My Pardini GT9-1 with silver finish

Hello friends at thehighroad, I've recently sold a Colt Government 380 which has been a safe queen for the last two years and since I don't like safe queens I finally decided to let it go to a good friend of mine and use the money to buy something else.
Three weeks ago I was making a trip on italian gun shop websites, trying to know the street price of some option I had for a new pistol and I saw this used Pardini GT9-1 with the silver finish, in perfect conditions at a very fair price.
In the last year or so I learned alot of the Pardini GT series and I wanted one badly but the price of a new one was too high for my budget. But I luckly found this one and decided to grab it home.
I have to say that the educated opinion about this pistol of lifesizepotato and bac1023 influenced my choice in some way.
The pistol is smooth as glass; the slide glides on the frame in an incredible manner. Everything speaks abuot quality and precision. The trigger is great: a little pre-travel, clean break and no overtravel. Trigger and sights are fully adjustable. The backstrap that carries the safeties, the beaver tail and the hammer mechanism, can be separeted from the frame.
Accuracy is outstanding. This gun is really overbuilt: the thickness of the chamber and barrel is ridicolous but that doesn't surprise me because, as I understand, it was designed for the .45ACP when it first came out in 1994. I've shot 180 rounds at my first range trip with it and no problems whatsoever. I've shot Sellier & Bellot FMJ-RN and Fiocchi FMJ-RN and CP-RN with a bullet weigth from 123 to 124 grains. recoil is very soft. Oh well, the caliber is the 9x21 IMI, also known as 9mm Italian.
I have to say I liked the look of the shorter GT9 better but I couldn't pass on this one.
One more thing: if you are interested in the GT series, belive me, get the black version because the silver finish is a little pain to maintain it cleaned to my standards. However it looks very cool.
Now the pics from my good friend Luca:

Some more pics here where I purchased the gun: http://www.armeriarcm.com/show_product.php?product=688

First of all, thanks for posting here. I'm very happy you liked the gun and I'm very happy for the interest it got.
I'll try to answer your questions.

Girp angle and handling: I had your same concern at first. The grip angle seems to be extreme but let me say if you are familiar with the Glock 17 there's no much difference in reality, pointing this gun. It's a surprising natural pointing, only some minor rotation of the wrist shooting two hands. With one hand is like pointing your index finger. I'm not an IPSC shooter so I can't comment on fast draws and fast shooting. I shoot this gun slow on paper targets and for this type of shooting it's just perfect.
The gun is very big but I have size 9 hands and the grip fits perfectly. The overall feling is to have a good solid, well balanced pistol in your hands. It weights 40.4 ounces unloaded which is heavy but not super heavy and with the magazine loaded it's not front heavy at all.

Price: mine was a used one. In 2011 here in Italy the price was 1763 euros for the black version and 1822 for the silver version. Probably it's in the 2000 euros range now. I saw the MSRP prices in the USA for a new one and considering the shipping from Italy, the profit for the USA importer, the change between euro and dollar, and the fact that we are in 2017, I think it's high but not out of the world. And I'm aware that in the USA you are lucky enought to have street prices well under the MSRP ones.

Next time I'll go to the range I'll post some pics of the internals and some decent groups if I manage to do my part.
And I'll add some more impressions about the pistol.

Thanks.
One more pic of the backstrap checkering:

Kookla said:

Man, that is pretty.

What kind of shooting is a pistol like this used for?

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Thanks.
I'm not into competitions rules so I don't know if it can be used for some type of competition. Maybe bullseye, siluettes, pin bowling, steel plate challenge, I don't really now.
In my case it's for fun shooting: some good groups on paper, some spent shotgun case shooting, coin shooting, 70 and 110 yards shooting, things like that.
It could be a good hunting pistol but in Italy pistols can't be used for hunting.

Morgo said:

Very nice, congrats

I've often wished they did a version with a full length dust cover for the longer slide.

I'm tossing up between the 5" or 6" version. I like the looks and handling of the 5" better but the 6" with the longer sight radius is something I know I'll likely kick myself for not getting if I went with the 5" when I'm shooting at 50 yards. I'm looking at getting a 9mm with the two tone bronze and black finish like they do for the .45 version.

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Thanks.
If I had the money for a brand new one it would be the shorter black GT9 as I think it is more versatile. But that's me.
Now I'll add some pics of the internals. Everything is pretty overbuilt in this pistol. It has an internal extractor and no firing pin safety. The locking block and the slide release can be disassembled without tools. The backstrap assembly can be separeted from the rest of the frame.

Parts are big and simple.



Firing pin and its plug:

The 6'' barrel:

Pardini logo on the left side:

Caliber and italian proof marks on the right side:

DarkskyZ said:

I have to admit I like my GT-9
I have not yet found its preferred loading but I am working on it...
Found it used last year for less than 900€. MSRP here in France is 2170€ as of today.

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So nice. 9x21 or 9x19?
Last trip at the range I shot 150 Geco 124gr. FMJ-RN which is known to be a powerful round and it seemed like a pussycat from this pistol. I managed to shot a couple good 10 shots groups at 10 yards, two hands standing. I'm still working on the sights. I'll add some pics in the next few days.
Next range trip is to try the stronger recoil spring that came with the gun to see how it works with factory rounds.

DarkskyZ said:

9x19 here, I guess we are lucky

I have heard those Pardini GTs are either fitted with lead or jacketed optimized barrels. I will have to experiment with mine.

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Mine shows what seems to be a polygonal rifling. I shot 330 rounds in the two range trips I had with this gun. I shot Fiocchi Top Target 124gr. CP-RN, Fiocchi 123gr. FMJ-RN, Sellier & Bellot 123gr. FMJ-RN and Geco 124gr. FMJ-RN. The gun seems to like those FMJ rounds. Rifling is one twist every 450mm.