Back in 99, I got this pistol as a present from Sandy Strayer of SVI Infinity firearms. Over the past 21 years, this pistol has been my primary go-to pistol for both matches and when running classes for LE/MIL.
I do not know how many rounds I have fired from this gun in training and in matches, but 100.000 would be very conservative estimate.
However, I have kept track of the number of classes I have run over the years and usually I’d fire around 200 rounds pr. day doing demos. That amounts to more than 200.000 rounds - and a total of more than 300.000 rounds.
Ammo used was primarily hot military Nato rounds at around PF 140 and a truck load of “frangibles”. There even were a number of classes where I shot the “then new” environmentally friendly steel core ammunition, before I realized how hard this ammo is on barrels.
This pistol has been almost ridiculously reliable in all kind of conditions. Aside from once chocking on the wrong type of lubrication in the cold or from faulty ammunition, I have had virtually zero problems.
Sometimes it would get so dirty that the insides virtually looked like they cacked were in mud, but I’d just add more oil and it would keep running. (That is not the recommended procedure, but that’s what I did).
Following parts have been replaced:
Recoil spring, maybe 2 or 3 times.
Firing pin & spring, I’m sure – but don’t remember.
Firing pin stop plate, once - just to be on the safe side.
Ejector, when the tip broke off. The gun still worked, but ejection was erratic.
Extractor, once or twice – again to be on the safe side.
Hammer, a crack had developed in the spur, but again nothing that would have stopped the pistol from working.
I never changed the magazine springs and use the same mags in competition today. I have seen no reason to tighten the slide / frame fit as it is still fine to this day. Last year I decided to have a new barrel fitted as I assumed that the original barrel was close to being worn out. However, the other day, I decided to put the old barrel back in the pistol and test whether it would still shoot.
I shot two 5-shot groups at 25 meters, resting the pistol on an old Dillon ammo bag. I was lazy and just shot at the heads of two targets the police had left behind.
The lighting is pretty bad this part of the year (December) and my eyes are absolutely not what they used to be, but groups were still easily “sub 2 inches” with ammo that’s certainly not match grade. Flyers were not the first shot either, indicating that the problem was me and not the pistol.
The pistol will shoot tighter with the new barrel, but this is still better than what most new pistols are capable of.
SVI guarantees 1,5 inches at 50 yards with their pistols (with correct ammunition). If in doubt use Hornady HAP bullets.
I’ll leave the old barrel in and use that for training the coming season - and keep on shooting my favorite pistol. SVI pistols are an investment for a lifetime.
