April 24, 2024, 03:53 PM | #1 |
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Sig P220 & +P version
What the differrence between the old Sig P220 and the +P version? Stiffer spring?
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April 24, 2024, 07:41 PM | #2 |
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could be......
Not sure, but it could be the difference between the older, stamped slides and the newer milled slides.
The P229 in .40 S&W introduced us to SIGs with milled slides, allegedly to handle .40 pressures. The P226 in .40 appeared with a milled slide not to long after. At some point I think the stamped slide guns were dropped and all the P series got milled slides......and maybe +P ratings......maybe |
April 24, 2024, 10:08 PM | #3 |
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Bama is correct. When I went through the Sig P Series armorers course, they said none of the stamped slide versions were rated for +P, .40 S&W, .357 Sig, or any other hotter rounds. I know, the .40 isn't a hotrod round, but it did tend to batter firearms it wasn't meant for at the time.
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April 24, 2024, 11:27 PM | #4 |
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Thanks.
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April 25, 2024, 02:26 AM | #5 |
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I use a Browning BDA .45. The gun is the old P220 with the "stamped slide", which is a very heavy, stout "stamping". The pinned in breechblock has given me no trouble at all, and I got the gun new in 1980.
That gun comfortably handles hotter .45acp than my Colt Govt model does. I have no issues with it, and haven't over the past 44 years.
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April 26, 2024, 11:09 AM | #6 |
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44AMP - did you swap out the recoil spring? It's the frame that takes the pounding.
BTW, my Sig is the older W. German one w/stamped slide. Mine is from 1987.
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April 26, 2024, 03:26 PM | #7 |
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I did swap out the recoil spring, once, 10 or 15 years ago (I forget exactly), but I didn't need to.
Haven't noticed any issues with the frame, other than surface finish wear where the slide runs. The gun did "eat" some of the barrel bluing, early on. Again, surface finish only. I really like mine. Its not a Colt Govt model, but its the next best thing in some ways and better in some other ways. I never did, or have had any work done to it. Somewhere around the 10year mark, the DA pull got noticeably lighter than it started out as. Hasn't changed in the 30+ years since, though. Guess it finally got "broke in"
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April 29, 2024, 09:33 PM | #8 |
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P220
To borrow a Skeeter phrase, I walked beside a P220-.45 for about 20 years. Went through the SIG armorers class 3x. Routinely serviced about a dozen assorted SIG models and serviced about that many more as a matter of course.
For the P-series and duty use, as I best recall, SIG recommended an annual armorers detail strip and clean. At 5000 rds and or 3 yrs they recommended a factory spring kit. Stuff I occasionally saw go wonky were recoil springs, locking inserts and trigger bar springs. One of our guys who shot his duty pistol a lot in competition broke a takedown lever cross pin ( I think). The early P-229-.40's had a tendency to blow an extractor and this may well have been an ammo problem. Replacement pins and extractors were a tad different though I do not recall the exact change anymore. The agency acquired "K-coated" pistols in an attempt to help with corrosion and sustained outdoor and saltwater use, which helped to some degree, but the pistols required attention as all firearms do in adverse conditions. I bought my own P220-.45 to supplement the issue pistol, had it agency approved, and carried it on court days and special events. While working, I shot that P220 in a local IDPA league (when I retired I switched to a G34). The only issue I ever had was with the early 7 rd SIG mags becoming troublesome, but by that time, the 8 rd MecGar's had surfaced and we carried those exclusivlely once they became available. The entirel P-series as issued (P226/220 and P228, P229, P225 were extremely reliable and accurate pistols. I rarely carry or shoot mine anymore, as the double/single trigger requires more time and practice than I am willing to invest. But it's not for sale either. |
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