Our factory tour reflected a zealous commitment to quality, which is evidenced in continuous testing and monitoring of ammunition throughout the manufacturing process. This includes pre-screening of all product before production, including ballistic gelatin testing and accuracy testing. One round from every tray on the plate loader is pulled to be tested.
A lot of the technology in the factory is new, with some of it fully or partially designed by Powers, including the plate loader, gelatin mixer, annealing machine on the brass line and priming machine.
“Our number one goal is quality,” says Powers. “A product doesn’t ship until we’re 100% satisfied with the it.”
SIG Sauer’s popular handgun ammunition line is anchored by the well-respected Elite V-Crown bullet, which features a SIG-designed jacketed, stacked hollow point (or hollow point within a hollow point) profile with a cannelure on the bullet shank that locks the jacket to the core. The round is designed to pass the FBI protocol and is tested by SIG against barrier components, including heavy clothing, steel 20-gauge galvanized sheet metal, 1-inch plywood and auto windshield glass. The result is a round that provides maximum weight retention and terminal expansion for defensive or duty use. Elite V-Crown is currently available in .380 Auto, 9mm Luger, .357 Sig, .38 Super +P, .38 Special +P, .357 Mag., .40 S&W, 10mm, .45 ACP, .44 Special, .44 Mag. and .45 Long Colt.
2—Theresa Johns, handloader quality control technician, prepares ballistic gelatin mix for molds. Dan Powers, president of SIG Sauer’s ammunition division, designed the mixer for SIG’s research and development lab.
3—Ballistic gelatin is ready for bullet testing. SIG Sauer claims to use more ballistic gelatin powder in one year than anyone else in the U.S.
4—This is one of the lab’s universal receivers used for pressure and velocity testing on indoor range of 25 meters and 100 yards.
SIG Elite FMJ ammo is available in most of these calibers in matching bullet weights. It’s loaded on the same machines and is designed to have the same velocity, recoil and point of impact as the V-Crown ammo, making practice both practical and affordable.
SIG also produces multiple rifle ammunition lines, with more in the works. SIG Elite Match Grade ammunition is loaded with Sierra’s Matchking bullets in a variety of popular calibers. These loads use temperature-stable propellants and premium primers to ensure minimum velocity variation for consistent accuracy.
2—Chief ballistician John Ervin tests SIG Elite HT ammunition in a Sig 716 carbine.
