A special M1911 that owns a niche all its own.

olt started making their 1911 pistols experimentally in 9mm in the late 1940s, and put them on the market shortly thereafter in the short, light Commander format. They never caught on. The gun-buying public figured that if they wanted a single- action 9mm pistol in that size range, they could get a 14-shot Browning instead of a 10-shot Colt, so what was the point?

Colt eventually gave up on the 9mm Commander, though over the years they'd do an occasional run of Government Models or, later, 1991 Al pistols in that caliber. Ditto the various manufacturers of "1911 clones," including Rock Island Arsenal and Springfield Armory.

The 9mm 1911s have been "niche market guns." In Venezuela I saw a lot of them; .45 ammo was expensive there, but 9mm from the Government sponsored CAVIM arsenal was cheap, and shooters there liked the plethora of accessories available for the 1911 pistols. Alvaro Estada, perhaps the best known custom pistolsmith in Venezuela, seemed to sell a lot of them.

Before sights where adjusted, author shot this PPC target at 25 yards for NRA's Match 2. A few clicks to the left and it would have been a perfect score.

Stateside, it became apparent to those who tried them that with the heavier Government Model slide, the 9mm 1911 kicked less than the slim Browning chambered for the same round. When Steel Challenge became a popular game on the competition circuit, contestants and gunsmiths discovered that a 1911 in 9mm could be made very light for fast handling, and keep its light recoil through judicious installation of recoil compensators. When PPC shooting opened up to autos, it was discovered that an accurized 1911 with 147-grain subsonic ammo could be a match- winning combination.

It was also discovered that, once reliability was guaranteed, petite females and others who were recoil sensitive could get a boost in their speed and accuracy with a 9mm 1911. Those petite females, and others with small fingers, appreciated the easy reach to the trigger when a short trigger was installed on the gun.

Meanwhile, many other trends had developed among 1911 users. The one of most interest here was the slim-lined grip frame. The first of these I know of was crafted many years ago by Mike Plaxco, then a champion shooter and fine pistolsmith, for Sally Sayle, the wife of John Sayle, of both IPSC and IDPA fame. The concept caught on. No less an authority than Jeff Cooper, the man who is probably more responsible for the resurgence of the 1911 pistol's popularity in the latter half of the 2Oth Century than anyone else, pronounced it desirable for people of even "average adult male" hand size, and indeed, for the majority of 1911 shooters. Jeff decreed that it would be an option at the Gunsite Gunsmithy.

Now, let's look at something else, a gun manufacturing company that began as Strayer-Tripp International. They made a fine art out of crafting competition 1911s (so modern that they dubbed them "2011 s") with plastic-cum-metal frames and wide body magazines that accepted a huge number of rounds. The STI pistols quickly became a strong presence in IPSC (International Practical Shooting Confederation) competition. Virgil Tripp bought out Sandy Strayer, IPSC shooter and retired industrialist Dave Skinner bought out Virgil, and the firm is known today as STI International. In addition to their match guns, they offer some neat, high-priced defensive pistols, all built with the most modem of 1911 accoutrements.

STI strongly supports IDPA, the International Defensive Pistol Association. I had the honor of being match director at the IDPA Mid-Winter National Championships of 2001 hosted by Smith & Wesson in Springfield, Massachusetts, and spent some time chatting with Don Kimball at the STI booth. They had a lot of cool stuff, but one piece really caught my eye. They called it the Trojan.

Some prefer the forward slide serrations found on the STI Trojan. Here, Jana Gabarro utilizes them for chamber check to confirm 9mm  unloaded.

It was a steel-frame, single-stack 1911 with the Plaxco-style, Cooper- approved slim-line grip treatment. To appeal to shooters in IDPA's Enhanced Service Pistol category, designed for single-action autos of less than 10mm or .45 caliber, it was available in 9mm.

Gun Details

My test pistol came with Metalform magazines. They worked perfectly, as has been my experience with that brand. The STI factory promises a trigger pull weight of four to five pounds. Mine came through at four pounds on the dot, as measured by gunsmith Don Ellison of Lewis Arms at Riley's in Hooksett, New Hampshire. This is within the margin of acceptability for a street gun, if barely. The pull is crisp and clean, smooth, without a hint of a hitch.

The bottom edge of the trigger- guard is "cutaway" in shape where it meets the grip frame, a popular modification of the 1911 that helps bring the shooting hand as high as possible, which in turn enhances control. The upswept beavertail has the same effect, along with better distributing recoil into the web of the hand, and more smoothly guides the hand into grasping position during a quick draw. The grip safety also sports what some call a "memory groove," which guarantees depressing it to the "fire" position if your thumb is in a high position that would normally pull the web of the hand away from the grip safety. These are all good features.

