Sig m400

[9mmsteve]

I have searched this site and other sites and only found limited threads on the new sig m400. A lot of the threads have gone off topic and gone to sig bashing; I understand why but I am still interested in feedback on the rifle.

Has anyone with expertise reviewed this rifle to see how it is built so an expert opinion can be given?

*****This thread is going downhill like the other one did. DJ_Skinny brought up some good questions below:

-chrome lined bore/chamber?
-M4 feed ramps?
-milspec receiver extension?
-staked castle nut?
-staked carrier key?
-HP/MP bolt/barrel?
-F height front sight post?

If anyone who owns the M400 or has inspected one enough to answer the above questions, it would be appreciated. I really would like the reader digest version and specifics. I left California and can now purchase an AR15. I might be going back one day due to family and I want something I can bring with me. If I knew I would never be going back I would buy a Colt 6920, right now, and be done.

To whom ever posts in this thread please keep it brief.........MODS if this gets out of hand please lock it and I am sorry for what was started.

[SouthernGypsy]

I have searched this site and other sites and only found limited threads on the new sig m400. A lot of the threads have gone off topic and gone to sig bashing; I understand why but I am still interested in feedback on the rifle.

Has anyone with expertise reviewed this rifle to see how it is built so an expert opinion can be given?


Well as of yesterday I can. Some buddies in my old unit got a few in from Sig to play with and was talking them up pretty big and yesterday morning while I was in the store I noticed they had one and they offerd me a good discount on it if I'd let them know what I thought as they just got some and hadn't sold any yet, they give me discounts all the time, I think I'm one of their top customers.

Anyways, All I can say is that I am impressed. At 25 yards I thought at first I was missing the target, turns out that my holes was all touching... No kidding, every round accounted for, they made one hole that just kept getting a little bigger at the edges. Now that being said I will admit they was a little low and to the right, but were all right together, so I made some adjustments to the sights and brought them right on the X, or at least for the first two shots after... that no more X :D, just one hole that once again was getting larger at the edges. All the holes was touching so very very tight groups. Until recently I have never had many AR-15's, just those I had to qualify with every 6 months in the service, but recently I have bought several including a 6920, a 6921, a 6720, an early 1980's model Lightweight Match Target which dispite its age was virtually new in the box, and a new Bushmaster. Out of all of those nor any of the ones I have ever had to qualify with, I have never had an out of the box AR-15 able to CONSISTANLY shoot hole-touching-hole groups before. So far I fired it 200+ rounds when I got it home last night, lightly wiped it down a little last night, and then this afternoon with a friend from down the road put another 400+ though it and he was equilly impressed. He was not consistantly putting hole-toughing-hole groups except for when he would use a rest, but he admited that was him and not the rifle. Aside from the accuracy I can also say that the thing feels like it's built like a brick as the saying goes, it just seems to be built tough. I like the way they put it together, it's solid, tight (no rattles or wiggles) and just impressivly put together compared to all of my others. A bunch of people a few weeks ago told me to get a 6920 while they still made the LE/Gov models and I ended up buying one of the last 100 made, even have a paper from Colt certifying it. Then I went on to get a 6921 SBR which I like even better than the 6920 though virtually identical other than the barrel length and I have to say that I am much more impressed with the Sig M400. Yes I love the 6921 but when you close it up it doesn't seem to lock up as tight as the Sig, it feels like it has just the slightest hint of wable between the upper and lower, the Sig does not have that at all. I also like the way they made the flash-supressor/muzle break, it's not fancy yet it's one of the better designs I have seen, only the top is open, closer to the one ont he Colt 6921, the Colt 6920 and the LW Target have slits kinda downward on either side and looks like if you was close to the grounnd like in a sniper position they could risk kicking up dust. The removable carry handle also seems to fit better, they LOOK almost identical to the one's that come on the Colt's, but when you stick your hand in I feel some somewhat sharper edges on the Colt's and the Sig's is just totally nice and smooth and rounded inside and seems like there is just a little more room for my fingers. It's still tight compared to the old Colt LW Match Target model which has the A2 upper with the full-sized opening in the carry handle, but it's definatlly more comforatable in comparison to the removable carry handles on the newer Colt's. Of course if your going to put a scope or sights on it that use the upper rail then you would be removing the carry handle anyway and that'd be a moot point anyway but it still goes to show the fit and finish of the Sig in comparison.

Another thing I have noticed todays 400+ rounds is that the Colt's (we was also shooting the 6921 today) are MUCH dirtier inside after that many rounds, the M400 is virtually clean, as to WHY it would be cleaner I don't know, but it simply is. You also don't smell the powder back in your face as much as with any of the Colt's. Again, no idea why or what the difference would be.... We was using the same ammo in both... a mix of Federal all brass and that cheap TulAmmo metal casing stuff from Walmart. Oh, that is another thing it's done, the M400 after 600+ rounds including firing some VERY rapid fire, has yet to have a single malfunction, both the Colt 6921 and 6920 have had a couple of FTE's by this point. The 6921 has had I think 3 so far total and the 6920 has had 5. The older Lightweight Match Target has only had 3 so far in about 1000 rounds. The Bushmaster is the worst, having had about 40-50 FTE's in about 700 rounds. In fact it's now no fun at all to shoot because it FTE's at least a few of times per every 30 round clip. I cleaned it and that only seems to have made it WORSE! Took it to a friend of mine who's an AR15/M16 wiz and he can't figgure out the problem. He did another really good, complete dissasemble cleaning and it improved a slight bit but still FTE's at least a few times per 30 round clip. It also seems to get the most debris dirtiest inside as you fire it of all of them.

