KJW P229 Review

[Romulus]

I. Introduction - I have been a fan of Sig Sauer styled airsoft guns for quite some time. I have owned two TM P226's which are in my top three favorite guns of all time. I have never liked KJW after a very bad experience with a friends M9 so I was hesitant to purchase a KJW P229. However, being a 24 fan and needing something stylish for a concealed carry loadout I decided that I needed a P229. Since KJW seems to be the only company with a FM P229 I didn't have much choice. I couldn't stomach paying new prices for a KJW gun so I waited about a month till I saw one come up used on the forums.

 

Before I go any further I want to make it clear that I am reviewing this gun through the eyes of someone who is looking at using this as a project gun and upgrading it extensively.

 

I was so excited when this arrived last night that I broke out the sand paper and started the customization process right away. This means that my pictures will not all be of the stock gun. I will do my best to note any differences from the stock gun in the photos.

 

This is my first actual review so pardon any oddities that you might find. I will be following this outline:

 

I. Introduction

II. First Impression

III. Detail Impression

IV. Function

V. Upgrading Options & Compatibility with TM P226 parts

VI. Conclusion

 

I also want to present a disclaimer that I can't guarantee the quality of this gun or the fitment of TM items. This review merely consists of my observations and impressions.

II. First Impression

 

This box arrived in the post yesterday.

 

 

Since I am not a box collector or a packaging aficionado I will not review how the gun was packaged. My very first impression on lifting the gun was that it was all metal. It had been sitting on my porch and every piece was cold to the touch. I was also impressed by the solidity and fitment of everything. I guess that I was expecting some "slop" since the gun is a KJW but I was pleasantly surprised. The slide cycled nicely when I tested it. I tested the decocker and found that it worked exactly as advertised.

 

I dry fired the gun in single and double action mode and was quite pleased with the results. The SA was light and reasonably smooth like the TM P226. The DA was a bit heavy, in fact it was noticeably harder than the TM P226. The finish also looks smooth and well applied. All in all I was favorably impressed by my first experience with the gun.

 

 

 

 

III. Detail Impression

 

-First off is the outer barrel. I don't know why KJW chose to do this but they seem to have extended it.

 

 

The RS P229 has an outer barrel that doesn't protrude at all.

 

 

I guess that it's time to break out the hacksaw.

 

-Second, there is a strange looking notch at the front of the slide

 

 

However, after a bit of googling I found that the RS version has this feature as well. Props to KJW for replicating details.

 

 

Aside from these specific details I found the gun much as I expected. The finish is quite good all over the gun as far as I could tell. There are some small seems on the controls but they are hard to spot unless you disassemble the gun. The other obvious note is that other than the grips there are no trades on this gun. Defiantly a Con in my book but I was expecting it so I wasn't to disappointed.

 

I also am happy with the magazine although I am sure that the finish will be damaged with very little use.

 

Edited November 17, 2007 by Romulus

[Romulus]

IV. Function

 

Unfortunately, due to snow, I was not able to chrono the gun. If/when the weather improves I will post an average FPS.

 

For the accuracy test I used .2g KSC BB's and HFC GG. The test was conducted indoors at ~70F (~21C). I fired 5 BB's at each target.

 

 

- First off was the 6m test. I had the hop-up turned off and shot with a two handed stance. the following is the result:

 

the stray was more my fault than the guns

 

My guess is that if I had tuned the hop-up prior to this test the height would have been correct. I was actually quite surprised at the grouping the gun got.

 

 

-Second was the 10m test. I turned that Hop-Up half way on for this test since it would be over a longer range. The following was the result:

 

please note that the "x" hit is not from this test

 

Again I was impressed by the consistency of the gun over range. For only having a 83mm barrel it did very well. My guess is that much of this performance can be attributed to having a cloned TM hop-up. I truly love TM's hop-up.

 

So, the gun fires with good power and above average accuracy for a compact in its class.

 

V. Upgrading Options & Compatibility with TM P226 parts

 

After taking this gun to bits it would appear that almost everything is TM compatible. That includes controls, barrels, Hop-Up parts, and magazines. I have not had a chance to work on the blowback mech yet but my guess is that it is TM compatible as well.

 

Just for kicks I tried out my TM P226 slide on the P229 frame. Guess what, the gun works fine.

 

 

Kinda Looks like a franken-gun though. If you don't want to be so radical you could also try this:

 

please note that this was taken after I started polishing the gun but before I finished

 

I included this picture to help demonstrate the difference in size between the two guns.

