[2011Dave]

so, i can help "a little". I have a V9PKX-A-S (that nomenclature means its a commander size, ported, with a full size aggressive steel grip). And I own all of the comparable guns you mentioned.

I say only a little because recent shoulder surgery has me laid up and unable to shoot the gun. So I can only share bench-top review type comments.

And, in that regard, I will say I was pleasantly surprised at the build quality in every regard. The fitment is perfect, tight and smooth. The finish quality (DLC in my case) is top rate. The trigger is basically Atlas quality. The controls are crisp. Zero complaints or even niggles about the benchtop quality of the gun. It compares favorably to the best guns in my collection. The gun is built like a tank.

Wrt to shootability, all I can do is point you to reports from those that have them. There are plenty of reports and actual video's of guys shooting the guns very, very well on their discord channel. Interestingly the folks that have them and shoot them think of them (and use them) as fast, competition style guns. I point that out because some of the earlier reviews here labeled the guns as more of a duty style. Fwiw, I don't find them to be duty style guns. They are set-up to run fast, they remind me of Atlas more than any other builder.

So, overall, fwiw, I'm a fan and Fowler is on my short list of 2011's that I am currently still adding at this point. (the other names that are on my "currently adding" list are Infinity, Venom Custom, Atlas and now Fowler - so I hold them in high regard. There are other names on my overall favorites list; Hayes and Chambers to name a couple, but I have the guns I want from them already.).

 

[2011Dave]

I agree with Dave. Fowler makes a good gun, especially for the price point. But in addition to Infinity, Venom and Atlas there are a few other brands I would also buy again: 1) Hayes, as I put them above Atlas, 2) Chambers, as they make an amazing gun although not as good for competition, and 3) Charyn or Mercier, since I have a Mercier on order that should be coming very soon and excited about receiving it.

your post made me realize I poorly worded my post re "brands I still want". I didn't mean to imply those are the only brands I buy, I meant to say those are the only brands I'm still actively adding (I have the guns I want from other builders). I will edit!

Also, we are very alike in what we have found in the marketplace out there. The other guns I like and will own are Hayes and Chambers (and I would get guns from Charyn and Mercier, but I have the one Chambers in their style and have decided to skip adding guns from them for now). So your top list is pretty much the same as mine.

 

[2011Dave]

MTO's available as I type this..

Appreciate the detailed inputs from you guys! I’m trying to see if I want to go after this MTO drop this afternoon or save for something else.

MTO's available as I type this. Pick and choose your porting or not...and barrel length...and colorways...and grip size/metal/texture...

 

[2011Dave]

Ported models are all MTO going forward. Also, they’ve put MTOs on hiatus for the time being to focus on their dealers.

Speaking of, anyone know who the dealers are?

if I'm understanding what they are saying, I think they are going to have ported guns available via retailers as well.

 

[2011Dave]

That’s the way I understand it as well, but who are these retailers going to be?

well, I know of 4 of them, but will wait for FI to finalize the full set and announce.

 

[2011Dave]

I think their MTO was system was pretty popular with the Discord crowd, but it must not have made sense from a sales/profit perspective since they did away with it.

I believe they stopped taking MTO orders now because they have a long backlog and didn't want to keep adding to it and making customers wait even longer than a year - meaning the opposite of what you wrote, it was too popular. Specifically, they added a large number of orders when they did the "ported at old prices window" last month. My understanding is they will resume when backlog is whittled down a bit. (fwiw, this is exactly how several 2011 builders manage their offerings/backlog).

 

[2011Dave]

I fear I have drank the Fowler koolaid. I bought a V9 DLC and V9k FDE, both unfired for a few hundred less than retail. The build quality is unbelievable. The only gun I’ve ever owned that was even in the same ballpark was a German Sig P210, but even it was not that close. I also like what they do with their Discord channel.

I’m only a few months in on my Atlas order, but it’s going to be hard to top the Fowlers. If I find a ported V9 tuxedo, I’m probably in trouble.

ported V9 tux is hot, a member here (more active on the discord) got one today with a steel valentine. I expect he will share some takes soon.

(and I really like my sole remaining vanta - a V9P FDE alum val)

 

[2011Dave]

It's this or TRS Comp, or Apollo, or Hayes. I have chosen all 3 over the Vanta9.

fwiw, I have had all of those (incl both PIB and PBB Hayes) and prefer the Vanta 9P over the Apollo, TRS-C, and Hayes PBB. (I do prefer the Hayes PIB over the V9P)

I shoot and score higher with the Vanta over each of those (save the Hayes PIB which is comparable).

I wonder if this is just another new flavor of an overhyped gun that pushes $7K. Everyone is scrambling to get one, because everyone is talking about it. But when this thing was in $5K range, before all the rage, people just thought it was a nice gun, but nothing epic. Now, the same gun, is reaching grail status. Go figure.

There is - to your point - a lot of discussion and passion surrounding the Vanta. That said, I don't really consider, worry about, nor factor in, what interweb guys are saying about guns nor hype or any of that. If I like the gun and shoot it well, its get positive reviews from me. If not, then not. The 2011 space has a bunch of hype marketing and its difficult to see through it to the guns - especially when its clear that some guntubers are not being objective and a lot of owners don't have access to the other guns to really know where gun "a" fits into the market vs its peers. Buying them and trying them is difficult for several reasons of course, but in the end its about the only/best way to sort thru it all.

 

[2011Dave]

What magazines are you using for full length grip? I know they ship with MBX mags but it doesnt say which ones or the size.

Full-size grip Vanta’s ship w 126mm MBX mags. I run 140 atlas or MBX in mine like all my 2011’s.