Range Day has come and gone, and I shot a lot of guns. A ton, 600 pictures worth. Shotguns, rifles, submachine guns, and more were on hand. There are tons and tons of handguns at the range, and after shooting most, if not all of them, I picked five that are exciting, interesting, and are guns I’d love to get more hands-on time with.
OA 2311 Pro Elite
The 2311 blends the idea of a double-stack 1911 with the easy-to-find magazines of the P320. It’s an interesting blend that clearly isn’t just a 1911 that takes SIG magazines. New for this year was the 2311 Pro Elite. The Pro Elite gives you all the fancy features you’d expect from a high-end race gun.
We get an all aluminum Pro Elite grip, a ported slide and barrel, a super flat trigger that’s ridiculously light with a quick rset. The gun has built-in gas pedals because you’ll want to go fast. Controls are fully ambidextrous, and the gun is optimized for optic use and comes with a plate system to fund whatever red dot you want.
This is a competition gun, first and foremost, and I could feel it at Range Day. It was remarkably smooth shooting, accurate, and had very low recoil at the range. I fired only two magazines through the gun, and I found myself wanting to keep coming back to the gun. I want one, and I want it bad.
Live Inventory Price Checker
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Live Free Armory Apollo 11 Full Size 9mm 4.9 17+1 Elite Flat Dark Earth Pistol | BattleHawk Armory | $ 979.00 $ 953.99 |
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Live Free Armory Apollo 11 Full Size 9mm 4.9 17+1 Elite Black Pistol | BattleHawk Armory | $ 979.00 $ 959.00 |
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LFA LFAPC01306RB APOLLO 11 CPT 9MM 4.15 ROSE | BattleHawk Armory | $ 1099.00 $ 916.70 |
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LFA LFAPC81307P APOLLO 11 CPT 9M PORTED 4.15 GRY | BattleHawk Armory | $ 831.33 |
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Live Free Armory Apollo 11
The Apollo 11 is a 2011 from an American company that seems to be aiming at making the 2011 accessible. Live Free Armory has long produced a number of parts for a ton of different companies, and they’ve decided to dip their toes into the firearms market as a whole. The Apollo 11 comes in a ton of configurations and sizes, but the stock model sells for 999 dollars.
Yep, an All-American 2011 priced just a hair over what imported Turkish 2011/double stack 1911s sell for. Live Free Armory offers you the ability to buy the bare-bones model or to use a menu-like ordering system to add what you want to the gun. Ported barrels, aluminum grip modules, cerakoted finishes, and beyond.
The Live Free Armory Apollo 11 didn’t feel like a budget 2011 at Range Day. It handles extremely well, and I enjoyed shooting the gun. A light trigger and even lighter recoil made it a joy to shoot. Rapid double taps were a breeze and a lot of fun. Hitting targets at 25 yards or so was simple, and I think the Apollo 11 will have Turkish companies running or dumping their prices.
Laugo Alien Compact
The Laugo Alien is very appropriately named. It’s bizarre, foreign, and seems like a space gun. It looks kind of like a Xenomorph from the Aliens film franchise. The Alien Laugo has always been a race gun. It’s a high-tech niche gun that will work well for the competition. To keep the gun fresh, Laugo has now produced an Alien Compact.
The Alien Compact is still a big gun, but it’s a lot smaller than OG. Like the OG, the gun comes with an optical or iron sight option. The sights remain still as you shoot, which makes them crazy easy to track, and it allows you to easily shoot fast and shoot straight.
The Little Alien ran like a machine at Range Day. It was fast and accurate, with low recoil and very little recoil. With the dot being fixed, it’s easy to keep it on target and easy to drop those rounds. The trigger is fantastic, and the hammer-fired gun gives you that M1911-like feeling. The Alien Compact might be pricey for a CCW option, but it’s an option.
CZ Shadow 2 Target
The CZ Shadow 2 is a legendary competition gun and is arguably CZ’s flagship competition pistol. The Shadow 2 spawned a series of pistols with the latest being the Shadow 2 Target. The Shadow 2 Target comes with a five or six-inch barrel, and I got hands-on with the six-inch model. It’s a massive, heavy, all-metal pistol that’s quasi boutique.
The Shadow 2 Target barrel is cold hammer forged and hand fitted to each gun. It features a new muzzle design with a protected crown. The frame has an undercut trigger guard for a comfy, high grip on the gun. A user-adjustable trigger allows you to set the trigger up for the perfect reach. Controls are ambidextrous, and it’s as feature-filled as we expected.
The Shadow 2 Target barely moved between shots. Muzzle rise seemed to be a non-issue, and the gun snapped right back on target. The grips are incredibly aggressive and dig into your hand to keep the gun from moving. A single-action trigger delivers a crisp and light pull that you just want to keep pulling.
ATI’s Unnamed Uber Light 1911
For the first time, I spoke at length with the folks at ATI. They are doing some super interesting things in the near future and moving away from just being a budget brand. On range day, they brought out this uber-lightweight M1911 in 9mm. The final weight hasn’t been released, but dear lord, does it feel so light in your hand. It’s lighter than ATI’s polymer 1911.
The new gun hasn’t received its name, and the two at Range Day were put together quickly for the show. The magic appears to be this ZK material. ZK is a lightweight metal that, according to ATI, is used in Aerospace efforts. It’s super light and, again, according to the ATI guys, is just as tough as steel. The material is cryo-treated and apparently durable enough for barrels, frames, and receivers.
The unnamed Uber Light 1911 worked like a dream. I expected more recoil due to the reduced weight, but not really. It was completely controllable and easy to shoot, likely aided by the 9mm chambering. These guns are optics cut and come with some excellent iron sights. It was fun to shoot, and the Commander’s size captured my heart as a potential carry gun.
Range Day and Beyond
Range Day is the best day of SHOT. If you can handle the wind and the cold, it’s a blast. Especially since someone else is paying for the ammo, please don’t see these endorsements as reviews. This was a limited experience, and these are the handguns that I’m excited about, but they remain to be proven.
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About Travis Pike
Travis Pike is a former Marine Machine Gunner, a lifelong firearms enthusiast, and now a regular guy who likes to shoot, write, and find ways to combine the two. He holds an NRA certification as a Basic Pistol Instructor and is the world’s Okayest firearm’s instructor.
