First gun I bought when I turned 21 was a SIG in 1978. It is a P220 that was imported by Browning as the BDA. Still have it (and the box it came in). When I bought it, no one knew what it was. Many of the LEOs that worked with my late father asked me “why” I didn’t buy a Colt 1911? One day at the range I showed a few why. Great gun. Superbly accurate and 100% reliable. I bought another (German) P220 back in 2003 and brand new out of the box it was just as reliable and accurate as my BDA. A few months back I bought a new SIG P225A1 and like my other two SIGs it is amazing.

Like many here, I have a bunch of guns including a custom tuned Browning Hi Power and custom tuned Colt Combat Commander from Austin Behlert. Superb guns … a combination of a fine watch and art that goes “boom”. But when I put a gun on me to carry, it’s not the Behlert guns or my Gen 4 Glock 19 … nine out of ten times it is a SIG (the tenth time is a S&W 637 in the pocket or on my ankle).

When I started in LE in the early 90's, my department required Sig 9mm. Learned to shoot with a 226. Carried a 225, 228, 220 and P230 as personal pistols over the years. I was issued a 229/40 at one department. Had exactly one issue over many thousands of rounds with various models. (Bad recoil spring) So, I guess I would say reliability.

Now that I'm retired, I can carry any pistol I want at my part time gig. I went back to the 229/40. I carried the issued Glocks for the last few years before retirement. Totally reliable, but not particularly accurate. I went back to Sig for the accuracy. So accuracy and reliability for me.

I said accuracy and that's surely a thing but really I don't know any other gun that is the perfect balance of out of the box accuracy, reliability and versatility with a touch of class. All my Sig's just work. Suppressed, unsuppressed, wet, old mags without spring changes, whatever it is my sigs are the best pistols. My new hotness is a G19.4 mind you but i did a bunch to it and there's just something about steel.

I gotta admit it. I bought the first one, a 9mm 226, because that's what the SEALs issued. It seems to have worked out, though.

Bought a 40cal 226 because that's what our state troopers were issued at the time. Now, I prefer 9, but keep buying Sigs.

I voted reliability. Actually the just feel really good in my hand.

quote:

Originally posted by Skins2881:
<<snip>> P230 was first non rimfire pistol I ever shot, fell in love with them at that point. <<snip>>

Half of the centerfires I currently own are Sig-Sauer (the other two are a Ruger and an old Rossi); an SP-2022 in 9mm, and a P230. Six months ago I swore that the SP-2022 was my #1 favorite Sig, as it was 'the one' left after having sold all the others to pay bills. I love most of the classic P-series dearly, but the 2022 won the "What if you could only have one?" war for me when met with the painful reality of actually having to answer that question!

Now, after having had a nice P230 for the past few months, and also having added checkered walnut grips to it, I find the 2022 stays in the safe most of the time and the 230 stays on me, or at my side at night! Despite the less-than-optimum caliber (Hornady Critical Defense ammo's performance helps assuage any fears over the caliber issue), it has quickly become my perfect pistol in just about every other way!!! I am truly in love with it, despite it being an illogical choice for self-defense!

Now, as far as answering the original poll question.... I can't with only one choice as my decision includes many factors, including some not in the list which won't make any sense, so I won't post them for people to laugh at.

The first SIG I can recall handling, a P226, was at the NRA convention in '83,IIRC. I was not used to a quality pistol with a matte finished stamped slide, plastic grips,etc. Once I got to examine the gun, I was very impressed with the barrel/slide/frame fit, DA/SA trigger, etc. It was obviously a very high quality pistol, regardless of the fact that it was not the traditional blue steel and Walnut I was used to. In '86 our Dept. authorized the P226 to be carried as a primary weapon. I was in the first transition class, carried a P226 for several years, and later became a SIG armorer. Never a malfunction or issue of any kind. That led to my owning, I don't know how many SIGs, since. I came to think of the German SIGs as the Mercedes of pistols.

So if it had been a choice in the poll, I would have indicated: Build quality.

My first taste was the 2022 that I used in the academy. Loved it. Just got a P226 MK25 with threaded barrel. I am in love. I want to add at least one Sig per year for the next few years.