I can certainly recomend it to anyone and I have seen the nea-sayers also, my friends in the gun store said they have had several people come in and when others are looking at it they will start putting the Sig AR's down yet if you keep talking to them and talk to them long enough you eventually find out that they have never actually fired one. They are just pre-judging or say that they heard someone else say it, truth be told that other person probably also heard someone else say it and they also have no direct experiance. The funny part is I remember seeing people putting them down back as soon as Sig introduced them before ANYONE had actually fired them, but when you found someone such as someone in the firearms press world who actually did get to fire one (such as the SHOT Show) they all had nothing but good things to say about them. My friend in the store said the other two they sold before mine this last weekend (they just got them in like last Friday) said that both of those people also had nothing but great things to say about them.

My only complaint is that I wish the M400 had came with the MagPul CTR adjustable stock that the 516 came with instead of the regular Colt style adjustable stock. But that's easy enough to fix, just change it out for about $60. I like the factory pistol grip so am gonna keep that (the MagPul feels a little narrow to me for my personal grip). I can't wait to get in a good scope for it and see how well she works with that.

It's definatally taken the place of the 6921 as my favorite amongost all of my AR's, even though I still like the barrel length of the 6921 but then I could always turn the M400 into an SBR as well.

Hope this helps.

[Mr. Goodtimes]

Well as of yesterday I can. Some buddies in my old unit got a few in from Sig to play with and was talking them up pretty big and yesterday morning while I was in the store I noticed they had one and they offerd me a good discount on it if I'd let them know what I thought as they just got some and hadn't sold any yet, they give me discounts all the time, I think I'm one of their top customers.

Anyways, All I can say is that I am impressed. At 25 yards I thought at first I was missing the target, turns out that my holes was all touching... No kidding, every round accounted for, they made one hole that just kept getting a little bigger at the edges. Now that being said I will admit they was a little low and to the right, but were all right together, so I made some adjustments to the sights and brought them right on the X, or at least for the first two shots after... that no more X :D, just one hole that once again was getting larger at the edges. All the holes was touching so very very tight groups. Until recently I have never had many AR-15's, just those I had to qualify with every 6 months in the service, but recently I have bought several including a 6920, a 6921, a 6720, an early 1980's model Lightweight Match Target which dispite its age was virtually new in the box, and a new Bushmaster. Out of all of those nor any of the ones I have ever had to qualify with, I have never had an out of the box AR-15 able to CONSISTANLY shoot hole-touching-hole groups before. So far I fired it 200+ rounds when I got it home last night, lightly wiped it down a little last night, and then this afternoon with a friend from down the road put another 400+ though it and he was equilly impressed. He was not consistantly putting hole-toughing-hole groups except for when he would use a rest, but he admited that was him and not the rifle. Aside from the accuracy I can also say that the thing feels like it's built like a brick as the saying goes, it just seems to be built tough. I like the way they put it together, it's solid, tight (no rattles or wiggles) and just impressivly put together compared to all of my others. A bunch of people a few weeks ago told me to get a 6920 while they still made the LE/Gov models and I ended up buying one of the last 100 made, even have a paper from Colt certifying it. Then I went on to get a 6921 SBR which I like even better than the 6920 though virtually identical other than the barrel length and I have to say that I am much more impressed with the Sig M400. Yes I love the 6921 but when you close it up it doesn't seem to lock up as tight as the Sig, it feels like it has just the slightest hint of wable between the upper and lower, the Sig does not have that at all. I also like the way they made the flash-supressor/muzle break, it's not fancy yet it's one of the better designs I have seen, only the top is open, closer to the one ont he Colt 6921, the Colt 6920 and the LW Target have slits kinda downward on either side and looks like if you was close to the grounnd like in a sniper position they could risk kicking up dust. The removable carry handle also seems to fit better, they LOOK almost identical to the one's that come on the Colt's, but when you stick your hand in I feel some somewhat sharper edges on the Colt's and the Sig's is just totally nice and smooth and rounded inside and seems like there is just a little more room for my fingers. It's still tight compared to the old Colt LW Match Target model which has the A2 upper with the full-sized opening in the carry handle, but it's definatlly more comforatable in comparison to the removable carry handles on the newer Colt's. Of course if your going to put a scope or sights on it that use the upper rail then you would be removing the carry handle anyway and that'd be a moot point anyway but it still goes to show the fit and finish of the Sig in comparison.

