SIG Sauer showed us a ton of cool upcoming products at SIG NEXT. Here’s everything to keep an eye out for.
SIG Sauer is one of the top firearms manufacturers in the world, with a full complement of firearms of all types, suppressors, and electro-optics, not to mention ammunition, other accessories, and drone systems now too.
It should be no surprise, then, that SIG throws its very own shindig each year to unveil its new product launches. They call it SIG NEXT, and they bring out busloads of media and dealers to check out everything new, shiny and chrome.
We joined the pilgrimage, checked out the new gear, and shot a ton of SIG’s ammo. Here’s some highlights of what we saw.
P385
The biggest — and not unexpected — unveiling is the P385, a brand new polymer striker-fired duty handgun platform designed from the ground up. It’s a modular design like the P365, with a fire control unit housed within a polymer grip module, but it’s not just a big P365. It takes P320 magazines but is otherwise completely new with no parts compatibility with other models, except for the iron sights and mag well.
SIG worked very hard on optimizing shootability, prioritizing a low bore axis and excellent ergonomics in the design. Configurations at launch include a full-size service pistol with 4.7-inch barrel and full-length grip taking a 17-round flush- fit magazine, a carry model with 4-inch barrel and full-length grip, and a compact variant with 4-inch barrel and abbreviated grip taking a 15-round flush-fit magazine. Additionally, there are two compensated models in the full-size footprint, one with an integrated compensator in the slide and one with SIG’s 3-D printed MACH3D compensator threaded onto the barrel. Choose between black and coyote brown.
Slides are finished in black DLC Nitron, with front and rear serrations and a SIG-LOC Pro optic footprint. To protect shooters from slide bite, not only is there a beavertail but the tail end of the slide is also rounded. The new SIG Recoil Dampening System reduces felt recoil thanks to a piece of rubber that functions like a 1911 recoil buffer; however, the P385’s buffer is backed by a metal plate to reduce wear.
The grip module is textured with SIG’s new laser-cut ReActive grip texturing, designed to increase traction with increased grip pressure. The MAGSTRAP system has interchangeable grip and backstrap assemblies to select the size that best fits your hands. The trigger guard is double under-cut to help establish a high grip.
The slide release is ambidextrous, with a fence underneath to prevent inadvertently locking the slide back under recoil. The take-down lever protrudes from the frame and has serrations on top to serve as a thumb shelf. The dust cover on the opposite side has a modest thumb shelf molded into the grip for wrong-handed folks. You can also go with an optional manual safety, which felt great with positive engagement and a sizable lever that can be ridden with your thumb for a proper 1911-style grip. It functions similarly to the P365, blocking the sear when engaged.
The trigger is flat-faced with an extremely clever trigger safety — it’s like a typical trigger dingus, but in this case it sits flush with the trigger face. When you press the trigger, the dingus travels back with the trigger and you’ll never know it was there. If the trigger is depressed without your finger on the face, the trigger will move rearwards slightly, stopping and exposing the dingus. It’s a great idea and executed very well. The trigger feels good, with a pull weight from the factory of 6 to 7 pounds.
SIG says the P385 is drop-safe, even without the trigger block or optional thumb safety. Note that the striker is approximately 90-percent cocked prior to a trigger press.
SIG spent a great deal of effort dialing in the shape of the grip, churning through dozens of prototypes to find contours that work well for most people.
The P385 is thoughtfully designed with extensive attention to detail. Ergonomics are great, and it’s a shooter for sure.
P211
The P211 is SIG’s 2011-style single-action-only pistol, which takes P320 magazines. The new P211 Full and Carry models are lighter than the original, with an aluminum frame instead of steel and lightweight polymer grips. This saves approximately 11 ounces for the full-size and 8 for the carry. The guns are offered in black and coyote.
The Full has a 5-inch target crown barrel, while the Carry is shorter at 4.2 inches. Their mag wells are lower profile, but otherwise you’re getting the same goodness that you’ve come to expect from the P211.
The slide has a SIG LOC Pro optic cut with front and rear serrations and a sloped contour. The frame has ambidextrous safeties and slide release levers, texturing all around, and a deeply undercut trigger guard. The beavertail, safeties, and rear of the grip are smoothly contoured to avoid hot spots and for a comfortable grip.
And the skeletonized flat trigger has that wonderful straight-back 1911 pull that we all love so much. These guns are a delight to shoot.
P226X AGENCY
A collaboration between SIG and Agency Arms, the P226X Agency is a supremely tricked-out single-action-only P226.
