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If you’ve heard someone mention proof marks or date codes when discussing a SIG Sauer pistol, but weren’t quite sure what those were, then the goal of this article is to bring you up to speed. And even if you’re already familiar with proof marks, maybe this article can broaden your knowledge and teach you something new.

What are Proof Marks?

Sig Sauer is a company headquartered in Exeter, New Hampshire, that manufactures a line of firearms. The company makes guns for law enforcement, military and commercial users. Every Sig Sauer gun has a serial number engraved on it. With this serial number, you can call Sig Sauer customer service and request the date of manufacture of the gun. Jul 08, 2007 Do not confuse the two letter serial number prefix on your SIG with the two letter date code. They have nothing to do with eachother. The two letter date codes are located on the bottom of slide near the muzzle area, it'll be accompanied by a couple of other proofmarks. Re: Sig Sauer Serial Lookup If it's a German Sig, there will be a two letter date code, that represents the year of manufacture, stamped on the frame below the muzzle. A=0 / B=1 / C=2 / D=3 / E=4 / F=5 / G=6 / H=7 / J=8 / K=9. Call SIG SAUER Customer Service at (603) 610-3000, Option #1, and have the rifle’s 9-digit serial number available. SIG SAUER Customer Service will send you shipping instructions that include a pre-addressed shipping label and box. Upon receipt of the shipping instructions, follow instructions found.

Proof marks are stamps embedded in certain parts of a firearm following (and sometimes during, depending on the firearm type) its manufacturing to indicate that the firearm has been “proven” to be able to handle the specific type of ammunition for which it was designed. In modern years, they truly do serve that purpose. But like many government regulations, their origins have more to do with self-interest than safety.

The first proof marks started appearing in 15th century France, and by the 17th century, European firearms guildsmen were heavily promoting their use — and lobbying their governments for laws requiring them — primarily to dissuade competition from non-guildsmen and scare potential purchasers away from un-proofed guns.

In 1637, after heavy lobbying from the London Gunmakers Company, a London-area firearms guild, King Charles I issued a Royal Charter setting firearms safety standards. The London Gunmakers Company set up a “proof house” in London, and not surprisingly… firearms makers who were not part of a guild tended to fail testing more often than the guild members. Guns that passed testing were stamped with a mark representing the proof house. Over the next few decades, other countries established their own safety standards and proof houses, along with their own unique marks. Much like reciprocity of modern concealed carry permits between states, some European countries began to recognize each others’ proof marks as a high enough testing standard for foreign countries’ firearms to be legally imported.

Fast forward to 1914, when a number of European countries formed the CIP (Commission Internationale Permanente pour l’Epreuve des Armes à Feu Portatives) as a formal standards group to ensure consistent testing among member countries. As of 2015, the CIP includes 14 member states. In order for a civilian firearm produced in a CIP member state to be legally imported to another CIP country, it must bear the proof mark of a CIP member state (military testing standards are, predictably, different than civilian ones). The United States does not participate in CIP, but instead formed its own standards group named SAAMI (Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute). While the CIP and SAAMI do share information and cooperate, neither has a requirement regarding selling in each other’s countries. Because the US is not a CIP member state, foreign guns do not need a CIP proof mark to be sold in the US, nor do US guns need a US proof mark to be sold in CIP member countries. This is an important fact that will become relevant again later in this article.

Examples of German Proof Marks

Here’s an assortment of mid 20th century proof marks used through Germany’s (and West Germany’s) history:

The top row (a) indicates the German (or East/West German, depending on the year) city in which the proof house is located. The column marked (b) shows varios German/West German proof marks after 1945, while the column marked (c) shows German proof marks used from 1939-1945.

Here’s another image showing the marks of German/West German proof houses, along with the approximate year they were first in use:

Proof Marks on SIG Sauer Pistols

Depending on it’s vintage and model, you might see proof marks on a German / West German SIG’s frame:

Proof mark on a West German P220 frame

Or on its barrel:On the slide chin (the underside of the slide near the muzzle end), which is the most common location for West German and German SIG Sauers:

Proof marks on the slide chin of a West German SIG Sauer pistol

To make sense of these proof marks, let’s look at those on the above slide chin.

Kiel Proof House Mark

The top proof mark indicates the Kiel Proof House. Since Kiel is only 17 miles from SIG Sauer’s manufacturing facility in Eckernförde, that’s the proof mark you should expect to see on a proofed SIG Sauer. Many refer to the Kiel mark as a “squashed bug,” while others have claimed it’s an oak leaf. Actually, the proof mark is based on the city of Kiel’s coat of arms:

…which in turn is based on the district of Schaumburg’s coat of arms:

Coat of arms of Schaumburg

The shape represents a Nesselblatt, or nettle leaf. Tradition held that the leaves of the nettle were symbolic of the nails used to crucify Christ, so the three larger leaves represent the nails of the crucifixion.

