As a kid, there was one toy I frequented more than anything with a barrel or trigger: LEGO® blocks. With these ingenious Danish creations, I was more than merely a defender of good and an avenger of evil; I was in control of literally everything. Pre-packaged kits for planes, trains, cars, municipal buildings or even spacecraft ultimately morphed into a custom-made (for me, by me) LEGO city nestled upon a discarded, three-tiered entertainment center. What made this possible? No, Benjamin, not “plastics;” modularity made this possible. Enter the SIG SAUER P250.
The idea of modularity in firearms certainly isn’t new. In the strictest sense of the word, it refers to the nineteenth century innovation where parts created for one gun could be used in another (a helpful thing on the battlefield). But modularity within the same gun – taken to the extent where the entire grip frame is rendered nothing more than accessory itself – is a fairly new concept. The latest iteration: the SIG SAUER P250 semiautomatic pistol.
Available as a full-size, compact, or sub-compact model, the P250 is basically a firing mechanism (“Fire Control Assembly,” SIG calls it) which quickly and easily drops into one of several available polymer grip frames. Each grip frame is specially-sized for different shooter’s hands, and includes a cut-out “window” through which the firing mechanism’s serial number can be viewed.
Connoisseurs of combinatorics will be interested to learn that the full-sized model and the compact model each have three available grip frames, while the sub-compact gun makes do with only two. SIG renders the firing mechanism in four popular calibers (9mm, .357 Sig, .40 S&W, and .45 ACP). Along with the grip frame, only the magazine and barrel must be changed to jump from compact to sub-compact. Add the longer slide, and you can leap up to the full-sized model, as well. And so I leapt at the chance to sample the SIG several weeks back when a friend let me shoot his 9mm version.
No leaps are necessary when it comes to the gun’s physical description. The P250 typifies “modern autopistol” in a burst of genericism that not even Glock’s brickish silhouette can match. Yeah, the grip frame’s integral accessory rail and curved/textured front trigger guard both add a modicum of definition to an otherwise banal visage. But compared to other modern semi-autos, this SIG stands out about as much as a soccer mom in a Target check-out. And not a hot soccer mom, either. Just a nice-looking one with a pretty smile and a pleasant personality.
Personality, however, goes a long way (with guns as well as soccer moms). On the range, the P250 wins you over with double taps that warrant double takes back at the lady who looked so plain just a few minutes ago. Even with the largest of the three available grip frames fitted to my example, the small hands I’ve been cursed with clutched this SIG more positively and more confidently than any high-cap grip I’ve ever held.
Complimenting this tactile comfort was a magnificent double-action-only trigger. Much like Glock’s boom-button perfection, the P250’s trigger exhibited virtually no stacking. The absence of over-travel paired with quick, predictable reset rounded out the ergonomic delight.
Our test gun boasted an extended, threaded barrel. Combined with the gun’s discernible top-heaviness, the extra weight made for absolutely minimal muzzle flip and quick target reacquisition (the excellent three-dot sights didn’t hurt, either). With decent-quality factory ammo (SIG’s official company line is “no reloads, no hand loads”), the P250 didn’t miss a beat, delivering more tight groups than the LA branch of Alcoholics Anonymous.
Given its modularity, I halfway expected the P250 to be a compromised designed that felt and performed like a collection of similar-but-not-seamlessly-interacting parts which would produce decent-but-unimpressive results. Happily, I was wrong.
The SIG SAUER P250 did not – in my experience, anyway – fall into the frustrating gaps that lie between different shooter’s preferences. To the contrary, SIG appears to have anticipated these preferences exactly. Modular or not, fine engineering coupled with a final product that looks, feels, and shoots as good as the P250 will mitigate any complaint from the odd Goldilocks who doesn’t find the gun “just right” in one of its myriad configurations.
It looks like I might have a new favorite toy.
Specifications
Model: P250
Action type: Double Action Only
Caliber: 9mm Luger
Capacity: 17-round magazine
Barrel length: 4.7″
Overall length: 8.0″
Weight: 29.4 oz
Grips: Interchangeable polymer
Sights: Three-dot SIGLITE® night sights
Slide Finish: Nitron®
Frame Finish: Interchangeable polymer grip shell with stainless insert (various colors)
Current Value: $640-$712 (retail), depending on caliber and configuration
RATINGS (Out of five stars)
Style * * *
No new ground here: If you love the look of modern autopistols, you’ll love the P250. If you don’t, you won’t.
