The Firearm Blog

SayUncle spotted this ad for a SIG 556 Short Barreled Rifle. What is very interesting is that the rifles being sold by Manchester Firing Line are factory manufactured, not conversions of the standard rifles.

SIG 556 Short Barreled Rifle

Although the price is steep at $3,495, Sig 556 Reviews notes that SBRs conversions are popular with the Sig crowd:

The P556 has definitely been popular with the SBR crowd so its good too see that Sig Sauer is paying attention and grabbing some of this pie by jumping into the NFA market. There have been a few post’s on the SigArms556 forum about people with P556 SBR’s that have had customer service issues (Sig basically coming back saying theiy voided they’re warranty)

Gun writer and SBR enthusiast Bob Boyd is currently building his own Sig SBR and modeling it after the Sig 552 Commando Carbine. The Commando is probably better classified as a PDW (Personal Defense Weapon), than a Short Barrel Rifle.

8.9″ barrel Swiss Army Stgw 90 kurz aka. Sig 552 Commando Carbine.

I am looking forward to seeing Bob’s rifle when it is completed.

Back in March I reported that Sig had decided to only ship one magazine with their pistols. Being the cynical person I am, I wondered if they were doing if for profit, not overwhelming demand as they claimed.

GunPundit reports that Sig has announced that they will resume shipping two magazines with their pistols.

SIG SAUER suppliers increased production to meet the heightened consumer demand, thus allowing SIG SAUER to resume shipping two magazines with every commercial handgun.

Well done Sig. You did the right thing.

I know I said I was not going to blog for the next few days but I am very excited to finally see photos of the new Chinese made submachine gun I had heard about.

It looks a lot like what I would expect the child of a Sig 550 rifle and an H&K MP5 submachine gun would look like. I actually think it looks pretty good. Not much is known about this gun. It chambers 9mm less-lethal rubber bullet rounds (effective range of 10-80 meters) and 9mm Parabellum. The intended users are law enforcement.

It features a folding stock, H&K style diopter iron sight and quick detach red dot sight.

Grenade launcher attachment. Probably for less-lethal / crowd control ammunition.
Note MP5 style forward charging handle.

A few more images:

Hat Tip: china_police at MP.net

Sig Sauer have in the past shipped two magazines with their pistols. They announced today that they would only be shipping one magazine because of unprecedented demand. From the press release:

This change in configuration is a result of the critical shortage of magazines throughout the industry. SIG SAUER’s decision to ship commercial pistols with one magazine will allow existing and new orders to be processed without interruption.

Without this change in policy, magazine availability would severely hinder SIG SAUER’s ability to meet market demand and ship product in a timely manner. Distributor and dealer single magazine pistol shipments commence immediately.

I do wonder if this is simply a way to make extra profit and spinning it in a positive manner.

The STI Eagle 5.0 and Eagle 6.0 2011 pistols (not to be confused with the Desert Eagle pistol) will be offered chambered in .357 SIG.

STI Eagle 5.0

According to the latest STI newsletter, they got a lot of request for this caliber at SHOT Show ‘09. I am surprised, I did not know that this round was that popular. The .357 SIG was developed in 1994 to replicate .357 Magnum performance in a rimless case suitable for semi-automatic pistols.

.357 SIG cartridge.

Florian @ sig556reviews.com has posted an extensive review of the TangoDown Model ACB-4 Advanced Combat Bipod.

I finally got my TangoDown Combat Bipod in on Friday after an almost 4 week wait. I put it on my Sig 556 SWAT the same day and took it out on Saturday. I have to say, the wait was definitely worth it.

As a bonus Florian has included a bunch of photos of his Sig 556 rifle.

More here.

In 2007 Sig Sauer came out with a Blackwater branded Sig P226. This year they have partnered with Blackwater to produce a 1911. It features picatinny rail, custom wood grips with blackwater logo, Nitron coated stainless steel slide and SIGLITE night sights.

Specs:
Caliber: .45 ACP
Mag Capacity: 8 rounds
Action Type: Single Action
Trigger Pull SA: 5 lbs
Barrel Length: 5″
Weight w/Mag: 41.6 oz
Options : Checkered front strap, Blackwater logo engraved on top of slide

The MSRP is $1290.

More info here.

Sig have launched the Sig 552. It is a .22 Long Rifle version of the 5.56mm Sig 556, which in turn is a civilian clone of the Sig 550. Externally it looks identical to the Sig 556 Classic with the swiss-style folding stock and handguard.

