Stoeger STR-Combat X 9mm
Everything But the Price Tag
The Combat X is Stoeger’s latest addition to the expanding line of
defensive pistols started by the STR-9. The knife is a Bear Ops
Bold Action automatic from Bear & Son knives.
I was once told the best politics is doing a good job. Similarly, the striker-fired polymer pistol market is a crowded one, and perhaps the best way to stand out is to perform well while doing so at a reasonable price. That’s the formula Stoeger chose in 2019 when it introduced the STR-9, which lists for a shockingly affordable $329.
Most people justifiably associate Stoeger with shotguns: Their coach gun enjoys a fine reputation, and they produce a broad line of inertia-operated semiautos. That makes them a bit of a newcomer to the pistol world, but only to the pistol part: Stoeger had already been in business for nearly a century when they presented the STR-9. The expanding lineup now includes a .45, a .40, and sizes ranging from full size to micro compact. And that brings us to the Combat X.
The test gun came with three 20-round mags, four optic
plates and two extra backstraps.
The rear sight overhangs the back of the slide, which is probably necessary to make room for the plate system. The sight stays in place when you add the optic, creating a lower 1/3 co-witness.
Like the rest of the gun, the muzzle is nicely beveled.The Combat X comes with a stainless full-length guide rod and a flat wire recoil spring.
The Combat X
Sized according to the familiar pattern of a full-sized grip frame and medium length slide — think GLOCK 45 or Commander 1911 — the optic-ready Combat X has a nominal 4.1″ barrel and full size frame that accommodates 17-round mags, although the test gun came with three 20-rounders and a suggested price of $649 (retail runs about $100 less). The cardboard packaging also includes a mag loader, two extra backstraps of different sizes, four optic plates, a manual and a hex key.
The slide is mildly faceted, and the wide, fore-and-aft cocking grooves have fine serrations inside, creating an interesting layered look. While I prefer to crack the slide and do a visual/touch check, the rear of the barrel is notched to create a visual loaded chamber indicator and the side extractor, the front of which normally sits inside the frame, pokes out when the gun is loaded, creating a tactile checkpoint as well.
The controls include an ambidextrous slidestop (which, instead of just being a lever, engages the slide on both sides) and reversible magazine release. Like most modern striker-fired pistols, it inevitably looks more than a little GLOCKlike.
The controls and general design of the STR series, like most
popular striker-fired pistols, look unmistakably GLOCK-like.
The trigger breaks at an average of 5 lbs., with the amount
of travel you’d expect.
Jeremy installed a Burris Fastfire C using the “C” plate. The front is slightly concave and serrated for use in slide manipulations.
The Combat X comes with four optic plates. Jeremy used the “C” plate to mount a Burris Fastfire C on the test gun.
Iron sights consist of an adjustable rear and dovetail-mounted front, both with green fiber optic inserts.
Ergonomics
Among the distinctly not-GLOCK features is the grip angle. Most fighting pistols have a grip angle hovering around the 18 degrees favored by John Browning. The raked-back angle of the GLOCK 17 is an outlier with scant centerfire company other than the Luger, and classic .22 pistols that often have the ergonomics of a garden hose. Candidly, I’ve often thought part of the G19’s popularity can be explained by the way the shorter frame makes the grip angle somewhat less pronounced. But I digress.
At the launch of a different polymer pistol several years ago, the manufacturer described lengths they had gone to determine optimal grip angle for an autopistol. At the far end of a few hundred thousand in R&D, they were surprised to arrive back at 18 degrees, and the Combat X wisely maintains that proven angle.
The trigger has about the length of travel you’d expect and breaks at an average of 5 lbs. The triggerguard is deeply undercut for a high grip, and a pair of grooved contact pads is molded into the frame just forward of the takedown tabs. While the dial caliper tells me it’s thicker in the widest part of the frame and grip area than either my 3rd Gen GLOCK 19 or M&P 9C, I couldn’t prove it by feel. The nicely ovaled rear of the grip, coupled with the large, flat-topped checkering and stippled texture of the frame, makes it feel particularly good in the hand.
Of course, some of this is the backstrap: The three that come with the gun are marked S, M and L, with the medium installed on the gun as delivered. It fit my hand so well I saw no need to change it.
Swapping backstraps requires field-stripping the gun. Then, you slide down a plastic catch located inside the magazine well (pulling the top out a bit first), freeing the slot on the inside of the backstrap so it can rotate backwards, up and off. The manual warns against using the wrong tools and prying, but doesn’t tell you what you should actually use. The answer, in my case, is that finger strength should do it, but only after you remove the magwell. This is logical and obvious, and I missed it until I’d nearly killed that poor little plastic clip trying to push it out with a length of aluminum rod.
