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Sig P210 Legend, Orders Being Accepted ($$$)


BarryinIN

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Sig announced last year they were bringing back the P-210. If you don't know what a P-210 is, look here:

http://www.p210.com/

Or if you really want details, here:

http://larvatus.livejournal.com/182532.html#ftn.id04

In short, it was the Swiss service pistol after the Luger and before the P220. It is put together like a Rolls Royce (or a Swiss watch), and a lot of people say it is the finest service pistol in the world.

And some say it is the most overrated and overpriced.

They may be expensive and yet still have some shortcomings, but they are incredible pistols. The Swiss still shoot them in matches- often just plain old service models- and shoot ridiculous scores with them.

But they cost so dang much money! They've always been at least twice what a Colt Government Model cost. I have a flyer from Mandall Shooting Supplies, the US importer at the time, and they are listed at over $1,000 for the cheapest model. This flyer is from 1980 or 1981.

I can see how and why they cost what they do. People always say the inside is nicer finished than the outside of most pistols, and they really are. Work the slide and the only word that comes to mind is "smooth". I've never felt a smoother operating gun. The trigger feel is excellent.

Accuracy is amazing.

But while I can see where the extra expense goes, it's not necessarily worth it to everyone. It's cool and everything to rack the slide and giggle at how smooth it is, or look inside and see dark inner corners that have nothing rubbing on them have been polished, but is it something you want to pay for?

It may be worth every penny, but you would have to be a freaking idiot to buy one.

Here's mine:

Mine is actually an ex-Danish Army M/49, which is a Sig P210 made for the Danes. It was, for a while, the cheapest way into a P210. About 10-12 years ago, they sold a bunch back to Hammerli (then under the same umbrella with Sig) who checked them out and graded them, then sold them to DS Arms the FAL makers. They imported them and sold them off in the USA.

The new P210 Legend corrects at least two shortcomings of the older ones. A beavertail should end the hammer bite, and a side located magazine catch will be easier to use.

RoCo, a place specializing in Swiss pistols, is taking pre-orders for new ones.

http://www.rocosystem.com/SIGP210Legendfixedsight/

For a mere $2,055.

To be honest, I was surprised the new P210 Legend didn't run more. The lowest grade 210 was $3K ten years ago, and the last one announced (but made only by the handful) with a beavertail and side mag catch listed for over $5K maybe five years ago. A new one built on the heavy frame with a beavertail and mag catch (striking two negatives from the list) for a little over $2K is something I never thought I'd see.

I was going to make a write-up on the P210 here, but wanted to wait until I could shoot a fresh bunch of targets with mine for pretty pictures. Then I saw these new ones were (allegedly) on the way and wanted to let everyone know so they could get their orders in before they were all snapped up.

Yeah.

Actually we are all stuck at home in the ice storm and I needed something to do.

If I may, I want to brag a bit on my 60 year old relic of a service pistol.

Mine has a lot of honest exterior wear but is still as tight as any match pistol I've seen.

When I test ammo in my gee-whiz custom Hi-Power, I'll shoot it in the my worn old P210 also and it always shoots smaller groups. Often they are half the size or less. It takes less effort to get them too.

It would almost, but not quite, be worth buying a P210 then reselling it to get to look it over for a while. The P210's hammer will bite the living [censored] out of most hands, the safety is clumsy to reach, and it's big for an 8+1 9mm (otherwise, I'd be carrying it). On the other hand, I know of no smoother operating pistol, the trigger would be nice to have on a rifle, and they can shoot like crazy.

I have to remind myself it's a service pistol. Some of the custom IPSC pistols I've looked at were as tight and smooth as the P210, but none were smoother or tighter. It's almost funny this was an issue pistol.

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Nice Nice! Barry you are a true firearms aficionado and I appreciate posts of this type. It's nice reading about them as I myself enjoy the superb fit and finish of a fine firearm. However my funds for such things are severely limited currently...

Do enjoy reading about them though. Those Swiss are a really neat bunch. Exacto superbo neato bunch I do say!

Excellent engineering is something you often pay for in spades as in the case of the P210. It is why I paid an extra hundred bucks to buy a Mauser when I could have settled for a Mosin-Nagant. There is just something about the way the Mauser action works compared to other actions from that time period.

Maybe comparing the Mauser to the P210 is a bad example but what I'm trying to say is I get what you are saying about fit and finish and design.

I'm sorta new to shooting and firearms in general but I get what you are going on about. Really nice! Gorgeous too! Gorgeous is as gorgeous does though for sure...

I bet if you blindfolded some 1911 fruity drink drinkers and let them hold this gun and work the action...yah I bet they'd rip the blindfold off and find themselves speechless. And then tell them that it was an issued piece....