The slim-line grip is interesting. At first, if you're accustomed to the conventional 1911, it feels weird. As soon as you start shooting, though, don't be surprised if it feels weirdly wonderful. I found that this configuration gave me splendid control of the gun. Of course, there's also a slight advantage in concealment, too. "The width of the grip across the wood is 1.08 inches, instead of a single-stack 1911's usual 1.260 inches," notes Dave Skinner, CEO of STI. The flat, nicely checkered mainspring housing complements the slim-line effect of the Trojan pistol.

Ayoob practices weak hand only with STI Trojan, Ruger .45 in waistband...

..and here, he misses only one plate winning IDPA match with same STI.

The magazine well is slightly, smoothly beveled. You don't get the super-fast reload of the wide-body STI with its cavernous magazine well, but it does make a speed reload go a little faster. The grips are nicely done, understated and professionally checkered. Finish is a muted gray. The slide grooves are particularly nice, not only bold in look but affording an extremely solid grasp. The slide is similarly grooved toward the front, a feature I personally find necessary or even counter-productive, but one that many users prefer.

Thumb safety is "right-hander-only" unfortunately, oversize but not so much so as to be likely to wipe off by accident. Topping the pistol are a bold, blocky Patridge front sight and STI's own copy of the BoMar adjustable rear. These offer a stark, big sight picture that comes quickly to the eye. Night sights, at least from the manufacturer, are not an option at this time.

Caliber choices include the ubiquitous .45 ACP .40 S&W, 9mm, .45 Super, and the .45 SMC (Short Magnum Cartridge). I ordered the test sample in 9mm.

Blade-Tech holster, STI Trojan proved a winner for Ayoob in competition.

Key Trojan Features: Niched-out bottom of triggerguard. "Speed bump" on grip safety assures positive function. Thumb safety is just the right size.

This perspective shows slim grip profile, and slightly beveled meg well.

Why A 9mm 1911?

To some, an argument for chambering a 1911 for 9mm is less than convincing. The fact is, though, that the 1911 has been known to offer a particularly accurate platform for the 9mm cartridge when properly fitted and equipped with the right barrel. Moreover, the size and strength of an all-steel 1911 results in a 9mm of extremely mild recoil, even with the hottest 9mm ammunition. Consider the following possibilities.

CCW Guns for Females. I know a woman in the Dallas area who's active in IDPA competition, and shoots matches with the same 9mm 1911 that she carries concealed for self- defense. The mild recoil works well with her slender wrists, the gun is flat enough for her to conceal even in hot weather, and the result is easy, fast, accurate delivery of adequately potent firepower.

Avoidance of Disparate Impact Lawsuits. I've been an expert witness for the plaintiffs in a number of cases in which female officers were fired for failure to qualify with department issue sidearms that were too big for them. The overwhelming majority of these women won their lawsuits against the departments. A typical judgment is $100,000. The caselaw holds that issuing a man-size gun to a petite female officer creates "disparate impact," a key element in gender discrimination.

Another way to put it is this. Consider that the STI Trojan in 9mm costs $995. A duty holster and magazine pouch for it, and spare magazines. cost no more than for any other service pistol. Thus, the department that buys one for an officer with tiny hands is preventing a $100,000 judgment (not to mention huge legal fees) with a $995 equipment payout, and the department still owns the gun. That's less than a penny on the dollar to avert a problem. I'd call it a hell of a deal.

A Crutch for Shooter Disability. A good friend of mine, only 43, suffers from such severe tendonitis, that he had to switch his 1911 from .45 to 9mm. He says the milder recoil allows him to stay in competitive shooting, and is convinced he'd have had to give It up otherwise. A couple of the most macho guys I know have had surgery for microfractures in the wrists from shooting heavy caliber guns. The kid here has a touch of arthritis himself, and when it flares up in the gun hand wrist doesn't need too much convincing to switch from .45 to 9mm for a while. As the shooting population ages, I predict the 1911 9mm will become a much more attractive gun to this segment of the marketplace. This STI Trojan would be an excellent choice.

IDPA Advantage. IDPA, the International Defensive Pistol Association, is the fastest growing "combat handgun sport" and the one that offers the most to the armed citizen or the law enforcement officer at the moment, in my opinion. In its four categories of firearm, it is clear that they've found guns like the Trojan----single-action, medium power auto pistol~the easiest to shoot fast and straight.

