Sig 226 vs Beretta 92/96

[Oldnoob]

W. German 226, none railed, carbon steel/alum alloy versus Beretta 92/96 Vertec G model, carbon steel/alum alloy.

Same caliber, same condition, same price. Which one will you get?

 

[EdnAZ]

I love the West German Sig's. My personal belief is that they are some of the finest made pistols around.

 

[Badkarma 1]

SIG! I carried one as a SEAL and loved both it's reliabilty and accuracy, the things don't know the word "quit"! And their decocker is in a better position and easier on the fingers than the G model Berettas. Dale

 

[Maximumbob54]

I would take any Sig over any Beretta. For me it's a personal feel in the hand. I still struggle to shoot my 92FS very well but I always shoot my 226 good no matter how long it has been since my last range visit. And the holsters they saddled us with in the Navy always had a bad habit of popping the safety off when you secured the snap. I think they were Bianchi Accumold holsters. The snap retention was just right over the safety decocker lever and would pop it out of safe. That and my hand struggles to sweep my thumb up to flip from safe to fire. The Sig has none of those issues, the decocker is slick and smooth, and fits my hand like it was made for me. That is my hands down all time favorite 9mm so far. If the West German model is even better then this is just no competition. The Beretta had initial teething problems growing up in the military and while they have all been solved, I have never heard of the same issues with any of the Sig models. The one and only thing that may be in the Beretta's favor is the five inch barrel gives you all the ballistics you are going to get from a 9mm. But too many guns I saw were in seed of work from knuckle heads dropping them on the end of the muzzle. That extra bit is very unprotected. But the Vertec model solves that by cutting the barrel short. I still say Sig.

 

[S&W-Keeper]

My vote goes to the Sig.My favorite semi-auto.

 

[Rule3]

Sig or Sig.

The Beretta is just to fat for my hand. It's a fine handgun but I prefer Sigs.

 

[4506517]

96 Vertec. The revised grip makes all the difference as far as I'm concerned.

 

[max]

Like most folks here, I own a number of semi-autos. My Sigs have never failed to the best of my knowledge. I think they are accurate, reliable and hard to beat. Also, I find the Beretta to be just big and clumsy for me.

 

[LTC]

I own and shoot both a 92FS and a P226. I enjoy both but, I guess I would give the edge to the SIG. both pistols are setup to fire .22rf, 9mm and .40S&W.

LTC

 

[venomballistics]

Sig ...
one of my criteria for an auto is a frame mounted safely.
Yeah Ive never heard of it happening .. a safety being jarred by the slides recoil to an undesired position when you need it off the most, But why give it that chance?

 

[JcMack]

Forgive my ignorance please. Where is the mag release on the SIG. I once had a 220 with the release on the heel of the grip frame.

 

[M29since14]

I believe the SIG will be a bit more accurate gun, just because the trigger is usually better than any of the Berettas I have handled. That's the big deal, as far as I am concerned.

I hear lots of complaints about the feel of the Beretta as far as fitting the hand goes. And the pistol is just plain BIG. 226s are not small, but the 92-series guns are just too big overall.

Some will caution you to be careful to avoid of the so-called "mud rail" guns when buying an older P226. I have had two, and still have one. No problems, so far. I am not sure where the mud rail frames fell in the P226 serial numbers, but you can easily identify them just by removing the slide and looking for the mud relief areas in the frame rails, if that is something that is a concern to you.

I would buy the 226.

 

[M29since14]

Forgive my ignorance please. Where is the mag release on the SIG. I once had a 220 with the release on the heel of the grip frame.

In the traditional 1911/U.S. position - behind the trigger guard. I don't believe any P226s were ever made with a heel release, but certainly could be wrong about that.

 

[JcMack]

In the traditional 1911/U.S. position - behind the trigger guard. I don't believe any P226s were ever made with a heel release, but certainly could be wrong about that.

Thankyou. Having had a 226 and a 92 in the past, I would most definitely take the SIG. The 228 is the best overall in my opinion. But it's not in contention.

 

[Texas Star]

In the traditional 1911/U.S. position - behind the trigger guard. I don't believe any P226s were ever made with a heel release, but certainly could be wrong about that.

I think only some P-220's had the heel release. That was the Euro standard version, adopted by Swiss forces.

SIG's have had rusting slides and slide rail breakage problems. Trigger return springs have also broken. No one has mentioned those issues yet.

Current SIG's have ugly rails for flashlghts or laser sights. I don't use either, and prefer the cleaner lines of the Beretta.
(If you need rails, the Beretta 90-Two has them.)

The commercial 92FS model has some metal removed at crucial points on the backstrap , and feels much better in the hand than does the M-9.

Neither gun is perfect, but I chose the Beretta, which was also cheaper to buy. Key issues were the rusting tendency on the SIG slides and the overall stamped-out appearance.

I don't care for the looks of the Vertec, preferring the standard M-92FS. If I had more money to throw around, I'd try a SIG. They feel wonderful in the hand.

T-Star

 

[M29since14]

I think only some P-220's had the heel release. That was the Euro standard version, adopted by Swiss forces.

SIG's have had rusting slides and slide rail breakage problems. Trigger return springs have also broken. No one has mentioned those issues yet...

I think some P6/P225 pistols may have had heel release, too. Not sure about that, but it seems I have seen some that way. Maybe one of the SIG-experts could say for sure?

I mentioned the frame rail trouble in my first post. From what I understand, the problem was "cured" in subsequent designs. Berettas have/have had their own little problems, which also seem to have been pretty effectively resolved. It's hard to say it with assurance but I think both pistols are roughly equal in durability and reliability.

One thing I can say with assurance is that I have seen more SIGs with manageable triggers than I have Berettas, but I admit to being what many might call something of a trigger-whiner.

 

[BE Mike]

I never liked the long trigger reach of the Sig, so I'd have to have a short trigger installed, which would step up the price point. I have a lot of trigger time on the 96 and 92 and like both. I'd probably have to go for the Beretta due to the way it handles in my hand.

 

[perrazi]

have 5 various sigs including my daily carry. have one beretta elite that i never shoot. german sigs all the way.

 

[Snowbandit]

There isn't much difference in quality and few of us could afford enough ammo to wear either of them out. I prefer the Beretta.

 

[M29since14]

My only caveat on suggesting someone pick a Sig is that it's decocker is located about where most other makers mount their slide lock/slide release lever.

One needs to practice enough that he/she doesn't get confused when reloading in a hurry.

Yup, good point. Another reason to stick with the 1911 and avoid all that confusion.