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I just wonder if the new P210 will be finished to the same level inside and out as the old one. The original P210 was not a product of SIG-Sauer but SIG and I don't even think SIG has any gun production facilities in Switzerland any longer. I'm not even sure they still exist.

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That's been the big question from the Sig fans. Since the new 210 won't even be made in the same country, and in what is supposed to be a brand new factory, will it be as well made and finished as the Neuhausen Switzerland guns?

I doubt it will be better, as that would be tough to do.

Reports coming from those who saw the new examples at the SHOT Show are saying it looks as well finished as the old ones (From what they could see- I doubt they got to tear into one).

Some of those SigBoys are still reluctant because with it not being Swiss made, it takes some of the "aura" away from it. I can sorta see their point. It is the quintessential Swiss 9mm service pistol. A Romanian-made Luger or Argentinian-made Enfield would lack something too.

This new factory is said to be only a few miles from the Swiss border inside Germany, but I doubt that would help with those who almost seem offended when a Sig-Sauer is referred to as a Sig (they quickly point out the P210 is the only "Sig" pistol).

If the beavertail and side mag catch were not that important to me, I would probably go for an older one. The price of the service models is in the same ballpark as the new one, and it's not like the things ever wear out from use. I would assume the Swiss gun would increase in or hold value better.

Even if those two things were important, they can be done to an old one. There are a few sources of beavertails that I know of. For a non-permanent type, Nill-Griffe grips makes them in screw-on or glue-on, and RoCo sells similar versions. Novak's and other smiths can weld one on. Novak's also does a side mag catch button conversion for $250.

I want a glue-on beavertail for mine. Some have a screw to retain the hammer/fire control unit and some do not. If they have the screw, it can be used to secure the beavertail. Mine does not have the screw, so I'm stuck with glue or drilling. I'll take glue.

As it is right now, I have "enhanced" this piece of Swiss precision with a beavertail cut from the bottom of a 2-liter Diet Coke bottle:

Fancy stuff. Makes it bearable though.

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More teasing for you Cam (I never thought I'd own one either, then DS Arms sold off those surplus ones)-

Want to clean or inspect the fire control parts? Just pull 'em out the top of the frame:

Notice how steep the feedramp is. When I first saw that, I thought there was no way anything but FMJ would feed in this gun. After all, it was designed and built 30 years before you could hardly find anything but FMJ in 9mm. I was wrong. I shot all sorts of JHP, cast bullets of all shapes including SWC and even a lot from an old Lyman mould that makes a wadcutter for 9mm (#356472) and never had a bobble.

I sure wish I could get some more magazines. When I see them, they run $140-150. Even if I wanted to pay that, I only see about one a month on Gunbroker.

Yes, I know: Don't buy the gun if you can't afford the mags, but I can see why the gun costs so much. Not so with the mags. The mags are no better or more involved than P225 mags and should cost no more. But I suppose they don't sell P210 mags by the truckload either. That's one reason I'm glad the new one is coming- I hope they sell several thousand to get more mags in circulation!

I don't know what they will cost, but hear they will work with the old ones in spite of the different retention system. The floorplate has to be thinned so the old catch can hook over it.

ProMag makes some mags for them, and I got a couple. Being typical ProMag, they need some help. After working them over, they feed OK but won't lock the slide open. At $25 each, I can buy six more for the going rate of a Sig mag. I'm still checking online sources for new Sig 210 mags to get in stock though.

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Here's a nice P210 for sale.

http://www.egun.de/market/item.php?id=3135569

I did a short write up on my K31 here:

http://www.practicallyshooting.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=3282#Post3282

I have a Swiss Products clamp-on mount but am waiting for scope rings to mount a Redfield scope. I'm also finishing up a nice monte carlo sporter stock.

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That is a nice P210 setup. You could whip up almost every variation but a .22.

Nice K31 writeup. I must have joined soon after you put that up, as I never saw it. Nice looking K31 too. Good job on the stock. I'll have to look again, but mine might have made the same year.

They are neat rifles just to operate them and watch, aren't they? If you get bored with that, you can pull the bolt and marvel at the metal work on it.

I just wish they had put peep sights on the rear. Even a simple one like on late Enfields would make a huge difference or me.

I now wish I had bought at least one more when they had racks of them for sale. If I had more than one, I might be more willing to modify one and permanently scope or turn into a semi-Scout rifle.

If you hadn't heard, the Swiss keeping their rifles at home is in jeopardy. Vote coming on the 13th in Switzerland. Look at the Swiss Rifles forum for more info if you didn't know.

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  • 1 year later...

Update because I know everyone is dying to know:

I'm now hearing the magazine for the new P210 Legend will not work in the older ones. I knew it would obviously need some alteration to the floorplate to get it to latch in place, but it's worse than that. I've been told the new magazine is wider than the old ones and won't fit in the magazine well.

That's too bad since the new mags are less than half the cost.

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