Another thing I have noticed todays 400+ rounds is that the Colt's (we was also shooting the 6921 today) are MUCH dirtier inside after that many rounds, the M400 is virtually clean, as to WHY it would be cleaner I don't know, but it simply is. You also don't smell the powder back in your face as much as with any of the Colt's. Again, no idea why or what the difference would be.... We was using the same ammo in both... a mix of Federal all brass and that cheap TulAmmo metal casing stuff from Walmart. Oh, that is another thing it's done, the M400 after 600+ rounds including firing some VERY rapid fire, has yet to have a single malfunction, both the Colt 6921 and 6920 have had a couple of FTE's by this point. The 6921 has had I think 3 so far total and the 6920 has had 5. The older Lightweight Match Target has only had 3 so far in about 1000 rounds. The Bushmaster is the worst, having had about 40-50 FTE's in about 700 rounds. In fact it's now no fun at all to shoot because it FTE's at least a few of times per every 30 round clip. I cleaned it and that only seems to have made it WORSE! Took it to a friend of mine who's an AR15/M16 wiz and he can't figgure out the problem. He did another really good, complete dissasemble cleaning and it improved a slight bit but still FTE's at least a few times per 30 round clip. It also seems to get the most debris dirtiest inside as you fire it of all of them.

I can certainly recomend it to anyone and I have seen the nea-sayers also, my friends in the gun store said they have had several people come in and when others are looking at it they will start putting the Sig AR's down yet if you keep talking to them and talk to them long enough you eventually find out that they have never actually fired one. They are just pre-judging or say that they heard someone else say it, truth be told that other person probably also heard someone else say it and they also have no direct experiance. The funny part is I remember seeing people putting them down back as soon as Sig introduced them before ANYONE had actually fired them, but when you found someone such as someone in the firearms press world who actually did get to fire one (such as the SHOT Show) they all had nothing but good things to say about them. My friend in the store said the other two they sold before mine this last weekend (they just got them in like last Friday) said that both of those people also had nothing but great things to say about them.

My only complaint is that I wish the M400 had came with the MagPul CTR adjustable stock that the 516 came with instead of the regular Colt style adjustable stock. But that's easy enough to fix, just change it out for about $60. I like the factory pistol grip so am gonna keep that (the MagPul feels a little narrow to me for my personal grip). I can't wait to get in a good scope for it and see how well she works with that.

It's definatally taken the place of the 6921 as my favorite amongost all of my AR's, even though I still like the barrel length of the 6921 but then I could always turn the M400 into an SBR as well.

Hope this helps.

I couldn't make it past the first paragraph and a half that was so painful to read. Really?


OP, the M400 is like everything else from Sig these days... junk. Sig has become completely disconnected with who they are and who they should be marketing their products to. They figured out that they could make more money by selling products to the dirt clod shooting crowd than the door kicking crowd and that's what they're doing. I had the opportunity to shoot one of these rifle and I was thoroughly unimpressed.

-Way over gassed
-The castle nut was on backwards
-No staking on the carrier key
-Carbine buffer

I don't recall if the FSB was "F" marked or not. I wouldn't buy this rifle, nor any other product from Sig. Sig as we know them today is a complete joke.

[SouthernGypsy]

I couldn't make it past the first paragraph and a half that was so painful to read. Really?


OP, the M400 is like everything else from Sig these days... junk. Sig has become completely disconnected with who they are and who they should be marketing their products to. They figured out that they could make more money by selling products to the dirt clod shooting crowd than the door kicking crowd and that's what they're doing. I had the opportunity to shoot one of these rifle and I was thoroughly unimpressed.

-Way over gassed
-The castle nut was on backwards
-No staking on the carrier key
-Carbine buffer

I don't recall if the FSB was "F" marked or not. I wouldn't buy this rifle, nor any other product from Sig. Sig as we know them today is a complete joke.


Well, if you call some of the top tactical units in the world "the dirt clod shooting crowd", and we definatally know that the worlds best tactical units always buy from a company thats equipment is "a complete joke".

Fact is some of the worlds most elite units use Sig's, some almost exclusivly, both here and abroad. Between all of Sigs I have personally owned added to the ones I have been issed added to the ones I have checked out during training over the years or supervised students training with, the number is literally now in the HUNDREDS, and I never had, nor witnessed but ONE single failure ... which the student admited was his own error, nor have I known any Sig's that was anything but totally reliable. Sig Sauer is in fact one of the few brands I trust my life to, now as a civilian and for over 17 years in the service. In fact I can honestly say without a doubt that I would not be here today had it not been for my unit issued Sig P229 DAK .40, but instead I am here and a bad guy in Afganistan is not.

I just got this M400 and it is impressive compared to my other AR's and I also just got one of the first 50 new Sig Ultra Compact 1911's which was what I was actually in the store to pick up when I noticed they had the M400 and I am just as impressed with the Ultra Compact 1911 as I am with the M400. It's accurate, tight, put together really well, the fit and finish are beyond reproach, I have numerous 1911's and the only one that I can even compare it to is a custom Wilson Combat Stealth 1911 that they presented to me a few years ago, but that one would have cost me 3-4x as much if I'd had to pay for it. The Sig Ultra Compact is comparable to it in every way (even has a Wilson-style front bushing) but has a retail that's a fraction of the price.