All true German and West German SIGs were test fired at the Kiel proof house, so the Nesselblatt proof mark is an indicator of a true German or West German SIG. I’ve also heard one report of the Ulm proof house’s stag antler mark appearing on a the frame and slide of a 1993 SIG P226 (in addition to the Kiel mark on the slide), which would imply that the firearm required repair and re-proofing… and presumably the repair took place at a location that was closer to Ulm than Kiel. Normally, you’d expect to see the Ulm proof mark on a Walther or H&K firearm.

The German Definitive Mark and Nitro Testing

Underneath the Kiel Nesselblatt (though the order of the marks is not important), we find the image of an eagle with the letter “N” underneath. Some incorrectly believe that the eagle mark is a remnant of Nazi-era Germany, particularly since Germany’s firearms proof mark was a previously crown, and was changed to an eagle in 1939.

In actuality, the German Reichsadler (literally “Eagle of the Realm”) dates back to the eagle on the standard of the Roman Empire, and was used as a symbol of the Second German Empire as early as 1871… long before the National Socialist German Workers’ Party. The same eagle design has continued its use in West Germany since 1945, but under a new name of Bundesadler, or “Union Eagle.”

The Eagle-N mark signifies that the firearm was proofed in Germany (or West Germany, depending on when the firearm was proofed), while the “N” indicates that the firearm was proofed using a Nitro Beschuss load. “Beschuss” translates as “bombardment,” “shelling,” or “firing” depending on context, and “nitro” is short for “nitrocellulose,” a highly flammable compound used to creates pressures inside the firearm higher than standard gun powder.

Pistols are delivered to the proof houses in their fully assembled form for proofing. For pistols, CIP standards require cartridges that generate pressure 30% higher than the standard ammunition for which the pistol is designed, so the two high pressure nitro rounds are fired through the pistol. Technicians then disassemble the pistol and examine it in a dark room using a fluoroscopic lamp, looking for magnetic flux leakage. Provided everything looks good, the pistol is re-assembled and receives the country’s CIP proof mark indicating what type of test it passed (the Eagle-N or “definitive” mark in the case of a German gun), the mark of the proof house, and marks indicating the date of the tests. The firearms is then returned to the manufacturer who can legally sell the firearm domestically or export it to another CIP country.

The “nitro” proof mark is also referred to as the “definitive” (or final) mark of the proof house, as opposed to a “provisional” mark which would generally only apply to shotgun barrels in an early stage of manufacture, which are tested at proof houses to prevent the manufacturer from continuing work on defective tubes.

Date Codes

Looking back at our photo, the “JK” under the definitive proof mark is the date code. Date codes are two-letter indicators of the year that a firearm was proofed. Major German firearms companies such as Heckler and Koch, Walther, and SIG Sauer all used a similar date code format:

German gun manufacturers used these letters in place of numbers for date codes

Just to keep things interesting, SIG Sauer chose not to use the letter “I” because it looked too much like the numeral “1,” so J = 8 in SIG speak. The proof house in Koln (Cologne), Germany also follows this format. Walther and Heckler & Koch chose to use “I” for 8 but skip “J,” except that you will see a “J” on an H&K magazine’s date code. Gotta love German logic. 🙂

Using the above table, we can determine that the “JK” date code in the photo stands for “89” — meaning this firearm was proofed in 1989… which coincidentally happened to be the year the Berlin Wall came down. This doesn’t necessarily mean that the pistol was manufactured in 1989. It’s quite possible the barrel was made in 1986, the frame in 1987, and the slide in 1988… but that all the parts weren’t assembled together into a firearm and delivered to a proof house until 1989. Or it’s possible that all the parts were actually made in 1989, and then assembled and proofed that same year. There’s no way to know. A true German / West German firearm isn’t technically “born” until it’s been proofed.

Note that a gun’s date code is different than its serial number. It’s impossible to decode a SIG serial number to determine when it was proofed, although you can try to locate the range of your SIG’s serial number in this list to approximate when it was made, or call SIG Sauer with the serial number and see if they have any info in their system. Serial numbers aren’t always truly representative of the chronological order of a firearm, but they can sometimes get you close. Only a date code can tell you the year of proofing.

