Sig Sauer P2022 Pre Range Review

I decided I would do a little pre range write up on the Sig Sauer P2022 that I picked up the middle of last week. A few weeks ago while I was at a gun show I had come across a dealer's table that mainly had Sig handguns with just a handful of other companies tossed in here and there. I was quickly drawn to the M11-A1 (P228) and the P226 (this was the first handgun I ever bought new), but since I was gun broke from buying all of my other toys I had to look to see what else there was within the price range that I could afford. I saw the P2022 and was surprised at the $549 price tag, partly because I thought it wasn't a bad price and partly because I had remembered seeing them for a lot less than that before the buying panic started. I picked it up and messed with it a bit and was very surprised to find that the typical quality that is known of Sig was still there despite being a polymer framed handgun, needless to say I quickly came to like the way the P2022 felt in my hands and was hoping that I would be able to find one a little more reasonably priced.

I know that my "gun guy" has been trying to get more handguns in stock and has been having a very hard time keeping them there when they finally arrived so when I checked his site and saw that there was a brand new P2022 in 9mm for $459, I knew that I was going to have to call first thing the next morning and put it on layaway until I could get down there to pick it up, otherwise it would have been gone within an hour of the shop opening. So I did just that, and I also set a Remington 870 18" Synthetic back also (more to come on that later), there was already someone looking at it when I let the shop know to set it aside and I am glad that I have a good enough reputation with them that they did just that. I went down a few days later and picked up both the Sig and the Remington and am currently waiting for the ground to dry up enough that I can make it out to the range and give them both a run out there.

As far as my initial thoughts on the Sig P2022 I will say that it is very closely related to the P226 even though it is a polymer frame, the way that it points is very natural and makes it feel like it is going to be a very accurate range gun. The trigger is heavy on the Double Action pull but it still feels controllable, and has a very crisp break. The single action is very very smooth with very little creep. Overall the controls are in very ergonomic positions and very easy to manipulate if your right handed. My biggest complaint is the fact that it only comes with 1 magazine, I like to have a minimum of 3 and for me to pick up 2 more I am looking at spending $95-$110 (depending on where I can find them) which this brings the overall price of the gun up.

Overall my initial thought on this gun is that it is built like a Sig, and the quality is there. Minus having only one mag the price is right. I am looking forward to running a couple hundred rounds down range this week and getting a better feel for the gun.

Initial Review of the Primary Arms 1-4X24 Scope

This is my second Primary Arms 1-4X24 scope, the first one that I had I ended up selling with the AR that it was mounted to, when I had used that one it required very little adjusting to get it zeroed in for the .300BLK that it was on. It was rock solid at holding a zero also, I bumped it a few times at the range on the tables and posts but it never lost the zero I had it set at. Overall I was impressed with that one and that is what influenced me to get another for the Spartan Build.

Originally I had gone with the Eotech and Magnifier setup but really did not like having to flip the magnifier to the side to be able to use the Eotech by itself, but I also wanted the ability to use adjustable zoom for different distances. I quickly traded off the Eotech and magnifier and for the past month or so I have been running with just the Magpul MBUS. When I started looking for a scope I found myself going back to the Primary Arms site and checking this scope out and seeing what others have had to say about there's since I bought the last one I had. Every time I have used Primary Arms I have always been impressed with their customer service, shipping, and product quality so I decided to go ahead and order this scope again.

When I ordered it I made sure to add on the Primary Arms Deluxe Extended Scope Mount since it saves $10 to order them as a package, the mount is super sturdy and holds the scope tightly in place. One of the things that I really like about Primary Arms is that they offer multiple options for shipping and USPS Priority is one of them and is almost always the cheapest. I ordered on Saturday and the package arrived Thursday (which includes the Holiday on Monday), very quick shipping on PA's part.

As soon as the box arrived yesterday I opened it up and got the scope mounted onto my AR, to say I was a little excited to get it would be a bit of an understatement (but then again I always like to get new parts for my guns). Once I had it all lined up and tightened down I stepped into the backyard to make sure that I could get the correct sight picture through the scope where I had it mounted. I had forgotten how clear the glass is on the scope, even thought the scope only cost me $180 with the mount and shipping. There have been other "cheap" scopes that I have had and not one of them can compare when it comes to the clarity of the PA 1-4x24 scope. The magnification adjustment is smooth and very easy to use. The flip up caps that come with it are cheaper but they work well, just make sure they are closed when not using the scope otherwise you might break them off.

The illuminated reticle is a nice touch when not in direct sunlight, there are 11 settings for the brightness of the dot which is a nice touch and gives the ability to keep the red dot from being "blown" out. The cross hairs on the reticle are clean and crisp, and with the magnification set at 1X it is very easy to use this scope with both eyes open.

Once I get the opportunity to head to the range and get the scope sighted in I will make sure to post a follow up review, and more thoughts on the scope.

Update on the "Halo" flashlight

I strongly recommend that everyone stay as far away from this flashlight as possible, tonight I was trying to use it and it kept flickering on and off, it wouldn't stay on no matter how much tapping or clicking I did. Also they cannot take the force of being dropped from 4 feet. It is not often that I strongly tell people to stay away from a product but this is one to avoid.

Guard Dog "Halo" Flashlight

I realized that once we had moved to Oklahoma that I needed to get my hands on a good flashlight for those times that we lost power or a natural disaster happened (thankfully we haven't had an issue with this yet), so I started to look around for flashlights that would be up for the task. One of the first ones that I picked up was the Guard Dog "Halo" flashlight, it has 3 different brightness settings and 2 signal settings (S.O.S. and Strobe).