From Sig:

The Look and Feel of the Classic SIG556 ™ in Affordable .22 Rifle SIG SAUER, Inc., the leading manufacturer of commercial, law enforcement, and military firearms fuels the demand for the legendary SIG556 performance but in an affordable .22 LR caliber with the new SIG522 semi-automatic rifle. Featuring SIG556 parts including a Swiss type folding stock and polymer forend on a durable metal receiver with integral Picatinny rail, and a Mini Red Dot sight. The SIG522 provides the avid sport shooter plenty of action on a classic military style platform that give the look, feel and dependability of our full size SIG556.

Specs:
Overall Length: 29.8 in
length w/Stock Collapsed: 29.1
Barrel Length: 17 in
Rifling: 1 in 7 in
Sight Radius: 14.4 in

The MSRP is $515.

Sig are offering the Sig 556 rifle in a pistol configuration called the P556. It has proved very popular at SHOT Show and looks like a really fun gun!

Sig P556

Apart from the 10″ barrel and lack of a stock, it has all the same features of the SIG 556 rifle: Flash suppressor, picatinny rails, two stage trigger, weather resistant Nitron finish. It also comes with a Sig branded mini red dot sight.

Specs:

Caliber: 5.56mm NATO
Overall Length: 21.5”
Barrel Length: 10”
Rifling: 1 in 7”
Weight (w/o Magazine): 6 lbs 7 oz
Magazine: 30 Round STANAH (AR-15)

The MSRP is $1875.

It also comes in a SWAT variant which has a alloy quad rail in place of the standard handguard. No word on pricing for this model.

P556 SWAT model

Rumors of the Sig P238 have been floating around the ‘net for a while now. They have turned out to be true. Sig Sauer P238 is a remake of the single action Colt Mustang which was discontinued just over a decade ago.

Sig Sauer P238 .380 ACP. Two tone. Click to expand image.


Colt Mustang .380 ACP. Photo by HiVelSword.

It is a single action pistol with an aluminum frame and a steel slide. From the press release:

With an overall length of just 5.5 inches a height of 3.96 inches, and weighing just under a pound, the SIG SAUER P238 is the ultimate firepower in an all metal frame concealed pistol. The P238 is built on an anodized alloy beavertail style frame with fluted aluminum grips for comfort and a secure hold during rapid-fire usage. The stainless steel slide features the popular SIG SAUER slide serrations and improves overall performance and accuracy.

It will come in two finishes, Black Nitron and Two Tone. Two sights will be available: contrast sights or SIGLITE Sights. This makes a total of four models. Pricing is below:

238-380-B MSRP $ 515.00
Black Nitron finish, Contrast Sights

238-380-BSS MSRP $ 558.00
Black Nitron finish, SIGLITE Sights

238-380-T MSRP $ 529.00
Two Tone, Contrast Sights

238-380-TSS MSRP $ 572.00
Two Tone, SIGLITE Sights

1200773 – Extra 6 round magazines MSRP $ 44.00

This should really appeal to 1911 fans, especially Colt Mustang fans. Time will tell if it is enough to compete with the plethora of sub-compact .380 pistols out there.

I will update this post as more information becomes available.

UPDATE: High quality photo from Ken.

Photo Copyright Ken Lunde. Used with permission.

UPDATE: The specs from the press release:

Frame Material: Aluminum
Frame Finish: Black Hard Coat Anodize
Slide Material: Stainless Steel
Slide Finish: Nitron or Natural Stainless
Length Overall: 5.5”
Height Overall: 3.9”
Width Overall: 1.1”
Barrel Length: 2.7”
Sights: Post & Dot Contrast, SIGLIGHT Night Sights
Sight Radius: 3.8”
Weight w/out mag: 15.2 oz.
Mag capacity: 6 rounds.

Reacting to many requests from the marketplace for a subcompact SIG SAUER pistol, engineers designed the new P238 as a smart looking, small handgun built with the same accuracy and reliability as large frame SIG SAUER pistols. With an overall length of just 5.5 inches a height of 3.96 inches, and weighing just under a pound, the SIG SAUER P238 is the ultimate firepower in an all metal frame concealed pistol. The P238 is built on an anodized alloy beavertail style frame with fluted aluminum grips for comfort and a secure hold during rapid-fire usage. The stainless steel slide features the popular SIG SAUER slide serrations and improves overall performance and accuracy. Additionally, the contrast or SIGLITE® Night Sights are removable and adjustable for windage. The sear and trigger return spring are redesigned to prevent spring over-ride of the ejector during assembly. Two finishes are available; Two-tone and corrosion resistant Nitron®. The new SIG SAUER P238 is shipped in a lockable hard case with one 6 round magazine at an MSRP starting at $515.00 for the Nitron® with contrasting sights. For more information, log on to www.sigsauer.com.

