2022
FOGHORN
June 2022 Twobirds Flying Publications
Sarsilmaz SAR9 Copyright 2022, Towbirds Flying Publications. All Rights Reserved.
Sarsilmaz SAR9
Sarsilmaz SAR9 By: Sal Palma
My first encounter with SAR USA’s SAR9 was at Shot Show 2022 in Las Vegas, and as much as I hate to admit this, when I saw it was a Turkish made pistol, I dismissed it as not being a serious player in a very competitive space. I was wrong, and in a very big way; I can only assume that my thinking was tainted by my experience with some of the early shotguns coming out of the country. The SAR9 is a striker fired pistol built like a tank. It comes in at 28 oz with an empty magazine, which is about 3 ounces heavier than a Glock 17. Like the Glock 17, the SAR9 has a magazine capacity of 17 rounds and ships with two magazines. Just looking at it, the SAR9 seems to be an aggregation of features from its competitors; for example, the grip is very similar to the HK VP9, the slide and take down procedure is like Glock’s and its takedown tabs are what you would find on a Walther pistol, but it’s all extremely well integrated. I’ll start with the grip.
A close look at the grip frame revealed interchangeable backstraps and side panels providing the shooter with a highly customizable grip. The SAR 9 ships with small, medium and large backstraps, as well as three comparably sized side panels. Right out the box, the SAR9 fit my hand like a custom-made glove with grip angle, geometry and overall size being perfect.
The SAR9 dimensions are very similar to that of the Glock 17 so Glock shooters will feel right at home.
Length Height Width
SAR9 7.6” 5.5” 1.4”
Glock 17 7.32” 5.47” 1.26”
Copyright 2022, Towbirds Flying Publications. All Rights Reserved.
Sarsilmaz SAR9 The SAR9 features an external manual safety as well as the Glock style trigger safety lever and the striker safety inside the slide. The ambidextrous external safety can only be engaged when the striker is cocked, and the lever is large enough so it can be safely operated with the thumb of the strong hand.
The SAR9 ships with two 17 round magazines and during my range session the pistol functioned flawlessly with every available brand and weight of 9mm ammunition available to me. I was also surprised on how well the SAR9 managed recoil, I experienced virtually no muzzle flip allowing me to stay on target.
The takedown procedure is Glock-like, clear the weapon, pull the trigger, apply the Glock slide squeeze and pull down the slide takedown tabs.
The SAR9 ships with a 3-dot sight, which I’ll describe as being ok, but this outstanding handgun merits a set of high-quality night sights. Night Fision makes night sights for the SAR9 and are available directly from SAR USA, but I’d like to see XS Sights or Meprolight produce sights for the pistol, both companies offer outstanding sights. If you want to shoot the SAR9 suppressed, SAR USA makes an extended threaded barrel in M13.5×1 L thread pattern for $99.95.
The SAR9 is a service pistol, and I was expecting a service pistol’s trigger. This pistol has one of the best trigger implementations I’ve encountered. There’s virtually no take-up prior to hitting the wall, the trigger breaks cleanly at just a hair under 3 lbs. (2lbs 12.6oz an average of 3 measurements) and the trigger reset is short and very audible.
If an external manual safety is not your thing, SAR USA also offers the SAR9 T that does away with the manual safety. Sarsilmaz and SAR USA have a huge success on their hands, and the industry has a worthy competitor. At street prices ranging from $429 to $350 consumers are clear winners, they get a rugged and reliable military grade pistol packed with very desirable features like a 17 round magazine capacity and a handgun that you can depend on for home defense or self-protection. Sarsilmaz’s 140 years in the firearms industry is clearly evident in its SAR9.
-SP
Copyright 2022, Towbirds Flying Publications. All Rights Reserved.
Sarsilmaz SAR9 Manufacturer Specifications: • • • • • • • •
Caliber 9x19 mm. Trigger System Single Action. Capacity 15 / 17 /19. Barrel Length 113 mm. ( 4.4") Total Length 193 mm. ( 7.6") Total Height 140 mm. ( 5.5") Total Width 37 mm. ( 1.4") Weight 790 g (27.8 oz)
Copyright 2022, Towbirds Flying Publications. All Rights Reserved.