The best .45acp ever made

[Cee Zee]

the Sig 220 is a fine pistol (I have a pre-Wall tear-down model, i.e., made in "W.Germany.") But it isn't more durable than the all-steel tanks of S&W's 3rd Gen. 45XX-series line

I don't know about "more" durable but the Sigs are certainly durable. Mine is also a Made In W. Germany model. The thing I don't understand is why so many think a gun has to be all steel to be as strong as possible when actually other metals and alloys are actually stronger for their weight. Not only that but plastic can be stronger than steel. Spectra fiber is 5 times stronger than steel per weight. Carbon/carbon composites are stronger than steel. That's why the B2 bomber is made up in large part of that material. That's basically another type of plastic too or close to it. Also you can mix an alloy of nickel, aluminum, titanium and other elements and get a much stronger material than steel. The Sig frame is made up of alloys of that nature.

All of these materials have different strengths and weaknesses. But to just put steel at the top of the list is 19th century thinking to be honest. I know it's strong and it's proven and it has characteristics that work well as gun making materials. I'm not saying it's bad by any means and there are certainly guns that are made of plastics that are nowhere near as strong as steel. But in the case of the Sig I think it's not certain the frame material is weaker than steel. I don't know either way for sure. I'm just not going to assume one is better because I just don't know. I do know I saw the torture test videos that were part of the original story I linked to and it was amazing what they did to that Sig. I mean it was amazing what it withstood. When you shoot a pistol with another pistol (as in make it a target and shoot it) and the gun still works after a direct hit then you know that gun is pretty durable.

They did become less accurate over time because I fired them every week and the frames took a battering. ( Firearms instructor which a huge ammo allotment )

How much ammo do you think it took to make them less accurate? I've fired mine about 15,000 rounds or more and I haven't noticed any drop off in accuracy. I bought it used too so there's no telling how often it was fired before I bought it. I believe it was a carry piece and it probably wasn't fired more often than it took to qualify though. It was in good shape when I bought it. Maybe the accuracy has dropped off slowly and I just didn't notice. BTW I really like 1911's too and I fully intended to buy one when I got my Sig. Now I'm glad I couldn't find a 1911 I wanted that day. Actually I did try to buy one but my brother in law wouldn't sell it despite me offering about $300 more than it was worth because I knew he was struggling and I wanted to help him out. His loss I guess. He sold it for less than it was worth not long after that. Maybe it was a personal problem. It was a personal victory for me though.

 

[Elkins45]

My "made in W Germany" P220 was purchased in 1987. It's so old that it doesn't have a dovetailed front sight. For a good long time it was my only 45 ACP pistol. I can't begin to guess just how many rounds have been down the bore, but even at reloaded ammo prices if you can afford to shoot one until it becomes inaccurate then you can easily afford to repair or replace it.

I bought a second one, a used modern one with the DAK trigger as a winter carry gun. With night sights and Crimson Trace grips I feel very well protected indeed, and I love the DAK trigger...it's like shooting a good revolver but with the convenience of magazine reloads.

 

[Cee Zee]

My 1990 produced P220 also has the fixed sights. I think most of the models that came in through Herndon had that sight. I actually like it better. It's narrower both at the front pillar and at the rear notch. It just isn't adjustable but then it's never needed to be adjusted. Mine has been perfect from the time I got it. Obviously if I want to shoot long distances it would be nice to be able to sight in at those longer distances. But I've never thought of that pistol as being a long range shooter. 50 yards is about as far as I want to shoot it and try to hit what I'm shooting at. I have shot it farther than that and I just used some Ky windage to make adjustments.

And again I haven't noticed any drop off in accuracy through all those years and all those rounds I put through it. I'm certainly not going to say it's impossible to make one lose accuracy. I'm almost sure a person could if they shot enough rounds through it. I thought I might get an insight into how many round it would take to affect it.

 

[Elkins45]

The only advantage to the dovetail front is the ability to add night sights.

Herndon? I'm not positive, but I think mine says Tyson's Corner which was even earlier I think.

 

[Cee Zee]

Tyson's Corner was the first place Sig imported the P220 into the US. It operated for 2 years there before moving to Herndon.

 

[jamal28]

So ill ask this.. did the glock 21 set the standard for hi cap .45'

 

[Nom de Forum]

So ill ask this.. did the glock 21 set the standard for hi cap .45'

Nope, the standard was set by Para-Ordnance with the P14 in the mid 1980's.

 

[MotorCraft]

agreed on the hi point jhp!

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