So, I will endeavor to answer GoPappy's question and provide a bit of a review of the PX4 Storm Full Size version.
I took it today and decided instead of pitting it against its smaller brethren, I would give it a real test and see how it shot against my P229 Legion.
So yes that is a bit unfair, as the Legion is over twice the price (I was able to score a brand new PX4 Storm FS for $500), and the Legion is by anyone's assessment a much superior weapon.
Furthermore, I hamstrung the PX4 a bit more by taking it to the range cold. No new gun tear down and clean up. Basically, out of the box and fired.
I figured this would be the worst possible (I am not going to run any of my guns through mud, I just have no need) way to do a test of this gun. Let see if it holds up.
My first magazine through it with standard 115 ball ammo was pretty abysmal. Sadly, the same firs mag in the P229 was not much better. So I started out this little competition with me not shooting all that well. I went ahead and fed a few more magazines through them both and my groups started looking better. So I was to blame for the most part. I will say the Px4 was not doing all that badly in comparison, but it was not shooting ragged holes at combat range.
However, at about the 100 round mark it started pulling in and my technique improved enough to get a good feel. I put both ball ammo and JHP's through both guns. Alternating 10 round magazines through both guns.
Groups looked like this. The P229 on the left the PX4 FS on the right (yes I suck that bad)
Generally I was, as is typical with me, shooting a bit low and left but after a little adjustment things came back into line.
To answer the forementioned question, the real difference between the three PX4's I have really boils down to the barrel length. As you move up through the various sizes, the group sized come down. At combat ranges, however, I have no trouble keeping any of the PX4 line easily where I want them placed.
I still do not like the bat wing ambi-decocker-safety. Course that said no one does. I will, once again, replace them with the stealth safeties and convert this to the "G" config.
As with the Compact version, the FS is a very comfortable shooter. With the slightly added weight of the longer barrel you get even less muzzle flip and in general the gun just runs and runs and runs.
Now, that said comparing it to the P229 which is slightly heavier I think that the rotating barrel probably makes the shoot about the same. The P229 is a tack driver so my groups were typically tighter. However, by the end of the session I was able to get the PX4 shooting a pretty consistent ragged hole.
So, again, all in all I have very little bad to say about the PX4 line of guns. Having three sizes of essentially the same gun makes carry selection really one of where I plan to go. Even if I do not use the extender on the SubCompact I am looking at a pretty small gap in capacity SC-13, C-15, FS-17.
I could get very used to using the same basic holster for three guns.
I should have the Special Duty in this next week and will try to make it to the range with that version to see how I like the .45 version of this platform.