My short history with Sig pistols in .357 Sig and .45 ACP

I'm an old fart in my 60s and I made an incredibly dumb mistake when I bought my first Sig pistol in 2007. I had a Steyr MA1 .357 Sig pistol that I really loved and decided it was time to buy my first Sig Sauer .357 Sig. I went shopping and found a pair of used .357 Sigs in a gun store, a really nice P229 with what I later learned was a set of beautiful wood Elite grips. And they also had a plain Jane black P226 in .357 Sig. Both were good guns at about the same price, so I decided bigger was better and went for the P226.

Then a year of so later, I went to work at a gun store and starting carrying daily. I also got my instructor's license to teach N.C. Concealed Carry Handgun classes for the store.

And between carrying every day and teaching about concealed-carry handguns I finally got it through my thick skull that bigger is not always better. In fact it's almost never better when it comes to concealed carry. So I sold off my P226 at the store and ordered my first new Sig, a golly whomper. I bit the bullet and went for the P229 SAS Gen2 Two-Tone in .357 Sig with the Sig Anti Snag treatment, night sights and the Short Reset Trigger. And it was love at first double-tap with the quick handling and the SRT.

I liked it so much I later added a plain Jane CPO P229R in .357 Sig, got a pair of P229 Elite grips for the SAS Gen2, a set of Hogue Pau Ferro grips for the P229R and a .22 slide conversion kit for the P229R.

Later the gun shop took a trade-in of a Sig P220 Single-Action-Only Rimfire Classic. It has ambi safeties, so it was a natural for this left-hander. And after I bought it, why not get the caliber conversion kit for P220 SAO .45 ACP? When the conversion kit arrived, I learned why I've heard and read so many raves about the P220. I have three 1911s, two Paras, P12-45 and P-14-45, and a Llama IX-C, also a double-stack .45, and all three are the easiest to shoot pistols in my collection. That is until I shot the P220 SAO .45. First day at the range, I was monotonously ripping up the X-ring at 10 yards with never a flyer. The P220 SAO makes me a much better shooter than I was.

And why settle for the plain Jane black grips for the P220 when the price dropped below $200 for a set of Nill grips? So the P220 gets to dress up a bit, too.

Then later when I saw a CDNN special on a Sig P220 SAO Compact Elite for only $600, how could I resist? Guess what? I shoot it almost as well as the full-size P220.

And now I'm anxiously awaiting another special order from Sig, a P239 .357 Sig SAS Gen2 Two-Tone. My aching back is ready for some lighter, smaller concealed carry.

I've already got a beautiful set of Hogue checkered Rosewood grips and a pair of extra magazines that I ordered from Midway that arrived before the P239 gets here.

C'mon Sig Santa, hurry up with my P239 or you're gonna be too late for Christmas.

Lone Wolf delivers .357 Sig barrel for G29, grip sleeve for Steyr S9A1

My order from Lone Wolf Distributors arrived today with a couple of accessories I ordered.

It still says Glock Model 29 10mm on the slide of my customized G29, but on the inside it is now a G33 subcompact .357 Sig with its new barrel from Lone Wolf.

The only outward sign is the Lone Wolf logo and the 10-357 on the top of the bolt on the new barrel. Fit was perfect, drop in and go. Can't wait to take my new G29/33 to the range Saturday for a test spin in .357 Sig.

Lone Wolf also sent me a Qwik Grip rubber slip-on sleeve for my new Steyr S9A1 9mm subcompact. It took a few squirts of Gun Scrubber, a flat plastic stick and a few choice words, but I finally got it on. It fits literally like a glove and I like the textured surface. I got big mits and I like grip sleeves on some of my pistols.

And I can't resist showing off my new Nill grips on my Sig P220 SAO .45 ACP. I took the .22LR slide off and put the .45 ACP slide on and wore it to work at the gun shop yesterday. Beauty and function, too.

So there's three to test-fire at the range Saturday, G29/33, S9A1 and P220 with the new grips.

And there's a fourth for the range, too. I bought some Hornady .44 Special hollow points that I want to try in my S&W 396 Night Guard. It's gonna be a busy day at the range after my concealed-carry class finishes.

Nill Grips incoming from Germany for my Sig P220 SAO .45 ACP

I couldn't resist when I got an email from Nill Grips announcing their prices have dropped due to the strong U.S. dollar.

The best German pistols, Sig Sauer, should have the best German grips, and without a doubt Nill Grips are just that.

They promised delivery in "2 to 5 days" which is fairly snappy from Germany to here, so I'm hopeful they'll arrive next week.

My Sig P220 DAO .45 ACP pistol is gonna be dressed fit to kill. Literally.