wrdwrght
Bearcat
A few weeks ago, I picked up a new SR40c to fill a void in my defense inventory. Among other things, I have wanted something for my wife that is way lighter than my go-to DA/SA SIG229/40 heavyweight.
Soon, I began to wonder if I'd made a mistake, even though my SR40c had been deeply discounted online at $376.
Different things had me wondering. On the one hand, I'd caught wind of the new SIG224 (a cut-down version of the 229). On the other, the confusion of FTF/FTE and other negative reports in various forums was making me uneasy. Consider bigdaddyhoffman1911's over-the-top buyer's remorse (http://youtu.be/L7RosgUGyFE) that came shortly after he had (incautiously?) recommended the SR40c (http://youtu.be/JsWS2Kqrfl0)!
So, before going to the range last night , I field-stripped the piece, removed all the factory gunk (especially in the striker and its channel) with solvent and compressed air, then lightly oiled the striker and lightly greased the rails. The slide and trigger were noticeably smoother, if not exactly smooth.
I went to the range to put 50 Winchester Ranger-T 180gr JHP rounds through both the SR40c and the SIG229/40.
To pace myself (I tend to rush), I shot a magazine of six in one, then a magazine of six in the other, shooting three rounds at a time with some study of results in a 10 inch circle at 10 yards (I'd prefer to practice at closer gun-fighting distance, but my range does not offer this option).
My shooting was substandard.
The range, although indoors, was cold and so were my hands. I had trouble feeling the take-up on the triggers of both guns.
Because the take-up between the SR40c and 229 is quite different, I found myself flinching occasionally. In fact, when my 229 was in SA mode (its take-up starts way back in the guard) my (muscle) memory of the SR40c led me to think once or twice that my 229 had no round in the chamber just before it actually fired. These uncertainties did little to help the fuzzy target that bifocals and an oncoming sinus headache were causing me to see. I will not alternate guns of such different action again.
Despite my substandard shooting, I was consistently low in the circle with the 229 and high in it with SR40c. I can't say if my 229 was shooting low because I was accustomed to the SR40c; I have not shot the 229 consistently low before, though some 229 owners have complained of this tendency. hickok45 mentions that his T&E SR40c was also shooting high before he adjusted it for his video (http://youtu.be/mElslmZN9g4). I'll be adjusting mine.
50 rounds went through the pipe without incident. Perhaps because the trigger hand sits closer to its bore axis, the SR40c's recoil is quite manageable, not unlike the much heavier 229. And after 50 rounds, SR40c's trigger and slide are approaching silky-smooth
On emptying the magazine a time or two, my SR40c's slide did not catch in the open position. I think the thumbs-forward grip of my largish hands is to blame. I also disengage the slide-catch on my 229 from time to time. I need to work on that.
All in all, I have a growing confidence in my SR40c, having not (yet) encountered any of the complaints about fit, finish, and function that others have made in forums and videos.
I might add that my all-metal prejudice, acquired in Vietnam with what we now call a 1911, is softening...
Soon, I began to wonder if I'd made a mistake, even though my SR40c had been deeply discounted online at $376.
Different things had me wondering. On the one hand, I'd caught wind of the new SIG224 (a cut-down version of the 229). On the other, the confusion of FTF/FTE and other negative reports in various forums was making me uneasy. Consider bigdaddyhoffman1911's over-the-top buyer's remorse (http://youtu.be/L7RosgUGyFE) that came shortly after he had (incautiously?) recommended the SR40c (http://youtu.be/JsWS2Kqrfl0)!
So, before going to the range last night , I field-stripped the piece, removed all the factory gunk (especially in the striker and its channel) with solvent and compressed air, then lightly oiled the striker and lightly greased the rails. The slide and trigger were noticeably smoother, if not exactly smooth.
I went to the range to put 50 Winchester Ranger-T 180gr JHP rounds through both the SR40c and the SIG229/40.
To pace myself (I tend to rush), I shot a magazine of six in one, then a magazine of six in the other, shooting three rounds at a time with some study of results in a 10 inch circle at 10 yards (I'd prefer to practice at closer gun-fighting distance, but my range does not offer this option).
My shooting was substandard.
The range, although indoors, was cold and so were my hands. I had trouble feeling the take-up on the triggers of both guns.
Because the take-up between the SR40c and 229 is quite different, I found myself flinching occasionally. In fact, when my 229 was in SA mode (its take-up starts way back in the guard) my (muscle) memory of the SR40c led me to think once or twice that my 229 had no round in the chamber just before it actually fired. These uncertainties did little to help the fuzzy target that bifocals and an oncoming sinus headache were causing me to see. I will not alternate guns of such different action again.
Despite my substandard shooting, I was consistently low in the circle with the 229 and high in it with SR40c. I can't say if my 229 was shooting low because I was accustomed to the SR40c; I have not shot the 229 consistently low before, though some 229 owners have complained of this tendency. hickok45 mentions that his T&E SR40c was also shooting high before he adjusted it for his video (http://youtu.be/mElslmZN9g4). I'll be adjusting mine.
50 rounds went through the pipe without incident. Perhaps because the trigger hand sits closer to its bore axis, the SR40c's recoil is quite manageable, not unlike the much heavier 229. And after 50 rounds, SR40c's trigger and slide are approaching silky-smooth
On emptying the magazine a time or two, my SR40c's slide did not catch in the open position. I think the thumbs-forward grip of my largish hands is to blame. I also disengage the slide-catch on my 229 from time to time. I need to work on that.
All in all, I have a growing confidence in my SR40c, having not (yet) encountered any of the complaints about fit, finish, and function that others have made in forums and videos.
I might add that my all-metal prejudice, acquired in Vietnam with what we now call a 1911, is softening...
