A stingray gliding through the ocean is sleek, smooth, fast and elegant. When in danger the stingray will inflict painful, even deadly, wounds. That seems like just what you want in a concealed carry gun.
The Tisas B9BA, affectionately called the “Stingray Carry”, is a Commander-sized, 1911-pattern pistol, chambered in 9mm, with a host of features that make it an outstanding pistol for everyday carry. It is available at Lipsey’s right here.
If you like the 1911, this gun checks all the boxes, being true to the original in design and function. If you have fired a 1911 before, you know where everything is and how it works. If you have not, a one-hour lesson with a reputable trainer will help you to operate one of the most-recognizable guns in the world.
What makes this gun a solid choice for concealed carry? First and foremost, it is the size and weight. The combination of a “Commander-sized” upper with its 4.25-inch barrel running inside a forged slide which is sitting on a full-sized aluminum frame gives this pistol exceptional balance. Pointing the gun is completely natural; it tracks very well and settles nicely on target after each shot..
When empty the Stingray is 5 ounces heavier than a Glock 19. The Austrian gun holds more rounds in a standard, flush-fit magazine – 15 when compared to the Stingray’s nine. This means you end up with fully loaded guns weighing about the same. For those of you who demand the extra six rounds before a reload, this will influence your opinion of the gun. For those of you willing to fire 10 rounds of 9mm and reload another 10 from the extended magazine that comes with the gun, you will be just fine with 20 rounds instead of 31.
The Stingray is amazing to carry– important criteria for a gun that one will carry every day. It also shoots very well. The Stingray is both accurate and smooth. The recoil impulse is eminently tamable thanks to the design, the weight and the 9mm chambering. The full-sized grip is what makes the gun so very controllable, and it also serves to spread out the recoil impulse, such as it is from the 9mm, over a larger area. Rapid fire and double taps are easy with a good, solid shooting platform.
Someone is bound to say, “A full-sized grip makes it more difficult to hide.” That person would be mostly correct. A longer grip makes any gun more difficult to conceal. But the Stingray uses the trademarked Ed Brown Bobtail design. In fact, according to the folks at Tisas, this is currently the only gun (aside from his own) that Mr. Brown allows to carry the Bobtail name. It is, after all, a registered trademark.
By grinding that corner off the back end of the grip frame, Brown effectively made a 1911 into what looks to me like a round-butt pistol. The design is of huge benefit when it comes to concealment. There is no sharp angle at the base of the grip and just about any cover garment helps this gun disappear inside the pancake-style holster by Simply Rugged. (Yes, I opted for the version made from authentic stingray leather. How could I opt for anything but?)
When it comes to carrying the Stingray, I really love the pancake style holster. The model offered by Simply Rugged is well-built, durable and comfortable with just the right amount of cant thanks to well-placed belt loops. As an outside-the-waistband holster it does require more of a cover garment than an IWB might. Still, it holds the gun firmly where it needs to be, and provides ready access for a smooth draw..
When getting a new gun, everyone should field strip, clean and lubricate the pistol before shooting it. Doing this show that the internals of the Stingray are finished flawlessly. The only place that showed any machining marks was on the side of the lower barrel lug between the barrel link pin and the crisply polished feed ramp on the bottom of the chamber. Overall, the fit and finish was excellent inside and out. Much better than would be expected on a gun with a price tag of just over $600.
During testing the Stingray performed flawlessly. A 200-round reliability test with jacketed hollow-points went without a hitch. Various FMJ rounds were spit out with boring regularity. That said, I have not taken the gun through a major training class yet. I can’t tell you what it does after 750 rounds in the Arizona heat and dust or the humidity of Louisiana. But right out of the box the gun ran and ran without a hiccup. Like most well-made firearms, this gun was more accurate than I was capable of shooting. I don’t do 25-yard, five-shot accuracy tests for combat pistols. At 7 yards I could easily put all 10 rounds into a group I could cover with my hand shooting at a rate of one round per second. We will call that “minute-of-head-shot” accuracy. I will call that good enough.
Best of all, the Tisas Stingray comes complete with two magazines and a very respectable hard plastic case, complete with all the tools you will need to maintain your gun. The marketing literature says you will get a flush-fit nine-round magazine and an “extended” 10-round magazine, but both of mine appear to be 10-rounders. I’m not complaining.
It is a great little gun and the first 1911 I have carried in a long while. The only drawback might be the round count, but I think a 10+1 capacity with a spare mag should get the job done if one exercises judicious marksmanship. It is a sweet-shooting, solidly reliable, accurate pistol that just works for me as an EDC gun. I suggest you buy one.
Tisas 1911 Carry 9mm Pistol– The Stingray
Frame: Full-Size Aluminum w/ Trigger Undercut and the Ed Brown Bobtail Cut
Slide: Commander-length, hammer-forged steel with snakeskin serrations
Barrel: 4.25 inches
Caliber: 9mm
Weight: 27 ounces, empty
Finish: Cerakote Black slide, Stingray Gray frame
Ejection Port: Flared and Lowered
Safety: Ambidextrous
Sights: Novak Style 3-Dot
Internals: Series 70
Includes: Two Magazines (Nine-round Flush & 10-round Extended) Cleaning Kit and Owner’s Manual, Waterproof and Lockable Hard Case, w/ Fitted Cut Foam Insert
For more information or to Locate a Dealer Near you visit www.lipseys.com/dealerfinder