The bottom of the frame has a mild flare around which the add-on magazine well snaps in place, and which will hold it (albeit a bit rattly) even without the set screw that locks it in from the rear. Remove/reinstall with the included hex key, which measures about 1.5mm.
The magwell itself is a nice piece, with a machined recess that interfaces with the bottom of the backstrap, and coincidentally reduces weight. Since it’s aluminum, you’ll scuff it up a bit, but that’s par for the course, and it does make for dramatically smooth reloads.
Jeremy puts around 600 rounds through the Combat X
with minimal trouble.
The Combat X was capable of very good accuracy.
This was Jeremy’s best group, fired from the bench with
rested hands. It measures barely under 2", center to center.
The slide is mildly faceted, and the wide, fore-and-aft cocking grooves have fine serrations inside, creating an interesting layered look.
Although slightly larger in some dimensions, the stippled texture, interchangeable backstops and nicely rounded grip profile help the Combat-X fit comfortably in the hand.
Sighting & Shooting
Iron sights consist of an adjustable rear and dovetail-mounted front, both with green fiber optic inserts. The rear overhangs the back of the slide, but that’s necessary to make room for the plate system. As it is, the sight stays in place when you add the optic, creating a lower 1/3 co-witness for a valuable backup. I know, I know, dots never fail—except when they do. Best to hedge your bets.
I did most of the test with iron sights, with which I posted a best 25-yard group of 1.95″ with my hands rested on the bench and 2.89″ standing unsupported. Both of these five-shot grips were loaded with Black Hills 124-grain JHP +P, which is my load of choice in 9mm.
Since the Combat X does come optic-ready, though, I installed a Burris Fastfire C dot using the “C” plate, one of four that come with the gun. Intended for compact carry pistols, the polymer-framed micro-sized Fastfire C has a 6 MOA dot that stays on for an advertised 25,000 hours powered by a single CR2032 battery. The front face of the optic is slightly concave and serrated, for those like me who manipulate the slide by pushing the front of the optic with the heel of the support hand. Unexpectedly, I seemed to shoot tighter groups with the irons, but that’s likely a function of dot size. While I’ve been pleased with the Fastfire C on this and a Stoeger shotgun I ran it on, next time I would likely choose the smaller 3-MOA dot of the Fastfire 4 on a full-size pistol such as the Combat X.
I put around 600 rounds through it, including 115- and 124-grain ball from Fiocchi, 124-grain ball from Federal and Winchester, 124-grain +P JHP supplied by Black Hills (the bulk of the test ammo), and Fiocchi’s 124-grain CovertX JHP. As it is my custom, I never cleaned or oiled it.
I learned quickly it simply would not tolerate being limp-wristed. I was introduced to the Combat X at a Stoeger-sponsored event in Texas.
Interestingly, when I shot a different Combat X there, I put hundreds of rounds through the gun, some of it shooting steel plates at speed one-handed, and neither had nor saw a malfunction of any kind. Shooting single shots one-handed at 100 yards, however, is where I found myself limp-wristing the gun as I held it loosely and focused on a smooth trigger press. If you’re going to shoot one-handed, give it a firm grip.
I also had a few light firing pin hits with Black Hills 124-grain +P JHP, which is my favorite 9mm load, and what my personal defensive 9mms are loaded with. I’ve seen that once before in a mismatched custom GLOCK, but not elsewhere. Sometimes a certain gun just doesn’t like a certain load: CZs have tight chambers, polygonal barrels hate lead. All the more reason to make sure you’ve proven your gun with the ammo of your choice.
The only other malfunctions consisted of the gun sporadically failing to lock open on the last round, which could likely have been tracked to an individual mag(s). It’s asking a lot of a spring to push a column of that many bullets and still have the tension to activate the slidestop, so that’s not particularly surprising. The slide often fell when I seated a new magazine, and while not ideal, it loaded the top round every time that happened.
My complaints are few: The front and rear corners of the optic plate are square (likely because the same plates are used on Stoeger’s shotguns). I did not snag my hand on them, but nonetheless, I’d probably round them a bit to be sure. And the inner corners of the rear sight notch have been beveled. I feel like my eye prefers a sharp, square sight picture — but I did shoot under 2″ at 25 yards like that, and made good hits at 100 yards, so that’s more preference than a performance issue.
It works, it hits, and it handles fast and well. The Combat X’s combination of magwell, plates, backstraps and extended capacity magazines makes it very easy for purchasers to tailor it to their individual needs without having to come out of pocket for extra parts and pieces — and, indeed, without having to spend much for the initial investment. It’s everything you expect out of a modern polymer striker-fired pistol … except the price tag.
For more info: StoegerIndustries.com, Black-Hills.com, BearAndSonCutlery.com, BurrisOptics.com, FiocchiUSA.com
