P322 Vs P365 - The Sig P322, released earlier this year, attracted a lot of attention with its 20-round dual-stack magazines and optics-compatible slide. These features are often requested, but rarely found in .22 LR revolvers. Did Sig design the most cutting-edge .22 LR pistol we've seen in years, or does the execution leave something to be desired?
Hello everyone, this is Chris Baker. Today we are reviewing the new Sig Sauer P322. The semi-automatic .22 LR is a rifle with a few nice features not often seen in other 22s: an optics compatible slide and 20-round dual-stack magazines.
P322 Vs P365
The P322 is similar to a .22 practice pistol in that it looks and feels like a defensive style pistol. But unlike rimfire trainers like the Glock 44 or FN 502 Tactical, the P322 is not a .22 version of an existing model. The size is the same as the P320 Compact, but the design is different and it is much smaller. This means that it is not compatible with existing Sig model cases.
Sig P322 And Fn 502 Tactical Comparison.
It looks like Sig would probably want something that would work as a practice gun, be it the P320 or the P365. This is similar to what Smith & Wesson did with the M&P 22 Compact, which is somewhere between the Centerfire Compact and the original Single Stack in size.
This makes it easier to compare as I have been a huge fan of the M&P 22 Compact since its release eight years ago. Even though I no longer have any M&P centerfire revolvers, I have kept the 22 Compact as it has been very reliable and is just a well designed .22 pistol. As far as I'm concerned, it's a go-to weapon for any new defensive style 22.
One thing the M&P Compact lacks that I wish it had was an easy way to add a red dot sight. There are optical mounting plates that fit into the rear dovetail area. But the gun was not designed for this extra weight, which often compromises reliability.
That's why the Sig P322 grabbed me. The slide comes from the factory with a cutout to accommodate the red dot optic. You only need to remove a few screws to remove the rear assembly, then you can mount the built-in red dot optic. Designed to fit the Sig Romeo Zero red dot. That doesn't include the gun, but we happened to have one seated, so we kept driving it. Any other lens with an RMSc footprint should also be fine. Adapter plates are available from third-party manufacturers for other optical measurements such as RMR.
Sig Sauer P322 Review
If you're just looking for a .22 with a red dot, we've offered target-style .22s with this feature for years. But that's not something that's easily found in the 22's defensive style. FN released an optics-ready 502 last year, and that was a first as far as I can tell. I believe this makes the P322 second.
Another nice feature here is the dual stack 20 round flush magazine. Almost all other .22 rifles have a single stack of 10 rounds.
The FN 502 comes with an extended 15 round magazine, but it is still a single stack. The Keltec CP33 has those crazy four-stack magazines. But in general, rimfire rifles already have enough of a challenge with reliable power and that's why most manufacturers stick with the proven single-battery design. If Sig cracked the code on the Dual Stack 22 Pistol Magazine, that would be a significant achievement.
So right off the bat, the P322 looks very promising. A few other features here: unloading is quick and easy. You just need to lock the slide open, rotate the disassembly lever, lift the slide and slide it forward to remove it. Inside the frame here you can see a hammer that has been hammered. Single action design with ambidextrous manual safety. Sleek safety design with excellent click and close. The gun comes with a flat shoe included, but there's also a curved shoe included in the box if you want to switch that up. The muzzle is connected and with the included adapter you can attach a suppressor.
Sig Sauer P322: Fun, Affordable And Great For Learning
That's a lot of power. Did this Sig P322 live up to that potential? I'm so sorry to say that didn't happen.
Let's start with the pull of the trigger. To be honest, this is more of a quibble than a serious complaint. It's a little squishy feeling. After the first pull, the trigger has a springy plastic feel that you get with other shotguns. It's not as sharp as the competing P320s and P365s I've photographed. So if you want to use it as a training analog for your centerfire Sig, don't expect the trigger to feel the same.
A very accurate weapon. I was able to get a few groups of 5 rounds under an inch from a 25 yard rest. But it's hard to take advantage of this precision advantage with an average trigger.
The slide stopper does not work properly. *Locks slowly* Slider is open. The slide will close if you just watch it funny. Each time you insert a loaded magazine. The slide does not always lock open after firing the last shot. If so, when you remove the magazine, the slide closes. It gets worse when the gun is hot. It looks good now, but every time we take it to the range the slide stop issues come back.
P365 Xmacro Redefines Compact Capacity With 17 Round Mags
Double stack magazines work surprisingly well. We put over 1000 rounds in the gun, all with the two magazines that came in the box. We tried several types of ammunition. I did not like the Federal Punch self-defense ammunition at all. He didn't even want to play the first round of this thing. This isn't too surprising as this charge uses an unusual bullet shape. Along with so many other things, it is fed very faithfully. We've probably had power issues, and at least one of those incidents was caused by the charger not charging properly. About half of the ammo we went through was 40 round nose CCI Mini-Mags, and he seemed to have no problem rolling that load.
However, we experienced several misfires in all the charges we tried. They are more common when the gun starts to get dirty. But even when it was clean and freshly oiled, we could still click where we expected the sound to be.
Of course, the problem with flashbacks is one that often plagues 22 Pistols in general. Whenever a new model comes out, we always hope it finds a way to get reliable ignition. Unfortunately, Sig cannot solve this problem with the P322.
The last problem I want to address didn't show up until we put about 400 rounds into the P322. Our cameraman, Kenneth, was firing our gun from 50 yards and disappeared. So he fired a few rounds five meters into the bullseye of the B-8 and this is what it looked like. Difficult extraction of keys due to falling balls or yawning in flight. He inspected the barrel and saw that the tip was marked by a buildup of lead, especially in the muzzle.
The Sig P322 And Why 2022 Is The Year Of The .22lr
We cleaned the gun and came out the next day. After a few hundred more turns we saw a little wrench here and there, but nothing like before. I guess most of the leads came from the unsatisfied bullets we fired the day before.
Anyway, I've looked around online and it's a common problem with the P322. I don't know if the barrels are out of specification or something, but it seems many other P322 owners have experienced unusual lead buildup. As in our case, the first signal generally decreases the accuracy and manipulation of the target.
Now, even with all these issues, I still have hope that the Sig P322 can be a good gun. Maybe not this particular P322. This one needs a lot of work. Maybe Sig will fix it for us. But I think most of these issues, aside from the spongy trigger, are manufacturing faults rather than design flaws.
Unfortunately, it's common these days for gunsmiths to treat new recruits like their guinea pigs. They expect customers to tell them what problems have occurred in production. Then they make the necessary changes for the next batch of guns. That's why it's almost always a good idea to wait at least a year before buying a new model; especially if it is a completely new design like the Sig P322.
Sig Sauer P322 Holster
And I'm not trying to divide
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