The Sig P938: Sig’s Forgotten Gem

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I used to show some primary firearm security courses, primarily targeted on pistols. After instructing for just a few years, I used to be in a position to usually inform if somebody was going to have an excellent time on the vary relying on the gun they introduced. Pocket .380s, micro 9s, and snub nostril revolvers had been virtually at all times a crapshoot for brand new shooters. Once I first noticed the SIG P938 in a pupil’s fingers, I believed for certain they had been going to have a foul time and my S&W 22A was going to be damaged out. 

Think about my shock when my pupil carried out admirably with the gun. This was the primary time she’d ever fired her P938 and one of many few instances she had ever fired a pistol. The little gun proved to be controllable, correct, and straightforward to deal with for an beginner whereas being sufficiently small to pocket carry. That left an impression on me, and after I noticed a used P938 for a really low value level I snatched it up. 

The SIG P938 – A Forgotten Gem  

A giant purpose I used to be in a position to buy this P938 for such a deal was that weapons like this are sometimes rejected within the face of weapons just like the SIG P365. The standard single-stack 9mm has given up the ghost to micro compacts. Weapons just like the P938 simply aren’t needed that a lot as of late. The P938 was by no means an inexpensive gun; in reality, it was one of many costlier single-stack 9mms, however decrease demand means decrease costs. 

This begs the query, is the SIG P938 nonetheless a succesful defensive weapon? The apparent reply is sure. It won’t maintain ten rounds of 9mm, however seven, plus one within the chamber, hardly places it at a lot of an obstacle. We’re a consumerist tradition, and I gained’t lie and say I don’t thoughts getting essentially the most I can out of a gun, however that doesn’t routinely make all the things that got here earlier than the gun out of date. 

The SIG P938 is an fascinating firearm. Within the fashionable period, all the things is a polymer-frame, striker-fired pistol. Even when the SIG P938 was launched, it was a unique kind of firearm. SIG launched the gun in 2011, and that was the period when SIG nonetheless primarily made hammer-fired weapons. 

A 1911 – Form Of 

It’s not a 1911, however anybody accustomed to the 1911 platform would really feel proper at house with the SIG P938. There is no such thing as a barrel bushing, and so they ’86ed the grip security. It’s 1911-inspired and provides a micro-sized 1911 for hid carry. The SIG P938 includes a hammer-fired, single-action-only design. 

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The weapon additionally wears a body security that’s straightforward to interact with the thumb. The slide launch can be very 1911-like; the journal is a single stack, and the body and form of the gun all scream 1911. The SIG P938 options good large sights which can be straightforward to see and much from what we usually count on from a small pistol. 

The grips range fairly a bit. My mannequin has these Hogue-style wrap-around rubber grips, and I’m not a fan. The one improve I plan to make to this gun is simply switching the wrap-around rubber grips for a extra conventional set of grip panels. The wrap-around rubber grips simply kill the glossy and slim 1911-style grip. 

The 1911 has at all times been beloved for its ergonomics, and it’s not very totally different right here. The protection is considerably small, but it surely’s ambidextrous, and your thumb can discover the shelf with out problem. A thumb’s ahead grip doesn’t pin down the slide launch and is sufficiently big to hit together with your thumb whereas reloading. 

One purpose my pupil appreciated this gun all these years in the past was how simply she may work the motion. If she cocked the hammer, she may simply simply manipulate the slide. The slide glides rearward simply with the hammer down and isn’t robust with the hammer within the closed place. 

To The Vary 

Working the slide is nice, however what about recoil? Small weapons are usually snappy, and snappy weapons aren’t at all times enjoyable. The SIG P938 differs from most small handguns by being all metallic. All that metallic offers us weight, and that weight means the gun weighs a stable pound. It’s 16 ounces of metallic, and that helps, as does correctly weighted springs and good design. 

That every one appears to be obvious with the P938. It’s surprisingly not snappy. I shoot principally 115-grain ammo, however to check the gun, I tossed in some 124-grain NATO ammo. Whereas the recoil was noticeable, it wasn’t exhausting to manage or what I’d name snappy. It virtually handles extra like a firearm that’s Glock 19-sized. One other large purpose why the gun feels really easy to manage is our means to choke up good and excessive on the gun. 

Even with my hand choked up good and excessive on the gun, it’s not getting bit by the slide. Small weapons prefer to chunk the hell out of my hand, however that’s not an issue with this gun. It’s mushy and straightforward to shoot, and I can fortunately recommend it to shooters with poor hand energy who’re in search of a compact gun that’s mild on recoil and straightforward to function. 

You may blast via seven or eight rounds shortly whereas protecting the gun on course. I may shoot a three-second Invoice Drill with the P938. Admittedly I didn’t make the tightest group. I’m utilizing the complete A zone of the USPSA goal to catch rounds, however they had been within the A-zone so it counts. 

Accuracy and The P938 

The large sights assist with that low-fire accuracy. A variety of accuracy is tied to an excellent grip, and the grip on the gun is okay however not glorious. The journal extension helps stop a dangling pinky, however the rubber grips suck. I can maintain onto the gun simply superb, but it surely offers you that quick grip you count on from a gun this dimension. 

At 25 yards, I can hit an ISPC metal goal with ease. I can simply hear that ding over and over. At 15 yards I can put all seven rounds into the 9 and 10 ring of a B8 goal routinely. The P938’s large sights are additionally straightforward to see and discover when the gun is drawn and offered. 

With an excellent presentation, the sights align good for fast and correct photographs after the draw. The large entrance sight is simple to trace for repeatable accuracy. The sunshine single-action-only set off is outstanding. It delivers on the M1911 popularity with a light-weight set off pull and crisp reset. 

One ergonomic efficiency drawback got here all the way down to reloads. My pinky pins the journal in after I hit the journal launch. This necessitates a grip-and-rip method to reloads or a elaborate reload. A flowery reload is after I put my pinky as much as let the journal free. The journal drops, however I’m abandoning my firing grip to take action. 

A Working Choice 

The P938 chewed via all the things I put via it. I bumped into no reliability points, even when the magazines fell into the sand of my vary. It’s a dependable, defensive-worthy pistol. The P938 won’t be the cool child on the hid carry block, but it surely’s nonetheless fairly dang cool. 

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An all-metal, single-action-only, hammer-fired gun that’s sufficiently small to be pocket-carried is fairly neat. It’s definitely totally different from the same old truthful of firearms at the moment in the marketplace. I like various things, and the P938 checks that totally different field. 

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