I did a search on WAGuns, and many other places, and there is relatively little on this pistol. Some on YouTube and Reddit, but not much of what I'd consider a real comparison. So here we go. This is the Stoeger STR-9. I had read it is similar in size to the G19, G17, and G45/G19X. As you can see from the pics, it is nearly identical in size to the G45/19X. I saw the pistol on a super sale from an online retailer and managed to get a "local" big box store to price match. After I picked it up, I stopped by a local farm store who amazingly had magazines and a Stoeger holster in stock (didn't get a holster because it felt cheap, just a spare mag) and did a price match for the magazine. Pistol Price $212. Spare Mag $33. Those are after tax prices. Hard to beat that. That is getting pretty close to Hi-Point or Sccy prices.

This pistol is made in Turkey, like Canik. It is imported by Stoeger in MD, which is owned by Benelli and Beretta.







The Glock is slightly wider.









The Stoeger has a more flat trigger, without the side serrations of the Glock. They both have a similar magazine release. The frame on the glock near the trigger is slightly sloped, where the Stoeger is flat. This becomes relevant when we get to holsters.



The Stoeger trigger guard is more undercut, which is nice.



Stoeger has some side indentations to allow for stripping mags out easier.



These pics don't really tell the story as well as I was hoping, but the Stoeger has standard 3 dot sights and the 19X has 3 dot night sights. The sight pictures are very similar at arms length.





The internals look nearly identical.



The Stoeger slide is only slightly longer.





The 19X has a dual spring guide rod while the Stoeger is probably Gen 3 based, and has a single spring guide rod.







The plunger on the Stoeger is nearly identical to the plunger on a Gen 3/4 Glock than the 19X.





The Stoeger magazine is thinner, but the G19X is 17 rounds vs 15 for the Stoeger. They also come in 10 round varieties for shoving up Inslee's and Ferguson's asses.





I was able to hook the tape measure to the Glock sights, but not the Stoeger, but as you can see they are nearly identical from the top of the sights to the bottom of the mag.





The front and sides of the Stoeger are very gently textured. Not so much on the back. The backstrap may look like the Glock polyamides, but they are much sharper, and more painful. The Stoeger feels more like a Gen 4/5 Glock with the medium backstrap. It feels thicker than it looks.



This is the Stoeger and the magazines in a Bravo Concealment G17 holster. The pistol works! But it is tight! The magazines, no so much because they are thinner.



The 19X has the slightly sloped frame at the trigger, while the Stoeger does not. The Stoeger will fit, but I wouldn't use it long term for fear of damaging the holster. The Stoeger is also slightly thicker than the Glock it seems.

You can also see the very nice slide serrations of the Stoeger. The Stoeger is noticeably more difficult to rack the slide than the Glock.



Here you see the tightness of the Glock mag vs the Stoeger mag.







This is a different G17 Serpa style holster that was laying about. The Stoeger is very loose, and the active retention takes a lot of force to engage when holstering.





The Stoeger mags have some sort of film that doesn't seem to come off. They are not as shiny or refined as Springfield or Sig mags. There is some sort of pitting in them too. I didn't show a pic of the engraving at the barrel, because it has the serial number, but the engraving is pretty rough compared to the Glock.



Size comparison between an XDS mag, Stoeger STR-9 mags, Sig 365XL extended mag, and G17/19X mag.



I plan to take it to the range soon, and will report back afterwards.

That sounds intriguing, especially at that price point!

I've heard good things about older Stoeger pistols, too.

Excellent initial review, & pics.

Thorough range report will complete it.

Main problem you'll have is parts & mag support.

The Kydex holster, hit it with a heat gun then press that bad boy in, should fine tune the fit, since it's already that close.

No reason to. I don't plan to mess it up for my Glocks. There are some holster makers out there, Alien Gear and a few others, but I don't plan to carry it. Maybe a spare gun around the house, or a truck gun.

Aftermarket support sucked for Caniks too when they first came out, but now it is pretty good. Is this the next Canik? Who knows. But for such a low price, I couldn't pass it up despite all the cons.

Given how rough the backstrap is, I'm disappointed Talon grips doesn't have anything to cover it up. Maybe a Glock Talon grip would work?

Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a winner!

I shot like hot garbage, as I haven't been to the range in a very long time. I started off with the G19X, and pulled pretty much everything low left. The indoor range was dim (but not dark) and the Glock night sights were hard to pick up (in addition to my poor form). The Stoeger 3 dot sights were very easy to pick up in the lighting conditions, and I shot significantly better with the STR-9. Shots were approximately 7 yards. While I didn't care for the back strap of the Stoeger before, it really helped keep it planted in the hand for follow up shots. The trigger felt much better than the Glock, although I think the Glock trigger is technically lighter. The Stoeger trigger pull is very consistent, and the lack of serrations, and slightly flat face made it really a pleasure to shoot (for a Striker fired pistol).

The only 'malfunction' I had was the very first mag. The slide lock is larger than the Glock and I accidentally gripped down on it with my thumb. I think I shot 130 rounds in total (Blazer brass, Federal, and a box of ammo loaded from a local FFL). It ate everything. I didn't toss any JHP down the pipe, as I want to get a few more rounds through it before I do, as defensive loads (or any loads for that matter) aren't cheap these days.

Overall, I'm very pleased. Much nicer than what I've seen of Hi-Point, Sccy, or Jimenez, and it seems to rival them in price.

Model 31724 is the 10 round version of what I tested. I say take the plunge if you are looking for a sub $300 pistol.

Great review.

Thanks. I forgot to mention Stoeger had a $50 rebate through April 30th, so once I send all the paperwork in for that it should bring the pistol price to $162. Heck of a bargain at $212, even better at $162.

I believe they do the rebate a couple times a year.

https://shoot-on.com/stoeger-str-9-seri ... -heard-of/

Interesting article on the line up I found recently.