I used to have a Sig P226 but lost it in the lake years ago. Sad.

My friend also owns a P226 and has made a new years resolution to get to the range a more. So we went to shoot it today and about one of every 5-7 rounds was jamming. Spent casing is ejected, but gun does not return to battery (like when you fire the last round in a mag). Did a clean/lube which did not make a difference. Tried two different mags with no difference, although they are both the originals that came with the gun when he bought it ~10 years ago.

I was thinking of trying a new mag or new spring, but honestly I'm not that great a troubleshooting them. Any thoughts or resources on the process I'd use to troubleshoot this problem? My friend would appreciate it.

Honestly, sounds like like a firm grip maybe the issue.

What did your friend use to clean and lube with?

Your grip is likely pushing the slide stop up as your fire, which would lead to good ejection but the slide locking back. It's a problem some folks have with sigs.

Try shooting one handed with your right hand only and see if the problem goes away.

AggieEE2002 said:

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I used to have a Sig P226 but lost it in the lake years ago. Sad.

My friend also owns a P226 and has made a new years resolution to get to the range a more. So we went to shoot it today and about one of every 5-7 rounds was jamming. Spent casing is ejected, but gun does not return to battery (like when you fire the last round in a mag). Did a clean/lube which did not make a difference. Tried two different mags with no difference, although they are both the originals that came with the gun when he bought it ~10 years ago.

I was thinking of trying a new mag or new spring, but honestly I'm not that great a troubleshooting them. Any thoughts or resources on the process I'd use to troubleshoot this problem? My friend would appreciate it.

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At first you mention "jamming", but then you seem to go on to state that the gun won't return to battery, which means the slide is locking open when it shouldn't. If it is truly jamming, what position is the cartridge in when it is jammed?

BenderRodriguez said:

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Your grip is likely pushing the slide stop up as your fire, which would lead to good ejection but the slide locking back. It's a problem some folks have with sigs.

Try shooting one handed with your right hand only and see if the problem goes away.

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That is the first thing I had in mind, but wanted to make sure the gun was really jamming, or just not cycling correctly.

Funny thing about this situation - every person who I have corrected doing this initially denied they were doing it. Every single one. For some reason, no one likes to believe that they are the problem, instead of the handgun.

BenderRodriguez said:

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Your grip is likely pushing the slide stop up as your fire, which would lead to good ejection but the slide locking back. It's a problem some folks have with sigs.

Try shooting one handed with your right hand only and see if the problem goes away.

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As far as a firm grip goes, he has shot it a lot in the past and not had this problem. But that was 5+ years ago, the last time it was used regularly. Been sitting in a safe since then.

Caladan said:

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AggieEE2002 said:

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I used to have a Sig P226 but lost it in the lake years ago. Sad.

My friend also owns a P226 and has made a new years resolution to get to the range a more. So we went to shoot it today and about one of every 5-7 rounds was jamming. Spent casing is ejected, but gun does not return to battery (like when you fire the last round in a mag). Did a clean/lube which did not make a difference. Tried two different mags with no difference, although they are both the originals that came with the gun when he bought it ~10 years ago.

I was thinking of trying a new mag or new spring, but honestly I'm not that great a troubleshooting them. Any thoughts or resources on the process I'd use to troubleshoot this problem? My friend would appreciate it.

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At first you mention "jamming", but then you seem to go on to state that the gun won't return to battery, which means the slide is locking open when it shouldn't. If it is truly jamming, what position is the cartridge in when it is jammed?

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The slide is locking open. I used the word 'jam' incorrectly.

AggieEE2002 said:

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Caladan said:

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AggieEE2002 said:

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I used to have a Sig P226 but lost it in the lake years ago. Sad.

My friend also owns a P226 and has made a new years resolution to get to the range a more. So we went to shoot it today and about one of every 5-7 rounds was jamming. Spent casing is ejected, but gun does not return to battery (like when you fire the last round in a mag). Did a clean/lube which did not make a difference. Tried two different mags with no difference, although they are both the originals that came with the gun when he bought it ~10 years ago.

