GUN REVIEW: Wilson Combat’s WCP 365X – SIG Sauer/Wilson Combat Collaboration

By Todd Burgreen

The P365 was SIG Sauer’s big splash at the 2018 SHOT Show. The market rewarded SIG’s thought process by making the P365 one of the best selling handguns in the U.S. every year since. The P365 is as thin and compact as many single-stack designs while offering double-stack capacity. The key to the SIG P365’s success is its high cartridge capacity to size ratio, minimal operating controls, above average trigger, superior iron sights, adaptability, and relentless reliability.

A hotter niche in the handgun market right now than slim, subcompact 9mm semi-autos would be tough to name. SIG loaded the P365 with features such as XRAY3 day/night sights, a 10-round flush fit magazine with optional 12-round, 15-round, or 17-round extended magazines also available.

SIG is renowned for not resting on its laurels. Always pushing the envelope, SIG is either introducing new variants of already successful weapons or bringing new designs to life in the quest to scratch everyone’s new gun itch. The P365 pistol product line-up serves as proof of this statement with 24 models of the P365 presently available from the factory. The P365 has solidified SIG HQ in Exeter, NH as ground zero in the current handgun universe.

TEAMING UP

Benefitting all handgun connoisseurs Wilson Combat and SIG have decided to work on another collaboration. This one involves SIG’s P365. Yes, the Wilson WCP365 is recognizable as a SIG P365, however internal and external enhancements turn it into a Wilson Combat product. Wilson Combat starts with the SIG P365 and modifies it in a way only Wilson Combat can with eight different Wilson WCP365 models available. The specific model featured here is the WCP365X. The WCP365X combines a Wilson Combat XL grip module with a P365 slide. Based on the P365 XL-sized grip module, make sure no 10-round P365 magazines get into your WCP365X carry gear, as they will not seat properly.

The WCP365X is defined by laser “starburst” stippling on the Wilson Combat lower module. Wilson X-Tac front and rear slide serrations provide purchase for manipulating the WCP365X’s diminutive slide. A serration pattern is also present on top of the slide between the Wilson Combat Battlesight rear and red fiber-optic front sight. This helps maintain crisp sight picture by minimizing glare between the front and rear sight.

The Wilson Combat option of a direct milled slide with a Trijicon RMRcc  mounted was taken advantage of. The most obvious personal defense handgun equipment upgrade over the last 10 years has to be red dot sights. Trijicon has led the way with their rugged ultra-reliable red dots. Yes, there is a plethora of red dots out there now. However, do not forget Trijicon still sets the standard that all others are judged against.

An important nuance of using a red dot sight on a personal defense handgun is to have co-witnessing iron sights. Anything electronic can fail, no matter how rugged. Wilson Combat has taken care of that with their iron sight arrangement. Another advantage of the co-witnessing iron sights is instant zero verification of the dot. If something is askew, it‘s noticeable.

The Wilson Combat slide and barrel is finished in black DLC finish. The SIG X-Series straight trigger was incorporated. This trigger features a pull weight measuring approximately 4.25 pounds. The SIG X-Series straight trigger offers a 90-degree break for better geometry and is less likely to pull the sights to the right or left during the trigger press. One of the keys to the P365X’s accuracy is how it offers the same trigger pull every time. Overall, the SIG trigger is an asset with its consistency. Anyone that familiarizes themselves with it will not be disappointed. Wilson Combat also offers a Grayguns trigger along with a spring modifications as an option.

FIRST IMPRESSION

My first exposure to the WCP365X was at a media event with Wilson Combat. Multiple steel targets, plate racks, and dueling trees stretched from 7 yards out to 125 yards in front of the Wilson Combat tent. Wilson Combat’s Tressa Bohannan just kept handing me magazines during my initial experience with the WCP365X. After about a hundred rounds, I sheepishly realized I had to give way to other participants.

