Preface
I remember the day I was first infected, it was before the turn of the century at a tightly packed local gun shop in Salt Lake City Utah. It was the day I picked up my first P-series pistol from Sig Sauer. I walked out of that shop carrying a Sig P239 compact, but it was just the beginning of my love affair with them. I’ve since enjoyed 220’s, 226’s, 229’s and of course the very popular P320. Today I bring you another variant of the popular striker fired pistol; the Sig Sauer P320 AXG Legion.
The AXG Legion is a slight departure from the rest of the P320 family, in that it uses an aluminum grip module. While this may seem counterintuitive, it is dead sexy and reminds me of the impure thoughts the P226 once inspired in me. Apart from its non-polymer grip module, the AXG Legion also incorporated a ported slide to compensate for muzzle-rise. It does this while maintaining the same footprint and familiarity of the popular M17 variant of the P320. Additionally, like most modern pistols the AXG Legion comes optics ready for your favorite red dot.
Sig Sauer P320 AXG Legion
P320 AXG LEGION FEATURES:
- Length: 8.2 Inches
- Width: 1.6 Inches
- Height: 5.5 inches
- Barrel Length: 3.9 Inches
- Weight: 36.1 Ounces
- Sight Radius: 5.9 Inches
- Two Port Slide Integrated Expansion Chamber for recoil mitigation
- Optic Ready Slide with enhanced serrations
- AXG Grip Module with installed Magwell and Hogue Custom G10 Grips
- X Flat Skeletonized Trigger
- XRay3 Day/Night Sights
- (3) 21rd or (3) 10rd Steel Magazines
- Romeo Pro footprint
Like most P320 pistols the AXG Legion has a suite of features that make it both adaptably modern, as well as historically rugged. (insert your “gun goes off” jokes here). Things like a picatinny accessory rail and night sights will make the gun familiar to those familiar with tactical pistols. And more modern features like the optics ready slide and muzzle compensator will impress even those who nerd out over such things.
The added weight of the AXG aluminum grip module makes the gun feel very potent, as well as keeping it pretty mild under recoil. It really feels like you’ve got a hold of something when you pick it up. The very same P320 trigger pack drops into the frame, like every other P320 pistol. Additionally the AXG comes with a flared aluminum magazine well, and some handsome grips that give it a pretty classy look.
The flat trigger feels nice and looks sharp as well, and the pistol uses the longer full-size 17 and up magazines. It comes with three of the larger 21-round magazines, and I had more from my P320 X5 Legion which uses the same.
Lastly, the model tested here today also came with the Romeo X red dot already installed. This is very convenient, particularly because I’ve become a bit of a red dot hound and am always looking for more.
Shooting the P320 AXG Legion
After securing a shipment of Trailforger ammunition from MWLP, I headed up to my shooting spot. It wasn’t long before I was stuffing twenty-one rounds at a time into the magazines. I mostly shot 115 grain ammo, but I also shot a few boxes of 124 grain ammo.
I also took advantage of the opportunity to use my newest Safariland ALS holster, crisp AF with an Arctic Multicam cordura wrap. I also installed my Surefire X300 weapon-light, as it completes the ensemble.
You may not believe this, but the AXG shoots very much like the rest of the P320 family. Of course the major thing that stands out is the muzzle compensator. The added weight of the grip module bundled with the compensator made this gun shoot smooth. Muzzle rise was significantly better with the dual port comp up front. I haven’t shot the Spectre Comp version of the P320, but others have told me that the AXG Legion is a flatter shooter. Perhaps I’ll get to try them both together someday soon.
As is, I found the AXG Legion to be very flat shooting. It was fast and fun to transition from one target to another punching each one smoothly and often twice.
As an unrepentant Sig-ophile the controls to this pistol were just like coming home. Though occasionally I feel myself reaching for the de-cock lever 😜. The feel of the pistol is fantastic, and though I felt fine shooting with the stock trigger part of me wanted to see how well it could be improved.
Reloading the pistol was also as familiar as mom’s Sunday dinner. The flared magwell made it easy, allowing me to plow through far too much ammo.
Accuracy from the AXG Legion was as expected, by that I mean everything I aimed at could be hit as long as I didn’t pull the shot. The kind of shots you would do with a pistol were easily made, and accurate enough to be very deadly.
During the course of shooting the pistol, we had no malfunctions. Ejection was very predictable and well clear of the gun. Cycling cartridges was also flawless, and the gun always locked open when the magazine went empty.
Pros and Cons
Remember what I said at the top of this piece, I’m a big fan of P-series pistols. So keep that in mind. First off this pistol is just handsome, it has the classic Sig look that first caught my eye years ago. And it shoots as good as it looks, chewing through ammo of all kinds. And since the P320 is so universally used, its aftermarket support is likely only eclipsed by the Glock family.
All the extra features make this a definite step up from many of the standard P320 models. And of course that comes at a cost, so it may not be in your budget range. It also weighs a bit more than it’s siblings, six ounces more than the M18 model for example. This can be a good or bad thing depending on what you’re looking for.
I think the P320 AXG Legion stands up to its price point, though that can be very subjective. Even so it might not be for beginners. Maybe you prefer the lower bore axis of other pistol designs, or maybe you like hammers.
Last Words on the AXG Legion
I really enjoy this pistol, it has everything a Sig fan could like. And even if you’re not a Sig fan there is much to like about it. Sure, it might be a bit much to bite off for a first time pistol enthusiast. But it brings more features, and it performs outstanding. You get all the familiarity and aftermarket support of the P-series, as well as some advanced enhancements.
If you too find yourself looking for a full-size tactical pistol, I can strongly recommend this one. It is incredibly fun to shoot, reliable and accurate. The included Romeo X makes the deal even better. It’s a big step away from my old P239 that started this infatuation, but in a good way. Either way, I don’t see my affinity for P-series pistols going away any time soon.
-CBM
Check out more classic Sig Sauer pistols here
