gun ! ... the only cons are the "dot the I" sights (prefer my Elite 3dot night sights)
* NOW if you find one with ss milled slide, external short extractor and 3dot night sights (NO rail) then this is a "wished-holly-dreamed" P226...
 
SIG has sh*t the bed as far as Exeter goes. I've never seen or fired a German one so I can't give you an opinion on them, but I've owned 2 Exeter Sigs in the past 6 months and I will NEVER buy one again. Why, you ask? The first one, a 226 in .40, had a barrel that was so badly deformed I don't know how anyone didn't notice it. The feed ramp was squashed so badly together that it would not feed to save its life. The second one, that I got just a week ago, wasn't even machined properly. The barrel sat loose in the slide during lock up, the slide had an exorbent amount of side to side play, and the slide sat forward over an 1/8 of an inch on the frame. But that's just my experience. If you like the German ones, by all means give them a go! But I would stay away from anything Exeter IMHO.

TK
 
^^^ Don't know where this guy got his Sigs, but I've had 3, all impeccable and were from Exeter. I have 2 more on the way (1 German).

I have monster hands and the E2 grip actually feels better than the base grip. "E" is for "Ergonomic" and it is not tiny. It is a little thinner. Best to try both before you buy, as your hand will tell you which is best. SRT trigger is a must, will improve your shooting.
 
In my opinion, if you can get your hands on a German made Sig, with the formed slide and internal extractor at a price close to a US made gun.............buy it.

As you mentioned, the formed slide is lighter than the machined slide on the US gun, which balances the gun a bit better as it cycles.

Many people on CGN's, including myself, plus many on the SIGforum will take a German made Sig over a US made Sig. However, I would have a tough time paying the cost to import one as the cost is high, but the odd time some really good deals come our way on German made Sigs.

I recently purchased a fully German made Sig P226 from Calgary Shooting Sports, it looks just like the one in your second photo. It is a sweet gun to shoot.

I also bought one of the fully German made P220's from Arma-Coat, which should be here next week.

I purchased both of the guns for the same price as a US made gun, making it a 'no brainer' for me to decide which guns to buy! Don't get me wrong, the US Sigs are still very good pistols, but they have had several reported function issues, plus I don't care for the fact that they re-designed a gun that worked very well for decades.
Although, I must admit that MK25 has caught my eye!

Sig US claimed that they had to go to a machined slide to accept the pressures of the .40. what I don't understand is why they made the same design change for the 9mm and .45! German made Sig P guns operated for many years, as service pistols, in harsh enviroments with the formed slides on 9mm and .45 guns with great success. IMHO the changes were made to make the slide easier and cheaper to make!

And YES, I drink the German, and now Austrian Kool Aid!!!! LOL

Next Sig is going to be a X-Five in 9mm (which are fully German made, but are "spendy"). However, I had the chance to shoot one last year (when I was at the range with my West German Sig P226, and I could not believe how much my groups tightened up! Made me look like I could really shoot well!!!! LOL
 
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My last SIG (Elite SS) wouldn't shoot DA, from the factory... sent it back to manufacturer and got a refund.
I really do think they are slipping.
 
I have both German and US made Sig's and really I can't tell the difference. Sure Sig makes the odd lemon but every manufacturer of every product has an occasional hiccup. That's not an excuse but a fact of life. (Don't ask me about my last piece of crap BMW.) I personally have never had a problem with any of my Sig's and I own quite a few.
The whole German made thing is overblown and is partly due to a snobish attitude and resistance to change. Tell a few people that you are buying a new car and inevitably you will have someone say that your choice is nice but 19** was the last "real" car they made blah blah blah.
Sure it would be nice to not have a rail but that is what the market demanded and from a business stand point it doesn't make sense to offer too many variations. For years the OPP bought their 229's without a rail but even they can't get them anymore and are going to the 229R.
As for the slide lets face it a one piece stainless slide is going to be much more durable than a folded steel slide with a pinned in breech block and an external extractor is much easier to change and maintain. Sig Germany still does special runs of the old slides for some models but the machinery for certain models like the 9mm 220 was in Switzerland and is gone for good.
Embrace the change and buy whatever model you like best.
 
st1264 said:
^^^ Don't know where this guy got his Sigs, but I've had 3, all impeccable and were from Exeter. I have 2 more on the way (1 German).