The Wilson Combat modifications to the P365 center on enhancing the handgun’s interaction with the user, especially in terms of placing multiple rounds on target accurately, efficiently, and consistently. This offers a tactical advantage. The Wilson slide’s mass ad shape is engineered to aid in increased muzzle control for double taps or longer strings of fire. The pistol’s already low bore axis is further enhanced with the extended beavertail and undercut trigger guard relative to the shooter’s hand. These ergonomic enhancements minimize muzzle flip and provide a very stable sight picture no matter how many or how rapidly rounds are fired.

The WCP3656X had me thinking how expertly applied tweaks and attention to detail from an operation like Wilson Combat benefit even an already solid design such as the SIG P365. Previous Wilson Combat collaborations involving larger frame weapons involved subtle slimming refinements to the pistol’s grip. Not so with the P365. Due to its already bantam size, the discerning eyes at Wilson Combat decided to strategically enlarge the grip with an ever-so-slight palm swell and other nuances that make a big difference in the ergonomics department. Let me elaborate.

Feeling good in your hand does not automatically mean the grip is giving you a proper fit. While feel is important, proper fit is crucial. Think about how custom rifles and shotguns are contoured to their end user. The same applies to handguns, especially one wearing a red dot optic. Proper grip starts from the holster and sets the stage for the most efficient use of a red dot-equipped handgun. The majority of aiming any pistol, red dot or not, is achieved through kinesthetic awareness. Kinesthetic awareness is the body’s knowledge of the relative location and engagement of tension in its parts. This especially pertains to red dots via proper grip and tension applied to the pistol as soon as possible in the draw phase. Grip is also the key for tracking the red dot up and down on target during multiple round drill. The Wilson Combat WCP365X with RMRcc performed larger than its diminutive size thanks to Wilson Combat’s enhancements.

EDC

The WCP365X became a constant carry companion in lieu of my normal SIG ROMEOZero Elite red-dotted SIG P365XL Spectre Comp. A P365 was also mixed in for comparison purposes. SIG Sauer Elite and Wilson Combat ammunition led the way in testing with both FMJ and JHP loads used. My T&E was conducted at Echo Valley Training Center (EVTC), a private range located near Winchester, VA, where many local and federal law enforcement tactical team members train.

PERFORMANCE

Shooting from sandbags produced 1-inch groups at 15 yards with the WCP365X with multiple ammunition types. T&E moved quickly past rudimentary bench or stand & deliver efforts at EVTC. The Trijicon RMRcc red dot assisted in engaging targets at close distances with the red dot easy to pick up rapidly. Point shooting with the WCP365X is still very feasible when using the RMRcc’s window as a ghost ring if forced to react spontaneously to a threat. Drills consisted of drawing from concealment to see if the RMRcc dot was easy to obtain when operating in haste. Various scenarios engaging targets from static positions behind cover or while on the move were also utilized. Magazine change drills were done for the dual purpose of getting a feel of manipulating the WCP365X with the RMRcc installed and making sure the red dot was seamlessly picked up after the pistol was reloaded and brought back on target.

Users of the WCP365X equipped with the Trijicon RMRcc will find that they no longer have to switch back and forth between target and sights; something that grows more challenging as we age. Handgunners with a red dot-equipped weapon can now do as nature intended – focus on the target. Both eyes open is a must when working with a red dot. The red dot will be there. Moreover, because the use of a red dot is far easier than aligning two separate pieces of protruding steel, users will find they can take accurate shots beyond what was considered realistic with iron sights, especially with a compact handgun with short sight radius like the P365. Hitting steel at 75 yards is very possible with the WCP365X.

The ease of everyday carry with the WCP365X is what sets it apart from most personal defense weapons. The WCP365X is a compact handgun that pushes the performance envelope while still maintaining a real-world application. The Wilson Combat WCP365X increases the effectiveness of a compact concealed carry handgun beyond what most thought capable.

SPECIFICATIONS