The gun is constructed in modular components with separate self-contained fire-control module, trigger module, and cam block inserted into the polymer frame. This greatly streamlines the manufacturing and assembly process in the factory and makes for an extremely straightforward and easy disassembly/reassembly process for user maintenance.

To disassemble, you merely remove the magazine, clear the chamber, and lock the slide to the rear with the slide-lock lever. Use your fingertip to push out and remove the takedown pin from the frame and just pull the slide/barrel assembly forward and off. The barrel and captive recoil-spring-guide assembly can then be removed from the slide. It is not necessary to manually hold the slide in any special rearward alignment to remove the takedown pin, just lock it back. Nor is it necessary to pull the trigger prior to removing the slide--an important safety feature that many other striker-fired pistols do not have.

To reassemble, you merely replace the barrel and recoil spring assembly into the slide, place the slide onto the frame and lock it back with the slide-lock lever, reinsert the takedown pin, and let the slide go forward. It's simple, easy, and safe in the extreme.

The author says the new SR9 points naturally and is comfortable to shoot.

My favorite feature of the SR9 is its magazine-disconnect safety, which can be user-deactivated. As with a majority of today's semiauto pistols, the SR9 comes from the factory unable to be fired with the magazine removed. However, unlike any other pistol of its type, the SR9's disconnect can be deactivated simply by plucking out the disconnect link while the gun is disassembled, enabling a chambered cartridge to be fired even if the magazine is inadvertently dropped or damaged.

I believe this is an essential feature for any personal-defense or duty sidearm. There are many circumstances in violent confrontation situations wherein a magazine release can be accidentally depressed or where insertion of a fresh magazine can be fumbled. It has always seemed ludicrous to me for defense pistols to be sold with a feature that leaves you with a dead tool--even with a round loaded in the chamber--just because the magazine is out. And yes, I understand that the reason for magazine disconnects is because the most common cause of negligent discharges with auto pistols is because people remove loaded magazines from their guns but neglect to ensure the chamber is also cleared before pulling the trigger.

The SR9 magazine disconnect is a spring-loaded steel part mounted in the slide. When the magazine is inserted into the frame, it lifts the disconnect out of the path of the striker, allowing the striker to reach the cartridge primer during a normal firing cycle. The magazine disconnect does not affect the quality of the trigger pull during normal shooting; SR9 trigger pulls are factory specced at 6.5 pounds, with a relatively short .48 inch of travel. However, if the trigger is pulled without the magazine in place, the striker drags underneath the spring-loaded magazine disconnect. This may give the trigger pull a heavy, gritty feel while dry-firing without the magazine in place. If the SR9 is repeatedly dry-fired without the magazine in place, this may cause the trigger pull to feel rougher over time, even when the magazine is in place.