After years of just shooting my G17 and 608 I feel the need for another handgun. The 608 has been sold a while back so it's really time to finally replace it.

 

After a lot of internet research and just plain desire I'm down to the Sig P226, Sig P220 or a 1911. I know I'm comparing apples to oranges and not sure if I want to step into the addiction that the 1911 is. The 1911 I would get would be in the same price range as the Sigs. I've also wanted a Sig for a long time, couldn't afford it when I got my Glock.

So if anyone can give me anymore insight on the 3 I would appreciate it. Which way would you go, Sig or 1911?

My personal opinion, P226. You can get caliber conversion kits (.22, 9mm, .40s&w, .357sig) to shoot multiple calibers without needing an additional permit/gun. Plus if you want a back-up HD gun, you'll have at least 13-15 round mag capacities compared to 8 rounds for the .45s. But if you really have a .45acp craving, that's another story.

Nothing wrong with a 226 as above. But if you're torn between a 1911 and Sig, take a look at the several variants of the Sig P220 SAO. (single action only) This behaves like a 1911, but it's a Sig and not as fussy as some of the 1911s are.

 

My instructor at Sig relied on this pistol in competitions shooting against mainly 1911s. And the trigger is very good.

i vote sig too.  but i'd vote p228 personally.  

I'll say 1911. I had a Sig p220 and it was a very nice gun but does not compare to a 1911, especially the trigger. Sig makes some nice 1911's.

If you dont have one then you owe it to yourself to get a 1911.

Everyone needs a .44 Magnum...

Sig Nightmare

Thanks guys, leaning more and more towards the p226 but will definitely check out the p220 SAO. O course I will keep going back and forth a couple million times while waiting for my permits.

definitely get a 1911. i wasnt a fan of sig. i sold my sig after two months. some people love them but i dont see what all of the hype is about. Ive shot many of them and dont understand it. for the money a sig will cost you can get a much nicer 1911

OP: I didn't mention it originally because I thought you were focused on .45. But there is one SAO version of the P226 in 9mm only:

 

http://www.sigsauer.com/CatalogProductDetails/p226-elite-sao.aspx

 

One thing though; if your thoughts included using a P226 with future conversion kits, I'm not sure those kits are compatible with the SAO frame.

I say 1911 also.  I had a P229 - it was actually my first handgun.  After years of not wanting to get rid of it because it was my first, I finally traded it in.  Interestingly for a Sig 1911.  I'm very glad I did.  I'm not a big fan of SA/DA semi-autos... I say stick with DAO or SAO to keep that same trigger pull every time.  Grab a full size 1911 and enjoy!

I would avoid any modern SIG. The company did put out outstanding guns, but those days are over. Their quality went down the crapper in the last 10 years.

As for the 1911, really do your research, as the number of bad 1911s out there is far greater than the number of good ones.