Stainless Steel Sigs more durable than Alum Alloy?
- Thread starter evolture
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Durability and ruggedness? Sure. Of course a stainless slide on a stainless frame is gonna show less wear....
After 10's of thousands of rounds.
As long as you keep it well lubed, either an aluminum framed or a stainless framed SIG is going to outlast you and me and that guy over there - by a long shot. So the real question is - do you want the extra couple of ounces or not? I don't know about you, but since I don't carry my pistols or store them loaded, I prefer the extra weight just in case I need to throw them at an intruder in the night.
I pity the fool who catches my stainless 226 between the eyes!
After 10's of thousands of rounds.
As long as you keep it well lubed, either an aluminum framed or a stainless framed SIG is going to outlast you and me and that guy over there - by a long shot. So the real question is - do you want the extra couple of ounces or not? I don't know about you, but since I don't carry my pistols or store them loaded, I prefer the extra weight just in case I need to throw them at an intruder in the night.
I pity the fool who catches my stainless 226 between the eyes!
don't make me kick your ass about this whole "alloy" stuff... stainless is an alloy. that's like saying there's a large diff between cheddar and cheese.
back to the OP's question, i'm guessing reliability would be too close to call for 98% of the people out there using them, but for uncoated guns they just use the same material on the frame so that visually it matches up with the slide.
So whats the deal with the stainless steel sigs?
Do they offer any durability or ruggedness over the standard sigs?
-e
My understanding is that the Stainless Steel models (including the black coated Nitron variety) were developed to reduce felt recoil which would be advantageous when firing a higher caliber round (eg. .45ACP) more accurately and/ or to allow for quicker follow-up shots.
It could be argued that the Stainless Steel models are perhaps more durable and reliable, but without any long term test reviews in controlled environments to refer to; I would render this view as being an academic argument.
Dimensionally, the two variants are identical and from my inspection of a few models, the fit and finish on both is equally beyond reproach.
The Stainless Steel models are heavier by about 230g (for a P220) so concealed carry may be a spot tougher if that is a consideration. But seeing as we are not allowed to CC here anyway, I do not see this as posing a problem. Note that the weight difference is noticeable when comparing the two variants side by side, but personally, I feel that the additional recoil dampening is a more than acceptable trade-off for a slightly heavier firearm.
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IMO, stainless or steel or alloy does not affect reliability at all.
Alloy is ideal for CCW or military/police where they carry it 8-12 hrs/day for its lightness and that's it.
It will increase recoil as it is lighter specially with 45ACP.
If you carry stainless/steel 8-10hrs/day it's gonna be a hell of a weight!
Try it and you will hate the stainless slide!
I wouldn't worry about durability issues at all, i did not hear any reliability issues just because it is an alloy slide!
If it's 9mm you're after, get the alloy slide.
Alloy is ideal for CCW or military/police where they carry it 8-12 hrs/day for its lightness and that's it.
It will increase recoil as it is lighter specially with 45ACP.
If you carry stainless/steel 8-10hrs/day it's gonna be a hell of a weight!
Try it and you will hate the stainless slide!
I wouldn't worry about durability issues at all, i did not hear any reliability issues just because it is an alloy slide!
If it's 9mm you're after, get the alloy slide.
WOW you need an education..... but at least you spelled "you're" right.
first, stainlesss (steel) IS AN ALLOY. so is (plain) steel. if you're trying to sound and be educated, then BE EDUCATED more than the marketing people who write the web ads.
ALLOY is ANY mixture of metal with other stuff, like iron+carbon=steel, and not ONLY aluminum (which, ironically, in and of itself is NOT an alloy)
steel is ALWAYS an alloy, by its very definition, whether plain steel or stainless steel
and most of the time, it's the FRAME that's either steel or aluminum or polymer, not the slide.
Sorry if i offend you BP7 but if the "stainless" term used here is really the same as "alloy" as spoken by most of us in this thread then why do they differ in weight?
Again IMO, and the point i am trying to say (without being technical like.... "metal with other stuff, like iron+carbon=steel...") is that one is lighter than the other....so if i am going to use a handgun for work -i will go light...for target and recreation, i can get the meanest, heaviest, biggest caliber i want...lol!
But since i am a newbie...by all means you are right!
Again IMO, and the point i am trying to say (without being technical like.... "metal with other stuff, like iron+carbon=steel...") is that one is lighter than the other....so if i am going to use a handgun for work -i will go light...for target and recreation, i can get the meanest, heaviest, biggest caliber i want...lol!
But since i am a newbie...by all means you are right!
So whats the deal with the stainless steel sigs?
Do they offer any durability or ruggedness over the standard sigs?
-e
First of all, I'm no metalurgist nor do I play one on TV. To my knowledge, ALL SIG slides are nowaday made of stainless steel. Some are coated in Nitron finish (Proprietary SIG black finish), some are left natural (Bead blasted, just like Elite Stainless models).
As for the frame, SIG uses an Alumimium frame which has an Hard Anodized finish. This finish can be scratched or gouged but it will never chip as it's not something baked on or painted (Read more on anodizing for infos).
The stainless frame is (obviously) made of stainless steel and also bead blasted. It's a lot heavier and theoricaly offer longer durability and better recoil management.
