When a design has certain elements of several successful handguns, it may be a good mix of pleasing features or a witch’s brew of poor design.
In this case, the maker got it right.
The SAR 9 9mm pistol illustrated has come together with good features, making it among the most desirable handguns on the market based on reliability, usefulness and economy.
The pistol isn’t cheap, but it is affordable compared to the GLOCK, HK and Walther. Yet it gives up little to these pistols in performance.
I believe it is a head and shoulders above the rest in its price range, or a little out of the price range on the high side. It is that good a design.
The Sarsilmaz SAR 9 is well worth a hard look. It will fill the bill for home defense, personal defense and for informal target shooting.
While there are other handguns offered by SAR, including CZ 75 clones, the SAR 9 is the flagship or foundation of the line.
Features and Specs
The pistol has its origins in a military contract for over 100,000 pistols.
The SAR 9 isn’t a copy or clone of another pistol, but an original, although some of its features are influenced by other handguns.
The slide resembles the GLOCK with a custom carry smoothing job.
The frame is either HK or Walther-like depending on the perspective of the person handling the pistol.
This is a striker-fired polymer-frame pistol, no surprises there. The pistol features an ambidextrous safety. I like that a lot.
Some will ignore the safety and that may work well for experienced shooters, some will prefer to activate the safety when carrying this pistol.
The pistol features a firing-pin block and the usual bifurcated trigger.
There is a lever in the center of the trigger to prevent trigger movement if the pistol is dropped.
There is a bright red insert behind the trigger that cues us in when the trigger is ready to fire and the slide racked.
The slide lock and magazine release are easily manipulated.
The magazines are tapered like all high-capacity 9mm magazines and are quite easy to guide into the magazine well.
The pistol features a modern light rail molded into the frame.
The SAR 9 no only features changeable backstraps, but also changeable side panels, an unexpected feature in a pistol that sells for less than the HK and Walther.
The pistol is delivered in a hard plastic box with an instruction manual, cleaning rod and two 17-round magazines.
The internals of the SAR 9 are similar to the GLOCK, but not identical as may be expected. The addition of the manual safety makes a difference.
The takedown or field-stripping sequence is simple enough and very similar to the GLOCK/Walther type.
As far as I can tell, nothing is interchangeable with any other firearm I am familiar with.
Operation is standard double-action-only, striker-fired — rack the slide and the striker is partially prepped or cocked.
Press the trigger to the rear and the striker is brought back against spring pressure and breaks against the sear spring, firing the pistol.
The slide recoils and resets the striker for subsequent shots. The magazines are devilishly difficult to load to 17 rounds, but just fine to 15 rounds.
The magazine’s springs are certainly stout and will feed with reliability.
While there is something of a shortage imposed by panic buying and demand greater than ever seen in this country, I was able to fire more than 400 cartridges in the pistol over the course of several months.
On the firing line, I liked the three-dot sights.
They are properly regulated for 124-grain loads and fire a bit high with the 147-grain — par for the course.
The trigger is heavier than some at six pounds, but manageable. In drawing from a Falco holster designed for the GLOCK 17, the pistol is fast on target.
The sights and trigger are good choices for most defense uses.
Getting on target, getting a hit, and making a fast center hit and then a follow-up shot at five and seven yards was not difficult.
How It Performs
Most of the ammunition expended was the cheapest ball ammo I could find. It included some pretty dirty steel case and other loads.
The pistol never failed to feed, cycle or eject. I fired a magazine of SIG Sauer Elite 124-grain V Crown to test reliability.
The pistol thrives on defense ammunition. The V Crown is a formidable defense loading.
I also used a few rounds of Winchester 147-grain Silvertip to confirm the pistol’s accuracy at a long 25 yards.
Firing from the MTM firing rest, I put five rounds into four inches. The pistol is accurate enough, if not target grade.
At defense range — seven yards — you may make a single ragged hole in the X-ring with the cheapest load.
This is a formidable handgun well worth its price.
| SAR 9 | Features |
|---|---|
| Sights: | Three-Dot, White Outline |
| Weight: | 27 Ounces |
| Length | 7.5 Inches |
| Magazine Capacity | 17 Rounds |
What do you think of the SAR 9? Let us know in the comments section below!
