Another stray .45 ACP

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Striker

Striker

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So, this SIG 220 European (heel clip mag release) came into the store as a trade while I was off recovering from a surgical procedure. The price was right, and given my renewed interest in .45s, it followed me home yesterday. 1.jpg

It's a 70's Interarms import, in very good shape, and not shot a lot given the lack of frame wear. I cleaned it up, removed the lanyard loop, and replaced and tightened the grip screws to prevent cracking. I put a 100 rounds of ball thru it using a mix of SIG and Megar mags, with no malfunctions of any type. It proved to be as accurate as I come to expect from the 220 platform. Afterwards, headed over to my friend Charlie's shop to whip up a holster and mag pouch combo. I'm very happy with the results.
2.jpg

3.jpg

All in all, it turned out to be a good way to spend the day......
 
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Striker

Very nice score! I had the same thing years ago but as the Browning BDA version. That gun was very accurate even with it's fixed sights and could keep up shot for shot with a Colt Gold Cup I had at the time. Like your holster and spare mags rig too!
 
NIGHTLORD40K

Seeing your 9mm. P220 reminded me of when Browning also imported the BDA in 9mm. and .38 Super. They just sat in dealer's display cases because the .45 was the hot ticket item back then (at least to some of us); no one wanted a large single stack mag version in the other two calibers.

Eventually they sold, probably to some savvy collectors who saw the long term potential of picking up these guns at bargain basement prices and hanging on to them for when they were worth a whole lot more. At the time I had just enough money for the .45 model.
 
bannockburn said:
NIGHTLORD40K

Seeing your 9mm. P220 reminded me of when Browning also imported the BDA in 9mm. and .38 Super. They just sat in dealer's display cases because the .45 was the hot ticket item back then (at least to some of us); no one wanted a large single stack mag version in the other two calibers.

Eventually they sold, probably to some savvy collectors who saw the long term potential of picking up these guns at bargain basement prices and hanging on to them for when they were worth a whole lot more. At the time I had just enough money for the .45 model.
Click to expand...
The very earliest BDAs and P220s also had the round section (rudenschnase) at the front of the slide stamping which was, ummmmm.........distinctive? Can't imagine it did much for sales in the early days, lol!
earlysig003.jpg
 
Concerning the advantages/disadvantages of the heel-release type, Massad Ayoob made the salient point years ago that one plus is being able to better access/release the magazine while wearing gloves in cold weather.
 
Interestingly, the mag release is harder to operate when the hammer is down. I started practicing emergency (slide lock) reloads and got a pretty good technique worked out. When I switched to admin reloads or removing the mag for clearing with the hammer down, the heel clip was much harder to operate. The hammer spring is also the mag release spring and the geometry changes when the spring is compressed, making it easier to manipulate. Something to take note of.
 
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