![]() ![]() It can be applied in thinner layers than even NP3 while still providing the same enhanced reliability and ease of maintenance in a matte black finish.Recently, we did an article on what we think are some of the best 9mm handguns on the market. Opposed to NP3’s nickel base, ArmorLube is carbon-based and offers a “natural graphitic lubricity and extremely low coefficient of friction – less than 0.08” this, according to a presser on Robar’s website. The slide was coated with Robar’s newest finish offering, known as ArmorLube. ![]() The only thing we used to clean it before taking the pictures was a dry paper towel and the bottom edge of the t-shirt we were wearing. The “after” photos you see here were taken after approximately 500 rounds through this gun. This does not replace the need for lubrication, but it will enhance the effects of weapon lube while also being less hindered by particulate debris like sand or lint. When applied to the working parts of a firearm, there are two advantages: first, NP3 imparts a dry lubricity to metal surfaces. For the uninitiated, NP3 is an electroless nickel base that is enhanced through the addition of PTFE (Teflon). The barrel, accent parts and internals are all coated in their signature NP3. Then they added a complete re-finish job. Robar started with their signature grip texturing, and what they call a “high grip modification” – a pair of undercuts to the trigger guard and top of the back strap respectively to allow the gun to sit deeper in the hand. We’re not saying Robar is the only shop that will do these things on an XD, but it seems to be a small club. Alas, you’d be hard pressed to find snaps, grams or posts of this Croatian-born ugly duckling with a windowed slide, fluted gold nitride barrel or dimpled grips. Notably absent from social media are the droves of machinists, sanders, and stipplers showing off their Springfield XD enhancement suites. For Glocks, M&Ps SIG 320s and even CZ P10s, the stable of grip-shapers and slide-cutters seems to be ever expanding. They’ve taken on a number of unconventional projects for us in the past, and continue to prove their versatility and consistency with their work on our test bed XD 45. The Robar name should be no stranger to veteran RECOIL readers. THE HOOD, AND WHAT’S UNDER IT: Robar Industries All in all, the trifecta of parts we selected from Powder River made all of the XD’s controls smoother and more responsive to shooter input. Compared to the OEM grip safety, the Powder River unit registers positively in the palm when you close your hand around the pistol and snaps spritely back into place when you release it. It gives the distinct impression of being modeled off of an Ed Brown 1911 grip safety which, if you’re going to have a grip safety, that’s one of the nicer ones to cue off of. It, too, is machined from steel and features a deeply swept top and a prominent humped bottom with tactile ridges. Their grip safety takes one of the most hotly contested parts of the XD and, if nothing else, gives it a nice facelift and some enhanced functionality. ![]() We selected the smaller of the two, more convenient than the OEM button but not big enough that we ever hit it by accident. The Powder River extended magazine release is CNC machined out of steel and textured with a bullseye type pattern. The reset is about an eighth of an inch, with a distinct click when you get there. There are no defined “stages,” just a gradually increasing pressure that builds, builds, builds and then releases just as the trigger hits its over-travel stop. The Powder River XD trigger feels more like a 3-gun AR trigger. Many aftermarket striker triggers are built with a loose first stage that hits a hard wall before an audible, tree-branch-snapping break. The break on this trigger took a little getting used to for is. And if you do want to shoot competition with this trigger, it is USPSA Production Division legal. Our Lyman digital gauge clocked the trigger break at just shy of 5 pounds, putting it squarely in the realm of an enhanced duty trigger. Our experience, while positive, did not mirror that exactly. The whole package is advertised to produce a short, crisp trigger that breaks between 3.5 and 4 pounds. It does create an instant, hard stop almost immediately after the break. The folks at Powder River claim that this method of over-travel control avoids stresses on the trigger bar. The trigger itself has an over-travel stop built into the back of it. Their Ultimate Match trigger is a full overhaul for your XD trigger, including springs, sear and trigger shoe. We used three key components from them: their Ultimate Match trigger kit, extended mag release and extended grip safety. Powder River Precision has been in the XD game for a while, and their replacement fire control parts reflect a level of refinement that comes with time. SWITCHES AND BUTTONS: Powder River Precision ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |