New Sig 229: did I get ripped off?

[DragonDog]

Just picked it up last night. It was in the blue plastic case - NEVER OPENED - in the plastic and everything. The case is marked "Law Enforcement" and sure enough, I stood there as the guy at the store took out three 12-rounders marked "LE/Gov't Use" and gave me back two Klintons. (Believe me, that hurt! watching those brand new 12's get WASTED!)

Anyway, my question: I noticed this morning that the grip of this baby says "P228" while the slide is clearly marked "P229". It's a .40, and when I took it down, I see clearly that at least the "insert" thingy in the frame that holds the trigger spring, etc. is marked "40". There was a blue paper "Sig" band covering the grip when I walked out with it, so I didn't immediately notice it.

Maybe it's only a cosmetic issue, but has anyone else ever had this happen, or noticed it on your Sig? Any special "versions" floating around? (BTW, this one was not German proofed that I can tell, although the frame says it's made in Germany.)

Thanks for your input/replies.

[kbear38S]

LE high cap issue aside, you watched him take out 3 mags and give you 2 back? Hope that was before you settled on a price.

[AR-10]

Sounds like you got the wrong grips from the factory.

[Lightsped]

hmmmmm...... that whole deal smells fishy to me.....

[MiniZ]

Well, it does sound fishy, but it could be as simple as the wrong grips were put on by the factory.

Ripped off? I don't know, how much did you pay?

[dsk]

If the guy takes out three mags and gives you back two, I'd sure say you got ripped off! Of course the civvie guns only come with two mags normally, but I'll bet they get a better price on the LEO-marked guns as well. I also doubt SIG would stick the wrong grips on their pistol.

Call SIG and get their opinion. If there's something wrong you'll at least have them on your side.

[Jeff OTMG]

You bet they get a better deal on the LEO guns because there is no Pittman-Robertson tax (11%) on LEO guns. The dealer is not suppose to be selling tax exempt guns to the general public. If is is buying LEO and selling at what he would normally sell a commercial model then he is pocketing the tax as profit.

[SpecialK]

Do all Sigs come in shrink wrapped boxes?

I just bought a P228 today and it's supposed to be new straight from the distributors warehouse. Should I expect my Sig P228 to be in a plastic wrapped box?

[Ala Dan]

Maybe one chance in a million; but this would be a
extremely rare case. Usually, SigArms just doesn't
make mistakes like this? I too, recommend calling
Exeter for an explanation. :eek:

Just for safety's sake; make sure of this guns
chambering, before you attempt to fire
this weapon.:) :D As there are some 9m/m
P229's floating around.

Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, Life Member N.R.A.

[mrat]

It is legal for a FFL to sell a LEO Sig to a non-LEO, the only difference is the gun is marked "Blueline". My FFL has sold Blueline Sigs in the past and he is a straight shooter, he did not get the gun any cheaper by having a tax emeption on it. The tax waiver is only for law enforcement agencies not LEOs and I think agency has to go through a distributor, police supply shop or Sig for that. I don't think FFLs have access to the tax exempt stuff but I could be wrong.

I asked my FFL if he could get a better price on a Sig for a LEO and the answer was no. On Glocks he could save me about fifty bucks.

[DragonDog]

WOW! Thanks for the replies. Now that I'm reading them, it does seem that this may be more than just a cosmetic issue, or simple factory goof. Think I will place a call to Exeter to get their opinion.

FWIW, I paid $650 before tax and Brady.

As for SpecialK, from what I read and understand, the 228's are indeed packaged in cardboard and not the plastic hard case.

But now I'm somewhat further confused in that my "229" has a BLUE hard case, while some of the 229's I see on Gunbroker, etc. appear to come in a BLACK case.

Understand, the gun itself is not marked LEO or with any special code, and of course the mags aren't now, either. The serial number begins w/ "AK", as did those of two other 229's that the store clerk was carrying.

As for the mags, the fact that he took out three and gave me back two didn't bother me at the time - I just figured that LEO's get some other type of deal, and of course I expected to get whatever is normal for a non-LEO.

After all this, now I'm wondering what IS normal????:eek:

[DragonDog]

P.S. sorry for being long-winded/rambling, but I have not yet fired the gun, although did load up both mags with Gold-Dots and chambered an 11th with no problems. I don't have much doubt that it is in fact a .40 and was built as such, since as I said in my original post I did see that it contains a "40" marking on that trigger housing under the slide.

Will definitely let you guys know what Exeter has to say about all this, though! Thanks again!

Best wishes for a very Happy, Safe, and Prosperous New Year to everyone!!

DD

[.357SIG]

My 229 357/.40 came in the black plastic box. I bet blue is just the LE box; nothing more.

[Carbon_15]

They made a bigger mistake than wrong grips on mine. The finish on my brand new 2-tone 229 started peeling after 24 hours of ownership and 150 rounds of factory ammo. That, and it shoots patterns instead of groups at 10 yards. The first 10 rounds measured about 5inches at 10 yards, and every mag. full got worse. By the last magazine, it was barely keeping them on the page. I'm not real happy. I have heard nothing but good things about SIG in the past, but my short experiance has been dissapointing. I understand that all guns are man-made and humans arent infalable. I also understand that my experiance isnt typical with SIG's, but come on. They really shouldnt be letting things like that slip through. Especialy not for a box-stock gun that cost $800.
To add insult to injury, I took it back to my gun dealer today (the same man I have bought 4 guns from in the last 2 monthes and probly a dozen this year) and he said it was probly nothing to worry about. WHAT? I would'nt accept that kind of poor quality from a Ruger or Taurus, much less a gun costing twice as much.
When did they stop making them in Germany? Mine has no proof markings either.

[Tamara]

...P-229's and Stainless P-226's/P-220's have milled stainless steel slides that are made here in the U.S. and fitted to German-made frames. P-239's and P-245's for U.S. consumption are entirely U.S.-manufactured. As the barrel/slide is the part that is proofed, looking for German proofmarks on a U.S.A.-built SIG slide is not likely to net any results. ;)

[blades67]

SpecialK - The plastic that was mentioned is just a plastic bag that the pistol is placed in before being placed in the plastic case. The cases are not shrink wrapped and the pistol is not shrink wrapped.:rolleyes:

[DragonDog]

Called Exeter this morning - they confirmed via ser. # that the 229 was indeed shipped as a .40 - they said the grips are identical to the 228 and that it was a simple mistake at the factory.

They are shipping me a new left grip that says "P229" purely for cosmetic reasons. They were very prompt in answering my call and extremely pleasant to deal with!

SIDE NOTE: They said they are doing inventory right now and nothing is going out until the week of Jan 20th.