Exlonghorn

What I would like to see is for someone like STI to offer a base 2011 that comes with a Staccato C2 "upper" as well as a Staccato P or Staccato XC "upper". Yep, it wouldn't be cheap, but would be awesome to go from a carry option to a match option by just swapping the barrel/slide. For 2011, STI has harmonized all their 2011 frames with the same Staccato Gen 2 Grips and magazines (although they still appear to offer different dust cover lengths), so they are halfway there already. The trigger weight may be a sticking point as well...maybe a 3lb threads the needle. But an interesting thought.

I also have a DVC-S and ran through a bunch of different ammos before settling on WINCHESTER USA 9MM NATO 124 GRAIN FULL METAL JACKET- Q4318. This will deliver a power factor of 141.36. I've found that my stock DVC-S won't reliably cycle with anything under a power factor of 140, and I have about 2,000 rounds through it at this point. Standard Winchester White Box 115 gr, has a power factor of 136 and it will not cycle reliably in my gun...stove pipes and FTE's galore. The NATO is also a cost-effective practice ammo and it shoots with consistent, moderate recoil. FEDERAL AMERICAN EAGLE 9MM AMMO 124 GRAIN FULL METAL JACKET - AE9AP also works well and delivers a power factor of 142.60. I haven't noticed an appreciable difference in the cleanliness between the Winchester and Federal ammo. Both cycle reliably and are about the same price. I suspect the Federal ammo is a more commonly available....the NATO stuff stocks out on occasion. Both are brass-cased with boxer primers and FMJ bullets and are available by the case I usually go with the Winchester unless it's unavailable, but I shoot both interchangeably.

superdude, that did help (don't know how I missed that on TargetSports). Thanks!

Olstyn, yeah I'm just taking the info off the websites. I agree that a couple seemed intuitively unlikely. If I really get into this Open gun thing I'll look at chronos or maybe see if my range has one to borrow/rent. So for today, everything I shot cycled properly. Shot the Monarch 115gr until I noticed sparks when the rounds hit the back barrier (indoor range). Nope, can't use that anymore. That's okay...I wasn't a fan of shooting lacquer-coated, steel case ammo anyway. Looks like WINCHESTER USA 9MM NATO 124GR FMJ is the winner at this point. Put another 200 rounds through and didn't have a FTF. Unfortunately, it's difficult to find this in bulk. However, I found 2,000 rounds of Federal American Eagle 9mm Luger Ammo 124 Grain Full Metal Jacket (PF 142.60) that worked out to $0.21/Round including shipping. Would've liked to get closer to $0.18/Round, but will keep working on that. If anyone has a recommendation on ammo that is readily available in bulk and gets to at least a 140 PF, let me know! Interestingly, I ended the day with 50 rounds of Sellier & Bellot 9mm Luger 115gr FMJ that weren't working yesterday. No problems today, but will need to shoot more to verify. To Sarge's point, break-in appears to be a likely contributing root cause to yesterday's issues, along with having some pretty low power factor ammo in the mix. Up to 500 total rounds through now and things are working well.

jrdoran, now that some time has passed, how are things progressing? Did you switch out your optic mount? After doing some math, I find that my STI DVC-S doesn't like to cycle anything under a 140 power factor. That knocks out almost all 115gr options, but there are several inexpensive factory 124gr loads I can buy in buik. I"m still in the break-in period, but like you, I am having stovepipe/FTF issues with anything having a power factor under 140.