Proofed vs. Non-Proofed “Made in Germany” Guns

If you’ve read my article on West German vs. German vs. Other SIGs, you’ll know that proof marks are one of the primary indicators or whether a SIG Sauer (or any other firearm) is truly “made” in Germany (or West Germany) as opposed to assembled in the US using German-made parts… even though the parts might be stamped “Made in Germany.” Because the US is not a CIP country, guns marked “Made in Germany” do not need to be proofed in order to be sold here, as long as they are assembled in the US.

In my opinion, a gun without German proof marks (with very few exceptions) is not truly a German gun. Whether that actually affects the desirability or quality of the gun is for you to decide. But you should at least be aware that for most SIG purists, the existence of proof marks is what determines whether a gun is correctly referred to as “Made in Germany.”

Putting it All Together

Now that you know how to decode proof marks and date codes, see if you can figure out where and when the following firearms were proofed. Most are SIGs, but I threw some other German guns in there just for fun. 🙂

Normally, the proof house mark is above the definitive mark on a SIG, but this is a very early SIG P220

Walther P99

I welcome your corrections, questions, comments, & feedback below.

Further Reading:

• http://firearmshistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/testing-firearms-proof-test.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proof_test

SIG P210
Type	Semi-automatic pistol
Place of origin	Switzerland
Service history
In service	1949–present
Used by	See Users
Production history
Designer	Max Müller
Designed	1947 as SP47/8
Manufacturer	SIG, SIG Sauer
Produced	1949–2005 2010–present
No. built	~350,000 all variants
Variants	See Variants
Specifications
Mass	970 g (34 oz)
Length	215 mm (8.5 in)
Barrel length	120 mm (4.7 in) (P210-5)
Cartridge	9×19mm Parabellum 7.65×21mm Parabellum .22 Long Rifle 10mm
Action	Short Recoil Operated
Feed system	8-round detachable box magazine
Sights	Fixed iron sights; adjustable in target variants

The SIG P210 (Swiss Army designation Pistole 49, the civilian model was known as SP47/8 prior to 1957) is a locked breech self loading, semi-automatic pistol designed and manufactured in Neuhausen am Rheinfall (Canton of Schaffhausen, Switzerland) by SIG from 1948 until 2006.

It is of all-steel construction chambered in 9×19mm Parabellum and 7.65×21mm Parabellum. It was used from 1949 to 1975 by the Swiss Army and police units. It was also adopted and is still in service with the Military of Denmark (as M/49 Neuhausen or simply Neuhausen), in 1951 by the German Bundespolizei and in shooting sports.

The pistols were decommissioned by the Swiss Army and replaced by the SIG Sauer P220 (Swiss Army designation Pistole 75) developed in 1975. Swiss production of the P210 continued until 2006. A new model, the P210 Legend, was introduced by SIG Sauer GMBH of Germany in 2010, and another, the P210A, was introduced by SIG Sauer Inc. of New Hampshire in the United States in 2017.

History[edit]

The design was derived from Charles Petter's Modèle 1935A pistol. In 1937, Schweizerische Industrie Gesellschaft (SIG) acquired a license for the Petter-Browning system from SACM in order to develop a replacement for the Luger Parabellum 06/29, which had been in service since 1900. Apparently not satisfied with the Petter Browning design or the changes they had made to it, SIG evaluated no less than 11 prototypes from 1942 through 1944. Selbstladepistole Neuhausen model 44/16 pistol production began in 1944. Some of the original Petter Browning features had been retained, specifically the self-contained firing and recoil systems. The Neuhausen 44/16 had a magazine capacity of 16 rounds.^[1]

Development was slowed by the Second World War. After testing various experimental models (such as the aforementioned 44/16 with a double-column magazine), the 47/8 model was adopted in Oct 1948 as the Pistole Modell 1949 (P49), and SP47/8 for civilian market. Some previous series were tested by Swedish sport shooters and by the Danish army (Danish Defence designation Pistol M/1949).^[1]

The 47/8 model supported the easy change of the barrels between 7.65 and 9mm Parabellum and a kit to convert to .22 caliber (see table below).^[1]

Sig P226 Serial Numbers

44/8	44/16	Mod. SP 47/8	Mod. SP 47/8	Mod. SP 47/8
Cartridge	9mm Parabellum	9mm Parabellum	9mm Parabellum	7.65mm Parabellum	.22Cal
Overall Length	215mm (8 1/2“)	215mm (8 1/2“)	215mm (8 1/2“)	215mm (8 1/2“)	215mm (8 1/2“)
Barrel Length	120mm (4 3/4')	120mm (4 3/4')	120mm (4 3/4')	120mm (4 3/4')	120mm (4 3/4')
Sight Radius	120mm (4 3/4')	120mm (4 3/4')	120mm (4 3/4')	120mm (4 3/4')	120mm (4 3/4')
Height	130mm	143mm
Thickness	32	40
Weight	900gm	1095gm	985gm	995gm	945gm
Magazine Cap	8	16	8	8	8
Rifling mm	250	250	250	250	450
Grooves	6	6	6	4	6

