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Range report - SKYY CPX-1

4899 Views 16 Replies 12 Participants Last post by  shooter1
I took my new CPX-1 to the range today and put 125 rounds thru it before I had to cut my trip short. Below is my evaluation of the CPX-1 and a comparison of it against a full size Ruger P-85 and the ultra compact Kel-Tec P-38T.

Ammo used and how it performed.
I used four different types of 115-grain ball ammo for my test, WWB, American Eagle, regular CCI Blazer and CCI brass. I fired approximately thirty rounds of each brand, sometimes with one brand per magazine and other times with the different brands mixed together at random. I had no failure's of any kind with the brands used aside from two hang fires after about the 10th and 15th rounds. Both fired after a second pull on the trigger. I remembered a comment I read in another post that the trigger needs to be fully released to reset and after I made an effort to ensure I did so, there were no more problems. I fired single, slow aimed shots, groups of two or three, fired off two full magazines as fast as I could pull the trigger and there were no problems of any kind. Nine rounds fitted easily into eack of the two magazines. The gun didn't seem to prefer any particular brand, though I didn't have any hollow points or semi-wad cutters on had to try out.

How the gun performed.
I am not a big fan of DAO pistols, but the trigger pull on the CPX was very smooth, even more so than with my smaller P-38T. There was no noticeable trigger creep and the pull was consistent from shot to shot. Another shooter was also at the range with a Glock (I didn't get the model), tried the CPX and commented how much easier and smoother the trigger on the CPX was compared to his gun. The loaded magazines were easy to load into the gun and there were no problems with ejecting empty mags or having them stick in the magazine well. At 15' the gun hit POA, at 25', it hit slightly high and to the left. Using slow fire, I was able to put five shots into a 3" circle at 15' regularly. At 25' the POI increased to about 8", with most shot's under 6". The grip was comfortable, but after 40-50 shots, the mag base began to bother my little finger (it got downright sore). After I placed my pinky under the mag, the problem stopped, but it would be easier with a flat base plate. Nothing came loose, there were no broken or malfunctioning parts and the gun performed as advertised.

A comparison with two other guns.
My P-85 is a full size, service type pistol holding 15+ rounds compared to the much lighter and smaller 9 shot CPX-1. The P-85 is more accurate and has less felt recoil then the CPX, but is considerably larger and at least twice as heavy as the CPX. The P-38T is about 1/3 smaller than the CPX and about as much lighter in weight. Due to the size of the gun, the P-38T has similar felt recoil to the CPX, though it's chambered for the 380 vs. 9mm. The P-38T is less accurate at any range beyond 10' and more difficult to hold well and control. On the other hand, the K-T is much easier to conceal than any other semi-auto I've seen in caliber 380 or larger and is a true "pocket gun" compared to even the CPX. The SKYY will go into a pocket, but they should be cargo type pockets at the very least. The closest gun I have in size to the CPX is a Bersa Thunder 380. The Bersa is both larger and heavier than the 9mm CPX while the CPX holds 2 more rounds and is slightly thicker than the Bersa.

Overall opinion.
My CPX cost $220 NIB, has a solid stainless steel slide, two magazines, better fit and finish and trigger and an ambi safety, things it's closest competitor, the K-T P-11, doesn't offer, at least as standard. It was easy to control, was accurate at the ranges it's expected to be used at (under 25') and is a real bargain at a price of under $250. While a DOA pistol, the trigger was smooth and with it's small size, rounded shape and lack of sharp edges and external hammer, should make a very good carry gun. While definitely not a target pistol, I would recommend the CPX-1 to anyone looking for a home defense or carry gun. I have one and it's going to be a keeper.
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Never heard

about this pistol before , so I looked it up.

http://www.skyyindustries.com/gun_cpx-1b.html


Looks nice .
How is frame construction ? metal inserts , or a internal metal
frame?
Thx for the excellent write up Bob - more than interesting, as the gun thus far at least seems like great value all round.

If you do not mind, may I (attributed to you of course) copy that to another forum? Many folks are itching to hear about the Skyy and this is the first comprehensive report I have seen.
My wife and I both range tested our new Skyy's (two) yesterday. We both put 75 rounds of CCI Blazer (aluminum) 115 gr. FMJ through our respective guns. No FTF's, no FTE's to that point. Perfect. Targeting similar to yours, rachilders, except I'll admit, I'm not as good a shot. :redface: The owner of our club then wanted to look at them closer. He's a 1911 guy, but was visibly impressed with fit and finish for the price point.

I field stripped mine, and apparently when I reassembled it, the recoil spring cup didn't seat in the barrel indent exactly as designed. :embarassed: After 10-20 more in mine, I got three light strikes and the second strike failed. I ejected each, and tried to fire again. failure. :confused: I put the gun away, to strip and clean at home.

My wife started into her second "100 count", and the trigger started to fail to reset. She started shooting her Beretta, and left her Skyy for me to tinker with. I fired it several more times, then the trigger failed to reset for me a couple of times. :confused:

Upon stripping at home last night, there was nothing observably wrong with hers. I cleaned and lubed it good.

I field stripped mine, and found that the recoil spring rod was slightly bent at the end. :confused: I straightened it, cleaned it, and put both away.

