SIG P238 sighting

**King 5.45** · October 1st, 2009, 08:12 PM

They've got one in at Insite in West Norriton, with the blackish wood grips and night sights, approx. $630 or so. It's tiny, and undoubtedly gonna be a handful, no matter how much the SIG Kool-Aid suckers chug.

**1blindref** · October 2nd, 2009, 07:55 AM

I haven't shot one yet, but I've held a few.
It is pretty much a Colt Mustang Pocketlite with only a few internal differences. Holsters are even the same.

I'm not a big fan of .380's so I won't be adding one to my collection, but from what I've read on the Sig Forum, those that have them are very happy with them.

**seoulstice** · October 2nd, 2009, 08:59 AM

Recoil is not bad at all, dunno why people continue to have that misconception without actually having fired it. With the exception of a few parts[ie trigger

], my Sig P238 is mostly metal and noticeably weighs more than a LCP which is slightly smaller. Because it is not a fixed barrel blowback like some other .380s[ie Sig P232] the recoil is not as sharp and even though my pinky hangs completely off the grips I do not feel like the pistol is going to flip out of my hand.

**Rule10b5** · October 2nd, 2009, 09:25 AM

Originally Posted by King 5.45

They've got one in at Insite in West Norriton, with the blackish wood grips and night sights, approx. $630 or so. It's tiny, and undoubtedly gonna be a handful, no matter how much the SIG Kool-Aid suckers chug.

Nah. I had a Mustang Pocketlite for a couple of years and it wasn't even remotely a handful -- total pussycat, actually.

Given that the Mustang is 12.5 oz., and the P238 is 14 oz., and they're otherwise virtually identical, I suspect the P238 is even more mellow to shoot.

That said, I'm not sure why the heck someone would want a P238. It's not ideal size for pocket carry (plus it has an exposed hammer), and you're probably better off with a small belt holster. And it has all the inherent faults of a short barrel 1911 style pistol in terms of reliability. To say nothing of the fact at that a C&L SAO with no grip safety strikes me as pretty f'ing stupid for anything but belt or shoulder holster carry. You couldn't pay me to carry that in a pocket. And if you're going to belt carry, why not carry a more effective caliber and reliable platform?

And if you're stuck on .380, why wouldn't you want a perfectly decent Kahr P380, Ruger LCP, or Keltec P3AT? Cheaper, more reliable, and you can pocket carry any one of them...

I'm not bashing the P238 -- I loved my Mustang...it just didn't do anything for me in terms of carry, and I couldn't compete or hunt with it, which is why I sold it.

**seoulstice** · October 2nd, 2009, 09:44 AM

The Kahr P380 is not cheaper than the Sig P238, if anything it is the same price or more expensive. That is if you can even find one in the first place. I still haven't seen one in a store or on Gun Broker[I'm not on it everyday though] and every online retailer is either accepting pre-orders for the first ones or just says "Out of Stock". Anyway the Kahr was still a figment of my imagination[ie they released press material on it] back in February when I was shopping for a BUG and I didn't feel like waiting...I'd probably still be waiting if I ordered a P380. I don't mind Kahr triggers but I like the one on my P238 better. I didn't want the Keltec or the LCP, fired the LCP and it wasn't bad but not great either...the sights are not good at all.

Yes, it has an exposed hammer but much like a 1911 it has a beavertail and I've never had it snag. The safety also is rounded and much less prone to snagging and takes more effort to manipulate than the safety on my full size 1911. I do not at all feel nervous about carrying it cocked and locked. It is plenty small enough for pocket carry, I do not wear baggy clothing at all and it fits in my jeans just fine. It may look like a mini 1911 and like a 1911 it is SAO but the mechanics of the P238 vs 1911 are different. Mine has fed everything reliably without fail, I had one stovepipe using S&B ammo.

**Woof Woof** · October 2nd, 2009, 04:25 PM

The voice of experience here-I have both the Mustang & P238. Both are easy on the hand and a pleasure to shoot, I briefly had an LCP but that thing was a handful & it left for greener pastures.

Colt vs Sig: If I could only have one it would be the Sig but only because the sights are easier to acquire. Mags are interchangeable, I have even swapped the slides just to see what it looked like.

It is a comfort to just slip that little thing in your pocket holster & know it's there for a BUG.

**d90king** · October 2nd, 2009, 04:49 PM

Originally Posted by 1blindref

I haven't shot one yet, but I've held a few.
It is pretty much a Colt Mustang Pocketlite with only a few internal differences. Holsters are even the same.

I'm not a big fan of .380's so I won't be adding one to my collection, but from what I've read on the Sig Forum, those that have them are very happy with them.

Like these.

They are very, very easy shooters...

This Mustang is a "one off". It was built and left Colt after production had halted.

Note the ejection port and how nicely the grips fit, lol...

**synergy** · October 2nd, 2009, 11:21 PM

Originally Posted by Rule10b5

Nah. I had a Mustang Pocketlite for a couple of years and it wasn't even remotely a handful -- total pussycat, actually.

Given that the Mustang is 12.5 oz., and the P238 is 14 oz., and they're otherwise virtually identical, I suspect the P238 is even more mellow to shoot.

That said, I'm not sure why the heck someone would want a P238. It's not ideal size for pocket carry (plus it has an exposed hammer), and you're probably better off with a small belt holster. And it has all the inherent faults of a short barrel 1911 style pistol in terms of reliability. To say nothing of the fact at that a C&L SAO with no grip safety strikes me as pretty f'ing stupid for anything but belt or shoulder holster carry. You couldn't pay me to carry that in a pocket. And if you're going to belt carry, why not carry a more effective caliber and reliable platform?

And if you're stuck on .380, why wouldn't you want a perfectly decent Kahr P380, Ruger LCP, or Keltec P3AT? Cheaper, more reliable, and you can pocket carry any one of them...

I'm not bashing the P238 -- I loved my Mustang...it just didn't do anything for me in terms of carry, and I couldn't compete or hunt with it, which is why I sold it.

WTF is with you and using logic???

Don't you know that you can build the most impractical pistols imaginable, and kill the market with them?

*cough* Taurus Judge, Sig 556, pistol grip shotguns, KelTec PLR-16 *cough*