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P226 Elite Series or HK P30

Which Gun?

  • Sig P226 Elite Series (Platinum or Stainless)

    Votes: 16 64.0%

  • HK P30

    Votes: 9 36.0%
  • Total voters
    25
L

LT1MCSS

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Help me choose my next gun. I've been real big on wanting to pick up a HK P30 lately and I know I also want to get a P226. Originally I was looking to get a basic P226 and still get the P30 but then i figured I could get a little nicer P226 that's a little more rare. Both guns will run around the $900-1000 mark so not cheap.


I know both are great guns by great manufacturers with great reputations.
So I narrowed it down to the following.

P226 Platinum Elite
P226 Platinum Elite Stainless
HK P30

I have actually held and fired both guns. I would say the HK gets the nod a tad on feel just because you can customize the grip so much but both are nice shooters. On the other hand the P226 has the advantage of being able to legally run hi-cap mags where the P30 your stuck with 10rd mags permanently in this state.
 
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Nfdbrian said:
P30 with the LEM trigger you can't go wrong. Sig is a tad heavy for carry!
Click to expand...

I wouldn't carry either honestly. It would be more of what I like to call a "fun gun" meaning one I just want to have, take to the range every now and then. If it saw any real practical use it would be as a home defense only.

I will probably end up with both eventually. The only difference is one i'll probably get in the next month or two and the other maybe next year.
 
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What about the P229? What caliber are you looking for? I think the ability to run high caps is a plus, but definitely get the SRT with the Sigs. I found the P226 was a bit large for a carry gun if that's what you were planning to do. Both are great companies but keep in mind that Sigs would be easier to get gunsmith work done on, seeing how only LEO and MIL can become certified HK armorers. Best of luck!
 
hydrashok1911 said:
What about the P229? What caliber are you looking for? I think the ability to run high caps is a plus, but definitely get the SRT with the Sigs. I found the P226 was a bit large for a carry gun if that's what you were planning to do. Both are great companies but keep in mind that Sigs would be easier to get gunsmith work done on, seeing how only LEO and MIL can become certified HK armorers. Best of luck!
Click to expand...

I actually have a 229 which I like a lot. My 229 is a .40 but its the only .40 I own. The 226 I would get chambered in 9mm just because it goes along with most of the other guns I have and I have 3 Pre-ban 226 mags laying around I don't have a use for right now. I'm trying to stick with .380, 9mm, and .45 from here on out. Like said above neither of these guns are intended for carry. They are just for fun and maybe home defense.
 
They are kind of two different beasts. IMO if you are not going to carry it, go with the Sig, assuming it comes with SRT pre-installed. If you also have the mags ready to go, that end of it is kind of a no brainer.

-Mike
 
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hydrashok1911 said:
What about the P229? What caliber are you looking for? I think the ability to run high caps is a plus, but definitely get the SRT with the Sigs. I found the P226 was a bit large for a carry gun if that's what you were planning to do. Both are great companies but keep in mind that Sigs would be easier to get gunsmith work done on, seeing how only LEO and MIL can become certified HK armorers. Best of luck!
Click to expand...

The thing is in the end game for either it doesn't matter that much. Most of the stuff that (rarely) breaks on HKs and Sigs is user replaceable, sometimes getting the parts is difficult, but that is true for either brand, although it is somewhat better on the Sig side overall. (There are more armorers around more likely to have the parts you need).

The things that are hard to come by for either are action/trigger jobs, but it's about equally bad for Sigs and HKs in this regard. With any luck with the P226 he will get a clean sear and he won't need one anyways. The HK kind of is what it is. The HK45s, P2000s I've felt lately were pretty decent, compared to most of the USP series guns in terms of trigger feel.

-Mike
 
Sig X5... essentially a hand built Sig 226.

I know it is not one of your choices, but it has an amazing trigger and very natural shooter.
 
Just checking but is the SRT trigger and short trigger the same thing? If it is, its not to bad to install I have been told but I know a sig armorer and they would probably wouldn't charge me much if they even charged me.
 
LT1MCSS said:
Just checking but is the SRT trigger and short trigger the same thing? If it is, its not to bad to install I have been told but I know a sig armorer and they would probably wouldn't charge me much if they even charged me.
Click to expand...

No. The short trigger is just that -- shorter from backstrap to the front of the trigger, so it is easier for folks with short fingers.

The short reset trigger reduces the reset distance. When you pull a trigger and then start to let it go, you will feel a click when the hammer and sear reset. The distance the trigger must travel between full pull to reset is the reset distance. Glocks have a very short reset distance.
 
What M1911 said, plus I'll also add that most of the newer sigs in free america that I've seen already come with the "short trigger" already installed.

-Mike
 
richc said:
Sig X5... essentially a hand built Sig 226.

I know it is not one of your choices, but it has an amazing trigger and very natural shooter.
Click to expand...

It also costs like $5-600 more than the elite does, just for the Competition version. The L1 is many hundred more than that.

I will agree the trigger is nothing short of amazing. Save for some well done 1911 triggers, and a S&W PC945 Commander I had, it is literally the best trigger I've ever used in a handgun. I just wish that Sig had thought a little more about the extractor setup in the gun. The current setup in the stainless guns makes them more finicky than they should be, at least some of them. Mine will only eat factory ammo that isn't winchester / remington cheapo crap. I need to test some 124 gr loads using slower powders and see what happens. Supposedly hot 115s are pretty much the worst, which is why WWB 115 fails pretty badly.

The X5 Competitions used to come in around $1300 or so, but I think those days are long gone. They are more like $1500+ now.

This is of course, putting aside any "MA pricing" BS for the sake of discussion.

If I did it all over again I would have bought the X-Five "tactical" version. These don't have the same issues, for whatever reason... has something to do with how the frame moves when the gun fires, it changes the way the gun unlocks and cycles during firing, from what I've heard. It's also far less heavy. The X5 Stainless guns are actually too heavy, IMO. (Which is why Bruce Gray offers a package to lighten the things up, assuming you can afford it, and you can ever get a gun in his work queue, of course.... )

-Mike
 
drgrant said:
It also costs like $5-600 more than the elite does, just for the Competition version. The L1 is many hundred more than that.
Click to expand...


Lol as it is without MA pricing the 2 sigs I listed seem to be more in the $1050-1200 in free states as opposed to the $900 or so i previously thought. That's given you can even find one. They seem to be in pretty short supply across the country or special order.

The HK's on the other hand I have found as low as $817 free shipping in free states but there have been a few on this site that have popped up recently for $950-1050
 
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