Sarge, that's a good point about the break-in period. I only have about 200 rounds through it at this point, so it's got a ways to go before things settle in. I should've calculated the power factors up front. I've added the power factors below. As I understand it, muzzle energy and power factor are somewhat synonymous. Both are calculated using bullet weight and velocity. PF favors slower, heavier bullets. Muzzle Energy favors faster, lighter bullets. Using power factor explains why the heavier, slower Monarch 124's outperformed the lighter WWB 115gr. in spite of having lower muzzle energy. Lesson learned. Using the power factor approach, these light but very fast Monarch 115's should be interesting. I believe it comes with a 7lb spring, but I read another case of a guy who had the identical problem. Will consider mounting the C-More optic on a 90deg. mount as one of the guys suggested, along with swapping out the spring after I reach 1K rounds. DID NOT reliably cycle the following: Remington UMC Handgun, 9mm, MC, 147 Grain - Muzzle Energy: 320 ft.-lbs. Power factor: 130.53 Federal Champion 9mm Luger Ammo 115 Grain FMJ Value Pack - Muzzle Energy: 323 ft.-lbs. Power factor: 135.70 Winchester White Box 9mm 115gr. - Muzzle Energy: 362 ft.-lb. Power factor: 136.85 Sellier & Bellot 9mm Luger 115gr FMJ - Muzzle Energy 418 ft. lbs Power factor: 147.20 (wondering if this is really the case...even the NATP and +P ammo didn't get this high) Successfully and reliably cycled: Monarch® JHP 9mm 124-Grain - 351 ft.-lbs. Power factor: 140.37 WINCHESTER USA 9MM NATO 124GR FMJ - Muzzle Energy: 396 ft lbs Power factor: 141.36 Tomorrow will try: Monarch 115 gr 9mm Luger Steel Case (Lacquer Coated) - 453 ft lbs. Power factor: 152.84 (curious about this but don't plan to make a habit out of shooting steel cased ammo) Hornady American Gunner 9mm Luger +P 124gr XTP - Muzzle Energy: 380 ft lbs. Power factor: 145.70 Will also run through more of the Winchester NATO rounds as 140 might be the magic number at this point Some other possibilities after doing some searching...in order of increasing cost per round: Federal American Eagle 9mm Luger Ammo 124 Grain Full Metal Jacket PF 142.60 Aguila 9mm Luger Ammo 115 Grain +P Full Metal Jacket PF 143.75 Geco 9mm Luger Ammo 124 Grain Full Metal Jacket PF 146.32 Federal American Eagle 9mm Luger Ammo 147 Grain Full Metal Jacket PF 147.00 Speer Lawman CleanFire 9mm Luger Ammo 147 Grain Total Metal Jacket PF 160.23 I imagine I'll get into reloading eventually...first things first. Will see if I can get it to run with the higher PF ammo during the break-in period. Oh, and I don't care for the STI mags. UpLula's don't work very well on them. I miss my incredibly reliable XD mags (that are now my wifes...haha).

Glad I got the different ammos to try out. It doesn't like to cycle anything under about 365 ft/lbs, but even that is inconsistent. Had repeated stovepipes and FTF on the following... Winchester White Box 9mm 115gr. - Muzzle Energy: 362 ft.-lb. Remington UMC Handgun, 9mm, MC, 147 Grain - Muzzle Energy: 320 ft.-lbs. Federal Champion 9mm Luger Ammo 115 Grain FMJ Value Pack - Muzzle Energy: 323 ft.-lbs. Sellier & Bellot 9mm Luger 115gr FMJ - Muzzle Energy 418 ft. lbs (wondering if this is really the case...even the NATP and +P ammo didn't get this high) Successfully and reliably cycled: WINCHESTER USA 9MM NATO 124GR FMJ - Muzzle Energy: 396 ft lbs Monarch® JHP 9mm 124-Grain - 351 ft.-lbs. Tomorrow will try: Monarch 115gr 9mm Luger Steel Case (Lacquer Coated) - 453 ft lbs. (really curious about this but don't plan to make a habit out of shooting steel cased ammo) Hornady American Gunner 9mm Luger +P 124gr XTP - Muzzle Energy: 380 ft lbs.

I am breaking in a new STI DVC-S. The test fire target that shipped with the gun indicated 124gr +P ammo was used. I normally practice with 115gr WWB in my other un-compensated guns. So I figured I'd get a range of different ammo weights and velocities to see what works best. Was surprised to see 124gr +P ammo running 380 muzzle energy and regular 124gr WWB running 396. Is this typical that +P has less muzzle energy than non-+P for the same bullet weight?

Four step process: 1) Field strip the gun and place in the basket: Slide up, barrel vertical with feed ramp down, spring and guide rod flat, frame upside down so the loose debris fall out easily 2) Hornady 043361 Lock-N-Load Sonic Gun Parts Cleaner Solution, Gallon, degassed, Heated to 120F, 5 minutes. Drain the cleaner when the cycle finishes. 3) Bore snake the barrel with Gun Scrubber Firearms Clnr 15 Oz. aerosol, wipe off any cleaning solution on the internals as they dry with cleaning patches, Q-tips, etc Usually the patches are white after wiping two on the same spot. 4) Immediately return the parts to the cleaner, reverse arrangement from step 1 so any trapped air pockets can escape and let the lube reach everywhere. Lyman Products Ultrasonic Barrel/Gun Parts Lubricant, 1-Gallon. This is repeatedly reusable and I just put it right back in the can after each use. Hand finish with lube on wear points.

The thing that stood out to me is that you trigger slap a bit more with the steel grip, and the trigger slap gets progressively more pronounced during each string, but it's not consistent. Wow, you learn a lot with the slo-mo. I"m going to have to try this (worried how bad mine will look, but committed to the scientific method). thanks for sharing and giving everyone a chance to learn.