Whether you ride in a patrol unit, work plain clothes, kick in doors, or tromp through some dusty foreign land, the Sig Sauer Tac Ops can get the job done for you.

The handgun serves only one purpose, whether riding in a duty belt or concealed by plainclothes officer or civilian—to be there when needed. Because the handgun is the poorest of firearms when it comes to delivering devastating firepower to an assailant, it is incumbent that it works perfectly every time it is produced. Or, as renowned trainer Clint Smith says, “The handgun is there so you can fight your way to a rifle.”

Any number of manufacturers will be glad to tell you their handgun fits the bill, and, in fact, many of them will be correct. However, one name that always rises to the top is Sig Sauer. My first experience with the pistols of Sig Sauer dates back several decades or more, and involved their P220.

The Cam-Clamp mounting system for the Xiphos NT takes some of the pain out of adding a weapon light, allowing the user to add it directly to the spot where it is needed, and fasten it securely without tools.

Some time after that, the Texas Department of Public Safety decided to swap their hallmark S&W .357 Mag revolvers for pistols. When the Texas dust settled, Sig Sauer was riding the hips of DPS commissioned officers, where they still remain (chambered for the .357 Mag equivalent .357 Sig today) and my exposure to these fine Swiss-originated pistols increased.

Polymer Magwell two-piece grips with a highly effective pebbling on the side and rear of the panels (along with checkering on the pistol’s front strap) make the Tac Ops secure in the hand when shooting. Checkering on the Tac Ops frontstrap is sharp enough to provide an extra measure of recoil control. Note the vertical serrations on the Plus Two mag basepads.

The Texas DPS personnel are not alone in choosing Sig Sauer, with estimates running as high as over 30 percent of officers choosing them, including a number of Federal agencies. (Even the Navy SEALs are known to have more than a few around.) Aside from the legendary Swiss clockwork smoothness of the Sig Sauer pistols, the one thing most attributed to the pistols is ruggedness. They certainly meet our earlier qualification that the handgun should “work perfectly every time it is produced.”