Hello, I'm Master-G. You might remember me from such threads as the "FS2000 Range Report". Well today I'm here to talk to you have the SIG C3 pistol. I had a hankering for a small semi-auto pistol recently and after a bunch of research (and EE watching) I decided on a SIG C3 in .45 ACP from Questar. SIG's been making 1911s in New Hampshire for the past six or seven years, but I must admit I did not know much about their offerings until recently. They've taking the classic 1911 design and added a few SIG-specific touches. Here are my thoughts on my first week with the pistol.
Overview
The SIG C3 is a variant of the classic 1911 semi-auto--it's a single stack frame, but one of the things that makes it a bit unusual is its dimensions. It has a "Commander-length" barrel of 4.2 inches, but somewhat usually the barrel is mated to a frame that's the same size as the shorter Colt Officer's Model. This gives it an overall height of only 4.8 inches, compared with 5.5 inches for the standard SIG 1911 models. It's actually shorter than a compact Glock (such as a Glock 19 or Glock 23) which have a height of 5 inches. The H&K P7 is often mentioned as one of the smallest non-restricted pistols available in Canada, but even that model is 5.1 inches high (although the P7 is shorter in overall length due to the C3's sweeping beavertail grip safety). The C3 would be a great carry pistol (if only!)
The first things I noticed when I picked it up was how short it felt! I've got smallish hands, and my fingers just fit on the grip. However, once i handled it for a bit, my full-sized Nighthawk GRP seemed really big and heavy! The trigger pull is very crisp and not too heavy--I'm guessing maybe four or five pounds. The C3 has a Series 80-type firing pin safety so the first stage of the trigger pull (until you reach the final resistance) is not quite as smooth as a pistol without one, but it's not disagreeable.
Here's the C3 compared to the GRP.
It's got a flat-black anodized aluminum frame, which keeps the weight down a bit--29.5 oz with empty mag. This will be my first aluminum-framed pistol (I've been a steel and polymer guy up until now). I think I would have preferred an all-steel model, but I'm hoping that if anyone knows aluminum frames it's SIG
The frontstrap and mainspring housing are checkered for added "grippiness". The checkering on the frontstrap is a little coarser than I'd prefer--I was concerned about shooting comfort for an extended range session. One nice touch is that the muzzle is flush with the barrel bushing (similar to the Nighthawk Dominator) and has a very nice crown as well.
Although I'm not an expert, the barrel looks to be very well-made (the locking lugs are certainly sharp!)
The sights are Novak-style tritium night sights, which also give a very good sight picture in daylight as well.
The grip safety has a prominent bump at the bottom to assist in activation, and the thumb safety is compactly-designed--it's significantly smaller than the safety on my Nighhawk. Mag release and slide stop are both standard-sized.
The slide profile is notably different from a traditional 1911--it's almost like they took a slide from a SIG P22x series pistol and mated it to a 1911 frame. Purists might not like it, but I think that it gives the pistol a modern, distinctive look.
I was pleased to see that this pistol has a regular bushing and normal-length guide rod. This makes disassembly much easier, and I've never thought that a full-length guide rod adds any benefits. Disassembly was no problem without tools--no bushing wrench was needed.
The C3 comes with attractive stippled rosewood grips (have a look at Questar's site here). However, I like the VZ "Gator Back" grips on my Nighhawk so much I wanted a similar set on the C3 so I settled on their "Alien" model in "Desert Sand" colour--you can order right from their website. They're comfortable and very grippy (plus I like the look better too!)
Range Report
I had a chance today to head up to Nova Scotia Rifle Association's Bull Meadow Range in Upper Rawdon, Nova Scotia. For mid-December the temperature was not too bad, just below freezing with light winds. Also attending was my Dad (who's also a CGN member). This is him.
I set the target at 15m and loaded up five rounds. The first thing I noticed was the recoil--I was expecting more but it was much more comfortable than I expected (I was shooting American Eagle 230gr FMJ). I think that Commander-length .45s have a bit less of the "clunk-clunk" recoil effect you get from a full-length slide cycling back and forth. This is me.
Here's the first group (the target's a standard-width target). Not bad but not great.
I tried a few more magazines and by shot number 25 the groups had tightened up:
Looking better!
Next I tried standing, deliberate fire at 25m.
(of course, shot number 6 is the one on the far left, which about doubled the group size!)
At this point (shot number 40) I had the same failure on three consecutive magazines--the slide would lock back on the second-last round. I took the pistol apart (I was glad again for the normal-length guide rod) and found that the lube I had used (a tube of Mil Comm lubricant that was included in the box with the SIG) had kind of grunged up the insides a bit) I may have used more than I was supposed to--it had certainly flowed a lot more. I cleaned things up a bit and reassembled. No further failures occurred in the remaining 55 rounds.
My final test was at 7m with five shots fired, at a rate of about one shot every half second. For this test I used Remington 185 gr +P hollowpoints. Recoil was noticeably snappier but still easily managed.
Of course, if you really mean business you grab a 12 gauge--here's the target with eight rounds of 00 buck out of my Grizzly to finish off the day.
Shooting a shorty 12 gauge and a compact .45--now that's a great way to spend a pre-Christmas Saturday with your Dad!
Summary
I really like this pistol--it's unexpectedly comfortable to shoot with mild recoil, and the sharp checkering I was concerned about posed no problems at all in shooting 105 rounds. In fact, the frontstrap and MSH checkering, combined with the medium-aggressive Alien grips makes for a very positive grip--the pistol doesn't wiggle around shot-to-shot at all, which also helps to contribute to reducing felt recoil. The pistol is very accurate--I shoot it about as well as my Nighthawk GRP. The short sight radius might be a problem at 50m but from 25m and in it's exceptionally accurate. The excellent sights and trigger contribute to that. I'm hoping those magazine-related failures don't come back--I'll be re-lubing the pistol with BreakFree (my regular lube) next time to compare. Overall, I give it a big thumbs up!