SIG M/1949 is the 47/8 model purchased for the Danish military and issued version for officers, military police, and special forces, chambered in 9mm Luger.^[1] Usually called only Neuhausen in Denmark,^[1] this model is stamped 'P m/49', and also known as 'P210-DK'.First issued beginning in 1950 to the Danish Army Technical Corps (stamped 'HTK'), this remained the standard sidearm in the Danish military throughout 60 years of continuous use, since the 2010s being replaced with the SIG Sauer P320 X-5 Carry.

In 1957, the civil designation (SP47/8) was definitively changed to P210 according to the company nomenclature policy. Model P210-1 in retrospect covers all models produced until 1965, the designation P210-2 refers to the standard model as produced from 1966 (beginning with serial nr. P 59071).

P210-3 was a police version produced from 1951 to 1964 (serial nrs. P 6791 to P 6840 and P 8001 to P 8893), produced in limited numbers for the cantonal police forces of Basel, Lausanne, and Glarus, with a handful sold on the private market.P210-4 was the model made for the German border guard (serial nrs. D 1 to D 6500).P210-5 and P210-6 were civilian target shooting models made in the 1980s and 1990s.P210-7 was a rarely produced .22lr rimfire model, made in the 1950s and 1960s.

SIG was renamed to SIG Sauer upon acquisition by Sauer & Sohn in the 1970s, and to Swiss Arms in 2000. Swiss Arms continued production of the P210 for private customers until 2006. From 2010, a new model, dubbed P210 Legend was made by SIG Sauer, GMBH of Eckernförde, Germany. This model was exported to the USA until 2017, when SIG Sauer Inc. of New Hampshire began production of its own model, dubbed P210A, made in Exeter, N.H., offered in two versions, Standard (210A-9-B) and Target (210A-9-TGT).^[2][3]

Sig Serial Number Dates

Serial numbers[edit]

Serial numbers starting A are the Swiss army ordnance models. Army models run from serial number A 100001 to A 213110. Those that have a P added to the rear of a serial number that starts with an A have been sold by the Swiss army to civilians. A stamped 'P' (='privat') on the front of the trigger guard shows that a weapon was left as a gift to the owner upon leaving the Armed Services.

Serial numbers 6001 to 6028 are prototypes made during 1938–1947. 6033 to 6406 are early model SP47/8 made in 1947.

Serial numbers with a P were made for police and for private use, running from P 8001 to P 8250 (1951) and P 50004 (1949) to P 79150 (1975). Serial numbers from P 79600 to P 97950 are private models made by SIG Sauer, Switzerland, during 1976–1984, and P 300001 to P 331536 were made by Sig Sauer (Swiss Arms) during 1983–2006; the jump to the 300000s range marks the transition from traditional forged frames to CNC production.

During 1966–1969, SIG produced a small number of special heavy frame P210-5 models for the National Match team.These are extremely rare, with a total of 46 pieces known in literature.In the 1970s, these heavy frame models were commercialized and offered on the market, with 100 pieces of P210-6 heavy frame pistols (P 76521 to P76620) made in 1979, and 50 pieces of P210-6 heavy frame pistols, made for Hofmann & Reinhart of Zürich (P 79101 to 79150).These pistols represent the pinnacle of SIG pistol manufacture and are extremely sought after by collectors, and consequently almost never offered on the open market.^[4]

Sig Serial Number History

Another special edition is numbered JP 1 to JP 500 (1978, '125 Years of SIG' anniversary edition).P 555001 to P 555555 are special collectors' edition of 555 sets of five chromed pistols with gilded controls, P210, P220, P225, P226 and P230, made for Vonbank AG in 1987 to 1990), at the time sold for CHF 12,950.^[5]In 1991, another special edition numbered № 0001 to № 1991 was made to commemorate '700 Years of Swiss Confederation' (700 Jahre Eidgenossenschaft), at the time sold for CHF 4,100 per piece.^[6]

Serial numbers starting with a D belong to the Bundesgrenzschutz issues (D 1 to D 6500).^[7]The Danish m/49 pistols have their own serial numbers, without a leading letter, engraved on the right side of the slide, running from 7695 (1951) to 35383 (1962).The rare P210-7 .22lr calibre versions have numbers in the range 40501 (1957) to 41762 (1968).^[8]

Gallery[edit]

• Experimental 44/16 with a double column 16-Round Magazine

• Swiss army model SIG P210 of the first series, second batch (Morges military museum)

• Late Swiss army model SIG 210-2 of the second series, fourth batch (Morges military museum)

• A late Swiss army model SIG P210-2 (issued in the early 1970s), stamped 'P' for private ownership, with replaced grip plates.

