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We're still trying to work out the issues. Sig will take the gun back for servicing but they clearly think the problem is the ammo. We had a couple more people look at the gun. The FTEs seem to occur after the gun is warmed up by running several magazines in a row. Two "experts" have suggested an extreme cleaning. I'm going to soak the barrel and the extractor in Hoppes then in CLP and make another trip to the range.

I've gone so far as to buy another gun for my wife but she insists, this was her first gun and she wants it to keep it.

Had a nice range trip today. Checked with one of the pros. He says the extractor looks good but when he fired both Magtech and Independence he had multiple FTEs. This pretty much eliminates 2. Shooter as the problem leaving:

1. Ammo

3. Gun

We will wait for the Blazer Brass (as recommended by the Sig). If the Ammo doe not resolve the problem, we'll send the gun back to Sig.

Thank you for all of the replies. You have given me a lot to think about and I have been thinking on it for several days. I've come to the conclusion that this reliability issue must be resolved. The gun is NOT reliable enough at this time. I think the situation is probably a combination of two or more of the following problems.

1. Ammo
2. Shooter
3. Gun

1. I found a source for Blazer Brass. This is one of the brands recommended by the Sig rep. I just ordered up 500 rounds. We'll see how this behaves.
2. If we are still having problems, we'll work on the shooter with some professional help. I do notice my wife has a higher failure rate than me.
3. If step 1 or 2 do not resolve the problem, we'll send the gun back to Sig.

warnmar10 wrote:

FCH wrote:...
Starting with a just cleaned and lubed gun, ...

How much lube and where are you applying it?

I use M-Pro 7. I put a couple of drops on a swab and run it through the barrel. I touch the tip of the lube bottle to the top of the barrel where it rubs on the slide. I touch the tip of the bottle to the frame rails where the slide contacts. Finally, I put just a small amount on the slide stop pin.

flechero wrote:7 failures in 57 rounds... IMO, not reliable. (it's failed with both shooters on several ammo types) But only you/her can decide if it's good enough for you or her.

Put it this way with my 2 primary carry guns... my 4" 1911 has gone over 4000 rounds with 1 failure... and that was a squib reload- not the gun's fault. The other has gone (unknown rounds but in the 1k-1.5K) and had 1 fte about 6 years ago but it was shot without the mag in it. My wife's results are similar, although her round counts are much lower.

You need to isolate the issue to her, the gun or the ammo and proceed accordingly. But I would never leave my wife a gun for SD/HD that has better than a 10% fail rate with her behind the trigger... Murphy will enter just ahead of the intruder.

I'd spend your next $100-$200 on a training class for her (or both as it's fun and helpful) to ensure that she is shooting properly and to be sure she can clear the weapon and get back into the fight in a couple seconds- then maybe shop for another gun option if that needs to happen.

Best of luck!

My frustration is not being able to isolate the issue. I don't think this rate of failure is acceptable but I have very little experience with semi-auto weapons. I'm pushing 4,000 rounds through my EDC, a CZ 75D Compact, and I have had 3 failures, none of with were the gun's fault. I also have a Kel-Tec Sub 2000 with well over 1,000 rounds and the only failure I have had with it was just this last trip when one of the aluminum Independence rounds failed to clear the ejection port. My 3rd semi-auto is a Marlin Model 60. It does have occasional failures but I've always thought it was the cheap 22LR ammo.

I'm thinking some time spent with a pro may be both fun and a good investment.

Vol Texan wrote:...Now it could be that it's a grip problem. I have a couple of my guns that my wife had a hard time shooting until she learned how to hold them well. Too much give in her grip caused it to not cycle well after firing, and we'd get all sorts of issues.

If you can isolate that as a problem, and then train the problem away, then good!

For a gun that I carry, I may be more tolerant to FTE issues. I practice a lot, and can clear it well. But for my wife, I want 99.99999% uptime on her carry gun. I don't want her to EVER have to clear a jam.

My wife keeps saying she thinks she may be part of the problem. She has a hard time with the slide (age related grip issues) and the FTEs almost always occur with the first round in the magazine. It is almost impossible to depress the slide stop so we chamber the first round by pulling back on the slide and releasing it. I wonder if my wife may be releasing the slide too slowly. That said, the FTEs have occurred for my friend and myself but at a much lower rate.

This may be a good excuse to buy a professional's time just to help us both!

I am trying to decide whether a gun is reliable enough to be my wife's EDC and/or our nightstand gun. The gun in question is a Sig P938. When we purchased the gun new, it had some issues. We sent it to Sig and they significantly improved its function. We are now almost a year and over 1,200 rounds later and having some issues. Here are some recent range reports.

Starting with a just cleaned and lubed gun, my wife fired 7 rounds of Hornady Critical Defense 115g with no problems. Then she fired about 50 rounds of Magtech 115g and had at least 7 Failure to Extract (FTE). Dropping the magazine and racking the slide always extracted the spent brass. A friend said it felt like the brass was kind of sticking while being extracted. He took the gun home and cleaned it with an "extreme" solvent that he said strips all fouling.

The next range trip, my wife and friend took turns firing another 50 rounds of Magtech. The failure rate was even worse, 8 or 9 FTEs. I called Sig and they said they had been having problems with Magtech and suggested I try some different ammo.

The next range trip, my wife fired 7 rounds of Hornady and 50 rounds of Perfecta 115g with no failures. I fired 14 rounds of Hornady, also with no failures.

Since I was buying the Magtech in 1000 round case lots, I dug into my stash for a couple of boxes from an earlier batch. On this trip, my wife fired 100 rounds of Magtech with 3 FTEs. She also fired 7 rounds of Hornady with no failures. I then fired 21 rounds of Independence aluminum 115g with 1 failure.

One good note. We have never had a failure with Hornady but then we have not shot more than 100 rounds.

So here are the questions,
1. Is this gun reliable enough to be my wife's EDC?
2. Is this gun reliable enough to be our nightstand gun?