 

 

I tested out my DB TM Hi-Capa 4.3 6.01mm (94.5mm) barrel in this gun the first time I took it apart. Not only did it function beautifully but it also was hidden by the slightly extended outer barrel when the gun was locked and loaded. The only time it protruded was when the slide was locked back. Since the stock barrel length appears to be ~83mm I will probably be buying a 4.3 tightbore and trimming it down to fit.

 

Here are a few notes and observations:

 

-The grips screws are compatible with TM ones

-A RS mainspring seat can be fitted to this gun just like the TM P226

-A TM after market hop-up buckings will work in this gun

-The recoil spring is that same size as a TM Hi-Capa's so it would be easy to custom cut a super strong spring

 

There were a few disappointments though. For one thing the front sight is molded into the slide. I have yet to remove the rear sight so I can't tell whether it is molded or not yet. I also found that the screws throughout the gun were overtightened. I actually can't remove the screws that hold the blowback mech into the slide. I can't say whether this is true of all P229's but it is a real pain.

 

As I continue on my project I will be making more specific notes on what you can and can't do upgrade/TM compatibility wise. Feel free to ask specific questions that I haven't answered.

 

VI. Conclusion

 

The KJW P229 is a good little gun. It has its flaws but it is by far the best base gun out there for a FM P229. I am surprised that more 24/SIG fans haven't worked with this gun. I will be posting the results of my upgrading in the P226 picture thread. If you are interested stay tuned.

 

again, my apologies for the half polish job

 

 

[Wege]

definitely.

I have been waiting for my KSC M945 to sell before I got another GBB.

Which would most likely have been this..

[Bangla_Black]

Fantastic review!

[Romulus]

Thanks Guys.

 

I keep getting surprised by the wacky stuff that I can do by combining the two guns.

 

Wege - It's cool to see that other people might take on of these and do it up as well. I think that theres a lot of untapped potential with this gun.

[jrara]

Glad that you like the Gun I sold you!!! Thanks for the transaction!

[Romulus]

I forgot to give credit to you as the former owner of the review piece.

 

Cheers

[Wege]

query.. you say the TM mags "appear" to be compatible. I have found that the KJW SIG226 mags work in this (from memory about a query about the 229), but IIRC, the KJW and TM magazines were not identical swaps... one worked in both, but the other only worked in one? TM compatible then and the KJW magazine ONLY for the KJW SIG?

[Romulus]

To clarify, I have fired the KJW P229 with a TM SIG P226 Mag. However, I can't test the KJW P229 mag in TM P226 because it is too short.

 

It would be interesting to see what would happen with a KJW P226 mag though.

[HellsAngel]

Nice lil' review there Romulus, I'm looking forward to seeing how your project turns out... Keep us updated

[th3kimster]

Great review...thanks to you, you've got me stuck over whether I should get a USPc or this

 

About that extended outer barrel, are you sure that all KJ p229's have it? This youtube review of it seems to show it without it

(link)

[Romulus]

Thanks Guys.

 

HellsAngle- I will be posting updates in the P226 picture thread as I go along.

 

th3kimster- sorry to make your choice harder. I believe that I hear somewhere that KJW makes the Longer outer barrels so that they can paint them orange rather than the tip of the gun. It sounds like I got the export version which has the longer barrel. No matter though as I am replacing the outer barrel anyway.

 

[felix4536]

awesome review, now this has finally convinced me to do a sig 226/229 project. good job!!!!

[Romulus]

Thanks.

 

It was my hope that I would convince/educate others about all the potential for custom projects with this gun.

 

Look forward to seeing what you do.

[The Saint]

Nice review, I'm now considering a 229 as my next sidearm because of it. Just out of curiousity, though, exactly how good is the slide-to-frame fitment? I'm really looking for a gun with really good slide-to-frame fit and no audible rattle. Also, if you decide to take more pictures of your gun, I'd love to see a close up of the mag's gas valve.

 

As for the extended outer barrel, the ones that made it into Canada don't seem to have the extended outer barrel. I like the look of either versions, though.

 

Thanks again for the review.

[Romulus]

Thanks.

 

I was actually pretty pleased with the slide-to-frame fitment. There was a tiny tiny little rattle but honestly it was tighter than most of my other guns. Far more than I expected from KJW.