• P210-5, a sports/target model produced in the 1980s

• P210-6, a target model produced during the 1980s to 1990s

• SIG 210 Legend (2010), numbered '25 of 210')

• SIG Sauer P210A (2017)

Users[edit]

• Denmark: used by the Danish Defense Force^[9] as m/49.^[10]
• Kazakhstan: Used by the Presidential Security Service since 2007.^[11][12]
• Latvia: used by the Latvian National Guard.^[13]
• Monaco: used by the Compagnie des Carabiniers du Prince.^[14]
• Switzerland: used by the Swiss Military and various police forces.^[15]

Sig Serial Number Check

References[edit]

1. ^ ^abcdeMathis, Howard J (1973). Firearms Identification, Volume II (2nd ed.). Springfield, Ill., USA: Charles C Thomas. p. 646. ISBN0-398-02355-7.
2. ^'SHOT Show 2017: SIG Sauer P210 Target Pistol'. American Rifleman. Retrieved 13 February 2017.
3. ^'P210 Target'.
4. ^SIG heavy frame development (2017), citing Erwin Armbruster & Werner Kessler, Begegnungen mit einer Legende — SIG SP 47/8 / P 210, Kessler Waffen AG (2007).
5. ^now sold below the original price tag; auctioned for CHF 9,000 in January 2020 according to egun.ch,offered for CHF 7,490 at passion4guns.ch as of February 2020, for CHF 6,500 at schildwaffen.ch as of February 2020.
6. ^now sold at or slightly above the original price tag, auctioned for CHF 4,300 in August 2016 (swisswaffen.com).
7. ^'Weapon Details: Pistole 49 (SIG P210)'.
8. ^SIG P210 serial numbers, citing:H.P. Doebeli, Die SIG Pistolen, Motorbuch Verlag (1981),Lorenz Vetter, Das grosse Buch der SIG-Pistolen, Motorbuch Verlag/Verlag Stocker-Schmid (1995),Erwin Armbruster, Werner Kessler, Begegnungen mit einer Legende — SIG SP 47/8 / P 210, Kessler Waffen AG (2007).
9. ^'Pistol' (in Danish). Archived from the original on 7 March 2010. Retrieved 14 October 2010.
10. ^Wiener, Friedrich (1987). The armies of the NATO nations: Organization, concept of war, weapons and equipment. Truppendienst Handbooks Volume 3. Vienna: Herold Publishers. p. 428.
11. ^'Регистрационный номер: 3.1/001 Пистолет служебный SIG P-210'
    Постановление Правительства Республики Казахстан № 1305 от 28 декабря 2006 года 'Об утверждении Государственного кадастра гражданского и служебного оружия и патронов к нему на 2007 год'
12. ^'Pistolen für Kasachstan: Waffenhersteller durchsucht' [pistols for Kazakhstan: arms manufacturer searched]. Eckernfoerder Zzeitung (in German). 29 January 2014.
13. ^Tupp, Enn (2018). 'Zemessardze - KASP-i ja Kaitseliidu vääriline partner'. Kaitse Kodu! (in Estonian). Kaitseliit. 1: 34. ISSN1406-3387.
14. ^Giletta, Jacques (2005). Les Gardes Personnelles des Princes de Monaco (1st ed.). Taurus Editions. ISBN2 912976-04-9.
15. ^'SIG P210'. Modern Firearms. Maxim Popenke. Retrieved 19 January 2020.

• Armbruster, Erwin, & Werner Kessler (ed.). Begegnungen mit einer Legende—SIG SP 47/8 / P 210. Kessler Waffen AG, 2007. (in German)Sample
• Doebeli, Hans P. Die SIG-Pistolen. Stuttgart: Motorbuch-Verlag, 1981. ISBN3-87943-739-4. (in German)
• Vetter, Lorenz. Das große Buch der SIG-Pistolen. Dietikon-Zürich: Stocker-Schmid, 1995. ISBN978-3-7276-7123-4. (in German)

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to SIG P210.