I placed a deposit yesterday on a vintage West German P 226. When I got home I checked this site and determined the gun to be a 1983 vintage, imported by Interarms. The gun pretty much appears to have seen little to no use. No scratches on the magazines, no wear on the slide or the barrel.

I do plan to shoot this gun, but not very much. This will be more of a collectable for me.

So, here's my question ... one of my buddy's said the older guns had hollow pins as opposed to solid pins. Is this a serious issue? Are there any other issues with these vintage guns? Also, he said these older guns tended to rust easier, so to clean it after every outing.

Thanks in advance.

The folded carbon steel slides of those SIGs can rust a bit easier. They do use hollow roll pins, but many consider that an improvement over the solid versions.

They aren’t that collectible, and you’d be missing out by not shooting it often. I have a 1989 West German. I put a suppressor on it and shoot the help out of it.

To most, and me for sure, the double roll pin design is actually better than the solid FPPP design. I've broken my share of both, but way more of the solid pins. Your buddy, to me, is raising a complete non-issue.

Just to clarify, the new weapons SIG is selling come with a one piece spiral roll pin, not solid, and I've yet to break one of those.

If you plan on doing much shooting, I would replace the recoil spring and maybe the hammer spring as well if you experience any light primer strikes.

I intend to replace all the springs.

I'd like to add an Interarms P226 to the collection, but I'm not sure how much of a collectible premium they bring compared to one of the other importer/ time frames. I suppose a small one for the dedicated collector.

I don't think there were any Interarms guns with the mud rails, but you may want to confirm this. I've never owned one myself, but don't believe that they are as prone to break as some do...but I would be more conservative in choosing standard pressure rounds if it did have the cut outs.

The dual roll pins were used in the original carbon steel stamped formed slides, the solid roll pins came later with the stainless steel slides with integral breech blocks, and later yet came the spiral roll pins.

I don't believe there are any "issues" with any of these roll pins...just characteristics to be aware of.

The dual roll pins tend to "walk" or shift over many rounds fired. Sometimes the pins break, causing the shift but even pins that are not broken can shift. Broken roll pins may eventually lead to frame rail breaks so the dual roll pins should be replaced per the maintenance schedule of the gun.

The solid roll pins used in the stainless steel slides are not prone to break...but are often difficult to remove, possibly leading to damaging the gun if one isn't careful.

I don't have any experience with the spiral pins now used in stainless steel slides but from the comments I've read they seem to be a good replacement choice. I'm not certain, but I believe that some have used the spiral pins in the older carbon steel stamped slides.

Regarding the early SIG finish, I don't consider it any more likely to rust than any other carbon steel gun, but given the right combination of conditions they will rust. If the finish is worn and bare steel is exposed, or if you live in a humid area or marine environment, or the gun is frequently exposed to skin oils and sweat, then yes, it could rust. But simple basic maintenance and wiping the gun down on a regular basis is all that is required.

One of my many carbon steel slide P226s has a good deal of finish wear (26 years of carry) and I once noted a tiny spot of rust forming on the bare steel. A few minutes of work removing the rust and wiping the gun down was all that was required and I've never seen the rust return and still haven't had the gun refinished, but I do live in a dry climate and do wipe my carry guns down periodically, although not weekly.

I would try it out and replace springs if necessary, my West German springs have never failed me. I believe the West German folks knew how to make a spring and so far after many thousand rounds none have failed. Just enjoy them, that is what they are for.

I have an old Tyson's Corner P226 that I thought was about the oldest commercial import after the 1984 army pistol trials. It's in the orange box and I thought it was the oldest import. I assumed it was 1985ish, but I never looked into it that closely. I had no idea Interarms imported any. What do the box and accessories look like?

I had a W. German-stamped P226...made in 1992. Was stolen from my home about 20 years ago--I'm still pissed about it. It was a great tack driver--i shot the hell out of it.

It's a SIG--a good one. Your buddy is FOS...the roll pins are a non-issue. Don't leave it as a safe queen--shoot it...a lot.

quote:

Originally posted by stoic-one:
To most, and me for sure, the double roll pin design is actually better than the solid FPPP design. I've broken my share of both, but way more of the solid pins. Your buddy, to me, is raising a complete non-issue.

Just to clarify, the new weapons SIG is selling come with a one piece spiral roll pin, not solid, and I've yet to break one of those.

I think the latest thick roll pins are probably the best design so far. I figure they have just enough "give" not to break very soon. You can replace your double roll pins with one if you want. Or, just keep one as a spare.