My 239 9mm was off duty to my 226 9mm for 12 years. Then I retired. Shield 9 came along and the 239 was pushed further back in the safe. The 239 is a very accurate pistol and shot well with GDHP 124gr +P. It shot well with every thing I fed it. My wife may take my Shield, so the 239 and I will get re-aquainted. It is FLAT, Smooth DA/SA FCG. The Trijicon night sights are DEAD/RIP. I am looking at options for new sighting system…XS, Ameriglo, Trijicon ?? IDK yet.
RWH - the Trijicon HDs deserve a good look. They combine some good features. I played with a set recently and was impressed. The front sight really stands out. The rear is a serrated face U notch. They make them for SIGs, but they are a bit pricy. I used XS Big Dots for a while, but had a hard time getting used to that shallow V rear sight. The HDs are the same concept, but allow for a more traditional sight picture for longer range shots.
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I disagree with this statement. It’s the shooter, not the gun that limits 99.9% of shooting performance. I see virtually zero difference in splits when shooting a Walther PPQ and a SIG P226. Many people piss all over DA/SA due to their inability to handle that first DA shot. I will say, SFA pistols are more forgiving for the lesser skilled.
Or just easier to operate off the bat.
Agreed. Best of both worlds, IMO.
Bet your life on it reliability, enough said IMHO:cool:.
I disagree.
And actually I think an exposed hammer gun beats the hell out of striker fired gun 100% of the time.
Would you expand upon the statement in bold?
I have carried a 239 off duty for years. I decided to replace it earlier this year with a Glock 19 because it seems that everyone loves that gun and it was ballyhooed as the ultimate combat pistol. I found that the G19 is not all it has been reported to be. I recently dumped it and went back to my 239. A ten round gun with a nine round backup mag is more than enough for off duty use. Some complain about the weight and size of the 239 for the amount of bullets it carries. I view those considerations as a plus. It is a small gun that shoots like a big gun.
My agency issues the P226R-9mm so the P239 is a natural choice for off duty carry. I have one that was made in early 1996, which is the year the P239 came out. With Hogue finger groove grips I can run it almost as fast as I do my P226R. As stated above, the weight makes it very shootable. I think that Sig struck a great balance with size vs “shootability”. There are many small single stack 9mm guns on the market today. In my opinion the P239 is the most shootable and handles closest to a full size.
Lastly, I too like the exposed hammer as I appendix carry it in a 3 speed holster. I like riding the hammer when I holster it.
Two rules in a gun fight.
- Someone is going to lose.
- I’m going to win.
I can’t see how you can think that at all. I mean really. It’s like instead of using my washer and dryer at home, I go down to the lake with a washboard and bar of soap and scrub and hang dry my laundry kind of retarded.
I have going to have to agree with you on that. I have been issued or owed M9s and Sigs since the mid 1990s. With two hand support I would say that a skilled DA/SA shooter can match a skilled striker fired shooter pretty well in speed and accuracy on the first shot. However, it gets considerably more difficult to keep that first DA shot fast and accurate while shooting single handed. Length of trigger pull plays a huge role in inherent accuracy, and the longer and harder the pull the harder it is to maintain good performance. A half cocked or SA trigger is far easier to shoot well one handed than in any DA or DAO mode.
What does having a second hand on the gun help you just pull a trigger? All the support hand does is help stabilize your aim and aid in recoil management. Go out and time yourselves and measure your groups. Run a striker gun then run a DA/SA gun, run it from the holster. You should see the results pretty plainly like I have. As most here I had to run one in the past, be it a M9 or someother flavor. DA/SA is for the most part is pretty antiquated at this moment in time considering there are better options out there now.
I have owned a 239 and other common carry guns such as a PPS, G26, 2000sk
It’s a decent gun.
Pros:
- while heavier than other options, it’s smaller grip and single stack size make it a decent carry
- for a Carry gun, it has really nice typical sig trigger (if you like DA/SA or can dig the DAK thing)
- generally a reliable gun. While sig is out of favor these days mine ran great and you do not hear about alot of 239 problems
- accurate weapon and I think a good shooter for something in a carry package
Cons: only real cons are when comparing to other weapons froma size/wieght/capacity standpoint. It’s bigger/heavier and holds a few less rounds. On the other hand I could shoot my 239 better than a G26.
I no longer own one and dont really have any interest it. But if you like the sig manual of arms. I think it can be quite a nice carry gun. I has typical sig’s smooths lines, smooth feeling slide and smooth trigger
I think the comment regarding the exposed hammer may have to do with reholstering. When off duty I carry AIWB in a 3 Speed holster. I like being able to place my thumb on the rear of the slide next to the hammer. It allows me to feel any movement in the hammer (ie, if the trigger was caught on something, etc).
Two rules in a gun fight.
- Someone is going to lose.
- I’m going to win.
I have a P239 in .40. For its size, it handles the recoil of a .40 very well. Extremely accurate with a decent trigger. A bonus is my girlfriend likes the small size and shoots it well. Larger capacity would be nice, but this gun will stay in my collection.
I’ve owned personal P239s in 9mm, and was briefly issued a P239 DAK in .40. I have none of them anymore. For me, they don’t fit any role in my carry models. They are slim and slick, so nice to carry IWB, but dreadfully heavy. The Nitron finish on the ones I owned was not very rust resistant. Capacity is limited. Many shooters using a modern thumbs forward grip or just having M-L hands will find they inadvertently “ride” the slide stop lever, causing the slide to go forward over an empty magazine.
When all is said and done, if I NEED something more “concealable” than my G19, my preference is for the Kahr PM9 or P9.
With SFA choices like the slim Shield out, I would be hard pressed to choose the P239 unless not having a choice. Even with LEO/Mil discount, the Shield will be considerably less. Coupled with SFA trigger, same capacity, light weight…pretty much answers it for me. As someone already mentioned, try some DA/SA drills one handed - that will make anyone who’s not a sponsored shooter rethink it.
Very similar to my experience with 239 in 9mm. The P239 was an okay gun, but a rotary phone in a smart phone world. It still works, as does a $100-something Hi-Point, but everything else is more versatile and more optimized package.
I did not experience any rusting issues but the slide stop and other issues undermined my confidence in the gun.
I was interested to read the law enforcement uses of the gun in this thread. In my area, our state intelligence agents were the only agency I was aware of that ever issued a P239. Nor did my officers purchase them as an off-duty or back-ups, likely due to price. As many have stated, for the price, the options today are much improved over almost 15 years ago.
The 239 is the perfect size for me and I’m glad Sig didn’t try to make it hold more rounds.