The M400 is a brand new model, still in very low production numbers, and like ANY manufactuer it's not uncomon at all to see a few glytches in production procedures so I wont agrue about you seeing one with something not put on correctly but to use that to claim all of them are going to be like that is simply unrealistic. I don't know of ANY company who has ever released a new model that did not have a few glytches duing the early production. You hear about them all the time. In other words, I am willing to bet that mine and the ones the guys in my old unit got their hands on, the couple my friend in the local store said he had already sold to some other locals, and the ones the firearms press reviewed at the SHOT show are the the norm and the one you looked at that had a backwards castle nut was in the exception. Not the other way around.


BTW: My Colt LW Match Target came with a backwards castle nut also. Though since it was used when I bought it I can't say if it was the factory or the original Owner, but when I mentioned it to him he said he'd bought the Colt new in '87 and it'd been a safe queen for over 23 years so after all that time he wasn't 100% sure himself but could not remember ever having had any reason to have messed with it himself. He didn't even know it was backwards until I ask about it after buying it.

[SouthernGypsy]

9MMSteve,

Back on track with your original question... I can only speak from that is my personal experiance with the one I just bought, the reviews I heard from guys in my old unit whom I know personally and trust their experiance and opinions, and what the press said after the 2011 SHOT show. Also, though with a little less credit... what a friend at the local gun store said the guys who bought the first two of them over the weekend... though at that point I already had bought mine so it's not like he needed to make a sale, in fact I was telling him my opinions after having fired it the first afternoon.

All I can tell you from that is that to me it is an excellent investment and an extremely well built and precise AR-15 A3 Carbine with wonderful fit, finish, and so far the performance to match. I got mine for $860 out the door but this particular store gives discounts (I think you get it for only 3% above their cost) and people who are in law enforcement don't pay sales tax (I was actually in the military for 21 years, 17 with a tactical unit, but since retiring have also signed up as a reserve deputy in our county). I think their regular price is $889 which with our local tax rate gets you out the door for under $950 total and to me it's an exceptional value at that price, it would still be a good value at $1200 if I compare it to other models I have that did cost that much. That being said they are very new in production so look over the one you buy before leaving the store with it just to make sure you see no obvious flaws. I have a feeling that the chances are very slim that you will. Funny the other guy mentioned a backwards castle nut because when I started researching AR's for personal use about a month back (all started because a former commanding officer now friend, was selling part of his collection) I read somewhere that is the single most common mistake people make during the assembly of AR's and M16's, it did not specify if it was people building them or if that also included factories, but it was funny because my Colt LW Match Target had the same mistake on it. Are there better AR-15's out there? Sure, just look at a tricked-out Black Rain model or some of the other speciality high-end models, but also look at their price tags. You can ALWAYS get something better, the question is just how much you want to pay for it. I was a tactical driving and security specialist in the Army special forces so know a lot about vehicles and an old saying from the car world kinda fits here too... "Speed cost... How fast do you want to go?" ...Same principle here. A lighter, more accurate, more reliable, more "tricked out" AR is always gonna be available somewhere, it all just depends on the size of your wallet. But for it's price tag, in the $800-$1200 price grouping, this one is a darn excellent rifle and it's price is actually closer to the lower end of the price group. Baised on what I can tell from mine, I personally think it would still be a good deal even if it was priced closer to the top of the group.

My only disapointment in the Civilian version is that it did not come with the MagPul CTR stock and MagPul grip, but my friends in my old unit said that the M400's they got in to test not long ago came with them just like the Sig 516's they have. The civilian version of the 516 still comes with the MagPul, so don't know why Sig choose to not go with that on the civillian version of the M400. Of course that's only about $50 to buy the stock and of course it just slides right on, and I don't really care about the grip.

[Jake Bauer]

I couldn't make it past the first paragraph and a half that was so painful to read.

If you did keep reading you would have read a review from a guy who is also very experienced with ARs and had a positive experience. But oh well, bashers will be bashers. Sig has had its share of recent flops, but There are far worse firearms out there. You may not like it, but Sig is still one of the best pistol manufacturers out there.

Anyway, as the op of a post inquiring about the M400 a few months ago (which also turned into a sig bashfest) Im glad someone shared a reasonable review. Thanks Southern.

[KhanRad]

-Way over gassed
-The castle nut was on backwards
-No staking on the carrier key
-Carbine buffer



These are good places to start. The M16/M4 platform has 40 years of not only evolution, but combat evolution. There are specific manufacturing standards that are proven to be ideal. In other words, many other techniques have been tried, and they have failed. This would be referred to the TDP(Technical Data Package), which is the what the US military attaches to all contract requirements.

This is where the famous chart comes in:
https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?hl=en_US&hl=en_US&key=0AqmgMm61Ok7WdExwaG16OENzOEZ1akp2a3Y2NjMxTEE&single=true&gid=2&output=html

The Sig M400 has not been added yet, but from user reports Sig Sauer does not appear to be incorporating the quality control standards of companies such as Colt, Lewis Machine & Tool, Noveske, Bravo Company Manufacturing, Daniel Defense,.....etc.

I guess my opinion on the matter is that after reviewing the M400's manufacturing specifications, it does not appear to incorporate very much of the TDP standards that are tried and true. Most likely because it adds to the cost of production.

With so many companies that DO adhere more closely to the TDP with competitive prices..........why even consider another brand that does not maintain those standards?

