While this may be news to some of you, SIG enthusiasts have noticed some recent buzz about perceived firing pin issues with the SIG P365 on social media. The P365 is, of course, SIG’s newest subcompact that crams 10+1 rounds of 9mm into a chassis the size of a single stack pistol – and with an excellent trigger to boot. I was impressed with my copy; I purchased one for myself after my evaluation. See the TFBTV review of the 365 here and the SHOT Show interview with SIG about the 365 here.

Readers may remember that the first run of P365s were quickly called back and refined after some user reported issues, which seemed to vanish once the “Gen 2” (as SIG fans have been calling it) P365 hit the market. But lately, there’s been social media discussion of SIG P365 “primer drag” (i.e., the face of the firing pin dragging across the primer when the barrel unlocks during the firing sequence) and speculation as to whether or not primer drag has caused or will cause firing pin tips to break. The trouble with internet rumor is it’s hard to find out what the issue is, or even if there’s an issue at all: Will primer drag cause the P365’s MIM firing pin to break? Are P365 pins breaking and, if so, how common is it? Is it relegated to guns that didn’t receive the first run fix?

As a new development on that front, a couple of germane forum posts sprang up last night, June 5. Apparently, SIG’s product manager, Phil Strader (or at least an unusually informed individual pretending to be him), has dropped in on the two biggest SIG boards, SIGForum.com and SIGTalk.com, with what appears to be an unofficial response to those and other FAQs about this subject. Rather than just link, I’ll copy and paste the posts below in the event the original SIGForum and SIGTalk threads move

Hello all,

P365 production is still increasing as we continue to build capacity to meet incredible demand. We have shipped tens of thousands of P365s with overwhelmingly positive responses not only from our commercial customers, but from law enforcement and professional end users around the world. In my 25 years of law enforcement and industry experience, I have rarely seen this level of excitement and positive reception around any single firearm. Although there have been a limited number of striker and trigger return spring issues with this new platform, our return rates for these two parts are still extremely low…approximately 0.25% combined, which we believe is below industry standards for any type of return.

The P365 has received an unprecedented amount of praise and activity both in social and traditional media. However, in the age of the internet, readers are sometimes exposed to grossly inflated or even non-existent issues. To address some of these concerns, we have compiled the most prevalent questions we’re seeing online and in our customer service department.

Q: Can I safely dry-fire my P365?
A: Yes. We’ve dry-fired thousands of repetitions on our test guns and production models with no failures. It should always be recommended to use a snap-cap or similar device during dry-fire practice for any firearm, but it is not required.

Q: Why does Sig Sauer use a MIM striker?
A: Metal Injection Molding (MIM) is used for complicated metal parts that would be impossible or overly complicated to effectively machine. MIM technology is used throughout the firearm industry to manufacture small parts, including strikers, hammers, sears, triggers, and most integral gun parts. Moreover, our strikers are made from S7 tooled steel to ensure maximum strength and endurance.

Q: What is “primer drag” and does it cause striker breakages?
A: No. “Primer drag” is found on fired cases and is simply a drag mark slightly below the indent in the primer. It is caused by the pistol barrel unlocking while the striker is returning back to its recessed position. This is not uncommon, and happens in most striker-fired micro compact pistols due to the increased slide speed. The protrusion of the striker tip during ignition is minimal and has no effect on the striker’s durability.

Q: What are the chances of my striker breaking or trigger return spring coming off?
A: Extremely small. Currently, returns for strikers and trigger return springs account for 0.25% of all P365s shipped, combined. Although these numbers are extremely low, Sig Sauer will continue to evaluate all of our firearms to ensure that they meet the most stringent standards we have set for ourselves and that you have come to expect.

Q: If I install an aftermarket striker in my P365, will it void the warranty?
A: Technically, installation of aftermarket parts voids the warranty. However, Sig Sauer would most likely cover unrelated returns including, but not limited to, defective sights, out of the ordinary cosmetic wear, magazine issues, etc. Examples of repairs that would not be warrantied would be those that could be traced to an affected part including, but not limited to, light primer strikes, pierced primers, primer flow, trigger reset problems, etc.

Internet banter would have our customers believe that striker and trigger return spring issues are widespread. In reality, these returns are no greater than any other potential customer service return. Our return rates continue to remain below industry standards as a whole, and we will continue to stand behind our product line.

If you have questions about the P365 or any Sig Sauer product, please contact our customer service department at (603)610-3000.

I checked alleged Phil’s post history and noticed that he also posted the following on SIGForum in May:

Hello all,

The P365 has been getting great attention since its release, as well as some helpful feedback from our customers. It has been this feedback that led Sig Sauer engineers to fine-tune the platform with outstanding results.

One matter that recently surfaced was on striker tips fracturing. Over the last 6 weeks, we have calculated that the number of fractured striker tip returns account for 0.08% (0.0008) of the P365s shipped to date. Although this number is extremely low, we ALWAYS strive for continuous improvement. After a detailed parts analysis by our vendor, it was found that an extremely small percentage of strikers were out of spec due to start-up issues. This issue has been resolved.

Some P365 customers have also noticed “primer drag”. This is a result of the fast slide speed and unlocking time of this platform. It is completely normal and has absolutely no effect on striker endurance.

We are extremely pleased with the performance of the tens of thousands of P365s that have been delivered to date. As tens of thousands more are built and shipped, we will continue to improve our product line and never settle for anything less than complete customer satisfaction.

For consumers that have any questions about the P365 or any other Sig Sauer product, please don’t hesitate to contact our customer service department at (603) 610-3000

Essentially, it seems that the unofficial response is (quoting the posts copied above):

• “The number of fractured striker tip returns account for 0.08% (0.0008) of the P365s shipped to date.”
• “It was found that an extremely small percentage of strikers were out of spec due to start-up issues. This issue has been resolved.”
• “‘Primer drag’ [] is a result of the fast slide speed and unlocking time of this platform. It is completely normal and has absolutely no effect on striker endurance.”

Also, it appears that alleged Phil has stated that SIG will still warranty-service P365s with aftermarket pins if you don’t like the OEM MIM, but not for issues that could be caused by the pin.

P365 owners with high round count models, what’s your take?