Review: Bul Armory Axe Cleaver 9mm Pistol — Beyond Glock Perfection

Bul Armory is an Israeli maker with a good reputation for producing quality handguns. Most of these are clones of proven handguns such as the 1911 or CZ 75. The newest clone just may prove to be the most popular yet. This is the Axe, a close clone of the Glock pistol.

The Bul Armory Axe offers improvements over the Glock that may make it a popular pistol. There are other Glock clones, the Axe isn’t the first. Some are less expensive than the Glock, and as expected, corners have been cut. Others such as the Shadow Systems cost more but offer improvements.

The Bul Amory Axe is at the same price point as the Glock but offers an improved slide and frame, as well as a good trigger action. There are several variants including a Glock 19-size compact 9mm. The pistol tested is a full size variant in the Glock 17 9mm fashion.

The Glock’s primary claim to fame is reliability. The Glock always works. Cheaper clones may compromise this reliability — although, most seem to work well. They simply are not as refined. The more expensive pistols usually offer a better trigger and sights. It makes sense to use Glock magazines, and to make the pistol as compatible with the Glock as possible. There are many popular aftermarket accessories for the Glock.

The Axe is a pistol that has taken a reliable base and upgraded it considerably. The stainless steel slide features both forward and rear cocking serrations. They are nicely done, offering plenty of gripping surface. The front of the slide features a scalloped section near the muzzle. This section is unique and offers quite a bit of bling compared to the utilitarian Glock.

The sights are standard fare with three, white dot inserts. The pistol is similar to the Glock, but not completely interchangeable internally. The slide and slide rails differ enough that the slides are not compatible. The barrel, however, is interchangeable with Glock barrels. This makes sense.

The magazines are Glock compatible and the supplied magazines, while Bul manufactured, are nearly identical to the Glock save for a generous base pad. This base pad makes for easy magazine loading with a fast slap and may protect the magazine if dropped. Loaded magazines that are dropped most often land hard on the base.

The frame is the greatest departure from the Glock. The trigger guard and handle feel different.  The checkering and serration treatment is easily the best I have found on any Glock or near Glock clone.

The trigger action is Glock-like but lighter and with a sharper reset. The Glock trigger is a fine combat trigger. If the good features are kept but the action sharpened, that is a good thing. The Bul trigger action breaks at a consistent 4.5 pounds. You should be able to fire the pistol more accurately than a pistol with the 5.5 to 6.0-pound Glock action, while the trigger maintains the safety and control of the original.

I could probably have done without the enlarged slide lock but then some like this addition. This pistol is as quick to speed load as any service-grade pistol. You would need a shelf-type magazine lock and wide mouth magazine well to beat this standard.

Shots Fired

I lubricated the pistol (lightly) on the cocking block before heading to the range. After all, the Glock needs a single drop of oil so this pistol should compete on the same level. The magazines are not difficult to load to full capacity.

I added a Glock magazine with + 2 baseplate. I managed to find a few boxes of 9mm NATO (1988 stamp Winchester) at a fair price. It had not been stored properly, and was tarnished, but cracked off every shot. Average velocity was 1,202 fps.

The three magazines on hand were loaded with 53 rounds of ammunition. The pistol comes on target quickly and handles well. Recoil is Glock 17 class with perhaps a slight advantage in recoil control due to the long grip tang and undercut trigger. There are no grip inserts.

A pistol of this size weight and design is a joy to fire and use. Recoil is modest, and the piece is easily controlled. Firing at 5, 7, and 10 yards, I homed bullets into the X-ring. This pistol is comparable in combat accuracy to any striker-fired 9mm.

I fired a number of other loads including Federal’s Train and Defend, Hornady Handgun Hunter, and Fiocchi Range Dynamics. The pistol is reliable and never failed to feed, chamber, fire, or eject. I also fired the pistol for accuracy from a solid benchrest firing over a range bag.

I took my time looking for the best accuracy, using two of the most accurate loads (in my experience). The Hornady Handgun Hunter put five shots into 2.8 inches. The Fiocchi 115-grain FMJ Range Dynamics went into 2.85 inches. Too close to call and more than accurate enough for most any chore.

The pistol fits Glock holsters — a big advantage. Everyone makes a Glock holster. The pistol was carried in an N8 Tactical inside-the-waistband holster. The fit was good and draw speed sharp. After a few weeks of shooting and electing to add the Bul Armory Axe Cleaver 9mm to my battery of carry guns, I added a set of TruGlo self-luminous iron sights.

Night sights are an advantage in most situations, and I felt that TruGlo offers a good sight picture. While there are many different types offered by TruGlo, my choice (based on a balance of high accuracy potential and a quickly acquired sight picture) is the TruGlo Pro.

I find the Bul Armory Axe a good pistol. It is an improvement over the typical Glock providing reliability that stands up with time. That is something to write home about…

Perhaps it is not as well known as Glock or other clones, but if it performs… What is your take on the Bul Armory Axe Cleaver? Share your opinion or review in the comment section.