[DJ_Skinny]

Well as of yesterday I can. Some buddies in my old unit got a few in from Sig to play with and was talking them up pretty big and yesterday morning while I was in the store I noticed they had one and they offerd me a good discount on it if I'd let them know what I thought as they just got some and hadn't sold any yet, they give me discounts all the time, I think I'm one of their top customers.

Anyways, All I can say is that I am impressed. At 25 yards I thought at first I was missing the target, turns out that my holes was all touching... No kidding, every round accounted for, they made one hole that just kept getting a little bigger at the edges. Now that being said I will admit they was a little low and to the right, but were all right together, so I made some adjustments to the sights and brought them right on the X, or at least for the first two shots after... that no more X :D, just one hole that once again was getting larger at the edges. All the holes was touching so very very tight groups. Until recently I have never had many AR-15's, just those I had to qualify with every 6 months in the service, but recently I have bought several including a 6920, a 6921, a 6720, an early 1980's model Lightweight Match Target which dispite its age was virtually new in the box, and a new Bushmaster. Out of all of those nor any of the ones I have ever had to qualify with, I have never had an out of the box AR-15 able to CONSISTANLY shoot hole-touching-hole groups before. So far I fired it 200+ rounds when I got it home last night, lightly wiped it down a little last night, and then this afternoon with a friend from down the road put another 400+ though it and he was equilly impressed. He was not consistantly putting hole-toughing-hole groups except for when he would use a rest, but he admited that was him and not the rifle. Aside from the accuracy I can also say that the thing feels like it's built like a brick as the saying goes, it just seems to be built tough. I like the way they put it together, it's solid, tight (no rattles or wiggles) and just impressivly put together compared to all of my others. A bunch of people a few weeks ago told me to get a 6920 while they still made the LE/Gov models and I ended up buying one of the last 100 made, even have a paper from Colt certifying it. Then I went on to get a 6921 SBR which I like even better than the 6920 though virtually identical other than the barrel length and I have to say that I am much more impressed with the Sig M400. Yes I love the 6921 but when you close it up it doesn't seem to lock up as tight as the Sig, it feels like it has just the slightest hint of wable between the upper and lower, the Sig does not have that at all. I also like the way they made the flash-supressor/muzle break, it's not fancy yet it's one of the better designs I have seen, only the top is open, closer to the one ont he Colt 6921, the Colt 6920 and the LW Target have slits kinda downward on either side and looks like if you was close to the grounnd like in a sniper position they could risk kicking up dust. The removable carry handle also seems to fit better, they LOOK almost identical to the one's that come on the Colt's, but when you stick your hand in I feel some somewhat sharper edges on the Colt's and the Sig's is just totally nice and smooth and rounded inside and seems like there is just a little more room for my fingers. It's still tight compared to the old Colt LW Match Target model which has the A2 upper with the full-sized opening in the carry handle, but it's definatlly more comforatable in comparison to the removable carry handles on the newer Colt's. Of course if your going to put a scope or sights on it that use the upper rail then you would be removing the carry handle anyway and that'd be a moot point anyway but it still goes to show the fit and finish of the Sig in comparison.

Another thing I have noticed todays 400+ rounds is that the Colt's (we was also shooting the 6921 today) are MUCH dirtier inside after that many rounds, the M400 is virtually clean, as to WHY it would be cleaner I don't know, but it simply is. You also don't smell the powder back in your face as much as with any of the Colt's. Again, no idea why or what the difference would be.... We was using the same ammo in both... a mix of Federal all brass and that cheap TulAmmo metal casing stuff from Walmart. Oh, that is another thing it's done, the M400 after 600+ rounds including firing some VERY rapid fire, has yet to have a single malfunction, both the Colt 6921 and 6920 have had a couple of FTE's by this point. The 6921 has had I think 3 so far total and the 6920 has had 5. The older Lightweight Match Target has only had 3 so far in about 1000 rounds. The Bushmaster is the worst, having had about 40-50 FTE's in about 700 rounds. In fact it's now no fun at all to shoot because it FTE's at least a few of times per every 30 round clip. I cleaned it and that only seems to have made it WORSE! Took it to a friend of mine who's an AR15/M16 wiz and he can't figgure out the problem. He did another really good, complete dissasemble cleaning and it improved a slight bit but still FTE's at least a few times per 30 round clip. It also seems to get the most debris dirtiest inside as you fire it of all of them.

I can certainly recomend it to anyone and I have seen the nea-sayers also, my friends in the gun store said they have had several people come in and when others are looking at it they will start putting the Sig AR's down yet if you keep talking to them and talk to them long enough you eventually find out that they have never actually fired one. They are just pre-judging or say that they heard someone else say it, truth be told that other person probably also heard someone else say it and they also have no direct experiance. The funny part is I remember seeing people putting them down back as soon as Sig introduced them before ANYONE had actually fired them, but when you found someone such as someone in the firearms press world who actually did get to fire one (such as the SHOT Show) they all had nothing but good things to say about them. My friend in the store said the other two they sold before mine this last weekend (they just got them in like last Friday) said that both of those people also had nothing but great things to say about them.