Ergonomics (carry) * * * *
Full-size, compact, or sub-compact, the P250 seems just as easily carried relative to its direct competitors. The fact that one firing mechanism can be convertible into each of these configurations widens its appeal in this category.
Ergonomics (firing) * * * * *
Very SIG-like, which is to say, very good. If anything, the modularity only makes it better by delivering a high degree of instantaneous customization.
Reliability * * * * *
SIG says “To Hell and Back,” and plenty of folks will vouch for that reputation.
Customize This * * * *
Double-edged sword here. The gun’s inherent modularity provides a bespoke weapon in seconds, all the various-sized grip-frames have an accessory rail, and there are several trigger and barrel options (this example’s was threaded) available from the factory. Still, it’s not a 1911, and outside of what the manufacturer offers, pickings seem slim. But it is a three-year-old design, and the availability of custom options will probably increase once the P250 has been on the market for a while (assuming it’s successful).
OVERALL RATING * * * * *
It’s not all things to all people, but it’s a lot of things – a lot of the right things – to a lot of the people who want a gun like this. In other words, it hits the sweet spot on the target, and more than likely, the sweet spot in your collection.
I’m looking to buy a P250 fs in either .357 or .40. This will be my first handgun and I was wondering how much I can expect to pay for it. And I haven’t seen any comments on the .357. Should I just go with .40 or .45 instead of the .357 ???
Robert,
If you are interested in buying a SIG SAUER handgun you have made an excellent choice. The SS P250 can be configured in many different versions, subcompact, compact, full size, the three sizes, and at this printing, four calibers, 9mm, 40 smith and wesson, .357 (not magnum), and 45 ACP. Of the four the .357 has the most knock down power but is also probably the least used caliber. Its power is between a 9mm+p and a 457 The 9mm has the m1ost shells for ea h magazine.
.357 Sig ammo is not cheap and not as readily available as either 9 mm or 40 cal. 9 mm is the least expensive and easiest to find.
Hello:
This is my First post. I just bought a Sig P2022 a couple weeks back. The SA/DA trigger was very strange to me at First. To me, it felt like it went too far back when it was cocked. Any ideas on the trigger? Everything else was great, though. I installed the Large back strap, and it felt great in my XL hands. I’m now looking for a CCW Sig. I was looking at the P290, but it is $600.00 and up, and has no accessory rail. So I started looking at the P250 subcompact. Has anyone used one? How does it feel/shoot? Will it fit XL hands? Does it have a rail? Is it in the same price range as the regular P250? How does it compare to the P290′s size? Any info would be appreciated.
Thanks
The P250 subcompact will run you about the same as the P250 Compact. If you want a great value for deep concealment, the Kel-Tec PF-9 is hard to beat. I have XL hands, so you’ll have to simply get used to smaller guns are settle for carrying a large one. I looked at the new P290, but the dealer wants $600. My Kel-Tec was almost half that cost, and for the “philosophy of use”, I can’t justify shelling out $600 for a subcompact without a track record. Kahr’s are also great concealed options – check out the CW and CM 9′s.
to me accuratcy is big a priority with the kel-tec the trigger squeez is ungodly and thoes high tention springs are asking to break but if you fix thoes problems you still have a weapon useless at 50 meters lucky for us most shoot outs happen at distences less than 20 meters when it comes to protecting the ones i love spending the money isnt a problem
amen brother if ur gonna go cheap u might as well go highpoint there more heavy to beat someone with wen it jams or just plain breaks.lol when it comes to protecting my family friends and myself ill dishout the extra on the sig i also dished out on the range officer made by springfield its a 1911 model if u never shot one i highly reccomend it love at first squeeze.lol
I recently purchased my SIG SAUER P250, COMPACT, from the firearms dealer in Oklahoma, to a Elliccott City MD, Specialty Firearms retail shop that agreed to accept the transfer of this pistol.
Our Maryland state law requires a expended shell casing, as well as a barrel lock; both extra expensive and both easy for criminals to get around. Having shot .22s (all kinds), .32s, .357s, .38s, 9mm parrabellums, .357 mags, .040, .44 short colt, .44 long colt, .44 mag, .45 ACP, and .410, 3″ hand guns, I have to say the P250 COMPACT is a well balanced, self defense tool that can be effective in stopping crimes and in averting dangerous situations with its presence. German and a few other Western European nations with higher population densities as well as learning the folly of letting governments confiscate its law abiding citizens’ firearms, has resulted in a limit per adult male in some of these countries of the number of hand guns, shotguns, and high powered rifles each adult may own. Consequently, we find packages like the SIG SAUER pistols, that to date, can be configured into four different calibers an three different sizes for a total of twelve different pistols, with each playing a role the best fits its current requirement for its person and those he is guardings well being.
