FOGHORN February 2024

Twobirds Flying Publications

SIG SAUER’S M17X

Copyright 2024, Towbirds Flying Publications. All Rights Reserved.

SIG SAUER’S M17X
2024

twenty-one round magazines along with the

customary paperwork.

What makes the M17X exceptional is its X-Series

features like the enhanced X-carry grip and
magazine well, and my favorite the X flat trigger.
Forgetting any consideration for its ROMEO M17
optic, the M17X is very shootable, consistent
with its M17 lineage.

SIG SAUER’S M17X

By: Sal Palma

If you love SIG’S P320 you will be thrilled with

SIG’s M17X, they went all out to create an
impressive derivative. The design captures the
essence of the U.S. Army’s M17, minus its
external safety, with the addition of X-Series Now, add its factory mounted ROMEO M17 sight
features. Unlike SIG’s M17 Commemorative, and you have a great platform suitable for
which was a limited production offering that tactical or commercial application.
duplicates the U.S Army’s M17, the M17X will be
The ROMEO M17 makes the M17X. In addition
around for quite some time as a regular product
to being an outstanding closed emitter sight the
offering.
M17 offers several features that make it a
valuable addition to the firearm.

The ROMEO M17

does not use a
mounting plate,
instead it uses
SIG’s proprietary
M17/M18 Modular
Handgun System
configuration. The
sight mounts
directly to the slide
In the box you will find the M17X, the mounted
secured by a single
ROMEO M17 enclosed emitter optic and three
screw in the underside of the slide.

Copyright 2024, Towbirds Flying Publications. All Rights Reserved.

SIG SAUER’S M17X
2024

SIG includes a rear night-sight that mounts The ROMEO M17 features
directly to the back of the ROMEO M-17, MOTAC, if the sight detects
ensuring a perfect co-witness. no motion for two minutes
it will power itself down. It
The rear sight is a night sight featuring two immediately powers up
tritium inserts that glow with a reddish tone. when motion is detected.

The purpose of the MOTAC

feature is to conserve
battery, but if you are carrying the M17X your
body motion will not allow the sight to power
down. To deal with that issue, SIG engineers
implemented a magnetic sensor at the front of
the sight which when exposed to a ferrous
magnet the sensor prevents the sight from
powering up.

Holsters like Alien

The issue I have with this arrangement is that the Gear’s Rapid Duty
dots are small and dim making it difficult to pick Holster could be
up the rear sight in low light should it be manufactured to
necessary. If you are shooting with NVDs you include a magnet in
should have no problems. the sight hood to
operate the
The ROMEO M17 sight has an exceptionally low MAGNETAC feature
deck height so the shooter has a perfect sight of the ROMEO M17.
picture. All rear surfaces of the sight are serrated
eliminating bright light glare. The operator has a choice of fifteen brightness
settings and 3 night vison.
The ROMEO M17 has two independent controls
to activate the sight, adjust reticle brightness The ROMEO M17 is powered by a single side
and select from three available reticles: 2 MOA mounted CR2032 battery that delivers 20,000
dot, 32 MOA circle, or circle dot. The two buttons hours of runtime with reticle intensity at
are labeled and recessed within a plate medium.
protecting them from accidentally being
Windage and elevation adjustments have
pressed. SIG’s literature mentions that the
excellent tactile clicks with each click providing
buttons can be pressed with a gloved hand,
1.5 MOA of adjustment to your point of impact.
which is true, but I reserve the right to say that
having pianist sized fingers helps a great deal. The ROMEO M17 is assembled in the United
States, is Mil-Spec and IPX7 water resistant.

Copyright 2024, Twobirds Flying Publications, All Rights

SIG SAUER’S M17X
2024

In the interest of experimentation, I wanted to Image: P320 with the M17X slide and ROMEO M17 sight.
see if there was a symbiotic relationship
between a SIG P320 and the M17X. The slides are
interchangeable, but magazines are a different
story.

The M17X
magazine works in
the P320 but the
reverse is not true.
The base plate of Image: M17X and P320 sharing M17X magazine.
the P320 magazine
will not fit through
Image: P320 magazine will the M17X magazine
not fit through the M17X
magazine well without well without first
removing the magazine well. removing the
magazine well.

Copyright 2024, Twobirds Flying Publications, All Rights

SIG SAUER’S M17X
2024

Fully loaded with twenty-one rounds of 9mm Manufacturer Specifications

115gr FMJ the M17X is a hefty sidearm coming in
• Manufacturer Part Number M17X-9-RX
a 2lbs 11.5 oz.., but all that mass works to
• UPC 798681681150
temper the recoil impulse, it is a soft shooting
• AMBIDEXTROUS SAFETY N
pistol.
• BARREL LENGTH IN INCHES 4.7000
At the range, shooting the M17X was a pleasure. • CALIBER 9MM LUGER
The pistol ran flawlessly. Once I had the ROMEO • DRILLED AND TAPPED N
• FINISH Coyote PVD
M17 sight dialed in, the results were
• FRAME MATERIAL POLYMER
outstanding, producing near perfect groups. I
• GRIP MATERIAL POLYMER
own the flyer you see on the right.
• MAGAZINE CAPACITY 21.0000
• NUMBER OF MAGAZINES INCLUDED
3
• OTHER FEATURES: M17 SLIDE W/
ROMEOM17 OPTIC, COYOTE X-CARRY GRIP
MODULE W/ MAGWELL, FLAT X-SERIES
TRIGGER
• TYPE ACTION FUNCTION SEMI-AUTO
• TYPE OF SIGHTS NIGHT SIGHTS
• WEIGHT IN OUNCES 33.0000
• FRAME COLOR BROWN
• SLIDE COLOR BROWN

In closing, I was extremely impressed with SIG’s

latest offering. Everything from its flat X-Series
trigger, X-CARRY grip module, grip texture,
ambidextrous controls, advanced features like
MOTAC and MAGNETAC, and the outstanding
ROMEO M17 red dot sight make this pistol a
must have. You will not find a better polymer
striker-fired pistol from any manufacturer.

-SP

Copyright 2024, Twobirds Flying Publications, All Rights