My only complaint is that I wish the M400 had came with the MagPul CTR adjustable stock that the 516 came with instead of the regular Colt style adjustable stock. But that's easy enough to fix, just change it out for about $60. I like the factory pistol grip so am gonna keep that (the MagPul feels a little narrow to me for my personal grip). I can't wait to get in a good scope for it and see how well she works with that.

It's definatally taken the place of the 6921 as my favorite amongost all of my AR's, even though I still like the barrel length of the 6921 but then I could always turn the M400 into an SBR as well.

Hope this helps.


Well, if you call some of the top tactical units in the world "the dirt clod shooting crowd", and we definatally know that the worlds best tactical units always buy from a company thats equipment is "a complete joke".

Fact is some of the worlds most elite units use Sig's, some almost exclusivly, both here and abroad. Between all of Sigs I have personally owned added to the ones I have been issed added to the ones I have checked out during training over the years or supervised students training with, the number is literally now in the HUNDREDS, and I never had, nor witnessed but ONE single failure ... which the student admited was his own error, nor have I known any Sig's that was anything but totally reliable. Sig Sauer is in fact one of the few brands I trust my life to, now as a civilian and for over 17 years in the service. In fact I can honestly say without a doubt that I would not be here today had it not been for my unit issued Sig P229 DAK .40, but instead I am here and a bad guy in Afganistan is not.

I just got this M400 and it is impressive compared to my other AR's and I also just got one of the first 50 new Sig Ultra Compact 1911's which was what I was actually in the store to pick up when I noticed they had the M400 and I am just as impressed with the Ultra Compact 1911 as I am with the M400. It's accurate, tight, put together really well, the fit and finish are beyond reproach, I have numerous 1911's and the only one that I can even compare it to is a custom Wilson Combat Stealth 1911 that they presented to me a few years ago, but that one would have cost me 3-4x as much if I'd had to pay for it. The Sig Ultra Compact is comparable to it in every way (even has a Wilson-style front bushing) but has a retail that's a fraction of the price.

The M400 is a brand new model, still in very low production numbers, and like ANY manufactuer it's not uncomon at all to see a few glytches in production procedures so I wont agrue about you seeing one with something not put on correctly but to use that to claim all of them are going to be like that is simply unrealistic. I don't know of ANY company who has ever released a new model that did not have a few glytches duing the early production. You hear about them all the time. In other words, I am willing to bet that mine and the ones the guys in my old unit got their hands on, the couple my friend in the local store said he had already sold to some other locals, and the ones the firearms press reviewed at the SHOT show are the the norm and the one you looked at that had a backwards castle nut was in the exception. Not the other way around.


BTW: My Colt LW Match Target came with a backwards castle nut also. Though since it was used when I bought it I can't say if it was the factory or the original Owner, but when I mentioned it to him he said he'd bought the Colt new in '87 and it'd been a safe queen for over 23 years so after all that time he wasn't 100% sure himself but could not remember ever having had any reason to have messed with it himself. He didn't even know it was backwards until I ask about it after buying it.


9MMSteve,

Back on track with your original question... I can only speak from that is my personal experiance with the one I just bought, the reviews I heard from guys in my old unit whom I know personally and trust their experiance and opinions, and what the press said after the 2011 SHOT show. Also, though with a little less credit... what a friend at the local gun store said the guys who bought the first two of them over the weekend... though at that point I already had bought mine so it's not like he needed to make a sale, in fact I was telling him my opinions after having fired it the first afternoon.

All I can tell you from that is that to me it is an excellent investment and an extremely well built and precise AR-15 A3 Carbine with wonderful fit, finish, and so far the performance to match. I got mine for $860 out the door but this particular store gives discounts (I think you get it for only 3% above their cost) and people who are in law enforcement don't pay sales tax (I was actually in the military for 21 years, 17 with a tactical unit, but since retiring have also signed up as a reserve deputy in our county). I think their regular price is $889 which with our local tax rate gets you out the door for under $950 total and to me it's an exceptional value at that price, it would still be a good value at $1200 if I compare it to other models I have that did cost that much. That being said they are very new in production so look over the one you buy before leaving the store with it just to make sure you see no obvious flaws. I have a feeling that the chances are very slim that you will. Funny the other guy mentioned a backwards castle nut because when I started researching AR's for personal use about a month back (all started because a former commanding officer now friend, was selling part of his collection) I read somewhere that is the single most common mistake people make during the assembly of AR's and M16's, it did not specify if it was people building them or if that also included factories, but it was funny because my Colt LW Match Target had the same mistake on it. Are there better AR-15's out there? Sure, just look at a tricked-out Black Rain model or some of the other speciality high-end models, but also look at their price tags. You can ALWAYS get something better, the question is just how much you want to pay for it. I was a tactical driving and security specialist in the Army special forces so know a lot about vehicles and an old saying from the car world kinda fits here too... "Speed cost... How fast do you want to go?" ...Same principle here. A lighter, more accurate, more reliable, more "tricked out" AR is always gonna be available somewhere, it all just depends on the size of your wallet. But for it's price tag, in the $800-$1200 price grouping, this one is a darn excellent rifle and it's price is actually closer to the lower end of the price group. Baised on what I can tell from mine, I personally think it would still be a good deal even if it was priced closer to the top of the group.

