Posted: 4/10/2006 10:25:34 PM EDT
|
Hey guys, I posted a few weeks back that the new P226R (that I bought a year ago but just recently had a chance to shoot) had a bit of a rattle in the slide when you shake it with no (loaded) magazine inserted. I've taken it to the range twice now and have even more concerns about it. I'd like to think it just had initially teething problems, but I'm afraid it may be more than that. The first time I took it out to shoot, I was using PMC target ammo, and the slide failed to recoil completely about 1 out of every 2 rounds - sometimes it would stovepipe the empty casing, sometimes it would miss-feed the next round, and sometimes it would fail to eject the casing at all. And the slide failed to lock back on the empty magazine on EVERY last round. It was obvious that the slide wasn't going back far enough to properly eject the empty casing or feed the next round properly. I only got through 78 rounds before I got fed up and called it a day. I thought maybe it was the ammo, so I took it out again this past weekend and fired some different ammo. I started with Blazer target ammo, and fired 100 rounds. It worked much better, cycling properly on almost every round, but still failed to lock back on the empty magazine every time. So I fired 40 rounds of 180 gr Hydra-shoks and 40 rounds of Winchester SXTs through it, and it still failed to lock back on the last round, even though it seemed to function properly otherwise. Then I decided to finish off the last 22 rounds of PMC that I had with me, and it was back to malfunctioning on almost every round, to the point where it was like shooting a bolt-action pistol. At this point, I have 280 rounds through it. Is it possible that the spring is just too stiff and needs to break it more? I've never had this happen with a new pistol, and incidently, the almost-new P226R in .40 S&W that I fired the same day for the first time functioned flawlessly. Is this something I should call Sig about, or is it maybe just a break in issue? FWIW, I was using the two factory 10-round mags that came with the pistol. Thanks in advance for your advice, Dave |
I'm right handed, and I grip the pistol two-handed by placing both my thumbs together, parallel to the slide and pointing forward. You would think that I would have had problems with the .40 S&W P226R that I fired the same day, alternating with the 9mm, if grip was an issue. As I mentioned above, the .40 functioned flawlessly. Dave |
| A good friend of mind bought a 226R for himself, as he is well trained with this weapon, Seal Team 1 Charlie Platoon. He said it took about 300 rounds thru the weapon before it broke in enough to lock back. I have a suspicion that this has to do with a fresh extra strong recoil spring or the Hardness of the slide metal itself. |
| I seem to read a thread like this daily about the new Sigs. I don't think it's your grip but a problem with the gun. I would send it back. I've never had a "break in period" for a Sig. I had similar problems with a P220R that I had. It wouldn't lock back on any mag except for the old 7rd mags that I got years ago with my W. German P220. It didn't matter if I shot it left or right handed. The quality of the new Sigs has gone down alot. I will not buy another Sig unless it is stamped "Made in W. Germany". |
|
I would agree that you need to call Sig. I've owned two Sigs so far, and both were my best pistols - a 226 (9mm with several thousand rounds through it) and a 228 - neither ever had a single malfunction. Sounds as though you, too, are used to Sigs and I can't possibly imagine that this one has a break-in problem like this. Let me know what you decide/find out - I was just online looking for a new 226R Navy... 