I am very particular in choosing my weapons as a former Marine I like a dependable fire arm. With that being said when I bought my sar 9 I was a bit hesitant not knowing much about it and I’m not a fan of what we call pea shooters. But I do have to say it is a damn good and reliable weapon it shoots very accurate has a pretty good recoil to it it has not jammed at all I have to say I don’t regret buying this weapon wish the trigger had less pressure but over all a great weapon
I bought my SAR9 about 3 weeks ago. First time at range fired 50 rounds a210 yards. All hit at least a foot low. I contacted SAR and they told me gun sights were European. Sent me an Email with the proper sight picture. I returned to the range and fired 20 rounds at 20 feet. All hit 6inches low, even using recommended sight picture. Still waiting for reply from SAR about adjustment of sights.
Shoots great already,first box of 124gr.two 17rd mags ,How many rounds do you need if someone come thru your door with bad intentions .Lock& Load!!!?
I bought this gun with a recommendation from a friend. And though I’m no assassin with perfect aim, this gun is on point. Big for people with small hands.
But this thing shoots so well even with tula ammo. But why even use it? Accurate Accurate Accurate!
One of if not my favorite, under 5hun gun..
also my fall/winter daily carry!
Just purchased this gun and 9mm is one of my least favorite calibers. But how does any gun enthusiast pass up on $249 quality pistol with 2 mags, a holster, and a loader in hard case? Not me!
I’m a rifle guy even though this is my second gun and first striker fire…what a nice ,reliable, fun to shot piece..first sight (after 120 round) love..on target about 96% with 5 kind of ammo including tula still case ammo…I love my cm9 but this one is WOW… AFTER YOU LEARN HOW to disassembly its a piece of cake cleaning and maintenance..like any other gun you should put 400..500 rounds before it breaks in…excellent gun for the price ..even after purchasing it went down 50$ …
Just recently bought me a SAR9. My first firearm purchase. Not a big fan of its tendency to stovepipe but that’s petty insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Love how it takes whatever kind of round you can put through it and the quick field stripping capability is a very big plus. While I understand people’s issue with tight slide and grainy trigger pull it is also an insignificant fairly superficial complaint all in all.
This firearm is very easy to wield and the extra safety is great for someone who worries about accidents. Never was a fan of this style firearm until this purchase… But I have even given her a name… Nyx…. Thats not something I would do if I wasnt a fan…i am now looking for optics because the iron sights are off about 6″ or so at a range of about 20’… I could adjust the rear sights but addition of a holographic red dot is more up my alley
Just picked mine up yesterday and instantly I knew this was going to be a favorite. It feels so at home in both my hands. I am ambidextrous and shoot equally well with both hands. I literally do not have a hand that I favor. I have Beretta apx’s too and they are just totally awesome.
If the thumb safety is a little stiff just flip it up and down about twenty times and it will loosen up.
When you hold this gun it instantly feels like it is an extension of your arm.
This gun was designed to beat the glock and it has outdone itself. I will be buying more of these in the future. The grip feel really good too….smooth but yet grips well.
The slide release is tight but I suspect it too will smooth out after a while. Can’t say enough about this sidearm.
really love this gun.i have the sar9st and exactly what was said in review, it is almost impossible to get last 2 rounds in clip. Got a speed loader on the way to see if it helps,but otherwise its a great gun
I work at Gun Counter in a nice store I was able to acquire a 9x Platinum.This is an excellent firearm.The package it came with is more then adequate.The flashlight is bright enough the holster sturdy enough and Double Magazine holder works well.A great package at the price.Looks nice and operation is flawless do far.Trigger is breaking in after 600 rounds getting much smoother.I really sell alot of the Sar 9 and am super confident that my customers will enjoy it.
I feel very fortunate to have acquired one of these during a year of turmoil. This along with a few other choice pistols are very nice. Have not yet had a chance to fire; but the ergonomics are spot on. This is the sort of piece that feels just right the first time you pick it up. I have not doubt it will do the job.
Is the SAR 9 California compliant or will it be California compliant anytime soon thank you very much for the article
I have the sar 2000 and LOVE it. Looks good with chrome slides and black frame.. Only draw back I have is it does not have the rail for mounting options.
I wasn’t totally convinced I liked this firearm on my first range trip. The trigger was a bit scratchy and slide very stiff to rack. The gun just felt a bit awkward in my hand. However I decided to keep trying and changed out the grips to better fit my hands. I took it back to the range a few more times. Each time was a bit better. I’m now really liking this SAR9. The trigger feels so much better and I am on target with each shot. It has handled all types of ammo with no problems at all 100% reliability so far. I would definitely recommend this gun.