Girsan MC 14T: The Continuing Quest To Address Racking

There is little question that semi-automatic handguns have become dominant in the marketplace, both as duty weapons and civilian concealed carry options. Their appeal is self-evident. They have a slimmer profile compared to revolvers allowing for easier concealment. They also offer greater capacity, easier reloading, and (for most) faster multiple shots, and a preferable trigger.

These advantages do come with some costs, including more complex design, greater potential for malfunctions (again compared to revolvers), and the need to physically be able to rack the slide. A semi-automatic does this function with each shot, but initially needs to be racked to allow the first pressing of the trigger. For many shooters racking the side is not an issue, but age, strength, biological structure, injury, and arthritis all can contribute to making this act difficult.  

Reliability is one of the areas that many companies have focused on and many modern semi-automatics are now highly reliable (assuming the shooter has solid fundamentals). However, making sure a gun reliably cycles each round can result in a handgun that is harder to initially rack. The average recoil spring in a semi-automatic today ranges in strength from approximately 12 to 18 pounds. This spring tension is what must be decisively overcome, generally with a support hand grip in order to rack the slide. 

A smaller number of companies have examined how to reduce or remove the issue of racking the slide without leaving the semi-automatic platform (revolvers do not have these issues). The solutions have included numerous devices to assist in racking (Pachmayr, Recover Tactical, and Handi-racker to name a few) that either assist in allowing a dominant hand forward racking (by attaching to the front of the firearm), or provide a larger surface area at the back of the slide.  Another solution is the Smith and Wesson M&P Shield EZ first released in .380 ACP in 2018 and then in 9mm in 2019. The Smith and Wesson EZ features a lighter recoil spring (approximately nine pounds) and an internal hammer (replacing a striker) to allow for an easier rack. The one thing in common with these alternatives is they either alter the way one racks or makes racking easier, but in all cases you still need to rack the firearm to load a round and set the trigger.

The Girsan MC 14T

The Girsan has tackled the problem by removing the need to rack completely by using a tip-up barrel design. This is not a new idea and can be found in other pistols over the past century, but remains a rare design feature.  It was most common in Beretta’s line of pocket pistols such as the 21A Bobcat, the 950, and the 3032 Tomcat. As the Regard MC series from Girsan (imported to the U.S. through EAA) is based on the Beretta’s 92 series, it makes sense their newest offering the MC 14T would utilize a design primarily seen in Berettas, the tip-up barrel function to allow a handgun that does not need to be racked. 

The Girsan MC 14T is a metal frame and slide mid-sized handgun, with a single-action, double-action trigger operating an external hammer. It is chambered in .380 ACP with a capacity of 13+1. It comes standard with composite grips, white dot front and rear iron sights, and a forward under-barrel accessory rail. On the left side of the gun is a standard push button magazine release behind the trigger (cleanly dropping the magazine with ease), a slide lock, and an ambidextrous thumb safety at the back of the slide. On the right side, there is the other side of the ambidextrous safety and a push-down control above the trigger that releases the barrel to tip up.

Functionally, to load the gun in double action mode, engage the safety, insert the magazine, push down the barrel release, load a round into the tipped-up chamber, and then push the barrel back down into the locked position. The trigger pull will be heavier, as the trigger needs to pull the hammer back and then release it. Alternatively, if you wanted to load the gun cocked and locked with the slide forward, you can insert a full magazine, cock the hammer and engage the safety, push down the barrel release (tipping the barrel up to chamber a round), and then return the barrel to the locked position. Either way, the gun is now loaded and ready to fire once the safety is disengaged, either in single-action or double-action mode. Once the first shot is fired the gun will automatically cycle with each round fired in single action mode.

But how does the Girsan MC 14T shoot?

Mechanics

For a pistol coming in at the price of similar-sized — but polymer — Glocks or Smith and Wessons, the Girsan MC 14T looks remarkably good with solid production quality (see comparisons with the Glock 19 and the S&W EZ in Table I). The magazine loads and releases cleanly. Though a little stiff to engage, the external safety is easy to operate. The double action trigger press is long but consistent with an approximate 8-pound press with a clean break. The single action (hammer already cocked) trigger press is a short and consistent approximate 3-pound press with a short audible reset. 

The barrel release does require a similar amount of force as the trigger but can be operated in multiple ways by the shooter. Once the barrel springs into the tipped-up position to allow loading, it can easily be returned into a locked and ready-to-fire condition by pressing straight down on the barrel (about 8 pounds of force). The one downside for us who are used to racking a pistol is that although this is an option, there is a relatively small surface area at the back of the slide and it requires more force than other similar firearms to rack normally.

Table 1: The Tale of the Tape

Live-Fire

I decided to run a little over 500 rounds through this gun to get an idea of how it functioned and fired, and if there were any reliability issues. I used modern .380 ACP that had been purchased in the last three years: PMC 90-gr FMJ, Armscor 95-gr FMJ, and Sig Sauer 100-gr FMJ. Also, I shot one leftover box of Hornady Zombie Max 90 gr Z-Max hollow points that I had bought on sale at Cabela’s. All 450 rounds of newer FMJ and the 25 rounds of Hornady hollow points ran through the gun (loading every 5 to 10 rounds) flawlessly with no malfunctions or loading issues in either single-action or double-action mode. An astute reader will notice that I have not gotten to all rounds fired and have made the notation of ‘new’ ammo in this section.

As far as balance, accuracy, and recoil, I found the gun to be enjoyable to shoot. I was easily ringing 8-inch plates at about 40 feet, even when taking that first double-action shot on occasion. I have never felt a great reduction in felt recoil shooting .380 ACP compared to 9mm and I likewise found the MC 14T to be just about the same as far as felt recoil as similarly sized 9mm handguns. Also, I am not a huge fan of guns whose first shot is a long hard double-action trigger press followed by a shorter easier single-action trigger press. Though this can be remedied by having the hammer cocked and locked (safety engaged).

Overall, I really liked the experience of shooting this gun.  A final word on maintenance: the process for field-stripping the MC 14T is as simple as pulling the slide back (or leaving it locked back after firing) and releasing the tip-up barrel to clean.

The Last Ammo Check

The final box of ammo I shot through the MC 14T was a box of Sampson brand (IMI) 95-gr FMJ I got in an estate auction. I am not sure how old this box was, but the guns it came with were bought in the 1980s and the price on the box was $4.99 for a box of 50.  Unlike the newer ammo, there were a lot of issues with these last 50 rounds. All 50 did fire, but there were stovepipe malfunctions and about every 5th or 6th round was slightly smaller than the rest and just fell halfway down the barrel (though they also easily slid back out).

Conclusion

Although there were some issues with older ammunition, overall, the MC 14T was highly reliable with modern ammo and performed well. I am glad to add this gun to my collection as a range gun and as a demonstration of potential solutions to issues with racking that some of my students experience. Compared to tip-up designs in the past, there were no issues with malfunctions or loading. I am very happy with my current carry guns, however as time creeps ever onward, I personally may be re-examining this as a possible defensive option in a few decades.