To my fellow American’s that have left parts of themselves and their lives on fields of nations throughout the Middle East and beyond, I ask that you realize what you have done is in its purest form, a proof, a donation, and a statement that leaves pencil pushers, that leaves report writers, and that leaves any real assessment of truth penciled in as shadows following the truth, and seeking the outcome of the result.
Few, if any men or women in this case, realized the answered the response whose reply led to the truth, or a partial truth, . . . . . . . . . . . . ………………?
That post reads like a random sentence generator with “nationalism” settings set to “medium” and “ignore proper apostrophe use” set to “yes.”
I just received an email flyer advertising the 250C for $329.00 new. That said, I wanted to know if it’s best in 9mm, .357 or .40. Also, how do you tell, exactly, when it was manufactured. Will it be on the label on the case? Serial Number?
Anyway, for $329.00, could I really go wrong? I’m sure it has the standard everything so it will be pretty basic. I own a number of compact pistols now so the DA trigger doesn’t really scare me. I like their holster offering as it could work as a cross-draw in the winter and thus, more comfortable in a car. It has the ability to cant at almost any angle so it’s a nice custom fit.
That all aside, for $329, is it worth it? Am I reading this right? Any chance that these are old gen 2 models?
P250C 40 Cal. Update:
The rear sight failed for a second time a couple of weeks ago after about 150 rounds. It seems like a coating or seal is popping off, and the tritium is then compromised. I sent it back to Sig Sauer last week and just got it back today – very fast service.
However, I’m starting to question Sig’s “To Hell and back reliability” tag line. I’ve had a Glock 22 for three years and have never had any problems with the pistol or with the after-market Trijicon night sights I installed.
Regarding price, I paid $430 for the P250 40 Cal. including the tritium night sites. (Included only one magazine.) I have the Gen 2 model. The grips are different than Gen 1 and the magazines are not interchangeable. The Gen 1 has a rounded style rail, whereas the Gen 2′s rail is square.
Someone asked about a good concealed firearm. I would suggest two options: A S&W J-frame snubbie or a Kel-Tec PF-9. Both are reasonably priced, but require lots of practice to master, especially the snubbie. (The J-frame works great with Crimson Trace grip laser sights.)
Took my new FS Sig P250 9mm to the range today, I put 900 rounds through this thing without a FTF/FTE. Definitely like the feel, may try a different grip though. had a nice close spread @ 7yds, & managed to get decent shots off @ 15 yds.
the 1 thing i hate about this gun. i can not find a left hande paddle holster. it sucks
Hey Mike, I just looked up Galco Holsters and tyhey have a Yaqui Paddle Holster for Sig-Sauer P250 Compacts in 9mm or 40 S&W. That’s about $70 bucks or so, and Galco is great for quality and service. Happy shooting!
lmao
galco for sure its like puttin ur most comfy shoes on ur gun gota few one for my 1911 is fantastic.
Found this thread on the ‘net today, and just had to put in my 2 cents. I purchased a Sig-Sauer P250 9mm several months ago and have been very pleasantly surprised at how utterly reliable, accurate and sweet-handling this piece is. I only have one problem: My wife, who, in addition to having lousy taste in men, loves shooting almost as much as I do, and I made the “mistake” of letting her try my P250 at the range the other day. Well, long story short, she now has my 9mm Compact, and she has retired her Ruger SP101 357 mag. Of course, this gave me the excuse I needed (yeah, right!) to trade my old Glock 21 for a P250 Compact in 45 Auto. Now we’re both happy! PS: she’s 67 years old and can out shoot most of our male friends half her age!
The sig p250 is in its second phase, the first was a pushed product with many problems and the second is starting to become known as one of the best DAO auto pistols ever. Interestingly enough, the pistol tested in this article is a first seriest gun.
You can tell the two series apart by a few things, the sig logoon the grip is no longer in the middle but rised slightly, the bottom of the grip has square notches instead of round ones and the dust guard necks down on the first series where it stays full width on the second.
Anouther cool thing is the longer full size barrel will fit the compact and sub compact as well as the bigger mags making a very “tacticool” looking sub compact with full size accuracy.