My only disapointment in the Civilian version is that it did not come with the MagPul CTR stock and MagPul grip, but my friends in my old unit said that the M400's they got in to test not long ago came with them just like the Sig 516's they have. The civilian version of the 516 still comes with the MagPul, so don't know why Sig choose to not go with that on the civillian version of the M400. Of course that's only about $50 to buy the stock and of course it just slides right on, and I don't really care about the grip.

This thread is on the fast track to getting locked, but before it does I would like to point out that your lack of proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation is not doing you any favors in the credibility department. This is not to mention the constant reminding of your time in the service or use of the terms such as "clip" and "tactical unit". Please provide some details of the rifle you are praising so highly. I think this will be taken more seriously with more info.

-chrome lined bore/chamber?
-M4 feed ramps?
-milspec receiver extension?
-staked castle nut?
-staked carrier key?
-HP/MP bolt/barrel?
-F height front sight post?

[SouthernGypsy]

Why would it be on the fast tract to getting locked? That doesn't even make sense, no one has used foul language, no one has been flaming, just honest opinions, the only other thing left would be unless there was just a moderator who hated Sig's so much that they would shut-down any thread in which someone had anything good to say about them but I really don't believe that, not until I see it. Especially on a website where I'm sure most people believe in the 2nd amendment, hard to think anyone would then want to step on the 1st.

I already did post details of the rifle I was reviewing, geez, one of the longest post I have ever made full of details about how it performed, etc. and I also included some details of the others that I have to compare it to. Not sure what more details you want me to provide, The Sig and at least two of the Colt's meet mil-specs but if you mean specfic technical details about the manufacturing specs that would be found on the websites of the respective manufacturers.


Of the few things you asked specifically about...

-chrome lined bore/chamber? YES - It says "Mil-Spec Barrel and M4 Profile feed ramps are hammer forged, fully chrome lined, phostphate coated, then fully molly treated to reduce the need for frequent cleaning. The phosphate finish ensures extreme toughness in all conditions. Mil-Spec barrel contours ensure full compatability with all optional mounts and accessories including grenade launchers and bayonets. A 6 groove, 1:7 twist rifling ensures maximum performance from the widest variety of ammunition in both 5.56 NATO and .223"

-M4 feed ramps? YES

-milspec receiver extension? YES

-staked castle nut? YES

-staked carrier key? YES

-HP/MP bolt/barrel? MP - YES / HP - YES (found it finally)

-F height front sight post? YES

A note on the last one and on the barrel markings, someone earlier said the front sight was not "F Marked", but mine is, it's on the left side. There is an "F" that has been stamped into it after production, there is also another small 3 character letter/number combo but that seems to have been a part of the original mold, the F seems to have been stamped in later in what appears to be the same way an inspection or proof mark gets added. Also Sig put their barrel markings UNDER the handguards so getting a look at them was a pain in the rump, I had to take my handguards off, but now you know. Actually most of the barrel info came from the Sig owners website, the owners manual, the specs page included in the case, and the updated armorers manual supplement for the M400. I also noted that it says that "The M400 was built to fully meet all current (2003 introduction) Mil-Specs, tolerances, and production procedures for M16A3 and M16A4/AR-15A3 M4 US Military standards so all current M16A3 and M16A4/AR15A3 parts inventories are fully interchangable."
I will say it would have been nice if they had put all the info into a single location.


As I said these are just my experiances so far with the one that I have now put 600+ rounds through along with some noted experiances from some people I used to work with, if the M400's performance changes as it breaks in and I continue to get more rounds through it I will keep people posted.


UPDATE: Found it, YES - the barrel is High Pressure tested and certified.

[SouthernGypsy]

One thing I didn't mention earlier for the original OP was weight/balance. I'm finding the M400 to be weighted and balanced about the same as the Colt 6921, it's a little lighter feeling than the Colt 6920 but maybe a tad heavier than the Colt 6720, and definatally heavier than the Colt Lightweight Match Target though the LW Match Target is the only one of all of them with the old style non adjustable stocks so that probably makes it heavier in the back which furthers the feeling of the barrel being light. Obviously it is light on that one but I think the stock makes that even more obvious. Between all of them I think I like the "balance" of the Colt LW Match Target the best with the Sig M400 and Colt 6921 being pretty close in balance. The 6920 is a bit heavier up front. The Bushmaster seems somewhere between he M400/6921 and the 6920 as far as both balance and weight. That is one place the I definatally like the Colt better, is the weight and balance of the LW Match Target is the nicest of all of them. I can also mention that I have had time at the trigger of a Sig 516 and while I loved the rifle, found it pretty close in build quality to the M400 but it's definatally heavier and balanced just a little nose heavy. I'd love a 516 if I could put it on a diet by changing out some of the parts to loose some weight, especially up front, maybe make an SBR version.

[R0N]

Do they use the same CHF barrels as their 516s?

[SouthernGypsy]

Do they use the same CHF barrels as their 516s?

I don't have a 516 here for direct comparison but from what I remember of it I think it actually may be the same one. The length, profile, and cuts on it look identical as best I remember them. To be honest I have thought before that it looks like the same upper and lower as the 516's as well, certainly the lower. I think it may just be what's inside the upper and handguards that's different... The machining on the inside front part of the upper on the 516 maybe different to accomodate it's modified piston system but I think they probably start out from the same machineining form.

