Self Defense

EDC X9 FROM WILSON COMBAT

Another Wilson Combat signature feature is the BattleSights with a big U-notch rear and bright green fiber optic front. Loved ‘em. So did everyone else on the test team.

Yes, this is five hits with Wilson Combat 124 grain +P XTP ammo at 25 yards. To see it better, this photo was shot of the exit holes on opposite side of target to reveal the 3 distinct radii in the 3-shot cluster.

Our testers liked the gun overall. Gail Pepin, state and regional combat shooting champion: “It had very little felt recoil. It didn’t point well for me but that may be because I’m habituated to Glocks. The EDC had a perfect trigger.” Steve Denney, retired SWAT cop and current instructor: “Really, really ‘shootable.’ I liked a high capacity 1911 that didn’t have a humongous grip. I’ve seen enough finicky 1911s that I really appreciate one that works 100% out of the box. It shot great for me, but it pointed low.” It should be noted that Gail is barely five feet tall and Steve stands six feet, but neither had any problem with the trigger reach despite the width of the double stack magazine.

For my part, I’ve found that the EDC points low for me too. This, I have to add, is highly subjective. As a purchaser of Wilson Combat 1911s and Wilson Combat Berettas, both of which I’ve been eminently satisfied with, the EDC X9 feels to me like a cross between the two. The Wilson Combat 1911s, despite their different dimensions, both point well for me and the EDC just doesn’t. But as noted, this is an extremely individual thing, and if you have any problem with pointing it will show up when you carefully, with the shopkeeper’s permission, dry-fire the EDC at the gun shop before you lay down your cash or card.

The EDC X9 lets Mas stay on target amidst a stream of rapid-fired brass; shot-recovery time is nothing short of impressive with this pistol. Reliability was also 100-percent through hundreds of rounds of the author’s testing, as well as an equal amount back at On Target headquarters.

This is my second Wilson EDC test gun, the first having been run at a class I taught for Karl Rehn (krtraining.com) in Texas. That first gun gave me a perfect 300 out of 300 score shooting a demonstration qualification in front of our students, with all sixty shots in a sub-five-inch group, shooting under time and including one-hand-only strings with each hand. It’s hard to ask for better performance than that under pressure.

Wilson Combat offers their own 9mm ammunition, from a 95-grain solid Barnes TAC-XP load all the way to a subsonic 147-grain hollowpoint. The two Wilson loads used during testing were the 115- and 124-grain offerings, which, as no big surprise, also provided the best results from the bench. Each EDC X9 ships in a very nice and extremely well-laid-out padded cordura soft case.

With several hundred rounds through this particular specimen of the EDC X9, it has yet to experience its first malfunction. Comfortable carry, accuracy and reliability, and the cachet of its famous name—it’s no wonder that Wilson Combat is selling all of these they can make, despite their $2,895 MSRP. Contact Wilson Combat; Tel.: (800) 955-4856; Web: www.wilsoncombat.com