Tag Archives: p226

SIG Hits Both Retro and Ultra Vibes with new P226 models

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I recently attended SIG’s Next event in New Hampshire last week and thought it was interesting that, among the boatload of new products introduced, the company debuted two very different models of the same pistol– the P226.

The P226 was designed in 1984 – before SIG had even established a presence in the U.S. – to compete for the coveted XM9 Service Pistol Trials to replace the much-loved but aging M1911A1. While the P226 was only narrowly edged out by the Beretta 92 over an issue of cost per unit, the U.S. Navy SEALs would soon adopt the pistol and use it for decades. Well beyond this employment by the country’s frogmen, the P226 rapidly became the sidearm of choice for law enforcement customers and savvy consumers – not to mention hundreds of movies, games, and TV shows.

With their smooth dust covers (sans accessory rail) and pebbled grips, for instance in this specimen from the Vault, the old-school P226 is instantly recognizable.

As the standard P226s cataloged by SIG today have evolved into something that outwardly looks a good bit different from the pistols of the 1980s and 90s, the company has gone retro for a limited run of 40th-anniversary guns that share all the same feature set of those original handguns to include an alloy frame, double-stack 15+1 round magazines, a double-action/single-action trigger system, and a 4.4-inch barrel.

The P226 40th Anniversary Model. Rather than plastic like the originals, the grips are special aluminum models supplied by Hogue. (Photo: Chris Eger/Guns.com)

The P226 XFive Reserve

The new P226 XFive Reserve carries many of the top-tier features of the all-steel American XFive line including an extended beavertail grip, undercut trigger guard, extended magwell, and a factory Delta Point Pro/RMR footprint while still keeping suppressor height XRay3 day/night sights. It also has an SAO system with a three-position AX3 trigger installed that is fully adjustable for pull weight and overtravel while the trigger shoe is removable and adjustable for length of pull.

However, while the standard P226 XFive is all matte-brushed stainless, the new Reserve variant carries a high-polish DLC coating on its stainless slide and frame, a look complemented by a blacked-out set of intricate GridLOK grip panels. Further, to help tame recoil on this 48-ounce (!) 9mm, the slide is fitted with an integral compensator/expansion chamber akin to that seen on the P320 XTen Comp.

The P226 XFive Reserve, with a high polish DLC coating rather than SIG’s more pedestrian nitron finish, is stunning. (Chris Eger/Guns.com)

P226 XFIVE: Not Vaporware

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On a trip to SIG in New Hampshire last week, I had the occasion to see the new P226 XFIVE up close and personal.

Announced earlier this month, the P226 XFIVE was formerly just offered through SIG’s German Master Shop for serious competition use and typically ran in the neighborhood of about $5K– and that was in 2008 dollars! While today’s XFIVE remains pricy– like a minimum advertised price of $2,199 kinda pricy– it is still way less than the older version and the American-made instant classic has been updated to have better sights and a factory Delta Point Pro/RMR footprint.

It feels great in the hand due to the extended beavertail grip and undercut trigger guard. Note the extended magwell that just hoovers up the XFIVE’s 20-round standard magazine as well as the ambi extended slide lock– a must on a Single-Action Only pistol.

Plus, it is easy on the eyes.

More in my column at Guns.com. 

The XFive P226 is back, and less German

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While P226s have been around since the 1970s, the hyper-accurate XFIVE was hard to get on this side of the Atlantic. Essentially a match-quality single-action-only 226 longslide with a 5-inch barrel, the original was a Teutonic range beast, tipping the scales at almost 50 ounces due to the fact it was all stainless steel except for the grips. They shipped with a 25-meter target that usually showed all-touching bullet holes neatly punched into the paper.

Only made until 2012, the XFIVE was more likely to show up in French action movies associated with Luc Besson or in auction houses than on dealers’ shelves.

A rare, german-made P226 XFive Scandic.

Well, that all changed this week when good old New Hampshire-based SIG announced they now have an updated XFIVE with either custom Hogue Cocobolo or Hogue H10 Piranha grips installed. The new guns, much like the old, still run a 5-inch bull barrel with a stainless steel frame and slide. New is an adjustable Dawson-style rear sight plate that can be removed to direct-mount a SIG Romeo 1/2, or any other optic using the standard Delta Point Pro/RMR footprint. A fiber-optic front sight is standard as is an M1913 accessory rail and an alloy magwell.

And they still look great…

More in my column at Guns.com.

MK25 Gets some Screentime

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The “Terminal List,” which debuted earlier this month on Amazon Prime, is based on the best-selling novel by Navy SEAL veteran Jack Carr and follows Navy Lt. Commander James Reece (Chris Pratt) after his entire platoon SEALs is killed in an ambush during a covert mission overseas. Besides Pratt– who has fast become a staple of Hollywood sci-fi/action films, the series stars Constance Wu, Taylor Kitsch, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Jai Courtney, Patrick Schwarzenegger, and, oh yeah, a SIG P226 MK25.

Besides a slew of serious hardware and edged weapons, the MK25 gets a lot of screentime, especially in the first episode, and is even included in the opening credits. The gun is such a key plot point, in fact, that you can’t get two seconds into the trailer for the series without seeing it.

The MK24/25 series P226 models go back to at least the early 1990s in service with the Navy’s frogman corps.

A pair of SIG MK25 1962-2012 50-Year SEAL Team Commemoratives I ran into at the company’s headquarters in New Hampshire. (Photo: Chris Eger/Guns.com)

More in my column at Guns.com.

Proven handguns for tough times

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While your best and most effective bet in the majority of hairy self-defense scenarios (barring something laser-guided or belt-fed) is a rifle– preferably a few different ones in a range of calibers– in a pinch a handgun is better than verbal judo, a pointy stick, or the lid off a can of sardines. With that in mind, I made a list centered on pistols and revolvers that are 1) modern, 2) accept common ammunition, 3) have spare parts that are readily available, 4) proven, 5) are simple to manipulate, and 6) easy to maintain.

Sure, each of these has their haters, but most importantly each type has a huge crowd of fans and users that have kept them in regular production for decades.

More in my column at Guns.com