SHOT Show 2019 Guns: SIG Sauer P320 XCOMPACT

When SIG Sauer announced the XCOMPACT, it didn’t sound all that exciting. We’ve already seen the full-size P320 X-Five and X-VTAC, and their smaller cousin, the X-Carry. What would make this different?

Like the X-Carry, the XCOMPACT boasts X-Ray3 night sights and is optic-ready for the Romeo 1T, Romeo 2, and Deltapoint Pro. It’s got the same flat trigger that characterizes the X-series. On paper, it’s just a smaller relative, with dimensions just fractionally less than the X-Carry: a 3.6 inch barrel instead of a 3.9, 7.0 inches long instead of 7.4, 5.3 inches high instead of 5.5. Somewhat closer to the size of the P320 Subcompact than the RX Compact, and in the size neighborhood of the Glock 19, it boasts a 15-round flush-fit magazine.

The exciting new feature, though, is a completely re-engineered grip module. The X-series of P320s are known for a grip module radically different from the original P320 – blockier, with a more pronounced beavertail, a detachable magazine well, and a removable weight. Unlike the original P320, the X-series grip came in only one size, and that’s what we saw in all of the X-series to date.

With the XCOMPACT, SIG has redesigned the shorter grip to a slimmer profile, with a smaller beavertail. It has a beveled internal magazine well for ease of reloading, but the focus has been to make the grip smaller and more concealable, with the bonus of fitting smaller hands better. SIG tells us that a full length version of the grip is coming too.

The XCOMPACT grip makes a substantial difference. It not only feels more refined and petite in the hand, it somehow makes the idea of carrying an X-gripped gun seem even more feasible and even attractive.

MSRP has yet to be officially announced, but SIG Product Manager Phil Strader noted that it'll be around $679-700.