This AM I called Skyy. I explained the occurrences on both guns to the service rep. He asked me to USP Priority mail them to him for warranty coverage. The bent rod, as well as a spring on the trigger of my wife's. He was extremely helpful, and promised he'd turn them around in a day, and have them back to me USP Priority. :danceban: He'll also give them a top to bottom look while they're in the shop.

He indicated he'd only seen two bent rods before, and two loose trigger springs, so he told me he was both surprised and apologetic.

All in all, I felt good (great) about the service and "can do" type positive attitude. He also promised to throw in a couple of free breakdown pins (I lose little things occasionally, and wanted a "back up"). He also indicated that they have flat bottom mag floors/plates in production so customers can choose flat or extended grip mags.

So, my overall impressions are still mixed: Fun to shoot, easy to shoot, accurate for what I'll use it for, will conceal very well for its caliber, and will hopefully become 110% reliable (one of my "absolutes"). My wife agrees with this analysis regarding her Skyy.

I agree with ra's overall comments. I cannot make the comparisons to the other pistols as he did, however, so I have no opinion there.

Upon their return, We plan on an extended range trip or two, including several hundred rounds through both, before we'll pass judgment on CC'ing them. Hope it will be positive - it looks like a winner - so far.

We'll post more range reports when completed.
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Wow - more report. Great R&G and thx for your info too - so useful to hear impressions.

Sounds as tho they are hot on CS - well guess with a new product they should be too.

Keep us up to speed over time both of you.
GREAT Reporting here!! The little gun sounds like a real keeper for sure!! Good cost effective weapon, for those on a tight budget, AND the CCW that is light and simple to operate!
Great write up and report.
P95Carry said:
Thx for the excellent write up Bob - more than interesting, as the gun thus far at least seems like great value all round.

If you do not mind, may I (attributed to you of course) copy that to another forum? Many folks are itching to hear about the Skyy and this is the first comprehensive report I have seen.
Feel free to use it if you like. My one complaint, aside from the sore finger, is the take down pin requires a tool of some kind, like a slotted screwdriver tip or small knife blade, to remove. I actually used the blade edge of some fingernail clippers I carry. It's a bit of a pain, but then again, I also need to use some sort of edge to push out the pin on my CZ or Witness. Aside from that, I think it's a fine little gun, easily comparable to any other ultra compact 9mm I've seen and at about half the price (or less) of most of them. Time will tell how it will hold up after another 1,000 rounds, but it's off to a good start. BTW, when I broke it down for cleaning, the only way I could tell it had been fired was by some powder residue around the mouth of the barrel and chamber, and not too much of that!
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Thx Bob - appreciate it. :smile:
Great Review

I read a bit on their web site.
It's obvious that they are super concerned with putting out a very high quality product.
Looks they they were not satisfied till they got everything right.
Sure cannot beat that price!


And HBE is already making REALLY NICE holsters for the pistol. That's a huge plus!
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They look very well made. Unfortunately, they made something of a fracas, on the Kel-Tec forum, when Skyy's VP got on, and posed as a "new" Skyy owner, and ragged the Kel-Tecs. I was really looking at those, when I stumbled across a really good Seecamp deal......

but you really cannot ever have too many guns!
Rob72 said:
They look very well made. Unfortunately, they made something of a fracas, on the Kel-Tec forum, when Skyy's VP got on, and posed as a "new" Skyy owner, and ragged the Kel-Tecs. I was really looking at those, when I stumbled across a really good Seecamp deal......

but you really cannot ever have too many guns!
Yes a real shame and a big case of bad judgment on the part of the VP, but his comments were actually right on the mark. He didn't have that much to say that was negative about the P-11, rather he pointed out the "improvements" the CPX had over the P-11. The problem, really, was that he made it seem as if he had no connection to SKYY (he IS the VP of SKYY, BTW). If he had either said up front who he was and was making a comparison of the two guns or had REALLY not been an employee, nothing more would have ever been said.

When it all finally came out in the wash, the President of SKYY and the VP made an apology to the KTOG about the whole thing. Mighty big of the president I think and the VP learned something about honesty and being up front. The whole situation was a tempest in a tea pot. It doesn’t take away from the quality of SKYY’s product and I wouldn’t base any opinion of it on the bad judgment of one person using an internet chat room to plug his product.
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Agreed.:smile: As soon as I get my Seecamps paid for, I'm going to strat looking at the Skyy again......... (good pun, ya gotta admit!:danceban: )
Not bad looking, and it appears mite be a tad better then the P-11, but whats with the 1911 type safety on a DAO?,, ITs made here in the states isn't it?
I wonder if this isn't potentially one of those sleeper guns like an old Rossi or a Charter Arms... a little bit off the beaten path, no frills, but it works?

It sounds better than that Kobra pistol we heard about some months ago.
Rock & Glock,
Good review! Sounds like the Skyy is having a few design problems with their product. It's disheartning when two examples of their product fail in a hundred rounds. On the other hand, a one day turnaround at the factory is great! Hope they can get it together and stay in business. There is a market for an inexpensive, small/light carry pistol nowdays. Let us know how your pistols work when they come home.
str1
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