TFB Review: TYPE-A EG11 6,000 Round Review

Welcome back to another TFB Review. Today, we will be looking at the extended review of my TYPE-A EG11 pistol from TYPE-A Rifle Company. In the last couple of years, several companies have come out with their version of the high-end 2011-style firearm. Everyone from Dan Wesson, Fowler Industries, Nighthawk, and Wilson Combat has come out with variations of the 1911 double-stack pistol. Back at SHOT Show 2023, BG Defense announced their EG 11, their own variation of the 1911 double stack style firearm. After roughly 8 months and well over 6,000 rounds through this pistol, let’s take a look at the Type-A EG11 pistol.

TYPE-A @ TFB:

Specs

The Type-A EG11 is an all-metal construction performance pistol with a focus on duty use as well as the competitive world. Type-A touts this pistol as a perfect balance between precision and reliability. The overall package is fairly comprehensive. The Type-A EG11 is a full-size 5″ barreled government model pistol with a full dust cover offering a longer rail section on the frame. The pistol is chambered in 9mm. The current color offerings for the EG11 are their multi-shades of FDE as well as a standard black model. Other features include a single-action adjustable match trigger and an ambidextrous manual safety. The early models come with KKM match-grade barrels but I know in the future they will be switching to a barrel made in-house. The slide, frame, grip, and other parts are all made in-house which Type-A claims allows them to control the overall quality.

Type-A decided to sell this pistol as a complete package. This package includes your choice of either a Trijicon RMR or SRO, they will be adding in the new RMR HD and RCR as options as well. In addition to an optic, the Type-A EG11 comes standard with a SureFire X300, a hard case with a laser engraved plate on the front with the pistol’s serial number, a Kydex holster, two magazines, and custom foam cutouts for everything. I had a phone call with BG Defense and they said eventually down the road they will offer just the pistol with the package items as an additional purchase. Currently, the price as a package deal is $5,674.99 and they are taking orders as well as shipping guns now.

Spec List

Range Time

For this review, I did an initial 1,000-round test back in January when I purchased this Type-A EG11. Throughout the last few months, I kept setting a benchmark to write this review and then set it aside. A thousand round review got pushed to three thousand to five and so on. I have treated my EG11 as my main competition handgun as well as my main pistol for training courses. An incredibly high price point gun like this EG11 oftentimes gets picked up by collectors but you never see them used and abused. I wanted to buy this and truly give it a long-form shakedown to see how it holds up over time. My first impression was the fact this gun felt hand-built.

Type-A says every EG11 is hand built and fit which I believe. The grip texture is aggressive on the front and rear of the grip with the sides having a square pattern texture which matches the slide texture. The more aggressive texture gives a positive grip if you find yourself shooting in snow or rainy conditions. I’ve let other people shoot the Type-A EG11 and some said they wanted the aggressive texture all the way around the grip whereas others wanted less so I think it has a balanced amount of texturing. Other small details like the crowning on the barrel make it feel like a thought-out pistol with functional additions that also add to the overall aesthetic look.

Accuracy and Reliability

When it comes to accuracy, being a rough cousin to the traditional 1911s means the Type-A EG11 had similar accuracy, especially past 25 yards. For testing, I primarily used Federal 115gr American Eagle, Remington 115 grain, and 124gr Blazer Brass. With those 3 types of ammunition, I would have a range of groups from .35″-.98″ while resting at 25 yards. The Federal and Blazer Brass were typically from .35-.58″ with the Remington opening up a bit. When shooting though, the overall weight of the gun in combination with being chambered in 9mm makes it an incredibly flat shooting accurate firearm.

In terms of reliability, this gun was very tight at the beginning. In the first 100 rounds, I had two malfunctions which were both failures to eject and cycle far enough to chamber a new round. This was with the Remington 115gr ammo. I switched to the heavier 124gr Blazer Brass for the first 500 rounds and the gun ran 100% reliable after that. For cleaning, I ended up giving it a throughout fieldstrip and cleaning every 1,000 rounds as a minimum. Since they are performance-driven firearms, most 2011-style pistols need to be cleaned more than your standard Glock. Even with a cleaning every 1,000 rounds, the gun was reliable with no other malfunctions.

High-End Space

The 1911 double-stack pistols really are the supercars of the pistol world. 2011s which refers to Staccatos since they trademarked a year, are the standard entry for the 1911 double-stack pistols. They tend to be a high benchmark for shooters but there are certainly higher-priced pistols on the market. The EG11 from Type A is double the price compared to Staccatos and other options on the market. I started by taking all the accessories out of the cost which brings the gun right around $4,500 rather than the higher $5,674.99 price tag.

When looking at just the gun instead of a package deal, that puts it exactly around the Fowler Industries Vanta 9 and less than the entry-level Atlas firearms or Nighthawk models. When looking at just the guns apples to apples, as crazy as it sounds, the Type-A EG11 is kind of a bargain since it’s the only hand-fit 2011-style pistol sub $6,000. The trade-off to having a tight hand-fit pistol is a slight break in which once that is done, it is one of the smoothest action pistols I own.

Overall Thoughts

The Type-A EG11 certainly isn’t a pistol for everyone. I know some of you will say any 2011-style pistol is overpriced compared to a Glock or other mainstream options. It’s no doubt a high-priced item but this is one of the few companies making all metal construction pistols for under 6,000. Before deciding, I was certainly on the fence between this EG11 or the Vanta 9. I ended up going with the Type-A EG11 because I preferred the looks of the EG11 over the Vanta 9. I also own a few of their rifles and have been impressed with the overall fit and finish so prior knowledge made me take a chance on the EG11 which I’m glad I did.

The EG11s do require a wait time when you order direct but even with the price and wait, I’m still happy with my purchase and can easily recommend it if you’re in the market for a higher-end gun. At this price point, there are no wrong options but I’ve been asked countless times on social media to write this review so in short I’m happy with my purchase. What do you guys think about high-end pistols like this? Is your money better spent on other options or is it worth having one pistol that’s rare? Let me know in the comments below. If you have questions don’t hesitate to reach out on Instagram @fridgeoperator. Stay safe and we will see you in the next one.