Fully Loaded, Lightweight 2011 for Carry or Bedside Use

For those who are all-aboard the 2011 train, the Staccato C2 could be considered the Goldilocks gun. The officer doublestack (ODS) grip module takes 16+1 round flush-fit mags. Its aluminum frame makes it light enough to carry comfortably, but the 3.9-inch barrel length, essentially the same as the ubiquitous Glock 19, means it can still perform big-gun tasks at the 25- or 50-yard line and beyond.

Our one complaint about it, compared to the full-size, all-steel Staccato P, is that it tends to shoot a little snappy.

This project started out with the single, modest goal of taking the edge off the recoil. But, as these things tend to go, over a period of months it morphed into something much greater. While we love shooting ported guns, the idea of drilling holes through the slide and barrel of a several-thousand-dollar gun can be somewhat off-putting. Instead, we went with a thread-on compensator from Threat Cadre.

The Cadre Comp was designed specifically for 2011 pistols, and its lines are nearly seamless from the end of the slide. While it adds some length, the exhaust chamber is large and mitigates a palpable amount of the snap otherwise found when shooting the C2’s lightweight aluminum frame.

Since our test gun didn’t come with a threaded barrel, we picked one up from Jarvis Customs. Jarvis produces high-performance match barrels from 416R stainless for a number of pistols. Their 1911/2011 barrels can be ordered as drop-in or hand-fit, with bull and bushing variants. We chose a hand-fit bull barrel.

Since we were now committed to sending our pistol off to a gunsmith, we took the opportunity to make two other parts swaps. First, the factory hammer would be replaced with an Apex Tactical version. From the outside, it looks similar to a standard Commander-style hammer.

Below the surface, its geometry is actually based on the 1968 Colt National Match pistol to enhance the crispness and consistency of the trigger press. Finally, we swapped the curved plastic OEM trigger for a flat-faced Speed Tune unit from Red Dirt USA. Red Dirt has several lines of double-stack 1911 triggers, including one sized specifically for Staccato grips.

We shipped our C2 and all the parts to A.J. Zito of Practical Performance. Zito is a veteran, former executive protection specialist, USPSA Single Stack Master, and trained gunsmith who specializes in 1911 and 2011 gunsmithing services. Zito hand-fitted, tuned, and installed all of the parts listed here.

Once we received the refitted Staccato from Practical Performance, we sent it back out to P4 Coatings who performed a grip reduction and retexture job before coating the slide and grip in coyote tan KG Gun Kote.

Finally, we accessorized the whole package with a matching Leupold DeltaPoint Pro and SureFire X300 Ultra. Despite the length and apparent bulk of this pistol, it carries extremely well in an LAS Concealment Saya holster, which swallows up the entire C2 with fullsize light, in a package that makes it concealable even in T-shirt and jeans.

At the end of the day, we simply transfer it to the nightstand safe where it serves home protection duty until sunup.

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