The frame is Agency Arms’ enhanced alloy unit, with custom LOK grip panels, front strap texturing, ambidextrous thumb safeties, and an extended take-down lever that doubles as a thumb shelf. The slide has a single-port compensator to contain muzzle flip, extensive machining work, and a ROMEO-X SIG LOC Pro sight installed from the factory.
The AX3 single-action flat-faced trigger is fully adjustable with a crisp break. The P226X Agency is almost surprisingly fun to shoot. On a table full of fantastic new guns and an endless supply of someone else’s ammo, you might just find yourself drawn to grabbing this one over and over again to shoot. However great you imagine it’ll be to shoot, it’s even better than that.
P365 MACH3D
When SIG launched the P211 last year, they also unveiled their 3D-printed MACH3D compensator, which was designed by their big-brained suppressor engineers. It’s a brutally effective compensator that makes guns shoot amazingly flat.
SIG decided to attach one to the P365. The compensator is so effective that it was putting stress on the system, necessitating a switch to a threaded bull barrel. The slide is also redesigned, with aggressive slide serrations front and back as well as a SIG LOC Compact optic footprint.
The trigger is skeletonized with a flat face, and the slide release is extended. Comes with an X-Macro compact grip module with a mag well, standard Picatinny light rail, and swappable backstraps.
This gun shoots extremely fast and flat; you might see your bill drill times drop with it.
MCX LTAW
The elusive SIG LVAW (Low Visibility Assault Weapon) is a pint-sized .300 BLK blaster that was built specifically for certain bearded warriors in our military. Its lore grew as information about it and photos leaked out over the years. SIG has finally released a civilian version of it, the MCX-LTAW.
It’s not an exact facsimile of the original issued weapon, since a lot has changed and been improved over the years, but it’s the same concept with the latest iteration of the MCX platform. It’s chambered in .300 BLK with a 6.75-inch barrel, folding stock or brace, and optional SQX suppressor.
The LTAW is very compact, very nimble, very quiet, and very very cool. You can feel its heritage and appreciate the purpose for which it was built.
SIG CROSS
The Cross line of bolt action rifles has a few new variants — little shorties and a screamer.
The new models include a .300 BLK chambering with a standard 11.5-inch barrel or a Sawtooth version with a 9-inch Proof Research barrel. In .223 Wylde, there’s a standard 11.5-inch and a 16-inch Sawtooth with a Proof barrel. And for fans of the feisty .22 Creedmoor, there’s a new Sawtooth with a 20-inch Proof barrel in that caliber.
We had a blast ringing steel with these guns.
XRAY5 and FOXTROT2R LIGHTFIGHT
It’s not a gun, but the new XRAY5 red dot sight is our favorite new product from SIG. It’s a truly innovative optic and unlike anything else on the market. Rather than a single emitter that you move around mechanically to obtain a zero, the XRAY5 has fixed emitter matrix of 225 dots, 15 by 15. Just one lights up at a time; if you need to shift it left and up, it’ll turn the current one off and light up another one to provide the zero you need. Each dot is 3.5 MOA, spaced out about 5.5 MOA from each other (center to center) — making for a 80 by 80 MOA grid. There’s no moving parts to wear out, so the sight is extraordinarily durable — like an SSD versus an old hard drive.
The aspherical lens is positioned on the roof of the optic, so the front and rear glass are clear and like looking through a window. It’s a stark contrast to the distortion and blue tint that you’re used to seeing in traditional red dot sights.
While you don’t need to use it, the XRAY5 has Bluetooth and connects to a companion app to quickly and easily zero it, store multiple zero profiles, and more.
The new FOXTROT2R LightFight weapon-mounted light pairs up with the XRAY5, automatically increasing the brightness of the reticle when the light is activated so the red dot won’t get washed out. When you turn off the light, the reticle will return to your previous setting.
KILO MICRO
Another banger from SIG’s Electro-Optics division, the new Kilo Micro is an impossibly small laser rangefinder. At just 2.7 by 1.9 by 1.2 inches and 3.4 ounces, it’s ridiculously small.
With a 4x18mm monocular, it ranges out to 1,000 yards on reflective targets or up to 600 yards on a deer and adjusts for shooting angle. It has a red and green TOLED display and crisp glass. It also has a dedicated archery mode.
The Kilo Micro has a built-in rechargeable battery and a quick-detach magnetic harness mount. You’ll never have an excuse to be without a rangefinder again.
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