 

I am still polishing bits and pieces but I'll try to put a valve picture on my to-do list.

Edited November 22, 2007 by Romulus

[MikeG]

Great review. As a fellow P229 owner, I can't disagree with anything you said. Since I've owned the gun, the only problem I've had with is that I twisted the head off of one of the grip screws. When I inspected it further, I found that the screws were not made as one piece. The screw head is tacked onto the threaded shaft, so they're not terribly durable. I think I managed to cause this problem by removing and replacing the screw one too many times. Happily, I'm confident I can fix it with a dab of epoxy.

 

Since I got my P229, I've done a few realism mods that I thought people might be interested to see. First, I swapped out the KJW grips for real ones. I had to dremel the inside of the grips extensively to make room for what I believe you called the 'mainspring seat'. Perhaps if the original were replaced with a real mainspring seat, not so much dremeling would be necessary. Nonetheless, the fit is excellent.

 

Next, I polished the top of the chamber. On real Sigs, this part is usually bare metal. In this picture, you can see that the sanding and polishing revealed a minor material defect in the pot metal.

 

I also cut down the barrel to standard size. Even while still silver I believe it looks far better.

 

Finally, I bought a genuine SigSauer carring case for it.

 

[Romulus]

Thanks for the comments. Your confirmation that I need to pick up a mainspring seat for it couldn't have come at a better time.

 

I am in the process of building mine up. I actually was just on my way over to Brownell's to order P229 grips and a RS mainspring seat. I have already modded one RS mainspring seat (took about ten minutes) for my TM P226 and it allowed me to run Hogue grips without any dremeling whatsoever.

 

As far as the grip screws go, when I bought my gun I got a great deal on it because the former owner had sheared off two screw heads on the same side. after drilling out the screw bases I replaced all mine with TM grip screws which seem to be doing great. I also am working to get a set of Carom Shot grip screws but they are pretty elusive.

 

I also dropped a suppressor on mine today and I really like the look feel of the gun with it.

 

Hopefully I will have pictures of the gun up in the next few days once I finish polishing.

 

It really is great to see that others have done work on this gun though, there's a lot of potential here.

 

[Wege]

what barrel did you install for the supressor? Did you use the SAS? 226 barrel or...?

[Romulus]

I cheated and used a PDI threaded adapter that attached to a slightly longer inner barrel.

 

I am not sure how else one could get a threaded barrel.

 

The good part is that it looks great except when the slide is locked back (then its good but not stellar).

[The Saint]

This thread has inspired me to try and create a P226/229 hybrid. Though sourcing a KJW P226 slide on its own is proving to be tricky. Not many of my fellow Canadians want to trade for my P229 slide and even fewer wants part with only half their P226. I'm trying to contact KJW directly and see if something can be worked out through there.

 

Aesthetics aside, I'd certainly love to put a tightbore in my SIG without resorting to a cutting tool.

 

Interestingly, I've noticed way more posts about Dremmeling Hogues to fit, rather than getting a RS mainspring seat and Dremmeling that instead. I'm definately going the latter route.

Edited November 28, 2007 by The Saint

[Wege]

a slide on it's own (KJW) is available via UNcompany for $30US.

Honestly?

get a whole new KJW P226.. and then do some parts swapping. Sure to be hilarious too.

[The Saint]

If I could afford a whole another gun, even temporarily, I would. I still might resort to that plan: wait until I've got enough spare money in the bank to buy the P226, swap the slide and sell the other hybrid. I actually made some pictures as to what they'd look like, too: http://www.airsoftcanada.com/showthread.php?t=48191

 

Thanks for pointing out the UNCo stock. I had checked there before, but I definately wasn't thorough enough.

[Romulus]

I'm trying to think of a cheaper way to make the hybrid that your after but I'm drawing a bit of a blank. If I was to do it I would probably buy a KJW P229 and a nice after market TM P226 slide and barrel set. The big benefit is that you would get the good trades on the slide.

 

If you like I could try to take a few more pictures of the P229/6 hybrid for you when I have a moment. Just let me know if there are any specific ones that would help out.

[MikeG]

I just wish I had known that a real mainspring seat would fit. Where did you guys happen to buy yours?

 

Extra Bonus Question: Does anyone know if real steel grip screws will fit? From what I've seen, it looks like the threaded part of the screw is too large on the real ones to fit in the KJ. I'd just like to confirm this if anyone has firsthand information.