In this age there’s another sub or micro compact pistol hiding under every rock, but one question has remained on my mind for quite some time: What about Sig? Their P320 ‘micro-compact’ is still a pretty chunky sidearm and while their 238 and 938’s are adorable, they’re still patterned off of the 1911. They weren’t ‘Sig’ enough in my eyes. With many of the big named brands already coming out with various updates to these itty bitty carry guns they’ve already had available for a few years..what about Sig?
This question finally has an answer: The P365. The name itself sounds kind of gimmicky but after having a chance to handle their latest polymer-framed carry gun the name does stick, and with good reason. The P365 is small. Really, really small. A width of one inch, a height of 4.3 inches, and a length of 5.8 inches. It’s also light. Really, really light. 17.8 ounces unloaded. It also holds ten rounds in a flush-fitting magazine, which suggests some warping of spatial dynamics. Pretty crazy stuff!
Starting with the basics this striker-fired 9x19mm (rated for +P ammo) has the customary three dot Sig night sights which I think are perfectly functional on just about any pistol, although their website both shows and lists their updated ‘XRay3’ sights. It has front and rear slide serrations, a thumb magazine release, a pinky extension floorplate which doesn’t add much bulk for some much-needed additional real estate, and an extended twelve round magazine. Twelve rounds! That’s two P938’s in one!
The frame has a proprietary accessory mount which looks very reminiscent of the older HK USP pistols and should be great for securely mounting lights or laser sights (both which Sig are currently developing) without catching on clothing or holsters like a more common Picatinny rail mount might. Take-down for disassembly was quite easy, though releasing the slide with the catch was a little tricky for me. As of this writing there is no external safety offered on this gun.
Then there’s the bore axis. For as much as I love Sig Sauer pistols, they do have a higher bore axis than many other handguns. With the P365 they’ve successfully brought the bore down into tiny gun territory.
First impressions of the P365 are really quite good. It fits well in the hand, it’s small, it’s incredibly light, it’s a lot of firepower on tap. Naturally this leads to the next important question: How well does it shoot? To be honest, your mileage may vary.
I’ve found that because of its size and feather-light mass this pistol does have some snap to it, even with 115 grain ‘range food.’ A decisive two-handed grip is necessary, though upon locking down on the grip I could easily pop off a volley of rounds in a respectable center mass group. While I won’t get into group sizes as it’s not a range gun, I can say that the P365 is indeed a very accurate pistol, though due to its intended role as an every day carry gun it’s more difficult to realize this full potential.
The trigger was one area which I was particularly critical of as, being perfectly honest, I don’t care for the P320 series’ trigger. My old Sig Pro 2009 is pretty darn good. My P226 Enhanced Elite with the short reset is downright lovely. The P365 I found to be quite agreeable overall. There’s a comfortable amount of take-up before it breaks, a little awkward for slow and accurate groups but very nice for a carry gun.
One point which I particularly liked is the trigger reset which absolutely communicated to me. The spring felt tuned just right that upon firing and letting up the trigger snapped back exactly where I wanted it to be for the next shot, snug against my finger and ready to go. I haven’t experienced any other trigger reset quite like this one. Whether Sig had engineered the reset with this in mind I don’t know but I really liked the way that it handled.
Something else had caught my eye while looking inside of the P365. Just like the 250/320’s the serial number was on the side of the trigger control group rather than stamped on a metal strip embedded within the polymer frame. At a glance it almost looked like the frame could be swapped out on this pistol, though with a bit more complexity than the 320. At this moment I have no way of knowing for certain if frame swaps are possible on this pistol. Nothing on Sig’s website suggests such a feature, though the one I had in my hand sure gave me the impression that it could be done… My fingers remain crossed.
While I really wish that I could give this pistol a perfect score, it only falls short in a couple of areas. Because of its small size and minimal weight, both excellent characteristics for a carry gun, one-handed shooting wasn’t very good. The texturing on the grip is quite subtle, very much like the P320. While this is great for not snagging on clothing or wearing holes in shirts it does make it more difficult to keep firmly planted within your palm while shooting. By comparison the Smith and Wesson Shield 2.0 has very aggressive texturing which might be uncomfortable for carrying but was fantastic for recoil control. Just like with size and weight, the ‘grippiness’ of any concealed carry firearm is a difficult subject to balance.
My next concern is the magazine release. In order to reach it I had to break my hold on the grip and even then the button is quite low and doesn’t communicate well. This became an awkward dance of adjusting my hand so I could reach the mag release, not cover the opposite side of the mag release with my palm or fingers, and still be able to push the release firmly enough to drop the mag. Curiously, this button also lacks any sort of surface texturing. In this regard I’m glad that the pistol holds so many rounds as fast reloads would be difficult, particularly while under stress.
One other issue to mention, while I hadn’t fired from a two handed lefty grip I was joined by two Southpaw shooters whom had both voiced issues with the ejecting brass striking their thumb. As a right-handed shooter I didn’t encounter any issues with ejection patterns.
The Sig P365 is a neat little carry gun with a lot to offer. As the name suggests this sidearm should be pleasantly comfortable for daily carry. Its magazine capacity is unrivaled in its class and its accuracy potential is very good. Unfortunately, while Sig seems to have done a wonderful job in engineering so many features into such a small package I feel that a few small details may benefit from some additional attention. If you are in need of a good self defense pistol I would absolutely suggest giving the P365 a closer look, though as compelled as I am by what this newest Sig has to offer I’m not quite willing to trade in my current model just yet.
