SIG P226 Legion

[Sidecarist]

I received a P226 SAO Legion from my wife as a gift and after shooting it a bit I thought I'd share my thoughts...

 

The Legion branding is nice, but to me its just something additional, and not a reason to buy the gun.

 

Reasons to buy the gun are:

The factory trigger work and parts. The SAO trigger breaks right at 3.5lb on my example. Like all SIGs made now with MIM parts there is s slight caming of the hammer when the trigger is pulled. I can't imagine what the trigger will be like after several thousand rounds. Normally I can't resist a little action work on a gun, but this one doesn't need it and I'll be leaving it alone.

 

The Grips, For shooting the grips are fantastic. The checkering is just right. Many guns today seem to have slippery grip finishes. These are really good. Maybe a bit aggressive for carry but could be toned down with a light scuff to take the sharp points off. The down side to the grips is that the bottom edge is VERY sharp, I took a nail file and knocked the edge off. You cant see it, but you sure can feel it! There is also an opening (See Pic) at the bottom rear of the grip that will allow dirt, lint, etc to get into the action. I will probably fill this with something in the near future.

 

The Frame changes, The beaver tail is nice, but not a deal breaker for me. I have a couple of other SIG's and never missed it. The front strap checkering, and undercut are nice, the undercut is subtle but feels good. I don;t think I'm going to rush out and do this to my P220, or P229, but it is a nice add on.

 

The Finish. PVD finish is hard and should wear well. PVD (Physical Vapor Deposition) is the same method used to apply TiN coating to machine tool bits. This finish should not wear off in normal use. It is harder to apply than the standard Nitron finish and should wear three times better. Time will tell...

 

Sig X-Ray sights. These are really Trijicon HD sights branded as Sig. They are truly great sights and I would highly recommend them to anyone that wants that Big dot out front.

 

In the end you could make a nearly Legion copy by adding the Checkered Hogue grips, Trijicon HD sights, and having a good trigger job done. The finish and frame work are harder to duplicate, but it also could be added to a standard SIG. In the end you would spend a bit more even without the finish. I won't call it a bargain (no SIG is) but to get the same performance out of a standard SIG would cost you a bit more. If I already owned a SIG I wouldn't trade it on a Legion version, I'd make the additions to the gun I already have.

 

One nice feature that I didn't realize I was getting is that on an SAO SIG the slide can be racked with the safety engaged. This makes clearing the gun a bit safer than it is with a 1911, or a SIG X-5 that locks the slide when the safety is engaged.

 

For me the biggest disappointment is the gap at the bottom of the grip. I intend to shoot this gun a lot and It would be a shame to ruin all that nice action work with dirt and grit. When I fill it I'll let you know how I did it.

 

 

[enfield]

Just cut a piece of open-cell foam to fit and jam it in.

[Sidecarist]

I've got some closed cell I'm going to try if I can find it. I'd like it to be dust tight if I can.