Of course, if well maintained, both will outlast you anyway...
That beeing said, the general concensus (sigforum) is to keep a good amount of grease on the rail to maximize longevity; especially on models with aluminium frame where the slide's nitron finish can be quite abrasive for the frame's anodizing. Stainless on stainless can also prove to be problematic with impropoer lubrication which can cause galling of the steel.
Here is a nice guide about rail lubing : http://grayguns.com/lubrication-of-sig-sauer-pistol-rails/
FYI I use Slide Glide medium (Brian enos website) on my 9mm pistol rail. It is expensive, but it doesn't take much. Some claim it is repacked red wheel bearing grease (which is sold for 2$ a tub in autoparts places). I personnally don't mind the price.
YMMV
You may be right but we all use general speaking terms . I believe some stainless steel use rockwell harden system to determine the the strength but some use numbers such as 440c or 440a while most alloy that we are talking about is use PSI to determine the strength.
Trigun
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At TSE in Calgary they had a beat up stainless (all stainless silver) p226, I asked them why its so beat. they said it has had over 1,000,000 rounds through it. they said it outlasted the other two sigs (aluminum) by about 400,000 or in their terms 1 year. there is some testing for you. that silver sig even was a rental for another 6 months with a cracked slide until they finally discarded it at about 2,000,000. Yes that's 6 zeroes. That is why I went out and bought this:
#1bcshooter
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- North Of The DMZ (US border)
At TSE in Calgary they had a beat up stainless (all stainless silver) p226, I asked them why its so beat. they said it has had over 1,000,000 rounds through it. they said it outlasted the other two sigs (aluminum) by about 400,000 or in their terms 1 year. there is some testing for you. that silver sig even was a rental for another 6 months with a cracked slide until they finally discarded it at about 2,000,000. Yes that's 6 zeroes. That is why I went out and bought this:
Well if you plan on shooting 1 million rnds I guess you got the right gun
As for me my standard P226's (9mm & 40) & P220 (45 acp) will last me a lifetime.
- Location
- The Police State: Ontario
A steel frame will always last longer than an aluminum frame, all things being equal.
The aluminum frame is superior for daily, regular carry because of the reduction in weight. Every ounce less makes a big difference.
But in a quality gun like the SIG, even the aluminum frame will last for a lifetime (or more) of frequent shooting.
*The comments about "alloy" terminology being wrongly used are correct.
To call aluminum an alloy and SS not makes one sound just plain nutz.
The aluminum frame is superior for daily, regular carry because of the reduction in weight. Every ounce less makes a big difference.
But in a quality gun like the SIG, even the aluminum frame will last for a lifetime (or more) of frequent shooting.
*The comments about "alloy" terminology being wrongly used are correct.
To call aluminum an alloy and SS not makes one sound just plain nutz.
Agreed. But I really like the weight, almost like shooting a .22
At TSE in Calgary they had a beat up stainless (all stainless silver) p226, I asked them why its so beat. they said it has had over 1,000,000 rounds through it. they said it outlasted the other two sigs (aluminum) by about 400,000 or in their terms 1 year. there is some testing for you. that silver sig even was a rental for another 6 months with a cracked slide until they finally discarded it at about 2,000,000. Yes that's 6 zeroes. That is why I went out and bought this:
Well if you plan on shooting 1 million rnds I guess you got the right gun
As for me my standard P226's (9mm & 40) & P220 (45 acp) will last me a lifetime.
easyrider604
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Greater Vancouver, BC
At TSE in Calgary they had a beat up stainless (all stainless silver) p226, I asked them why its so beat. they said it has had over 1,000,000 rounds through it. they said it outlasted the other two sigs (aluminum) by about 400,000 or in their terms 1 year. there is some testing for you. that silver sig even was a rental for another 6 months with a cracked slide until they finally discarded it at about 2,000,000. Yes that's 6 zeroes. That is why I went out and bought this:
Just curious. Did TSE say if they had to replace any parts like the barrel, springs, sear hammer etc? If so, how often?
easyrider604
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Greater Vancouver, BC
Gosh, and I was impressed with the Glock endurance/torture test that went more than 100,000 rounds. Well, assuming target range rental guns arewell maintained and not really abused, still 2M rounds is mind-boggling.
So my next decision is whether to buy two hideously ugly Glock 17s or one gorgeous Sig Elite Stainless
i bought both, a Glock I will never clean on purpose and Sig I will clean more than shoot lol
Gosh, and I was impressed with the Glock endurance/torture test that went more than 100,000 rounds. Well, assuming target range rental guns arewell maintained and not really abused, still 2M rounds is mind-boggling.
So my next decision is whether to buy two hideously ugly Glock 17s or one gorgeous Sig Elite Stainless
I much prefer the weight of aluminum or plastic to steel.
Which is stronger? Steel of course.
In terms of reliability it's not and issue.
I'd only go steel if I was planning on shooting lots of hot-loads (like 10mm Auto for instance).
Which is stronger? Steel of course.
In terms of reliability it's not and issue.
I'd only go steel if I was planning on shooting lots of hot-loads (like 10mm Auto for instance).