I advise everybody go and shoot the new series of p250 and see for yourself, you will not be disappointed. By the way I own a p250 and have thousends of rounds through it, the only problem I have hade was failure to lock back after last round but stretching the mag spring handled that.
so I already own a custom engraved P229 in .40 which I love and so does my wife, which is what is making me find her own Sig… this way i get mine back. She doesn’t just go to stores and look around. she wants to be a subject matter expert when she goes in. That way she knows exactly what she wants, and gets exactly that. She is interested in a 9mm compact. How is the grip for a set of small hands? She thinks my P229 feels almost perfect, does the P250 have basically the same size grip? With the compact 9mm does it suffer the same recoil as the small pocket 9mm’s that have flooded the market? She is just tired of shooting her Walther P22 Target model .22LR (she said she is debating on selling it to fund the sig, or may keep it for cheap target shooting), while I play with my .40 any help is appreciated. Thanks, Zombie
I never pass up a chance to put off my 2 cents on other people. I own a Kimber carry elite,a gen 3 Glock 19 9mm,a S&W .380 bodyguard and a springfield xdm .40. I love them all. But Sig Sauer has made me cheat on all of them. My kimber was worth every penny it cost me but I love it more than my mother in law, So I don’t shoot it much. The others are common,predictable and boring. So I bough a Sig 250 compact 9mm with a .40 kit when they first came out. It has had some minor problems but nothing that cost me anything to fix. Since all the bugs have been worked out I’ve put 10,000 of both 9mm and .40 combined rounds through it with no problems, I just replaced the 9mm barrel and gave it to my wife. I bought a brand new model from cabelas in 9mm,Took it to the range and put 250 rounds through it and almost took it out to dinner that night,My heart was fluttering and I was weak in the knees. What a sweetheart she is and my wife is becoming jealous. I would have gladly replaced my Glock when I was deployed for the Sig 250. If you have $400-$450 laying around spend it on a NEW model you will know what love really is.
i have a sig P250 .45acp compact i have fired 5000+ rounds through it when i bought it brand new i was shooting it and had the problem where the brass was ejecting and hitting me in the face i thought it was just me but when i tried to correct myself the same problem it was only after i fired 500-600 rounds through it that the problem stopped after that and shooting was amazing and then at around 2500 rounds i changed barrels and the same problem hitting me in the face since then i have seasoned barrel and had no problems. any problems in this weapon happen in the first 500 round give or take a box or two if you season the barrel this weapon is the best handgun money can buy the more you fire it the better it will get i have owned and fired 200+ handguns and hold no biases to any of them but one thing i can say is in a life or death situation my money is on the P250 in almost any situation
just bought sig p250 compact. Crisp, clean shooting. It came with .40 and conversion barrel to .357 cal.
So of course I had to purchase the 9mm to complete the set. Anyone know if I can put a threaded full size 9mm barrel to be used as well? Too bad it only comes in a black polymer frame. (still learning)
I just bought the brand new sig sauer p250 compact along with all conversions.
have shot .40 and .357. It has got to have the worst trigger or hammer release of all the guns I own. it only releases the trigger at the end of the trigger pull. Way too far back.To the point I can feel the rear of the trigger guard simultaneous with the hammer release. I also bought a sig holster for the p250 c and doesn’t fit either. Seems like the integrated pic rail is hitting the bottom of the molded holster. I am no expert but Sig needs to redesign the firing mechanism or trigger with more of a trigger release alot earlier. Lover the pistol, hate the trigger…
just took to the range my sig p 250- 45 acp..
and i am more on the beginner side..
well it is an awesome gun.., i put @ 25 yards 17 shots in silhouette out of 30 rounds fired.. and most of them critical shots… many chests, and body shots.. rightly placed.. i am not a master shooter.. but i can do enough with a good gun
and that is a very good gun
my first.. and i love it .
reliable and accurate enough to me.
I deployed with a P229 back in 04. I loved the reliability and handling. I just bought the P250 9mm full size about a year ago and I absolutely love it. Cant say that I have had a problem yet and have put a few thousand rounds through it.
I think that Sig is on to something, the pistol shoots flawlessly and the interchangeability makes this a gun that you can grow with. I wish Sig would come up with a 22 long rifle conversion so I could shoot cheaper and more often. I love the Sig Sauer P250 and you will too! Thumbs up 10 stars out of 10
PMshear is right on…. I was specifically looking to see if there was a .22 conversion for the P250. I do not see one. If Sig was to make a .22 conversion for this pistol it would be a hugely poular option.
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