My New German Sig P220

**Dionysusigma** · 01-13-16, 16:45

I made the score of the decade yesterday by finding a local-ish listing that I couldn't pass up. Normally whenever I make it over to the store, their listings are weeks out of date, but seeing how recent this one was made, I figured I'd give it a shot (no pun intended). The instant it was taken from the display case and handed to me, I knew it was destiny. There was a little grit to it, and the corners were a little scuffed, but still I nearly broke Mach getting my wallet out. No case, aftermarket grips (Hogue rubber, which I honestly would've swapped over to anyway), and only one flush 7-rd magazine, but no problem here.

It was after I got home that the true miracle became apparent: having become a Sig owner back when P6s were cheap, trading it out for a P220R, then selling the P220R to make rent, I'd forgotten how much I like them. In no time at all I had it completely detail-stripped (I thought I'd forgotten how), and I couldn't believe what I saw: zero internal wear. The gummy packing grease that manufacturers often use for shipping/storage throughout. The bore was perfect. Breech face spotless. And, to my initial dismay, a few pockets of orangeish brown.

I began cleaning and found that the gritty feeling I'd experienced in the store was due to three things: one, the un-worn phosphated internals; two, the inadequacy of the packing oil for lubricant; and three, the orangeish brown residue, which disappeared from each piece after a quick scrub with a toothbrush - it was merely Oklahoma red dust! A thorough degreasing and TW-25B lubing later, it was back together: a stamped (not milled) "Made in Germany" P220 with internal extractor and proper stamped slide (I think so anyway, because there's what looks like a milled block holding the extractor and firing pin mechanism), the "way a real Sig should be." Everything was smooth as silk, and I think my VP9 might have become a bit jealous...

The only things I'm wondering about are:

1) Is this a workhorse, or bordering on collector piece?

2) With a S/N of "G 313 XXX," can anyone possibly tell me the date on this one? Closest I can figure is 2001, which is almost a war crime for letting such a fantastic pistol go so long with so little use.

3) If I wanted to use factory plastic grips, I've heard that Sig at some point in recent history changed the grips and grip profile on their entire P22X lineup - are OEMs that fit still available anywhere?

4) Are 8-round magazines the closest I'll be able to find for this one? Midway lists the 7-rounders as "discontinued..."

**El Pistolero** · 01-13-16, 18:55

Congratulations! Pics of this fine pistol? Are there two letters stamped on the slide under the muzzle?

**Dionysusigma** · 01-13-16, 19:04

There's a pic of the exact pistol in the link above, and the pistol's a bit too recent for anything on the muzzle end, unfortunately.

Hope these help, though (I think I got a bit carried away with the TW-25B):

From the original listing:

Quick 'n' dirty non-pro snap of the right side:

Closeup of the shallowly-stamped (not engraved like nowadays) model name:

Breech face that looks like it can separate from the rest of the slide, like my old P6:

**DBZ220** · 01-14-16, 15:09

Excellent vintage of P220. I have several from 1992 to current and they all have been flawless.

**Dionysusigma** · 01-14-16, 18:52

Another thing that's come to mind - I remember Sig triggers being physically... well, wider, front to back, with a hollowed-out area on the backside almost the entire length of the trigger. This one isn't; in fact, it's also serrated, something I've never seen before on a Sig. Any idea what gives?

**DBZ220** · 01-14-16, 18:56

Originally Posted by Dionysusigma

Another thing that's come to mind - I remember Sig triggers being physically... well, wider, front to back, with a hollowed-out area on the backside almost the entire length of the trigger. This one isn't; in fact, it's also serrated, something I've never seen before on a Sig. Any idea what gives?

It's how the P220 was made for a long time. The P220 had its own trigger back then, different from the P226/228/229. Current production SIGs essentially all standardized on the P226 style trigger. New triggers generally won't fit the original version of the P220.

**GregP220** · 01-14-16, 21:57

I'm GregP220 and I approve of that pistol.

**Vegas** · 01-14-16, 23:09

Had the chance to pick up an Elite Tactical the other day for less than 800. Financially the timing was way off but the listing sat there for days torturing me, lol. Would have been a great pairing to my P245.