[Rider79]

Pretty sure all this was already covered here:

https://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=85579

[Littlelebowski]

If you did keep reading you would have read a review from a guy who is also very experienced with ARs and had a positive experience. But oh well, bashers will be bashers. Sig has had its share of recent flops, but There are far worse firearms out there. You may not like it, but Sig is still one of the best pistol manufacturers out there.

Anyway, as the op of a post inquiring about the M400 a few months ago (which also turned into a sig bashfest) Im glad someone shared a reasonable review. Thanks Southern.


Indeed, "all holes touching at 25 yards" is indicative of a hell of a rifle and a hell of a shooter.

[Averageman]

I have owned two Sig Rifles.
My 556 came to me with a poor barrel to reciever fit and would not zero.
My 556R came to me after a 6 month wait after mailing in my 556. The 556R came with no iron sights, a cheap redot and the reciever was so soft the mil spec Russian steel mags began to wear on the third magazine. The upper to lower fit on this was horrible and when zeroed it's accuracy was about that of a WASR AK.
Both rifles had a tendancy of having machine screws back out while shooting.
I had high hope for Sig having lived in Europe for 1/4 of my life I saw the quality Sig weapons had there; but Sig USA doesn't "get it."
The Quality control is terrible, The Customer Service is poor and borders on insulting.
Save your money and save the headaches, buy something,...buy anything but DON'T BUY SIG.

[Eurodriver]

SouthernGypsy,


I think I know you. PM me brother. We may have been in the same unit, as I just recently tested some SigM400s that my Sergeant bought for us. I doubt thats going on in many different places.

[40Arpent]

SouthernGypsy,


I think I know you. PM me brother. We may have been in the same unit, as I just recently tested some SigM400s that my Sergeant bought for us. I doubt thats going on in many different places.

It sure would be nice to have someone backing up this dude's claims.


I am not the biggest AR15/M16 user, never used them much in my particular MOS...though I did have to quality with them every three months.


Until recently I have never had many AR-15's, just those I had to qualify with every 6 months ...

17 years in the service and can't remember if quals were every three months or 6....fishy smelling.

[Eurodriver]

It sure would be nice to have someone backing up this dude's claims.

Hah, you should have read what I wrote before I editted it. ;)

[Tommel]

II had high hope for Sig having lived in Europe for 1/4 of my life I saw the quality Sig weapons had there; but Sig USA doesn't "get it."
The Quality control is terrible, The Customer Service is poor and borders on insulting.
Save your money and save the headaches, buy something,...buy anything but DON'T BUY SIG.

A sad commentary on a once proud company. I enjoy the SIGs and I'll note the E2 grip and SRT triggers were two good advances but they've gone down the tubes....

I hear few positive comments about SIG-USA's rifles and this is coming from a company who have stated that they now want to be known as a rifle company that makes pistols on the side.

The Kimberization of SIG-USA may have made them very financilly well off in the short run but I think it will doom SIG in the long run...

Cohen be damned.

-Tom

[Littlelebowski]

Why would anyone in their right mind buy this over a BCM, DD, or Colt for roughly the same money?

[Tommel]

Why would anyone in their right mind buy this over a BCM, DD, or Colt for roughly the same money?

Beacuse SIG's good reputation has not yet been totally trashed by their new management yet and they don't know better....

I am hoping that the new management gets the heave-ho and SIG returns to its former glory.

-Tom

[Iraqgunz]

Temporary shut down until we can nail some stuff down.

[JSantoro]

This thread is on the fast track to getting locked

There's God's own truth.

Every single time somebody starts chiming in about being a member of the Super Friends on an open forum, continues to allude to it without specifying, all while in the process of not remembering parts of his own story THAT'S IN TYPE ON THE SAME SCREEN....

....questions unrelated to the technical aspects of the topic arise and get in the way. Then we're in the soup, and the signal-to-noise ratio plummets.

For now, howsabout we stop with the idea that Food Court Team 6 is sooo super-duper secret that one can get away with simply implying membership without being able to just come out and say so. From a professional standpoint, that's not how it works.

One is either allowed to tell folks what one does and where one comes from, and do so, or one in NOT allowed to tell folks, and does not. Period. If the former, and one does not choose to let the cat out of the (mesh, therefore effectively transparent) bag for whatever reason, then do not gripe when one is met with skepticism. If the latter....well, this never would have come up in the first place.

If one decides to attempt to establish technical credibility by openly typing an analogue of "well, my suicide-before-reading-any-articles-about-them unit got 'em...what? No, I cant tell you which unit that is..." then you're leading with your chin instead of your left (or right, if one is wrong-handed), and deseve all of the jabs your internet-face absorbs.

Nobody's asking for a resume, or vetting, or explainations, nor is anybody making any accusations (hint-hint, folks). Stick to the facts of the gun; if there's anything of worth in to be found in one of the pieces of drek Sig's been churning out for the last few years, it's of worth to somebody looking to make an informed choice regarding such things.

EDIT: We were typing at the same time.

Probably best that this one STAYS closed, lest we desire TWO M400 threads full of shenanigans...