|
|
The slide failing to lock back seems to be by far the most common problem with new SIG’s. Below is a generic answer (since some points don’t appear to apply in this instance) Possible causes: You’re inadvertently holding down the slidestop with your thumb when shooting. You haven’t cleaned the preservative off and oiled the thing before shooting it. Note that SIG’s run best when they’re well-oiled. It’s best to use a high-quality gun oil (or CLP) such as FP-10, Rem-Oil, Breakfree, Militech-1 or such. The magazines also need to be cleaned inside and out, though they should only be very lightly oiled, if at all. You’ve got the recoil spring backwards on the recoil spring guide. The tight end of the spring should go on the guide first and fit up against the guide flange. You’re using weak ammo that won’t push the slide back far enough to lock. Often new SIG’s need to be worn in a bit before they’ll handle less powerful ammo. You might be limp wristing it a bit. Also, be sure and grasp the handgun with your strong side hand as high up the grip as possible (the web of your hand should be firmly pushed up into the top, rear curved part of the grip). If you think this might be an issue, let someone else try firing the last round and see what happens. You might have the mag spring backwards in the magazine. Alternatively, you might just have a bad magazine (i.e., one with a really weak magazine spring or with a bad magazine follower). Swap out with other mags to see if you still have a problem. While not likely, it’s also conceivable that the slide lock, or the slide lock notch in the slide is defective. |
|
Try this...insert an empty mag into the pistol with the slide forward, then yank the slide back forcefully. Does it lock back? If so, the slide lock mechanism, and that magazine is / are not the issue. According to Sig, the recoil spring is "double ended" and it should not matter which end goes on the rod first, but truthfully, 199 is correct that it can...sometimes...matter. (I have never seen a truely "double ended" Sig 226 recoil spring.) A common issue is that guys get the mag spring placed into the mag backwards after reassembly and this will definitely stop the pistol from locking on an empty magazine. MOST issues are caused by operator error, and this is why several here have questioned your thumb placement as placing it on top of the slide stop will certainly create a problem, and many of us have done just that. (I certainly can plead guilty to it!) In my experience with quite a few 226's...but all are the older models...they will run for 100rd. or so with less than optimal lubrication, but will definitely let you know when they are dry. The first indication is that they fail to lock the slide back. My guess...if your pistol is lubed decently...is ammo. Try some full charge WW SXT, or Gold Dot or Federal JHP or even the Remington JHP and see what happens...I bet it works fine. I also think you will see that there will be less of a problem with this as the gun gets shot more and more. JMO |
| FWIW: My brand new P226R just went 2500 rds of LEO training with only one FTF when it was extremely dirty. Not one other hiccup and it locked back every time from the very first mag. I have the factory Mec-Gar mags and we trained with Speer Lawman 180gr TMJ ammo. Regular and frangible. Bottom line is to not lose faith in your Sig. |
Wow, apparently everyone missed the part in the original post where I said that I alternated firing the problem P226R (9mm) with another P226R (.40 S&W) that fired flawlessly the same day, with the same grip and thumb position. So it probably wasn't my thumb hitting the slidestop... Thanks for all the advice though, guys. I'm going to give it a good cleaning and then take it out again this weekend. I'll let you know how it goes. I'll also get around to ordering some 15-round mags too (one of these days) to see it it makes any difference. Dave |
Missed that... 
|
|
Friend recently purchased a 226 9mm. He had the same problem. I took a look at it and found that it had a 40/357 recoil spring installed. Called SIG (several times to get an answer from their customer dis-service department) and they eventually sent out a new spring. Worked perfect once that was installed. For the record the 40/357 spring has a smear of paint on it (green or blue, can't remember which now) and the 9mm spring has no paint at all. The 40/357 spring must have been laying on a bench with the paint smear down, and an assembly employee picked it up and put it in a 9mm pistol because he/she did not see the paint code on the underside (just fielding a theory here) |
I finally got back out to the range yesterday after about a month. I gave the P226 a good cleaning beforehand, and I lubed it a lot more than I had the first time, and it worked great! I also used 15-round magazines instead of the 10-rounders that came with it - not sure if that affected things any, so I'll probably try the 10-rounders again next time just to see what happens. I used 100 rounds of Winchester ball ammo (124 gr, I think) and 100 roudns of American Eagle and had no problems. I may try the PMC junk again to see if it works with the extra lubrication. I guess the lube was the problem from the beginning - I'm used to giving things just a light coat (after trying to keep my M4 and M9 clean in Iraq for the past year), so the advice about lubing Sigs more heavily definitely paid off. Thanks for all your advice, guys! Hopefully the problem's solved. Dave |
Don't worry. Same thing happened to me when I told the Sig guys about my 226 not locking back. Even after I told them it locked back fine after dousing the fucker in oil and changing out the spring near the slide lock, people STILL told me it was my fault for having my thumb on the lever. EVEN AFTER I FOUND THE PROBLEM. It was still my fault for having my thumb on the lever. Go figure. Some people have reading comprehension issues. No matter how certain you can be your thumb wasnt on the lever, trust them, it is  Because hey, 226's can't have problems like that. They're too good. Its always your fault.(oh yeah, I sold mine, and haven't looked back) My advice. Soak it with oil. To the point where it spatters all over the place when you fire. |
