quote:

Originally posted by Rick Lee:
Sorry it took so long for me to get these photos.

Not really sure what I'm looking for, but to my untrained eyes, everything looks normal. Rifling looks totally normal.

To me, and just my opinion based on my P228, the finish looks not-original, and that barrel crown looks like it has some marks on it as well.

I'd get a 2nd barrel, I've found new ones still for older P228 (I have one extra if I had more I'd offer), and try that.

Also maybe putting this new finish on every part messed with the tolerances?

Have you tried hitting it with a hammer? If you haven't, don't. If you did hit with a hammer, why?

Now that the bad joke is out of the way. Check the barrel lock up. remove the slide and place it sights down on the table. Remove the recoil spring assembly and try and shake the barrel. It should be rather snug if ther is excessive movement the locking surface might be out of spec.

Then reassemble the pistol and with the slide in battery see if it moves.

Look at the barrel from the chamber end and see if it's symmetrical or if there is any unusual wear in the leade area.

Are the sights snug? You probably would have noticed, but I figured I'd ask.

I'd try a different shooter and/or a different batch/type of ammo.

The fact that you are reporting that the issue is inconsistent is vexing. Normally I'd expect the issue to repeat I.E. the gun constantly shoots off to the left. The fact that the shoots all over the place makes me think lose sights or a barrel issue.

Do you have a chronograph? I'd be interested to see what velocities and SD you are seeing. YOu could also try measuring or slugging the barrel to see if it's in spec.

Factory nickel or not, the finish wouldn't be responsible for this. It couldn't alter the tolerances nearly enough to make an otherwise okay pistol start shooting all over the target.

I've only ever owned one "CPS" (Classic P-Series: P220, P226, etc.) SIG Sauer pistol that had any play between the slide and barrel. It was an early P220 ST with the stainless barrel. I did not have any accuracy issues with it.

It's possible your barrel has simply just worn out. However, the rifling photographs too easily for me to think that's the case (unless the nickel finish is just that good at providing contrast). The marks on the barrel crown look like powder residue (the nickel just makes it easier to see) and that's nothing to worry about.

I would first check for excessive play in the barrel-to-slide fit. Drop the barrel into the slide and leave the guide rod out. Then grab the barrel by the lug and try to move it fore and aft. It shouldn't move at all. Next, check for play in the breech block. Finally, examine the locking insert for any cracks or obvious damage.

If all of those things are fine, I would try a new barrel. They are still available new from SIG NH.

I’m certainly no expert, but it doesn’t look factory to me, which is why I asked. Which makes me wonder what was done, why was it done and what is being covered up. Did they blast as prep? Did they do more than blast?

Uneven nickel application could throw things off, but properly done it shouldn’t. Shouldn’t greatly influence accuracy anyway, as it should only be a thousandth thick. But we still don’t know how far off, in which direction. 10 yards isn’t that far.

When I got it, the seller said it was factory two tone. It looked and felt like Robar NP3 to me. I sent the frame to CCR to make it match. But I can't believe such tiny tolerances would make such a difference in accuracy.

Whatever factory original finish the gun had, it has been refinished before it was sold to OP. Factory 2-tone or full nickel P228 never had the barrel finished in nickel. It's always blued. Whatever finish the gun's barrel has now is definitely not blued. That points to a refinished gun. And I agree with BuddyChryst that very poorly done refinishing job can affect accuracy.

It would take a VERY bad refinish job to affect accuracy to the degree that you are describing. It's possible, but I don't see anything particularly alarming in the photos. Those smudges around the barrel hood look like carbon, not uneven wear.

A few questions:

1. Any chance you could post a target photo so we can see exactly what we're dealing with?

2. When you take the slide off and remove the recoil spring assembly, is there any play in the barrel to slide fit if you push front to back or side to side on it with your fingers? How about with the gun fully assembled and pushing down on the barrel hood with your finger?

3. Is there any play between the breech block and the slide?

4. Could you post a photo of the top of the slide so we can see the position of the sights? Are both the front and rear sight centered in their dovetail? Can you move them at all if you push on them by hand?

5. How does the locking insert look? Any cracks or abnormal wear? Does it lock tightly into the frame or is there any play?

As other have suggested, I'd have somebody else shoot it, too, just to rule out some kind of incompatibility between you and the gun. If you don't have a competent buddy to take to the range with you, maybe eyeball the other shooters on the line, find one who seems to know his/her stuff, and ask if they'd be willing to help you troubleshoot your gun. I've done that for others several times in the past, and have asked others to do it for me as well.

Keep us updated. If we get through all that and still don't have a solution, I have a spare P228 barrel that I could mail to you to try in your gun. But I really doubt your barrel is the problem.

I have seen a P series pistol or two where the sight was loose in the dovetail, which caused shots to be all over the target. I put in Trijicon HD sights in and it solved the problem. I gather the gun is not factory original to you so who knows what has been done to the sights

I think I sent everything but the slide to CCR for refinishing, can't remember exactly. I installed the sights myself, have the SIG pusher tool and have done it on countless guns. They're not loose at all.

I will try to get back to the range this weekend to put some other brands of ammo through it, maybe find a good shooter at a nearby lane to try it out and then post some target photos.

What is the nature of the inaccuracies?

What about benchrest vs free hand ~ the same results?

I have always found the trigger was the main factor in accuracy sans any pilot error.

quote:

Originally posted by Rick Lee:
I think I sent everything but the slide to CCR for refinishing, can't remember exactly.

Right. My point was, previous owner had it refinished before you, so you have no idea what shape it really was in initially. Also, the decocker is definitely not original to this German made/proofed gun. This one, which has the shortened thumb tab to accommodate the E2 grip, came along when SIG NH started making the E2 guns in late 2009. If you didn't replace the original decocker with the E2 one, then I have to question why previous owner had to do it, when it's totally unnecessary.

Looks to me like some potential roughness/burrs at the exit of the rifling at the muzzle.