Even More Problems for the Sig P320
BY Herschel Smith1 year, 6 months ago
2023 is gonna be one helluva year for SIG. pic.twitter.com/EFp8S2Jpjy
— Roland☃️ (@rolandpew1230) April 10, 2023
Then there’s the Milwaukee PD who intend to get rid of theirs. Then there’s this article. David Codrea weighs in as well.
If you doubt all of this, there is at least this anecdote from reddit/Firearms.
I’d say that if I hadn’t seen it happen at a match I was at. Guy had his hands at high ready waiting for the beep and his 320 discharged in the holster. Shirt was tucked and it was higher end OWB holster. This was circa 2020 with a newer production gun. Apparently the firing pin spring broke and that some how allowed the firing pin to drop. He was lucky as the bullet ricocheted off something in his pocket.
As for me? I don’t like the height of the bore over the axis. I wouldn’t have the pistol. Then, I wouldn’t have a Sig AR because I loath whatever control Sig has over former U.S. generals that enables them to get unwarranted and undeserved contracts.
You make up your own mind.
On April 12, 2023 at 9:53 pm, Georgiaboy61 said:
@ H.S.
Re: “Then, I wouldn’t have a Sig AR because I loath whatever control Sig has over former U.S. generals that enables them to get unwarranted and undeserved contracts.”
I’ll certainly second that, for what it is worth….
It would be one thing if there was a lack of competent firearms design and manufacturing in the U.S. – then perhaps seeking overseas vendors might make sense. Emphasis “might”… but with all of the high-end talent in this country, why does the Pentagon/DOD have to go fishing for foreign bids on small arms contracts?
There is such a thing as carrying this “international cooperation” stuff too far.
It would be interesting to start turning over some rocks and see who has benefited from the awarding of these contracts to Sig; who has profited and by how much? It is hard not to believe that the fix is in at some level, given all of the high-end contracts Sig has gotten recently, first the U.S. Army optics contract, then the Sig Spear 6.8×51 system, and of course the Sig P320.
We’re also in agreement about the design of the P230. While I recognize that ergonomics is highly-personal and individual in terms of likes and dislikes and tastes, I have never felt any sort of connection with Sig’s product line. They just don’t do it for me. Yet, some people with stellar credentials seem to like them just fine. Your mileage may vary, I guess, as the saying goes.
On April 12, 2023 at 10:12 pm, X said:
S&W 5906, circa 1988. Best piece ever. Never let me down. Can’t be beat. That pistol should have been adopted by the USG instead of the Beretta and the Sig.
Failing that, a Glock 17.
On April 12, 2023 at 10:39 pm, Latigo Morgan said:
CZ 75 P-01 – nothing feels better in my hand, not even my beloved 1911.
Hammer fired, DA/SA. Once it clicks with you, you don’t even notice the heavier DA first round trigger pull. I can’t say when it happened, but one day I was hitting just as accurately with that first shot as I was with the follow up SA shots.
I’m just not a fan of the striker firing system on pistols, even though I carried an XD45 for a few years.
On April 12, 2023 at 10:48 pm, Herschel Smith said:
I’m sure that the smallness and lightness of the CZ 75 P-01 doesn’t compare to the (intentional) weightiness of the full frame CZ Shadow 2 (being a competition gun), but the Shadow 2 has to be one of the best handguns I’ve ever shot. The last time I was at the range I shot it, handed it to my daughter to shoot, and then we looked at each other in disbelief.
CZ makes some fine firearms. The U.S. armed forces couldn’t do better than selecting some sort of CZ pistol. I wonder if they’ve ever approached CZ to encourage them bid on contracts? Probably not since most manufacturers know that Sig has some sort of special relationship with the army (pictures of some general)?
On April 13, 2023 at 5:56 am, Nosmo said:
Anyone know if this applies to all P320s or are there model variants that, at least so far, have not demonstrated to have the issue? As in “fundamental design flaw, manufacturing issue (performance variance between US-made and European-made), or potential parts quality problem?” How much MIM is in Sigs and where?
On April 13, 2023 at 8:53 am, X said:
If cops are shooting themselves with Sigs, maybe they should become mandatory.
Swine tase 80-year old at gunpoint for driving 3 mph over limit:
https://news.yahoo.com/ks-cops-chased-elderly-man-113000403.html
On April 13, 2023 at 9:19 am, george 1 said:
It seems unbelievable that a company with Sig’s engineering resources could design a weapon that is having these problems. But we don’t live in times where we can count on anything that we previously took for granted. Science is not what it used to be and the results may vary.