I have monster hands and the E2 grip actually feels better than the base grip. "E" is for "Ergonomic" and it is not tiny. It is a little thinner. Best to try both before you buy, as your hand will tell you which is best. SRT trigger is a must, will improve your shooting.
Click to expand...

I don't think it matters where the sigs were purchased as they were both brand new, straight out of the box still covered in factory grease. What does matter is that they both had clear problems that no "new" pistol ever should. I'm glad your sigs are flawless, but many others, not just myself, have been experiencing quality control issues that are unacceptable.

As for the grip comment, I agree, the E2 is much easier on the hands. As for the SRT, haven't used one of those either.
 
Thinking about the German with night sights.
The Navy is cool and all but it's still just a standard P226 with a few gizmos. What worried me about it is if they couldn't put the sticker on straight for promotional photos....:eek:
 
mr00jimbo said:
Thinking about the German with night sights.
The Navy is cool and all but it's still just a standard P226 with a few gizmos. What worried me about it is if they couldn't put the sticker on straight for promotional photos....:eek:
Click to expand...

If you leave the sticker on after you buy it, then you are no better then thoughs kids with the sales tag on their ball caps :p
 
TK-Hryciuk said:
I don't think it matters where the sigs were purchased as they were both brand new, straight out of the box still covered in factory grease. What does matter is that they both had clear problems that no "new" pistol ever should. I'm glad your sigs are flawless, but many others, not just myself, have been experiencing quality control issues that are unacceptable.

As for the grip comment, I agree, the E2 is much easier on the hands. As for the SRT, haven't used one of those either.
Click to expand...

If you read the forums, guys who have Glocks, Kimber, S&W, almost any brand of pistol do complain about problems. Not every pistol is faulty... every brand does have some bad ones. You may never buy one again because you've had problems and I have purchased 5 of them. I'm sure a 1995 German Sig was better than a 2012 and so was an earlier American version than the current. It's all about saving money. Most changes are not for the better. Here's mine after 250rds, looks and performs perfectly. Not one ftf or fte-perfect. Will purchase another Sig and recommend to others. I see tons of guys at my range with Sigs...
sig22630001.jpg


If guys really want the German version, pay the extra money and get what you want... If you buy your second choice you may upgrade later and lose on the resale value. Buy what you really want right off the bat.
 
Don't buy a new one; get one of the ex-Swiss Police P226s advertised by Calgary Shooting Centre and Tradex. You will likely end up with a better gun at a lower price.

Current production German SIGs aren't necessarily better than their US-made counterparts. They still use the same outsourced small parts that cause most of the QC problems. Read what ToddG has to say here; he was with SIG for several years:

http://pistol-forum.com/showthread.php?1327-New-Sig

SIG Sauer is a once-great company that has forsaken quality control for countless cosmetic variations of their pistols. This shouldn't be surprising, considering that the current CEO, Ron Cohen, did essentially the same thing when he was at Kimber.
 
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I never claimed every Sig pistol was faulty. Only that their quality control in my opinion is not as well as it should be. I also claimed that this was my personal experience an gave my advice/opinion based on it. If it were up to me on which of the three to choose, I would choose the German E2 model.
 
I have a recent US manufactured P226 with the E2 grips. Flawless gun to date and fits me very well. I do not have small hands (medium/large). I (fortunately) have not experienced any of the US made Sig issues that folks are worried about.
 
Where do ya'all buy/order German Sigs and what would one expect to pay for one. Like ballpark. I have a US 226 9mm.... what would a German one run me all in?? I think i want one!!!!!!
 
Wolfgang, contact Questar they might be able to point you in the right direction. :)

I ended up ordering a Stainless Nitron....stainless frame, stainless slide...rare bird model that's quite inconspicious on Sig's page.
Picture stolen from a member on Sig forum:
slide3ei.jpg
 
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