SIG Sauer made worldwide news with the announcement in early 2017 that it had won the Modular Handgun System trials with a modified variant of its P320 handgun platform. Two variants of the gun were selected for military service: a full-size M17 and a compact M18. The U.S. Army selected the M17 as its primary duty handgun, with the smaller M18 serving in select roles. However, the U.S. Marine Corps liked the M18 and soon adopted it as its primary service pistol. At the end of 2019, SIG Sauer announced a consumer variant of this compact gun in the form of its P320-M18.
“Since the official selection of the M17 and M18 by the U.S. Army for the Modular Handgun System (MHS), we’ve seen significant civilian interest to own both variants of the handguns. The P320-based M17 and M18 are among the most tested handguns in history and the pair has been proven to be unmatched in both accuracy and reliability,” said Tom Taylor, chief marketing officer and executive vice president, commercial sales. “We are very proud that with the P320-M18, civilians can now own the same innovation and versatility that has made either the M17 and M18 the handgun of choice for all branches of the U.S. Military.”
Spec-wise, the SIG Sauer P320-M18 is the same gun adopted as the service sidearm of the U.S. Marine Corps. The gun is constructed with a stainless-steel chassis that sits inside of a flat-dark-earth polymer grip frame, and the slide is also machined from stainless steel. The barrel is machined from carbon steel and features a nitride finish to protect it from wear and corrosion. Barrel length measures 3.9 inches long, and the overall dimension of the gun are 7.2 inches long, 5.5 inches high and 1.6 inches wide.
One difference consumers will note in the P320-M18 versus the military variant is the use of black-finished controls versus the FDE-colored controls found on the military gun. This difference first emerged in the launch of SIG's P320-M17, the commercial variant of the full-size M17 service pistol, and it continues into the compact commercial version. However, all other elements are preserved between military and commercial models. The P320-M18 includes SIGLITE night sights and also features a removable slide plate that allows for the mounting of compatible optics, like SIG's Romeo1Pro.
Each SIG Sauer P320-M18 ships with a single 17-round magazine and two 21-round magazines. For more information on the new P320-M18, visit sigsauer.com.
“Since the official selection of the M17 and M18 by the U.S. Army for the Modular Handgun System (MHS), we’ve seen significant civilian interest to own both variants of the handguns. The P320-based M17 and M18 are among the most tested handguns in history and the pair has been proven to be unmatched in both accuracy and reliability,” said Tom Taylor, chief marketing officer and executive vice president, commercial sales. “We are very proud that with the P320-M18, civilians can now own the same innovation and versatility that has made either the M17 and M18 the handgun of choice for all branches of the U.S. Military.”
Spec-wise, the SIG Sauer P320-M18 is the same gun adopted as the service sidearm of the U.S. Marine Corps. The gun is constructed with a stainless-steel chassis that sits inside of a flat-dark-earth polymer grip frame, and the slide is also machined from stainless steel. The barrel is machined from carbon steel and features a nitride finish to protect it from wear and corrosion. Barrel length measures 3.9 inches long, and the overall dimension of the gun are 7.2 inches long, 5.5 inches high and 1.6 inches wide.
One difference consumers will note in the P320-M18 versus the military variant is the use of black-finished controls versus the FDE-colored controls found on the military gun. This difference first emerged in the launch of SIG's P320-M17, the commercial variant of the full-size M17 service pistol, and it continues into the compact commercial version. However, all other elements are preserved between military and commercial models. The P320-M18 includes SIGLITE night sights and also features a removable slide plate that allows for the mounting of compatible optics, like SIG's Romeo1Pro.
Each SIG Sauer P320-M18 ships with a single 17-round magazine and two 21-round magazines. For more information on the new P320-M18, visit sigsauer.com.