In their demanding 90-shot Classifier course, IDPA considers you a Master of the Stock Service Revolver if you can break 102 seconds. With the double-action or Safe Action Stock Service Pistol, the greater ease of shooting with an autopistol ups the ante to some 98 seconds for a Master's card. A single- action 1 Omm or .45 auto is known as a Custom Defensive Pistol, so much more "shootable" that it takes about a 91 second run for the 90 shots to earn the coveted Master status. Consider that in Enhanced Service Pistol (ESP), the category where the single-action 9mm like the test STI Trojan would fit, you've got to be in the 89 second range to earn the same Master's honors. This is more proof that such pistols are very easy to shoot fast and straight.

..and nothing on the gun gets in the way of this stronger grip author prefers, with thumbs locked down.	Specifications: STI Trojan CALIBER: .45 ACP, .40 Super, .40 S&W, 9mm BARREL: 5" (available in 6") OA LENGTH: 8.5" HEIGHT: 5.3" WIDTH: 1.065" WEIGHT: Under 36 oz. STOCK: Rosewood SIGHT: STI adjustable rear, competition front ACTION: Recoil operated as semiautomatic SAFETIES: High rise grip and single-sided thumb safety FINISH: Matted blue CAPACITY: 8+1
Note recoil spring guide rod, slide serrations, match barrel bushing.	STI's adjustable sight gives postive, repeatable adjustments and an excellant sight picture.

Now, if you compete in a specialty category of IDPA and are looking for High Woman, High Senior, or High Law Enforcement honors, all four of the gun classifications compete together. Thus, it is advantageous to shoot in the ESP class. I've found nothing that works better there, out of the box, than the STI Trojan in 9mm Parabellum.

STI delivered amply good accuracy and  perfect fuctionong with these six standard pressure 9mm Luger loads.

On Firing Line

I tried this "nine" with nine different loads. "Nine" times nine came out, not to 81, but 2.6; by that I mean, the gun averaged 2.66 inches hand-held for five-shot groups at 25 yards, fired from the bench rest. I also measured each group for the best three shots, a proven technique for factoring out human error when a Ransom Rest isn't available.

Loads ranged from mild (1 47-grain subsonic) to wild (Winchester's NATO load, actually higher 

Three super-hot 9mm loads from Winchester gave easy controllability, excellent accuracy in STI Trojan.

Remington 115gr. JHP gave best accuracy: that's five shots in 1.35" fired at 75' on a 50' target.

On 50' target fired at 75', we see evidence of the accuracy and controllability of the STI Trojan 9mm with super-hot +P+ ammo.

pressure than +P+). The Trojan was more accurate than the five-shot groups show. Federal 9BP was shooting a 1.90-inch group until I blew a shot, and Winchester's police-only 1 27-graIn Ranger had a 2.15-inch group going until I jerked one. This is why I think the three-shot groups are a better indicator of the gun's pure accuracy potential.

Note that it was most accurate with Remington 115-grain JHP. This load was used nationwide from LAPD to New Jersey State Police for years, and neither complained about Its stopping power during that long period. Being extremely mild in recoil, it would be an excellent choice for those who are buying into a 1911 9mm to gain that advantage.

The load I carried in it during the test period was the Winchester +P+. Accuracy was great. This is the famous Illinois State Police load that for some twenty years earned a reputation for "Magnum Force in a nine millimeter" across the country. In the STI pistol, it didn't kick badly at all.

Match Tested

I didn't have a chance to shoot a PPC match with this gun, but it would have been amply accurate. I tried NRA's Match Two: six shots each kneeling, left hand standing barricade, and right hand standing barricade, all in 90 seconds, before I had the sights perfectly adjusted. The 18 Pro-Load hollow points delivered a 178 out of 180 score, grouping slightly to the right. The leftmost shot was 1.2 inches Inside the ten ring,. and the rightmost was 1.2 inches outside it in the nine ring. Witb proper sight adjustment, it would have been a perfect 180/180 score. Distance was 25 yards.

In May of 2001, I took this pistol to an IDPA match in a Blade-Tech holster. I had reason to appreciate its good trigger, reliability, accuracy, and above all, speed of accurate fire. The front sight seemed to just quiver on the target as I manipulated the trigger, often needing double-taps and triple- taps for the course of fire. I had the good fortune to win the event, not only high Master in ESP class, but high score overall. The pistol delivered.

For more information contact: STI International, 114 Halmar Cove, Dept CH, Georgetown, TX 78828; 512-819-0656; www.stiguns.com IBlade Tech, 2506-104th Street Court South. Suite #A' Dept CH, Lakewood, WA 98499; 253-581- 4347; www.blade-tech.com

Final Notes

At $995 complete, I think it's a darn good deal. It's as good as anything I've seen in its class, including a lot of guns that are much more expensive. In the course of the testing, there were absolutely no malfunctions. The STI Trojan fit every regular 1911 holster I tried it in. I think it's a good pistol, and a good buy.