What Are We Proving Again

Tam's testing to 2k rounds on that SiG has me to thinking and Willard to mentioning...

What are we testing here?

It's a great demonstration of reliability, to be sure.

What did Tam get for failures in that SiG?  Like three ammo-related out of 2,000?

It's almost boring, except it's shooty and that's nearly always fun.  A shitty day at the range beats a great day at the office, I says.

I think we're at the point in history where the gun's going to work as long as the ammo does, and factory ammo is damn near to the goes bang without fail point.  0.15% failure is damn good, really, and unless all three of those bum rounds happened in sequence with each other in a fight, you're prolly OK.

I think the market has winnowed out the truly bad designs from the serious competition and where such designs still cling is where cost is the overriding factor not performance (ala High-Point).

This reliability standard has been on the horizon for a while.  The original M1911 testing required 5,000 rounds with zero gun related failures, and the issue M1911 could routinely do it as long as you used the issue ball ammo.  I frequently have to point out that damn few "1911's" are made to the US Army's specs, which carries both good and bad with the changes to those specs.

But a 1911 that survived the acceptance endurance test would shortly need a few parts replaced.

New guns wouldn't.  The materials and the designs are really improved.  Engineering didn't sit still for 100+ years even if the basic idea going on with the gun isn't much changed from when Browning came up with the dropping barrel.  A modern gun is a refined and constantly improved linear descendant.

So, what are we proving by dumping 2,000 rounds without cleaning or lube?

Most armies and police forces carry a pistol and two reloads.  That's common for the CCW holders who carry spare ammo too.  That's a mere 52 rounds for a Glock 17.

I think all we're demonstrating with these endurance tests is that our new gun is, indeed, a modern well engineered pistol.  Sadly, it's something that needs to be proven and we can't just take it for granted.