I was thinking of trying a new mag or new spring, but honestly I'm not that great a troubleshooting them. Any thoughts or resources on the process I'd use to troubleshoot this problem? My friend would appreciate it.

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At first you mention "jamming", but then you seem to go on to state that the gun won't return to battery, which means the slide is locking open when it shouldn't. If it is truly jamming, what position is the cartridge in when it is jammed?

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The slide is locking open. I used the word 'jam' incorrectly.

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Making more sense now.

Although there might be a small chance that a magazine is to blame, it is much more likely that the shooter is to blame, as described in Mr. Rodriguez's post above. Good thing is, it's a relatively easy fix.

Caladan said:

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AggieEE2002 said:

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Caladan said:

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AggieEE2002 said:

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I used to have a Sig P226 but lost it in the lake years ago. Sad.

My friend also owns a P226 and has made a new years resolution to get to the range a more. So we went to shoot it today and about one of every 5-7 rounds was jamming. Spent casing is ejected, but gun does not return to battery (like when you fire the last round in a mag). Did a clean/lube which did not make a difference. Tried two different mags with no difference, although they are both the originals that came with the gun when he bought it ~10 years ago.

I was thinking of trying a new mag or new spring, but honestly I'm not that great a troubleshooting them. Any thoughts or resources on the process I'd use to troubleshoot this problem? My friend would appreciate it.

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At first you mention "jamming", but then you seem to go on to state that the gun won't return to battery, which means the slide is locking open when it shouldn't. If it is truly jamming, what position is the cartridge in when it is jammed?

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The slide is locking open. I used the word 'jam' incorrectly.

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Making more sense now.

Although there might be a small chance that a magazine is to blame, it is much more likely that the shooter is to blame, as described in Mr. Rodriguez's post above. Good thing is, it's a relatively easy fix.

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If it's locking open, Bender is spot on.

If it turns out to be the slide stop and I think it is; you can order the slide stop used in a Legion p226 from sig (part#1201455-R) its an easy upgrade. Has a smaller profile and remedies a lot of the struggles folks have with the placement of the slide stop.

I am certainly the issue is your friend is riding the slide stop. But as long as that gun has sat, you should disassemble the magazines and clean them. You might also consider a new recoil spring.

I do like the idea of a lower profile slide stop too.

average_joker said:

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What did your friend use to clean and lube with?

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That's getting kind of personal, don't you think?

Does this happen when the mag is empty?

On my Sig P226 and one of my mags it will not keep the slide racked back. I have figured out it was the magazine follower. The part on the mag follower that hits the slide stop has worn out and i need to replace the magazine follower. I just can't seem to fine one online to order it. Sig's website does not have them listed for a .40 cal. I may call and ask them to sell me one.

AggieEE2002 said:

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I used to have a Sig P226 but lost it in the lake years ago. Sad.

My friend also owns a P226 and has made a new years resolution to get to the range a more. So we went to shoot it today and about one of every 5-7 rounds was jamming. Spent casing is ejected, but gun does not return to battery (like when you fire the last round in a mag). Did a clean/lube which did not make a difference. Tried two different mags with no difference, although they are both the originals that came with the gun when he bought it ~10 years ago.

I was thinking of trying a new mag or new spring, but honestly I'm not that great a troubleshooting them. Any thoughts or resources on the process I'd use to troubleshoot this problem? My friend would appreciate it.

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You lost a $1000 beautiful Sig in the lake?

I did break down both the mags and they were absolutely filthy. I cleaned one of them up. As soon as I get the chance I'll try various combinations of clean/dirty mag and careful attention to keep dominant thumb away from slide stop.

This was happening at pretty much every position in the mag.

Not to derail but what do you guys think about the 226? Specifically the posters with lots of range and competition/training time. It's on my wishlist, one of those pistols everyone should own some have said, but I got diverted into CZ's. I've been looking at the Legion SAO. Use would be HD and possibly competition some day.

gibberish said:

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If it turns out to be the slide stop and I think it is; you can order the slide stop used in a Legion p226 from sig (part#1201455-R) its an easy upgrade. Has a smaller profile and remedies a lot of the struggles folks have with the placement of the slide stop.

