The P229 Sport.
Ok, so it isn't a fair comparison, used vs new, but asking for a NIB handgun from 1997 isn't fair either. At any rate, I am excited (jumping up and down doing my snoopy dance) to get my hands on this classic SIG P229 Sport used. I had been going back and forth on finally getting a P229. I really wanted a P229, but I wanted one without a rail and I wanted one with a stainless frame, but I went back and forth on which one I wanted more. P229 Legion is very interesting... but in the end it had neither. The P229 Sport is both rail-less and all stainless. So when I saw the P229 Sport pop up in the used catalog of my LGS website, I rushed over immediately, and it was an instabuy (less than 3 minutes looking at the gun - though I did field strip to check the rails).
All stainless steel, frame made in Germany, short extractor, 357sig, great condition with original box and a cardboard target (not paper!) 2 inches at 25 yards, dated April 1997, priced at $1249. Maybe that wasn't the greatest deal, but it was a great deal for me!
(But before the Legion attacks me, I will say the Legion is a very nice gun at a very nice price, Amsdorf link:
http://sigtalk.com/legion-series/57407-sig-sauer-legion-right-you.html)
Though I don't plan on carrying this one, she will be no safe queen - I'm planning on shooting her as much as my "number one" (P226 tacops). And to that end, I've given her a bit of a face lift. G10 hogue chain link grips, hex grip screws, SRT kit, new recoil spring, new magazine catch, slide release and decocker (the Sport was designed for competition, with extended features, I prefer the standard - plus I can keep the OEM parts undamaged), hammer, sear, hammer strut, trigger bar, trigger, takedown lever, mainspring housing and mainspring. So yeah, I guess in the end, it was a lot more than a Legion. But for me, it is totally worth it!
I really had given up on getting a "Sport" SIG (I'm still not comfortable buying online), so this was quite the unicorn get for me. There might be some purists that have issue with me gutting a classic pistol, but my thinking is that I take a classic pistol and make it work best for me. The bonus is that I can keep those original OEM grips and parts pristine(ish) if I ever change my mind. One of the reasons for the drastic overhaul of the internals is that I definitely wanted to install the SRT. When I looked at the internals, it looked like the parts had been expertly polished in key areas, and I didn't want modern OEM parts to mess with that finely tuned connection - it was all or nothing. Finally, I was excited about upgrading to nickel hardware - hammer, decocker, slide lock, magazine release, take down lever.
Another interesting note, the P229 Sport had a different mainspring, main spring housing, and hammer strut, resulting in a much lighter DA pull. I'm used to my P226 tacops 10lb DA pull so I didn't mind the change when swapping out to modern OEM parts.
I've fired both before and after the changes, and no malfunctions, shoots awesome. Surpassed all of my expectations. LOVE the 357 sig and it now trumps my Glock in 357 sig. One of the reasons why it shoots so well is that it is heavy. About as heavy as a 6in revolver or SIG X5! The target below was at 21 feet offhand. Also, the compensator makes it quite loud on the range, the 357 sig out of my P229 sport sounds like my 44 magnum revolver, haha.
The one draw back of the Sport model is that it cannot be shot without the compensator because... the front sights are sitting on the compensator! No way would I tap the slide to put on front sights, but it would have been nice to ccw this baby every once in awhile. Still incredibly happy to have her, and she stands as one of my all time favorite pistols.
Ok, so it isn't a fair comparison, used vs new, but asking for a NIB handgun from 1997 isn't fair either. At any rate, I am excited (jumping up and down doing my snoopy dance) to get my hands on this classic SIG P229 Sport used. I had been going back and forth on finally getting a P229. I really wanted a P229, but I wanted one without a rail and I wanted one with a stainless frame, but I went back and forth on which one I wanted more. P229 Legion is very interesting... but in the end it had neither. The P229 Sport is both rail-less and all stainless. So when I saw the P229 Sport pop up in the used catalog of my LGS website, I rushed over immediately, and it was an instabuy (less than 3 minutes looking at the gun - though I did field strip to check the rails).
All stainless steel, frame made in Germany, short extractor, 357sig, great condition with original box and a cardboard target (not paper!) 2 inches at 25 yards, dated April 1997, priced at $1249. Maybe that wasn't the greatest deal, but it was a great deal for me!
(But before the Legion attacks me, I will say the Legion is a very nice gun at a very nice price, Amsdorf link:
http://sigtalk.com/legion-series/57407-sig-sauer-legion-right-you.html)
Though I don't plan on carrying this one, she will be no safe queen - I'm planning on shooting her as much as my "number one" (P226 tacops). And to that end, I've given her a bit of a face lift. G10 hogue chain link grips, hex grip screws, SRT kit, new recoil spring, new magazine catch, slide release and decocker (the Sport was designed for competition, with extended features, I prefer the standard - plus I can keep the OEM parts undamaged), hammer, sear, hammer strut, trigger bar, trigger, takedown lever, mainspring housing and mainspring. So yeah, I guess in the end, it was a lot more than a Legion. But for me, it is totally worth it!
I really had given up on getting a "Sport" SIG (I'm still not comfortable buying online), so this was quite the unicorn get for me. There might be some purists that have issue with me gutting a classic pistol, but my thinking is that I take a classic pistol and make it work best for me. The bonus is that I can keep those original OEM grips and parts pristine(ish) if I ever change my mind. One of the reasons for the drastic overhaul of the internals is that I definitely wanted to install the SRT. When I looked at the internals, it looked like the parts had been expertly polished in key areas, and I didn't want modern OEM parts to mess with that finely tuned connection - it was all or nothing. Finally, I was excited about upgrading to nickel hardware - hammer, decocker, slide lock, magazine release, take down lever.
Another interesting note, the P229 Sport had a different mainspring, main spring housing, and hammer strut, resulting in a much lighter DA pull. I'm used to my P226 tacops 10lb DA pull so I didn't mind the change when swapping out to modern OEM parts.
I've fired both before and after the changes, and no malfunctions, shoots awesome. Surpassed all of my expectations. LOVE the 357 sig and it now trumps my Glock in 357 sig. One of the reasons why it shoots so well is that it is heavy. About as heavy as a 6in revolver or SIG X5! The target below was at 21 feet offhand. Also, the compensator makes it quite loud on the range, the 357 sig out of my P229 sport sounds like my 44 magnum revolver, haha.
The one draw back of the Sport model is that it cannot be shot without the compensator because... the front sights are sitting on the compensator! No way would I tap the slide to put on front sights, but it would have been nice to ccw this baby every once in awhile. Still incredibly happy to have her, and she stands as one of my all time favorite pistols.