When I first got it I was somewhat impressed with how sturdy it was, but let down by the fact that they did not put much into the quality of finishing it or the care of the laser engraving of the label. Yes I know those are little things but the details always speak loudly to me.

The first time I turned it on I had the lights off in the house and I was very impressed with how bright the highest setting was, it lit up the entire room and if someone was standing on the business end of it their night vision would be gone for a good amount of time. The other 2 settings are also useful if you need the batteries to last for longer periods of time. The S.O.S. works very well, as does the strobe option.

I will say that the biggest complaints that I have with this flashlight and the biggest reason I only have it as an emergency backup to another light is because it uses proprietary batteries that can only be charged with the charger that is sent with the flashlight, and replacement batteries cost too much to make it worth using this flashlight as a go to light. I also have had issues with the light turning on or staying on, the click switch is very picky and if you knock the flashlight against something it either switches modes or turns off, this is very frustrating and quickly made this flashlight a no go for everyday use as a carry flashlight.

For now my search for a quality but affordable everyday carry flashlight will continue, and hopefully sooner or later I will find one or just break down and buy an Elzetta.

Frog Lube

There have been many different CLP's that have been released, and I have tried a number of them and they all did what they were made to do. Cleaning your firearms and equipment is something that I feel is very important and the products you use should help make cleaning quick and easy.

The first time that I saw Frog Lube I had been searching around the different forums looking for a CLP that was non hazardous and didn't smell awful, I had been using Strikehold but wanted to find something else. Each and every site and forum I ran across had people who had been using Frog Lube for varying amounts of time and each of them could not say enough about the product. Needless to say I was sold so I ordered this set from Amazon, and with Prime shipping I had it just a couple days later.

One of the very first things that I noticed when I opened up the paste jar was that it filled the work area with a very mild scent of wintergreen, talk about a big change over the normal chemical smell. I read the directions for applying it and went straight into stripping all of the old CLP off of my handgun using alcohol, rags, and q-tips. When I was sure that I had cleaned off as much of the old stuff as I could I laid the parts of the gun outside in the sun to warm up. By warming up the materials it makes it much easier to apply the paste, but it also allows the paste to sink down deep into the pores of the materials. After the parts had warmed up I applied the paste to them and let them sit for about half an hour to cool down and the paste to solidify again before wiping the excess off, the thing that blew me away was when I wiped off the excess the amount of dirt and grime that had been pulled out of the material was pretty astonishing. I thought I had done a pretty good job of striping the parts down and removing all of the grime but there was plenty left over that had been removed by the Frog Lube, needless to say that was the first thing that had me sold and hooked on using Frog Lube exclusively.

Every firearm I have has been treated and cleaned with the Frog Lube paste and the liquid, I have found that when at the range even with hundreds of rounds between cleanings that the guns continue to stay slick in all of the critical areas. Also cleaning has become much easier since most of the time all I really have to do is take my microfiber cloth to the parts and wipe away the grime. I have only applied the paste once and haven't really seen the need to reapply it on any of the firearms at this point but I am sure after 1,000 rounds fired I will, but for now if I feel that there is an area that needs a little more attention or cleaning I will use the liquid from the kit and it usually will take care of any spots that may have become a little more grimy than others.

Overall I can say that I suggest Frog Lube if anyone is looking for a new CLP, especially if they are wanting a non hazardous one. The wintergreen smell makes the work area a little more pleasant to work in. So if anyone is looking to switch to something new make sure to go and check out their website and store.

Titan Reloading

I recently started looking for the dies that I need to load .300 Blackout and everywhere that I had looked was either out of stock or the prices on the dies had been raised to offset the lack of availability. However while searching I ran across Titan Reloading, and they actually had the Blackout Dies in stock and at a much lower price than what I had found on most other sites. I looked around for a bit on the site and placed the blackout dies and factory crimp die in the cart.

While I was checking out I noticed that the shipping prices were also very fair compared to what I have paid through other sites in the past. It was $8.75 for priority shipping of the 3 dies that I ordered, which I know is a very fair price for the speed of shipping that I got. So I placed the order and I quickly received the confirmation email. The order was placed on a Saturday and it shipped on Tuesday, with the high volume of sales all companies are seeing right now I was extremely pleased with how quickly the order shipped.

If anyone is looking for reloading dies and other parts I highly suggest using Titan Reloading, the pricing and shipping are extremely fair, and the order processing is stellar.

RCBS Stuck Case Removal Kit

When you reload there is always that possibility of getting a case stuck inside the sizing die, could be for a number of reasons that it happens too. Most likely though it will be because there was not enough sizing lube on the case, which then it gets stuck and the lip of the casing breaks off in the shell holder. It sucks when it happens, and I can remember the first time it happened to me. I was on a roll getting .300BLK and bang the press handle slammed down and the case was still in the die. That is by far a very frustrating thing thing to happen, and as a friend of mine who reloads told me "It's not if you will get a case stuck, it's when will you get a case stuck." and I knew it would happen sooner or later. When it did I placed the order for the RCBS Stuck Case Removal Kit, which came pretty highly recommended by a few other loaders that I know.

The primer pocket has to be drilled out so you can run a tap through it and the drill bit they send in the kit works very well cutting through the brass, and the tap works perfect in my drill. The step after that is to take the spacer and the bolt. Threading the bolt down and against the spacer pulls the case out of the die, and once it is out the last thing to remove is the case expander from inside the case.

It is a very simple task to complete, but when you get a case stuck and you don't have a kit to remove it you are very quickly brought to a stand still. I suggest that every reloader have some sort of stuck case removal kit, because as I said before it's not if you get a case stuck, it's when you get a case stuck.