I voted reliability. They run like a champ. And they are sexy.....

My first semi-automatic was a Sig 228. Your list of reason why I bought Sig does not include my reason. I chose the Sig as it felt better in my hand than any other offering I tried.

I guess just a perfect balance for me.

When I retired from the USSS in 1988 as a field agent, field agents were carrying S&W Model 19's
but Washington, DC protection agents were issued the new Sig Sauer P-226's in 9mm. Upon retiring,
not wanting to be outdone by those DC protection
agents, I bought my first Sig, a P220 in .45 caliber, at Gander Mountain. Of course, many more
Sigs are now owned be me, including the P229 357
Sig as my former agency has been carrying for many
years now.

Sigs have proven to be winners........

I actually bought my first Sig because the price was great. Hard to believe, but I was stationed in Germany at the time ('97-'01), so I bought my P239/9mm Two-Tone for $425, no tax. It just felt great in my hand (still does). I ended up buying my P220/.45, P229/.40 TT, and my wife's P232SL at the Kaiserslautern Rod & Gun Club. When we got back here to the States, I couldn't quit buying Sigs! I just wish they were as cheap as they were over there before they switched to the Euro. I've since added a P220/.45 Compact SAS, a P224/.40 SAS, a 556ER carbine, an M11-A1, and an SP2022/.40. (And I'm not done yet...)

Anyway, I voted "Reliability" because that's what the first one demonstrated to me. And every one since has reaffirmed that. Oh yeah, plus accuracy if I could vote for that, too.

The first one I bought wa because a friend had a 9mm P226 and we shot it one day. It was not only accurate, it ate everything we put through it, including some lead cast reloads. So years later when I found a deal on a W. German 9mm P226, I bought it. The second one I bought was because I wanted a decent 1911 for pin shooting, found a deal on Sig 1911 at a gun show, of all places, and bought it. Next time I went pin shooting the guys with more expensive 1911s said it was as accurate as theirs. I've put thousands of rounds through it and only had a very few issues, due to normal wear. So I'd vote for accuracy and reliability.

I'm not big on the standard P-series Sigs. I've owned a bunch over the years, many stock, a few improved by GrayGuns... all top-shelf pistols, just not for me. I eventually sold them all, and I don't miss them.

I do have an X5 L1 and a P210 Legend Target. I really enjoy these two as range toys - incredibly accurate and well made firearms.

The bigger question for me... I do not like DA/SA triggers, and yet I own a bunch of DA/SA HK pistols (like 10 of them). Why? LOL. I don't know. I just think they're cool guns. I hate that DA first shot, almost as much as I hate the loooong trigger reset. I enjoy shooting them once in a while, but the pistols I take to the range, take to training classes, and carry every day are Glocks and 1911's.

Having owned several .45s, a .40, a .44, I wanted a 9. When we went from 1911s on the Navy to the Beretta, I didn't much care for them, so it took me a little research and ended up with a P226. The balance is perfect!

First time I heard of them was from a TV show called Burn Notice. Main character uses a P228.

I had lots of them tried about every model I could get my hands on it seemed and poo pooed glocks finally gave into the glock 19 within a month sold all my sigs and bought glocks go figure.

While I've been shooting for close to 25 years, 8 of the first 10 of those were in NYC and CA so it was more just for fun than anything and I traded my S&W 6906 (much to my regret) in CA for a S&W 686+.

15 years ago I moved to friendlier territory and got much more involved in shooting. After doing some research I settled on the P228/229 since they seemed to be in wide use with the Feds. I've since moved on to Glocks, but still have a handful of Sigs around, including my first, a 1994 nickel P228.

Quality. Durability. Ergonomics. Shootability. Reliability. Accuracy. Beauty.

For me, primarily reputation, followed by asthetics. Now Ive had some Sig issues as of late, my 229c in 357 Sig and my MCX. Worst gun out of the box brand new, was a Sig 2022. But the four 229s, two 226s, one 228 and 220 in my collection right now are fantastic and Ultra reliable. I also had two Sig 1911s that were flawless as well.