I am pretty new to guns and although the sigma is not my first purchase is could quilify as my first as I have not bought nor owned another pistol in over 15 years. i purchased my sigma 1-2-2010 and have since shot 275 shells through it(my girlfriend and I that is). the first 75 with no problems, then the next 150 I had 3 malfunctions(jams), 2 on shell loading into barrel and 1 with kick out of spent shell. I then cleaned the gun after that shooting,i did not field strip it but did take my time cleaning it completly. the last 50 shells through it this past weekend, it had 8 malfunctions(mixed). I field stripped it last night and cleaned it completly, is this a common problem? is there something I could do to make this more reliable? i bought this for home defense/ conceal carry. we take our class this saturday and I am going to RENT us BOTH a gun as I now have no confidence it shooting it. we purchased this gun do to its feel in BOTH our hands, caliber, looks, and more importantly at the time MONEY. We are planning on buying 2 more pistols in the very near future as money allows for conceal carry/backup. but now I am leaning to another brand as I can't just keep dropping cash until I find the one(two) right for us. thanks for any help with this issue.

also is there any gunsmithing someone could do to make it a better gun? trigger pull is heavy, specially for my 4'10" 105# girlfriend. any recommendations for a good gun for her?