Also is Sig’s engineering staff composed of competent people these days or are they more likely staffed by people the government thinks should be engineers? Is that staff a reflection of keeping the government happy enough to give them weapons contracts? Asking for a friend.
On April 13, 2023 at 12:10 pm, Latigo Morgan said:
@ Herschel Smith – The P-01 is no Shadow 2, but it’s a delight to shoot. It does best with heavier bullets. The 124 gr. is good and the 147 gr. is even better as they have less muzzle flip than the lighter 115 gr. offerings. My P-01 also has a NATO stock number stamped on the side of it, as it is one of the few pistols to pass NATO testing. CZ probably doesn’t have an Epstein Island type place to wine and dine generals at, though.
@ george 1 – Seems these problems have cropped up not too long after Sig decided to shut down their German factory and operations. I imagine their old engineering staff took early retirement rather than relocate to the US or elsewhere.
On April 13, 2023 at 3:30 pm, Steady Steve said:
I can’t hate on Sig as I have a P229 in .357 Sig that’s just wonderful. I also have the .40 S&W barrel for it that works just as well. I think Sig came to the striker fired polymer party a bit late. They had a perfectly good hammer fired modular pistol in the P250, should have just left well enough alone.
On April 13, 2023 at 6:06 pm, ZERO[F2G] said:
I have owned sever Sig P226 and still own one that I have had for over 20 years with zero issues.
I also own a custom Sig P320 that I built on an 80% MUP-1 Chassis. I have had zero issues with the firearm, and have beat it to death and dropped it at every conceivable angle with a snap cap in place to get it to discharge, I have even begged it to fire itself to no avail.
And in my opinion I would think an 80% model manufactured by an amateur gunsmith would be more likely to failure than from a manufacturer.
Now I do not discount the fact that possibly even the Glock, the gold standard of reliability in the perfect storm could somehow fail and create an AD. So some of the reports could be true, but my thought are that most if not all of these are user error.
Maybe I am wrong and the issue does exist, but then considering the number of P360’s in circulation either millions of us are simply lucky, or its something else.
@ Georgiaboy61 As much as Ido like many Sig Sauer firearms, I am however in complete agreement that they have to cozy of a relationship with Military Brass.
I have never handles a P320 with a factory grip module, but the Wilson combat P320 grip module I use fits my hand like a glove.
On April 13, 2023 at 9:15 pm, Georgiaboy61 said:
@ Zero(F2G)
Re: “As much as Ido like many Sig Sauer firearms, I am however in complete agreement that they have to cozy of a relationship with Military Brass.”
It’s been common knowledge now for years that behind-the-scenes geopolitics within NATO plays into the awarding of defense contracts. I don’t remember the precise details, but back in the 1980s at the time Beretta got the coveted U.S. military pistol contract to replace the M1911, there was grumbling that they got it because the U.S.government wanted basing rights for missiles in Italy, or something along those lines. The Italians basically wanted tit-for-tat, so the Beretta got the deal.
Other than a hunch, I can’t prove anything, but I suspect something similar has gone on behind the scenes with the Germans and Sig-Sauer running off their recent string of successful bids for contracts with mil.gov.us.
I’m an outsider, but maybe someone with more-current and inside knowledge can offer their perspective….
On April 14, 2023 at 2:38 pm, Bradley A Graham said:
Anyone remember the unsupported barrel issues with Glocks, the early .40 cal Glocks cracking frames and slides, no reloads recommended in Glocks, etc, etc ,etc, ad naseum.
I could fill a milk crate full of my old and new Glocks and my old and new Sig’s, including the 320.
Never had a problem with either and I sure as hell don’t expect to.
On April 16, 2023 at 9:26 pm, JD Daily said:
I don’t own any Sig’s; however, I have purchased two 365SAS for gifts to my children. They live in Kalifornia. I have shot them & like them for CC. For me the grip angle is a lot better than Glock’s & the bullseye sight works wo/the profile downside of a reflex sight. On today’s (recorded Friday at the NRA convention) GunTalk broadcast one of the segments included a rep. from SIG. One of the discussion had to do with the 320 firing wo/engaging the trigger issues. It was stated that all verdicts have been in SIG’s favor. The reason stated was that none of the reported accidental discharges could be reproduced. Also one plaintiff’s expert witness was rejected by the judge because their resume didn’t pass a smell test.
P.S. If I didn’t have a life long partner of 55 years that believes we own enough handguns, I’d buy a 365SAS for EDC.