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I had a similar problem with my 226. I did this and it's been shooting great ever since.

dr_boogs said:

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Not to derail but what do you guys think about the 226? Specifically the posters with lots of range and competition/training time. It's on my wishlist, one of those pistols everyone should own some have said, but I got diverted into CZ's. I've been looking at the Legion SAO. Use would be HD and possibly competition some day.

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I love mine! It's in my top 3.

dr_boogs said:

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Not to derail but what do you guys think about the 226? Specifically the posters with lots of range and competition/training time. It's on my wishlist, one of those pistols everyone should own some have said, but I got diverted into CZ's. I've been looking at the Legion SAO. Use would be HD and possibly competition some day.

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P226 is a solid reliable pistol for HD and duty. That's what it was designed to do well.

It is not necessarily the best competition pistol since it's not its intended design. Even tuning the p226, it cannot achieve the same light weight trigger pull weights as some CZ or Tanfos due to the trigger geometry. Additionally, In USPSA For example the SAO you are considering is not legal for production. It would put you in limited. And then you would need to go with .40 for major scoring.

That's not to say don't compete with a standard DA/SA P226 9mm in production. The reliability alone in my opinion makes it better than a 2011. just understand its a duty pistol not a gamer gun.

Rented one at a range and absolutely loved it. An absolute pleasure to shoot. Just not sure what I would use its not cheap. I think I might end up getting the smaller 229 one day as I think it is more practical for what I need,.

How many rounds have gone thru it? All the springs should be changed periodically. Especially the recoil spring

OP checking in. I was really hoping y'all were right about bumping the side stop with my thumb. Shot about 50 rounds this afternoon and tried various positions with right thumb as far away from the lever as possible. I still had the issue of the slide locking back on about 15 of those rounds.

I had another shooter shoot 10 rounds and he did have one round with the problem.

So I'm back to what I should do. I have never disassembled the gun beyond field stripping it for cleaning. I'd kinda like to take it apart and figure out what exactly causes the slide to lock but it might be easier to just take it to a smith.

Anyone have thoughts?

MisterShipWreck said:

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How many rounds have gone thru it? All the springs should be changed periodically. Especially the recoil spring

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I'd estimate 1-2k rounds.

Smoke_d said:

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Does this happen when the mag is empty?

On my Sig P226 and one of my mags it will not keep the slide racked back. I have figured out it was the magazine follower. The part on the mag follower that hits the slide stop has worn out and i need to replace the magazine follower. I just can't seem to fine one online to order it. Sig's website does not have them listed for a .40 cal. I may call and ask them to sell me one.

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I did not try this today but will get to it tomorrow.

Given your stated level of skill and the type of malfunction, I'd recommend calling and sending it back to Sig.
there is not a lot of things that can push the slide stop up and if you are 100% certain it is not you that means something is really bent out of shape. So best send it on a trip home.

ETA: I'd have them install the smaller slide stop while it's in Exeter.

Thanks!

AggieEE2002 said:

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Smoke_d said:

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Does this happen when the mag is empty?

On my Sig P226 and one of my mags it will not keep the slide racked back. I have figured out it was the magazine follower. The part on the mag follower that hits the slide stop has worn out and i need to replace the magazine follower. I just can't seem to fine one online to order it. Sig's website does not have them listed for a .40 cal. I may call and ask them to sell me one.

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I did not try this today but will get to it tomorrow.

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Ok I misread this initially. When the mag is empty the slide locks back like it is supposed to. I misread your post as asking if this happens without a mag. It sounds like I'm having the opposite problem - instead of not keeping the slide back, it keeps it back even when there are still rounds in the mag.

Just a quick follow up in case anyone else has this problem in the future:

I found a copy of the P226 armorers manual online:
http://stevespages.com/pdf/sig_p226_combat_pistol_armorer%27s_manual.pdf

After reading through that I decided to replace the slide catch lever spring which was about $4. Also went ahead and bought a new slide catch lever as well ($25 or so). Went through about 50 rounds this afternoon with zero issues.

New spring is on top.

Good stuff! Glad it's back in business.

Good job