Killer Innovations P320: Pimp Hand Strong

PNW-based Killer Innovations isn’t new to machining, nor are they new to machining firearms parts. In a story that seems more and more familiar, the bulk of their business comes from OEM and privatework. But Killer Innovations aspires to be an independent brand primarily focused on precision. We recently got our hands on some of their P320 wares and gave them a go. 

In a crowded market, how do you attract attention? Sometimes you have to showboat a little bit. While one may get flashes of the brotastic skull graphics of an Affliction T-shirt or crumpled cans of Monster Energy while looking at these parts, machining this smooth is far more difficult to accomplish than screen printing a shirt or pumping chemicals into a can. Killer Innovations is flexing.

SLIDE & GRIP

The V1 slide has some extreme lightening cuts they call Enhanced Grip Features. Those big scallops on the front and back fit the contours of your fingers very nicely — though we’re just as likely to simply use the optic itself in that role. Each slide is cut for both Trijicon RMR and Leupold DeltaPoint Pro footprints and have standard P320 dovetails. 

Because a pimp’s love is very different from that of a square, we decided to go for gold, at least for the small parts. 

We couldn’t help ourselves and doubled down — the gold parts meant that we had to break out the RIT dye and make a plum-colored grip module. It’s a little bit cartel and a bit more purple rain. Perfectly paired with a fur coat and platforms. For the optic, we went with the Swampfox Liberty (see our budget MRDS buyer’s guide on page 70), because it’s much easier to glam up the Ironsides shield than the optic itself. We added a set of Strike Industries irons, so we wouldn’t be lambasted on the internet for not having irons on our pimp pistol. 

If you were putting this together yourself, you’d probably start with a Sig Sauer P320 Custom Works FCU, as the OEM-TiN trigger and frame go perfectly with the Goldmember Killer Innovations parts. However, we had a spare standard P320 FCU on-hand, and with the assistance of a paint pen, we added some of those gold touches. 

BARREL & COMP

The Mod 2 barrels feature a futuristic interrupted fluting, as well as some extensive machining on the hood that’s clearly Killer Innovations showing off their machining prowess. Killer Innovations describes their manufacturing process for barrels as a SPT, or Single-Process Technology, in which “bore, rifling, and chamber are cut in one high precision machine without human interference.” They say this makes for cut rifling all held to incredibly exacting standards. Also present are a set of machined flats for securing compensators.

The Killer Innovations Velocity compensator is a significant deviation from the standard pistol comps that you’re used to. The Velocity comp doesn’t directly thread to the barrel but is instead placed over the top of the standard threads. A unique ratcheting locking ring is used to press the compensator in place, and then a pair of set screws (which correspond to the aforementioned machined flats on the barrel) are installed for a belt-and-suspenders setup. This comp won’t come loose.

The Velocity compensator ships with two different locking rings, one of them a reduced-port model. Whenever you’re running a compensator on a tilt-action pistol, you run the odds of reducing reliability unless you use laser-fast ammunition or swap out your recoil spring assemblies (see CONCEALMENT Issue 5 for a detailed breakdown). With the included wider reduced-port locking ring, some of the compensating effect can be reduced; this increases reliability with cheap blasting ammunition. We commend this approach versus playing the spring games of the 1990s. 

TO BE CONTINUED

And that’s the story we’ve seen with Killer Innovations up to this point: it’s not just flashy looks, but some thoughtful engineering and functional design too. We poke a bit of a fun at what some would consider over-stylized products — but just because you don’t like the aesthetics of a street racer doesn’t mean it’s not fast. Standby. 

Killer Innovations

P320C Slide: $477
Threaded P320C Barrel, Mod 2: $241
Velocity Compensator: $119
+5 Mag extension:  $50

URL: killer-innovations.com

Other Components in this build

P320C grip: $40
P320 FCU: $300
Swampfox Liberty and Shield: $294
Strike Industries Irons: $35

MORE ON HANDGUNS

• The SIG P320 made the list for the Best 9mm Pistol List.
• SIG has launched the P320 FCU program, for those looking for an extra touch.
• The unsung heroes of CCW 9mm handguns.