STI Tactical 2011 5.0 Review for Duty:
The 1911 has found its way into many duty holsters over the last 100 years. Seven or eight rounds of .45 ACP were a good step up from six rounds of the wheel guns. It was only logical to accept that the 25 rounds of 9mm or 22 rounds of .40 S&W would also be a good option. The STI Tactical 2011 will yield a substantial increase in capacity than your traditional duty handgun. The gun is accurate, fast, and built in the USA. But, with these clear advantages there are also potential disadvantages. The following are my findings for this particular firearm as a duty weapon:
COST
MSRP on a STI Tactical 2011 is $2,099. You can sometimes find a good deal and get it under $2k. Even with the best internet shopper you are looking at spending 3-4 times as much for a plastic relative. The price of a properly outfitted magazine will set you about $100-$130… each. My three MBX 140mm magazines I carry on duty set me back the price of a new blue label Glock. It is clear that this is not the cheapest option for a duty or carry pistol. But, there are other items to consider. If you are a mechanic do you buy the cheapest Chinese made tools from Ebay? Or, do you buy Snap-On with a lifetime warranty? Now take it a step further… if your life depended on that tool, what would you choose? If you could have an obvious advantage when bullets are flying at you and you are returning to sender, what is that worth to you?
As a police officer I have more blessings than commas in my bank account. I find the most important toys I have are the ones that help me return to my family every night. I am more willing to live without power windows, power locks, and cruise control in my personal vehicle than less advantageous firearms in my holster.
ACCURACY
There are two aspects of accuracy that are to be considered. One is the ability of the gun to fire tight groupings. The other is the ability of you to make the gun fire tight groupings. The shooter is usually the least accurate part of the gun. The amount of pre-travel (uptake), over-travel, reset, and weight decide how good you need to be. The lighter and crisper the trigger, the less skillful you have to be on trigger manipulation to make decent shots. Usually a heavier trigger equates to a higher likelihood that you will disturb the sight alignment before the bullet leaves the barrel. Too light of a trigger can be dangerous and a liability too, especially for those that can’t seem to keep their finger off the bang switch. STI has found a perfect middle ground on this matter. The trigger has a tiny amount of uptake, clean break, and minimal over-travel. The trigger pull is about 4-4.5 lbs, a good weight for accuracy and safety.
This gun has both types of accuracy. It is inherently accurate because of the tight tolerances and fitted slide, frame, and barrel. It is also easy to shoot accurately because of the great trigger. The stock trigger is slightly heavy for a competition gun but it is spot on for a duty or carry gun. The drawback of the tight tolerances and fitted parts is the break in. I wouldn’t recommend carrying a STI 2011 until you have shot at least 500 rounds through it. It is critical to keep it well lubricated during this period. Some STI’s are great right out of the box and others require a little more break in. I don’t recommend having your life depend on any gun until it is proven and reliable.
SPEED
There are a number of ways to win a gun fight. Here are a couple rules that can help. One, get shot less. Two, shoot the bad guy more. If you can obey these two rules you have a good chance of winning the gun fight. The speed in which you and your gun can make rapid hit on target will greatly help in rule two. Doing rule two quickly can also help you in rule one.
The STI Tactical 2011 has a full dust cover and bull barrel. The added weight near the nose of the gun helps counter muzzle rise. It has a rail to add a tac-light for even more weight and is a must for any duty gun. It is very easy to make rapid shot and keep the grouping relatively tight. I find the .40 tactical to be over sprung out of the factory. I would recommend a lighter recoil spring and one piece guide rod instead of the recoil master guide rod. This will help with the slight nose dive immediately after the slide slams forward. I found the stock 9mm Tactical to be properly sprung and already equipped with a one piece guide one.
I have not noticed any loss of draw speed running a 2011 verses a Glock out of the same Safariland ALS holster. One potential problem with the transition to a 1911/2011 is the manual thumb safety. After shooting Glocks for years it was an odd concept to have a manual safety. I DO NOT recommend running a 2011 unless you are prepared to practice. You need the muscle memory of pulling the safety off. This muscle memory won’t come if your idea of practice comes twice a year when you have to do a department qualify. Take some pride in your career and life, do some dry fire. You carry a gun to protect your loved ones, community, and yourself… be familiar and confident with it.
CONCLUSION
In my opinion there is not a better handgun on the market for duty carry. This gun is extremely high capacity, light bearing, fast, reliable, and accurate. It doesn’t fit in every budget and isn’t for the casual shooter. This gun is without peer in the hands of a true shooter.