I pretty sure they knew what they were selling; they're a long established gunshop (not even a pawnshop) they just had a lot to sell. I can just imagine what they must have paid them for it. Maybe they gave a crap price to someone looking to "upgrade" to a P226 Legion which would grant him access to that amazing buyers club
Having shot the pistol, taken it down, inspected the internals, and cleaned it I have a few choice observations about SIGs (the 220 family of pistols anyway). So forgive my long post...
The big issue with hard-core SIG owners that one often hears is that the German guns with the stamped and welded slides are better than those currently produced in Exeter NH.
Up until recently I thought this was selection bias. After all, any lemon West German SIG would have mostly been taken care of long ago under warranty. I also considered the tendency of people to overvalue what is no longer available.
However, the recent recalls on some of their new products as well as issues that I've personally witnessed new SIG owners encountering with new pistols (the P220 family included) leads me to doubt my earlier thoughts.
Now there is nothing inherently better about the stamped carbon steel slides over milled stainless. In fact the milled stainless design is less prone to corrosion and has a superior extractor. In fact, if the original Swiss Neuhausen designers of the P220 in the late 1960s had free reign, they would have probably preferred to mill the slide.
Of course, in an era before CNC this would have been very costly and time consuming which is something that the Swiss government definitely didn't want. They wanted a cheaper, lighter, double action replacement for the P210. So they developed the (then) cheaper alternative to stamp the slide, weld the muzzle cap on, and just machine the breach and firing pin assembly. Of course this had to be done with precision which (being Swiss) they did.
I've always suspected that the Swiss designers looked at the Smith & Wesson model 39 (which combined a Walther style double action fire control and decocker with a Browning action) and asked themselves "OK how can we do this cheaper and better". If you compare the 220 with the S&W 39s there are crazy amounts of machining in the frame that the SIGs don't have and don't need.
So the guns have to be precision made, as do most duty grade pistols. The design and manufacture of the 220 family is arguably the simplest of the hammer fired wonder nines of the era. Having looked at detail strip and reassembly videos they were probably the easiest pistols to work on before the Glocks.
Ever since the Glock hit the market, using what was then relatively new manufacturing processes in the firearms industry; everyone now uses the same techniques. I can't imagine that a US made SIG P226 could ever cost more to make than a US made Beretta 92. There is more machining time involved on the Beretta. But I can buy a new 92 for less than $600 that's not even close for a new 226.
So why does a SIG cost so much more than a Beretta? Why did SIGs and Berettas cost about the same in the 80s yet now there is such a discrepancy? Honestly you don't really hear that Berettas made in the US are inferior to those made in Gardone Italy.
So what's happened? I suspect marketing and management decisions.
I do think that the QA and QC at SIG in Exeter today is not what is was in Swizerland or Germany. Subcontracting out so many of their sub-components in different countries and in far off continents (India) doesn't make that any better.
Many people attribute this to the SIG management (Ron Cohen) who, if I'm not mistaken, was the guy who transformed Kimber from a legitimate high end 1911 semi custom builder into flashy overpriced mass produced BBQ guns that photographs well in the glossy gun mags that make low-information Bubbas drool, but is honestly no better quality (if not worse) that a Rock Island or a Ruger. All that said, I'm pretty sure Kimber is making far more money now than when they were a true custom shop.
Keep in mind SIG produces fine guns and has new and innovative designs (the P365 for example is the trendsetter for concealed carry). I just think that their new products are not well tested before being released, and that many of their legacy products are overpriced.
Having hands on with this gun makes me appreciate the original designers an manufacturers all that much more, and the current management at SIG all the less.
That's why I'm so happy about my purchase as it was about the only way that I would really get my hands on a P226. Despite my preference for CZs, there is a reason why the P226 is a deservedly legendary pisol. And if anyone reading this is a fan of pistols and can get their hands on a nicely broken-in good condition used 226 (or any 220 family of pistols) for a good price, than by all means do so.
