Sig P238

btnh6668 · Jul 18, 2011

I was thinking about buying one of these but the internet is full of stories of issues with this firearm. I was wondering if anyone here has bought one recently and have they worked out most of the kinks yet? Thanks

RKG · Jul 18, 2011

I have one I acquired maybe six months ago and it has functioned flawlessly. For a mouse gun, it is surprisingly accurate -- or, to be more precise, surprisingly easy to shoot well. The sights are excellent; the trigger is good; and working the slide is much easier than on a blowback pistol. About the only negative observation I can make is that extra magazines are expensive, and you want to be sure you acquire the "third generation" magazines. Oh, and watch your fingers if you reload .380.

Roman · Jul 18, 2011

Mine has never had an issue

jasceni · Jul 18, 2011

RKG said:
I have one I acquired maybe six months ago and it has functioned flawlessly. For a mouse gun, it is surprisingly accurate -- or, to be more precise, surprisingly easy to shoot well. The sights are excellent; the trigger is good; and working the slide is much easier than on a blowback pistol. About the only negative observation I can make is that extra magazines are expensive, and you want to be sure you acquire the "third generation" magazines. Oh, and watch your fingers if you reload .380.

+1 to everything he said, I use it for my summer carry. It's a great little gun.

jcliff · Jul 18, 2011

I owned one briefly. Shot well. I just couldn't get used to the size. Wanted a .380 but something a little more hand filling. Found a great Sig
P230 at Bob's in Salisbury and it fills the bill and my hand just fine. Fine for me might not be fine for you.

glide · Jul 19, 2011

Mine functions flawlessly. The problem is, I don't know what to use it for. It's a little too heavy for pocket carry IMO. If I'm carrying out of pocket I'm going to use a 9mm.

btnh6668 · Jul 19, 2011

glide said:
Mine functions flawlessly. The problem is, I don't know what to use it for. It's a little too heavy for pocket carry IMO. If I'm carrying out of pocket I'm going to use a 9mm.

Thanks guys... the weight may be a problem then. I usually pocket carry. I guess i need to put one in my pocket and see how it feels.

TBK · Jul 19, 2011

I bought one from a member here some time ago. It was originally for my wife who had just gotten her LTC-A. She doesn't carry much (yet). I use it daily as a pocket carry. I prefer a leather pocket holster from Galco that does not print with just about any pants that I wear. Has functioned flawlessly at the range.

SheepDog_B · Jul 19, 2011

I'd like to get one of these for summer carry...

btnh6668 · Jul 20, 2011

I called around and just about all the shops within an hour from me are selling it for $600+ while four seasons.. who is currently out of them, is selling them for $549. Guess that makes it an easy choice.

appraiser · Jul 20, 2011

no personal experience, but one of my biker friends on another forum is selling his because he has had multiple problems with his and does not trust it anymore for ccw purposes. He mentioned there are problems with the model.

When people are dumping them over reliability, it is a red flag imho

RKG · Jul 20, 2011

Glockaholic said:
no personal experience, but one of my biker friends on another forum is selling his because he has had multiple problems with his and does not trust it anymore for ccw purposes. He mentioned there are problems with the model.

When people are dumping them over reliability, it is a red flag imho

Those P238s that had problems had them consistently, so it is pretty easy to tell whether a particular P238 has been "fixed."

So far as I can glean, the feeding problems primarily involved the recoil spring (the "good" spring is the flat one) and the magazine (the "good" magazine is the "third generation" one with the dimple in the follower).

As noted earlier, mine (March, 2011, date of manufacture) has been flawless and it has about 300 rounds through it.

vellnueve · Jul 22, 2011

RKG said:
Those P238s that had problems had them consistently, so it is pretty easy to tell whether a particular P238 has been "fixed."

So far as I can glean, the feeding problems primarily involved the recoil spring (the "good" spring is the flat one) and the magazine (the "good" magazine is the "third generation" one with the dimple in the follower).

As noted earlier, mine (March, 2011, date of manufacture) has been flawless and it has about 300 rounds through it.

I believe mine was manufactured in June - haven't had a chance to test yet.

RKG · Jul 24, 2011

vellnueve said:
I believe mine was manufactured in June - haven't had a chance to test yet.

Take a look at the recoil spring. I'm pretty sure you'll find it is a flat coil spring, in which case you're likely to have no problems.

towert7 · Oct 18, 2011

Some good info here.
If I were to purchase a p238, what should I look out for?
Make sure to get a magazine with a dimple on the follower.
What does a good recoil spring look like?
Anything else I should know?
Thanks.

PS: If I got a used one that has problems, would SIG be able to repair it, or...

45collector · Oct 18, 2011

They are nice little guns, but if I were in the market for a small, light .380 I would go with the Ruger LCP. Lighter than the 238, has a better record of reliability, and no external hammer or safety. Mine comes along in the coat pocket or ankle holster sometimes as a BUG.

CrackPot · Oct 18, 2011

I own and carry the p238 which I love. Great sights and trigger. I tried out the LCP and could not stand the long trigger pull or how hard you had to pull. The p238 I carry hammer back safety on. On drawing you easily release the safety and are ready to go.

Just my opinion.

towert7 · Oct 20, 2011

45collector said:
They are nice little guns, but if I were in the market for a small, light .380 I would go with the Ruger LCP. Lighter than the 238, has a better record of reliability, and no external hammer or safety. Mine comes along in the coat pocket or ankle holster sometimes as a BUG.

Can you purchase an LCP from a dealer in MA? For some reason I haven't seen any in shops.

towert7 · Oct 20, 2011

Does anyone have a picture of what the dimple on the magazine follower looks like?

exo · Oct 21, 2011

According to Sig's specs, it's ~15 oz with the magazine (assuming unloaded weight). My S&W 442 weighs a little over 1 lbs loaded. Doesn't seem like it's -that- heavy?

towert7 · Oct 22, 2011

Well, I purchased a new P238. I'm eager to see how it performs.

CrackPot · Oct 26, 2011

I finally picked up the newer 7 round mags for this. It greatly adds to the feel/comfort not to mention allows you to carry 8 rounds.

Sig P238

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