Does anyone else feel like the front strap grooves on the P226 are going in the wrong direction? It seems to me that traction would be much improved by vertical-running grooves, as opposed to horizontal. I intend to get some skateboard tape for mine, but have yet to get around to it.

I don't. In fact, I detest vertical grooves because they sometimes interfere with rotating my fingers around the grip into a proper firing position. I also don't see how vertical grooves help prevent the pistol from sliding down in my hand under recoil.

Horizontal grooves for me.

I do. Horizontal grooves are about useless to me. If you're not going to give me checkered, at least give me vertical.

for the most part, I find plane groves horizontal or verticle useless.

Checkering is where it is at.

I agree. Ultimately I'd prefer checkering. If I had to have one or the other though, give me vertical.

I have the P226 Legend, and mine is checkered

My P226 has a checkered front strap. Wonder when they changed?

quote:

Originally posted by sigfreund:
I don't. In fact, I detest vertical grooves because they sometimes interfere with rotating my fingers around the grip into a proper firing position. I also don't see how vertical grooves help prevent the pistol from sliding down in my hand under recoil.

Horizontal grooves for me.

I take the interference to rotating as mission accomplished for the vertical orientation of the grooves. I don't want the grip rotating in my hand during recoil...I've never understood the function of horizontal grooves.

What keeps the pistol from sliding down in your hand under recoil should be the tang/bevertail and the torque from your support hand as you extend your thumb forward

It's worth noting that the early P226 front strap gripping ridges were originally vertical, and SIG transitioned later P226s to the horizontal ones.

Although checkering would probably be best, of the two standard options, I prefer the horizontal ones...but I've been able to make both work.

I was waiting for someone to mention this.

Here's the cover of Guns&Ammo, May, 1985.

Well shoot. I wish they would have stayed vertical. Oh well. Seems like there's just as many folks who like the horizontal though.

quote:

Originally posted by DSgrouse:
for the most part, I find plane groves horizontal or verticle useless.

Checkering is where it is at.

Agree totally on the groove stuff. However, I use a narrow strip of skateboard tape on all my classic Sigs. Works as well as checkering.

Perhaps when frame production moved to the USA they started the grooves. My checkered frame was mde in Germany.

No, the change was made well before that.

Maybe I'm doing it wrong, but rotation in my hand is either simply not happening (when I shoot) or desirable (I still shift my hand a bit to hit the magazine release, and I feel better knowing the magazine release is that far out of the way). I honestly have no idea what vertical grooves are supposed to accomplish. I can feel horizontal grooves helping when I press the grip back into my lower palm with my lower fingers.

quote:

Originally posted by Nipper:

Agree totally on the groove stuff. However, I use a narrow strip of skateboard tape on all my classic Sigs. Works as well as checkering.

I do the same.

quote:

Originally posted by ACP1:
Perhaps when frame production moved to the USA they started the grooves. My checkered frame was mde in Germany.

As Para rightly points out, the change was made long before U.S. production began. I'd guestimate sometime around the transition to Herndon imports.

Out of curiosity, what model do you have that was checkered in Germany before U.S. manufacturing began?

quote:

Originally posted by Modern Day Savage:

quote:

Originally posted by ACP1:
Perhaps when frame production moved to the USA they started the grooves. My checkered frame was mde in Germany.

As Para rightly points out, the change was made long before U.S. production began. I'd guestimate sometime around the transition to Herndon imports.

Herndon imports for sure. The production P228 started in 1988, a year after the move to Herndon, and it has always had the horizontal grooved front strap.

The vertical to horizontal front strap grooves on the p226 started on German guns. My 1988 has the vertical and a friend of mine liked my p226 so much he bought one. His was also a triple serial numbered German gun. He bought it new around 1992. Also another change I noticed on his gun was the feed ramp was different from mine. Mine was narrower with almost guard rails on the ramp to guide the round. His was wider and lacked the guide rails on the feed ramp.

E26R-40-BSE, 20-JAN-2009, Blue Box, Exeter-NH.
Changed to Sig 357.