For as long as I can remember, I have shot Glock and HK pistols. I really appreciated the quality, accuracy and reliability of the HK, and especially the hammer/long trigger of the LEM system. The problem is I shoot Glock pistols better than the HK, especially one hand. This has led to a yoyo between the hammer (HK) versus performance (Glock) tradeoff.
I last shot a Sig about 10 or 15 years ago, and then only a little. I never understood why anyone would want "two triggers," and assumed the Sig was foisted onto organizations largely as a risk management tool with the DA trigger to keep folks shooting themselves or others they didn't intend to. The use of the 226 by elite units of the Navy seemed curious, but I didn't give it too much thought. After following some TDA threads, about a year ago, including JV's experiment, I decided I ought to get a Sig, and figure out to shoot it -- both to round out my ability and satisfy my curiosity as to whether the platform was shootable. Early last summer, I won a GunBroker auction for a new 226R as a ridiculously low price, and off and on, over the last months shot a few rounds thru it.
About a month ago, I decided to focus on shooting the 226 as a winter project. Pretty quickly, I was very impressed by the Sig's accuracy. While that wasn't surprising, what was surprising was I actually liked the trigger. As I thought about the Sig's attributes, they seemed a good match for my interests. Here is what I liked:
1) The heavier, longer DA trigger and hammer are great for appendix carry. The trigger guard is large enough to work with gloves in a cold environment which describes where I live.
2) The DA trigger has great roll and is easy to get a surprise break with. It feels like a good revolver trigger, and while heavier, is easy to get a surprise break with than the LEM trigger. The SRT SA trigger feels like cheating, and right from the get go, I was getting faster splits than the HK or Glock.
3) The pistol is extremely accurate. I recall hearing second hand from SLG, that TLG tested a bunch of Sig pistols with a laser off sand bags, and they shot like 1-2 inches at 25 yards.
4) The 226 has been very reliable, and I haven't had a single stoppage in the approximate 2,000 rounds I have thru it. The Sig does not seem grip sensitive, and no matter how I hold it, including one hand, it has been reliable.
5) I like the construction of the magazines. They feel good handling, and they are trim enough that they seem to carry easier.
6) I really like how the E2 grip feels in my hands, and find it to have just the right amount of texture for carry and shooting.
7) It is fun to dry fire the Sig, because I can work the DA press without resetting the trigger, and then release the trigger just a tad simulating the SA second shot.
8) The pistol is extremely fast to do slide lock reloads with.
9) The 226 has very modest recoil.
10) .22 uppers are available for training, and mine seems to run with CCI AR Tactical ammo.
I dry fired the 226 a lot for about 10 days when I couldn't get to the range in Alaska, and then had my first dedicated live fire session with it Wednesday, when I put 1,000 +/- rounds thru it, and shot my G34 too for some comparisons. Pretty quickly, I was able to run the DA/SA transition without conscious thought. I have shot it some on successive days, and the pistol continues to grow on me. I am still working my grip to avoid interference with the slide stop, and hope I can be consistent with that. Otherwise I will trim it, like JV did. I am not going to quote times, because they only mean something relative to my performance with other platforms, but right off, I am seeing the potential for my performance with the Sig to be better than the Glock or HK.
Shooting one hand, the 226 rocks -- both shot one with the great rolling DA press, followed by that cheating SA trigger. When I think about my ability to shoot well with one hand, it comes down to aggressive prepping of the trigger, and frankly the SRT SA Sig trigger makes that a lot easier as it has so little travel.
I only wish I had figured this out years ago, and look forward to gathering more data.