Press release photo

Hat Tip: 1911Forum, SigForum and GHG

There photos are of a Sig Sauer Pro that was left in an electric oven at 210°c / 400°f for 20 minutes by a French police officer. After cleaning it he put it in to dry but was distracted by a phone call.

I propose this as a candidate Xavier’s Ugly Gun Sunday.

Hat Tip: Galileo @ MP.net

Ammoland has the info:

The Desert Digital Special Edition is a matched set featuring the SIG556 ER folding stock rifle and P226 pistol in 9mm. Both rifle and pistol share unique matching serial numbers and ship in a custom tactical hard carry case by Pelican.

The set includes (1) double 30 round magazine set for the rifle and (3) 15 round magazines for the pistol. A certificate of authenticity is included. This collectors edition is limited to 1500 units total.

Pretty cool. No word on price.

More info at Ammoland.

In 2006 Sauer, a 257 year old German company, produced their first semi-automatic rifle the S 303

(Sauer should not be confused with Sig Sauer, which is the American arm of the European conglomerate that owns J. P. Sauer & Sohn).

In the January 2009 issue of Guns Magazine they review the S303 and call it a “new” rifle. I think they mean “new in the USA”.

Sauer S 303 Elegance model with scope.

The rifle is a high-end elegant rifle (in other words: a non-evil non-black rifle) designed for European drive hunts. In drive hunts game is flushed out towards hunters and quick shots are needed as they run past; at least that is my understanding of drive hunts, never having seen one.

The S 303 includes some interesting features. It has a feature called the Silent Cocking System (SCS) which Guns magazine describes:

With the magazine in place if the cocking lever is pulled back and allowed to go forward the firearm is cocked and ready to go. However, if you allow the lever to go forward slowly, it stops about 1″ shy of actually closing and then can be pushed into place silently.

I can’t quire figure out what this mean in practice. Walking around with the bolt open 1″ with a round not quite chambered seems to me like asking for a jam but I am sure there is more to it than that.

The cocking/decocking lever can be seem at “1″.Click to expand.

The S 303 also features a innovative detachable mounting system called isiMount. The scope can be move into two different positions, depending on desired eye relief, without effecting point of impact.

isiMount bottom diagram. Smart Tube gas system top diagram.

The under barrel gas system, Smart Tube, has been designed with accuracy in mind.

Specs:

Models: Classic (least expensive), Elegance, Individual (most expensive)
Barrel length: 510 / 560 mm – 20″ / 22”
Total length: 1065 / 1115 mm – 41.9″ / 43.9”
Weight: 3.25 / 3.35 kg (7.16 / 7.38 lbs)
Calibres: 7×64mm, .30-06, 8×57mm IS, 9.3×62mm, .300 Win. Mag.
Magazine: 2 rounds (optional 5 round magazine available)

Guns Magazine says that the price will be $3999 (presumably for the least expensive Classic model).

The top end Individual model. Look at that wood!

With its elegant non-threatening appearance I think Sauer have a winner on their hands. While the rifle is expensive, it is not when compared with the double rifles it is competing with. It also has many advantages compared too double rifles such as decreased recoil (semi-auto action) and increase accuracy (one barrel).

It is available in 9.3×62mm which is the minimum African dangerous game caliber so it should be more than sufficient for any animal found in Europe or North America. Due to import restrictions on semi-automatic rifles it is unlikely that many (if any at all) will end up hunting the Big 5.

More info available at Sauer and Guns Magazine (Jan 2009 issue).

(Photos and diagrams from Sauer-Waffen.de)

Earlier this month SIG announced an the new SIG 556 Classic. The design is modeled on the SIG 550. From what I can see the primary difference is the swiss style folding stock and polymer handguard.

SIG 556 Classic

SIG 550 (Photo from Wikipedia)

I am surprised they did not duplicate the “classic” 550 handguard exactly since the main selling point of this rifle is the look. It does not include the 550 integral bipod.

Specs:

Caliber: 5.56mm NATO
Overall Length: 37.1”
With stock collapsed: 34.3”
With stock folded: 28.1”
Barrel Length: 17”
Rifling: 1 in 7”
Weight (w/o magazine): 8 lbs. 2 oz.
MSRP: $1998.00

I like the lines on the Classic. Very sleek looking, at a price.

Hat Tip: Police One