Overview
The SIG C3 is a variant of the classic 1911 semi-auto--it's a single stack frame, but one of the things that makes it a bit unusual is its dimensions. It has a "Commander-length" barrel of 4.2 inches, but somewhat usually the barrel is mated to a frame that's the same size as the shorter Colt Officer's Model. This gives it an overall height of only 4.8 inches, compared with 5.5 inches for the standard SIG 1911 models. It's actually shorter than a compact Glock (such as a Glock 19 or Glock 23) which have a height of 5 inches. The H&K P7 is often mentioned as one of the smallest non-restricted pistols available in Canada, but even that model is 5.1 inches high (although the P7 is shorter in overall length due to the C3's sweeping beavertail grip safety). The C3 would be a great carry pistol (if only!)
The first things I noticed when I picked it up was how short it felt! I've got smallish hands, and my fingers just fit on the grip. However, once i handled it for a bit, my full-sized Nighthawk GRP seemed really big and heavy! The trigger pull is very crisp and not too heavy--I'm guessing maybe four or five pounds. The C3 has a Series 80-type firing pin safety so the first stage of the trigger pull (until you reach the final resistance) is not quite as smooth as a pistol without one, but it's not disagreeable.
Here's the C3 compared to the GRP.
It's got a flat-black anodized aluminum frame, which keeps the weight down a bit--29.5 oz with empty mag. This will be my first aluminum-framed pistol (I've been a steel and polymer guy up until now). I think I would have preferred an all-steel model, but I'm hoping that if anyone knows aluminum frames it's SIG
The frontstrap and mainspring housing are checkered for added "grippiness". The checkering on the frontstrap is a little coarser than I'd prefer--I was concerned about shooting comfort for an extended range session. One nice touch is that the muzzle is flush with the barrel bushing (similar to the Nighthawk Dominator) and has a very nice crown as well.
Although I'm not an expert, the barrel looks to be very well-made (the locking lugs are certainly sharp!)
The sights are Novak-style tritium night sights, which also give a very good sight picture in daylight as well.
The grip safety has a prominent bump at the bottom to assist in activation, and the thumb safety is compactly-designed--it's significantly smaller than the safety on my Nighhawk. Mag release and slide stop are both standard-sized.
The slide profile is notably different from a traditional 1911--it's almost like they took a slide from a SIG P22x series pistol and mated it to a 1911 frame. Purists might not like it, but I think that it gives the pistol a modern, distinctive look.
I was pleased to see that this pistol has a regular bushing and normal-length guide rod. This makes disassembly much easier, and I've never thought that a full-length guide rod adds any benefits. Disassembly was no problem without tools--no bushing wrench was needed.
The C3 comes with attractive stippled rosewood grips (have a look at Questar's site here). However, I like the VZ "Gator Back" grips on my Nighhawk so much I wanted a similar set on the C3 so I settled on their "Alien" model in "Desert Sand" colour--you can order right from their website. They're comfortable and very grippy (plus I like the look better too!)
Range Report
I had a chance today to head up to Nova Scotia Rifle Association's Bull Meadow Range in Upper Rawdon, Nova Scotia. For mid-December the temperature was not too bad, just below freezing with light winds. Also attending was my Dad (who's also a CGN member). This is him.
I set the target at 15m and loaded up five rounds. The first thing I noticed was the recoil--I was expecting more but it was much more comfortable than I expected (I was shooting American Eagle 230gr FMJ). I think that Commander-length .45s have a bit less of the "clunk-clunk" recoil effect you get from a full-length slide cycling back and forth. This is me.
Here's the first group (the target's a standard-width target). Not bad but not great.
I tried a few more magazines and by shot number 25 the groups had tightened up:
Looking better!
Next I tried standing, deliberate fire at 25m.
(of course, shot number 6 is the one on the far left, which about doubled the group size!)
At this point (shot number 40) I had the same failure on three consecutive magazines--the slide would lock back on the second-last round. I took the pistol apart (I was glad again for the normal-length guide rod) and found that the lube I had used (a tube of Mil Comm lubricant that was included in the box with the SIG) had kind of grunged up the insides a bit) I may have used more than I was supposed to--it had certainly flowed a lot more. I cleaned things up a bit and reassembled. No further failures occurred in the remaining 55 rounds.
My final test was at 7m with five shots fired, at a rate of about one shot every half second. For this test I used Remington 185 gr +P hollowpoints. Recoil was noticeably snappier but still easily managed.
Of course, if you really mean business you grab a 12 gauge--here's the target with eight rounds of 00 buck out of my Grizzly to finish off the day.
Shooting a shorty 12 gauge and a compact .45--now that's a great way to spend a pre-Christmas Saturday with your Dad!
Summary
I really like this pistol--it's unexpectedly comfortable to shoot with mild recoil, and the sharp checkering I was concerned about posed no problems at all in shooting 105 rounds. In fact, the frontstrap and MSH checkering, combined with the medium-aggressive Alien grips makes for a very positive grip--the pistol doesn't wiggle around shot-to-shot at all, which also helps to contribute to reducing felt recoil. The pistol is very accurate--I shoot it about as well as my Nighthawk GRP. The short sight radius might be a problem at 50m but from 25m and in it's exceptionally accurate. The excellent sights and trigger contribute to that. I'm hoping those magazine-related failures don't come back--I'll be re-lubing the pistol with BreakFree (my regular lube) next time to compare. Overall, I give it a big thumbs up!
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