The IWI Masada
IWI stands for Israel Weapon Industries, an Israeli firearms manufacturer known for military designs such as the Tavor and Galil. The Masada is IWI’s budget-priced polymer, striker-fired pistol designed for duty use and released in 2017.
The full-size guns come in a Standard version and a Tactical version (being reviewed here) with a threaded barrel. They all have ambidextrous controls, an optics cut, and a capacity of 17+1. There are also slim models designed for carry.
Like the SIG P320, the Masada is a chassis system, and the fire control unit is the serialized part. At least one company, Mischief Machine, makes replacement grip modules, and I expect as the Masada gains popularity, more companies will offer grip options.
Specs
- Caliber: 9mm
- Action: Striker fired
- Magazines: IWI, steel 10-round and 17-round
- Barrel Length: 4.6 inches
- Overall Length: 7.9 inches
- Overall Weight: 1 pound, 7 ounces
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Barrel Material: Button rifled, 1:10 RH
First Impressions
To be honest, at first glance, I didn’t think much of the Masada. This unit from the Guns.com Certified Used Inventory is a limited run color, and I am not much of a fan. Sometimes blue looks cool, but this shade is not great.
Even when I picked it up, it didn’t seem like anything special. It’s about the size of a Glock 17, with a 4.6-inch threaded barrel, and feels solid and reliable. The trigger breaks around 4 pounds – good for a duty trigger, but definitely not a clean competition trigger. It’s about your standard striker-fired trigger. The ambidextrous controls are good, and magazines eject with authority.
Still, it didn’t seem like anything to write home about. That is, until I shot it.
Range Time
Accuracy was fantastic at 15 yards, much better than I expected from a service-grade pistol, but the Masada shines at drills. It is very nice to shoot. The recoil impulse is light, probably because of the low bore axis, and the gun is not heavy for its size, so transitions are quick and smooth. The gun performs well enough that you can do anything with it: compete, fight, or carry.
Shooting the Masada made me realize the grip is one of its best features. The ergonomics are fantastic. It is molded well, puts your hand at an optimal angle, and it’s adjustable. Three sizes of backstraps are included, but these are wrap-around backstraps. They not only add length like most backstraps, but they also increase the volume of the grip. This allows the grip to work with a wide variety of hand shapes, and it will allow different hands to work the controls.
The grip shape is so good, in fact, that it overcomes the less aggressive grip texture and keeps the gun locked in your hands. Overall, the Masada is easy to shoot. It’s almost intuitive because of the grip.
Shooting Suppressed
Since it has a threaded barrel, I had to put a silencer on this gun. I choose the Banish 45 suppressor in its short configuration. This titanium pistol suppressor is designed for nearly all pistol calibers from .45 ACP to .22 LR. In this short configuration, it is only 9.6 ounces and 6.7 inches long.
The Masada proved an outstanding suppressor host and produced a satisfying pop with the Banish 45. It ran without a bobble through multiple types of ammo. I had a blast cleaning steel targets.
Optic & Holster
Although the Masada wears suppressor-height iron sights, I took advantage of the optics cut to install a Gideon Optics red dot. Gideon dots are some of my go-to optics for value and performance, and it was a good choice to showcase the excellent optics system on the gun.
The Masada uses long screws that go through the spacer plate and into the slide for a secure mount. The spacer plate itself, while polymer, has multiple lugs to both lock it into the slide and lock the dot into the plate. The Masada comes with four adapter plates and different sized screws, adding value to an already budget gun.
The final piece of the puzzle was the Hush Holster, which let me holster the pistol with the suppressor attached. It locks onto a Streamlight TLR-1 weapon light that I attached to the Masada’s Picatinny rail, and the whole system worked well together.
Wrapping Up
