There are many companies in the firearms world that may not be household names, yet they produce excellent products. One such company is Sarsilmaz. It’s a 140-year-old weapons manufacturer based in Istanbul, Turkey. SAR began as a small shotgun shop, but has grown into one of the largest firearms manufacturers in the world. SAR supplies weapons for the Turkish military, as well as law enforcement agencies around the world. Their product lineup is impressive and ranges from handguns and shotguns to belt-fed weapons. Recently, one of their pistols caught my eye, the Sarsilmaz P8S.
Sarsilmaz P8S Tested – A Performance Review
The Sarsilmaz P8S is a double-action/single-action (DA/SA) 9mm handgun designed for the defensive carry and duty gun markets. Sarsilmaz makes no secret that the gun is based on the popular CZ 75 pistol. One of the major things it takes from the CZ 75 is that the P8S also has a slide that rides inside the frame’s rails. This design allows for a lower bore axis and, in turn, better alignment with the shooter’s hand. The lower we can get the bore axis, the easier it is for us to manage recoil and muzzle rise.
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This gun has a stainless-steel frame and slide and weighs in at just over 35 ounces. It is a good-looking gun with lightening cuts on the slide and a stainless finish. The P8S is also ported, which helps mitigate muzzle rise. Sarsilmaz takes the time and extra effort to provide a target crown on the barrel. This has several benefits, the first one being accuracy. The crowning process provides a uniform termination of the lands and grooves. This aids in the bullet leaving the barrel more stabilized. The process also protects the lands and grooves from damage, should the gun be dropped or the barrel forcefully hit against something.
Gun Details
The Sarsilmaz P8S has a full-length stainless steel guide rod and a polished feed ramp. This extra polishing is something that most serious shooters do to their guns to ensure consistent and fast feeding. This is even more helpful when you are running defensive ammunition, which oftentimes has cuts, indentations, or other modifications to the nose of the bullet. Polishing the feed ramp helps ensure that your ammo gets where it needs to go without any hang-ups.
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As mentioned earlier, this is a DA/SA gun. The double-action trigger breaks at a hearty 8 pounds, and the single-action lets loose at just over 2 pounds. The gun is easy to run and features big controls that make manipulation easy. It has an external safety, but unlike some other DA/SA guns, it does not have a decocker. If you choose, you can carry this gun “cocked and locked,” which means the hammer is cocked, but the safety is engaged. You also have the option of carrying it with the hammer down and safety on, and then using the double action for your first shot.
In The Hands
The grip on the Sarsilmaz P8S is textured, and it felt good in my hands. To meet the legal requirements of many states, the gun comes with a loaded chamber indicator (LCI) as well.
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In terms of performance, the gun was solid. The wood grips felt good on the hands and worked well at mitigating any slipping and wobble. The serrations cut into the frontstrap and backstrap worked well to provide a true 360-degree grip surface. The trigger pull on the double action was frisky, but I have been to this dance before and managed it. The double-action pull was north of 8 pounds, but the heft of the gun offset that a bit.
That weight also made the gun easy to run in terms of accuracy and speed. The gun soaked up much of the recoil, and my second shots were quick and on point. It also had a fair amount of take-up in the trigger before I hit the first “wall.” This is nothing to stress over, but it is noticeable and something a shooter would need to get accustomed to.
Trigger Guard
The trigger guard is sizable without being intentionally oversized. It includes a curved cutout on the frame just forward of the trigger. This small design feature will make it easy for people to run this gun with gloves without it being obnoxiously oversized. Helping with muzzle rise and ultimately the speed of follow-up shots is the ported barrel. The stainless barrel has two small, circular ports cut into the top of the barrel at roughly the 1 o’clock and 11 o’clock positions, and just over 1 inch from the end of the barrel.
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Exiting gases push the barrel down, reducing muzzle flip and recoil. Those committed to purely defensive applications would want to test their defensive loads to see if there is any significant muzzle flash from the ports. This has always been a concern with ported guns, because they can ruin low-light and nighttime vision. With the right ammo, though, this becomes a non-issue.
Sights
The sights on the P8S are a low-profile combat design. It is a three-dot system with two white dots to either side of the rear notch, and a single white dot on the front post. The rear sight is adjustable for elevation and windage. I found the sights easy to acquire, but I would ultimately prefer blacked-out rear sights.
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Manipulations on the gun are good because the controls are large. This is extremely helpful when it comes to the slide release. The safety on the left side of the gun protrudes by design, and Sar has made the slide release beefy enough to reach it with your firing-side thumb.
Downrange
I am generally not a fan of bench testing a handgun for accuracy. I believe this takes the gun out of its element, and yet I found myself at a bench. Curiosity had gotten the best of me, and I wondered just what the P8S’s ultimate abilities would be. With a variety of ammo in hand, I started putting rounds downrange. The groups quickly became just what I expected they would be—a collection of clover leaves and ragged holes. I found the gun equally accurate and easy to run in a free-hand fashion. Moving from two-hand to single-hand and even support-side hand, the P8S kept pushing rounds downrange on command.
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During all the testing, I experienced a zero failure rate. Granted, I did lubricate the pistol as it is supposed to be. That does bring up a point that most people miss regarding handguns. They require oil, plain and simple. This is shocking to those who have only cut their teeth on striker-fired guns. Take care of your guns, and they will take care of you. Granted, a day at the range with 500 rounds of ammunition is not a real durability test. It is a good indicator, however, of whether a gun is going to be a problem child or not. This gun had proved itself to be a bit of a golden child during the time I had with it.
Accuracy
I was not surprised, but pleased with the accuracy of the Sarsilmaz P8S. I have spent enough time behind a handgun to know what my general performance will be, and this was markedly improved. My standard “ragged hole test” produced a five-round, torn-out, single hole. I was able to reproduce this at 10 and 15 yards as well. This was a critical test in my mind, simply because of my nature. While the gun is good-looking, I need a little more than looks to get me to give the nod to any gun. I believe most serious shooters share this mentality and expect accuracy and function to accompany the bling.
Wrap Up
The gun comes with a 17-round steel magazine that appears to be well-made. I will not pontificate on what other mags may fit, but I think it is safe to say our friends from Czechoslovakia might be able to help. My ultimate summary of the Sarsilmaz P8S is that it is a winner. It will not be for everyone, nor is it designed to be. If you are in the market for a DA/SA with external safety as a duty or carry gun, this is something to seriously consider. It is easy to carry and goes to work every time it is yanked out of the holster.
SPECIFICATIONS: Sarsilmaz USA P8S
Caliber: 9mm
Barrel: 3.8 inches
OA Length: 7.2 inches
Weight: 35.8 ounces (empty)
Grips: Wood
Sights: Fixed front, adj combat rear
Action: DA/SA
Finish: Stainless
Capacity: 17+1
MSRP: $599.00
For more information, visit Sarsilmaz.
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