I bought a M17 for my active duty grandson, it has only had a few hundred rounds through it. I had not heard of problems with the M17, but would like to know what they are!
Early on, the P320 was shown to fire from inertia if dropped on its rear end at a certain angle.
If dropped on the muzzle, the firing pin safety is designed to prevent inertial discharge, but SIG Sauer did not incorporate a tabbed trigger safety as you see on most all other striker fired pistols, the purpose of which is to stop an inertial discharge if the pistol is dropped on its rear end.
SIG Sauer did a "voluntary upgrade" and instead of incorporating a tabbed trigger safety, they lightened the parts so as to increase the height from which the pistol could be dropped on its rear before it would discharge. This voluntary upgrade has apparently resolved the drop safety problem.
A few years later, an entirely different issue has arisen. A lawyer who has handled many of the lawsuits against SIG Sauer, one Bagnell, I believe, coined the term uncommanded discharge (UD). A UD is when the pistol simply fires without a trigger press. This is possible because the striker is fully cocked when the chamber is loaded.
Although there are many theories, no one has yet demonstrated a repeatable issue which causes these UDs.
In addition, no satisfactory explanation has been as yet given as to why the firing pin safety is not stopping forward movement of the firing pin as it should when an UD happens as the firing pin is supposed to prevent the firing pin from striking the primer of the cartridge unless the trigger is pulled. In these UDs, the trigger is NOT pulled, yet the firing pin safety does not stop the firing pin from flying forward and striking the primer.
The last time I checked, there have been over one hundred claims or lawsuits alleging that injury occurred due to UD. SIG Sauer claims there is no problem, and although there are many theories, no one has, as yet, identified the cause of the UDs.
Many of these UDs were caught on video, so unlike in the beginning when a skeptical public tended to blame the supposedly ill-trained or incompetent police officer, it has become harder and harder for even the staunchest SIG Sauer supporter to deny the existence of a problem when video shows the UD happening when no one touches the pistol.
And, of course, since there is no warning, one never knows when or where the UD might occur. This has caused law enforcement training centers, private shooting schools, including Gunsite, and many private owners, to discontinue use of the P320 until the problem is sorted out.
Personally, I do not want to be on a range or anywhere else in the presence of a loaded P320. The one incident caught on video where the police officer's P320 discharges in the lobby of the police station demonstrates that an UD could have easily killed the officer standing behind the officer whose P320 discharged as the officer whose P320 discharged was bent over causing the muzzle of his P320 to be pointing downward and rearward when the UD occurred.
And, don't think that it cannot happen if you have an M17/18 because those models have thumb safeties. The thumb safety of the P320 only prevents movement of the trigger bar, but it does not prevent sear disengagement from the lug of the firing pin which is what happens with the UD.
