Along with two other Foundation Series Shadow Systems pistols received here for T&E was the service-size DR920.

The DR920 is the ‘duty’ Shadow Systems pistol. It has the 4 ½” barrel (the “crossover” has the shorter 4” barrel, as does the “multi-role” compact gun). It also has the full service capacity of 17 rounds and it fits Gen4 G17 holsters.

Like the other Foundation series guns, the frame is premium Shadow Systems all the way, including the bore-angle changing backstrap system. The standard Shadow Systems optic cut with direct-mount capability is covered with a polymer plate instead of the steel on the pricier premium lines. The gun has steel sights, unmarked and serrated in the rear with a white dot on the front sight. They’re high enough to ensure a co-witness with most PMOs.

The trigger shoe is polymer. The guide rod is made from carbon steel (stainless on the premium lines). The gun weighs in at just over 22 ounces empty and features a nitride finish on the slide and barrel.

There is a hole in the bottom of the dustcover portion of the slide that allows access to the underside of the front sight where the attachment screw is; that wouldn’t be necessary but I thought it could be to limit the number of recoil spring types to have in stock.

This appeared to be set up, in a way, like the G47 LE contract guns – and the G34, as far as getting to the sight attachment screw goes.

In a phone conversation with Trevor Roe of Shadow Systems, he confirmed my observations. It’s one recoil spring assembly to stock – making life easier in manufacture, spare parts supplies and, for agency purchasers, it means one SKU in the armory, not two.

I’d fired the other Shadow Systems guns in previous outings last year. They’re not “GLOCKish,” or even GLOCK-like in “feel.” They are similar in use and maintenance.

I covered the other guns, as well as the collective that were shipped, here, here, here and here. The DR920 – as I’m composing this out of sequence of actual range trips – was also used in a later ammo test.

That should help you guess what I think of the guns and the company.

Early this year, I took the DR920 on its first trip to the range on a 40° foggy morning. I first sought to find out where the gun hit relative to the sights and then I moved up for some handling drills. The sights were checked from a seated rest at 25 yards on a large circle target. I called one flier, the first round fired, and had another from an apparent shift in grip.

But the Hornady 135 grain Critical Duty load shot into four inches with the best three clustering in 2 ½”.

The shooting exercises with the DR920 included one-handed shooting, dominant hand and non-dominant hand.

From there I moved to 20 feet to shoot pairs with old duty 9mm which had been indifferently stored. It was still plenty hot. In the first magazine, toward the end, there was a light-strike failure to fire. That was an occurrence in the other sample Foundation guns.