Something different......BUL Armory SAS II Ultra Light 3.25"

[RLB]

I brought home my newest addition today, and BUL SAS II UL. Super impressed with it so far. Quality seems top notch with none of the initial problems that I had with my Prodigy. In all fairness, the Prodigy has been perfect for over 700 rounds, but when it was brand new, it did require a bit work to get it that way. Hundreds of snap caps were cycled through it, hundreds of cycling the slide, and even a bit of polishing, mainly to help get rid of the dreaded disconnector drag. It is now just about perfect, although the trigger is still a bit on the heavy side but still very shootable.

But the BUL needed none of that. It is perfect right out of the box. Fit and finish are great, it's very comfortable to hold for such a small pistol, the slide is smooth with no disconnector drag, the trigger, oh the trigger is perfection! It has a very short take up, a very definite wall. If it does have any creep I can't feel it, and when it breaks it is super crisp. Reset is practically non-existent and it breaks at a very consistent 2 lb 9.8 oz trigger pull measured by my digital gauge. It may be almost too light for what's supposed to be a carry gun. I honestly can't imagine it getting much better. It's right up with there with my DW DWX, CZ TSO, and Sig P226 XFIVE in overall feel.

So I disassembled and cleaned the UL, lubricated it and ran a couple of magazines of snap caps through it just to check function, and it's ready for it's first range date. Since I'm more accustomed to larger, heavier guns it will be interesting to see how well it shoots and what kind of recoil it has. From reports I've seen I've heard mostly surprise at how well it shoots and how well such a light pistol handles the recoil. Of course there was one reviewer who complained that it was so uncomfortable to shoot that it hurt his hand, poor baby. But then recoil is a personal thing, some are bothered by it while other aren't. I'll soon find out, but the BUL does have the traditional very comfortable 2011 style grip so I think it will be just fine.

 

[Sld1959]

Slight bit of confusion. Curious how if it has never been fired you can say that it is perfect right out of the box in comparison to the Prodigy which had issues.

Were the issues you mentioned in the Prodigy firing related and if so in how can you judge that against a pistol that is yet unfired.

 

[RLB]

I was referring to how my Prodigy initially had a really noticeable disconnector drag which was pretty well fixed by racking the slide a couple of hundred times to break it in, cycling snap caps through it, and finally with a bit of polishing. By doing all of those break in exercises before it was even shot, I think it helped smooth out the action so that once it was shot I haven't have any malfunctions.

When I first brought home my Prodigy, the slide would actually hang up when it contacted the disconnector when I racked the slide. It was so bad that when I went to my FFL to pick it up, I thought about refusing delivery of it. I accepted it anyway and after a bit of work it has turned out to be a great shooter. It is the only firearm that I've ever purchased that required so much break in time before I could consider it dependable.

With the BUL, even though I haven't shot it yet, it exhibits none of the potential problems that the Prodigy did. Everything on it works perfectly and I don't expect any problems. Of course I could be surprised, but I don't think I will be.

 

[Sld1959]

Ok, hope it works as well as you anticipate.

 

[SimonRL]

Ok, hope it works as well as you anticipate.

If past performances are anything to go by the SAS II UL will run like a champ from the get go. I don’t think I’ve ever read a less than glowing report on this. It’s definitely on my list.

 

[RLB]

I managed to take the BUL UL to the range today for it's first time. I'm happy to report that it went perfectly. The baby BUL fired 175 rounds without even a hint of a hiccup. I fired 50 rounds Winchester 124 gr NATO, 50 rounds of 124 gr Blazer Brass, 50 rounds of 115 gr Blazer Brass, and 25 rounds of Winchester JHP. It didn't matter to the baby BUL, it ate them all! This thing is a shooter, and on top of that it's pretty darned accurate too for such a short barrel. That two and a half pound trigger helps out there.

I was curious to see how the recoil was in such a small, light firearm. I'm not gonna lie, it wasn't as smooth a shooter as say my Prodigy is, but then the Prodigy outweighs it by a lot, but it's something that is very manageable and something that I wouldn't hesitate to shoot several hundred rounds at a single range session. I don't know if it's the dual recoil spring, or all of the weight reducing cuts to the slide and barrel, but recoil wasn't a problem at all.

Needless to say I'm very happy with the baby BUL. This is my first BUL firearm, but if this is any indication of the quality of BUL firearms, it probably won't be my last. It's obvious to me now that BUL knows its firearms.

I wish that I had a Staccato CS to shoot to compare it to just to see how they compare. I've seen videos comparing the two and the baby BUL seems to hang right in there even against the CS which is about a thousand or so dollars more expensive. They both seem to be pretty evenly matched.

 

[SimonRL]

I managed to take the BUL UL to the range today for it's first time. I'm happy to report that it went perfectly. The baby BUL fired 175 rounds without even a hint of a hiccup. I fired 50 rounds Winchester 124 gr NATO, 50 rounds of 124 gr Blazer Brass, 50 rounds of 115 gr Blazer Brass, and 25 rounds of Winchester JHP. It didn't matter to the baby BUL, it ate them all! This thing is a shooter, and on top of that it's pretty darned accurate too for such a short barrel. That two and a half pound trigger helps out there.

I was curious to see how the recoil was in such a small, light firearm. I'm not gonna lie, it wasn't as smooth a shooter as say my Prodigy is, but then the Prodigy outweighs it by a lot, but it's something that is very manageable and something that I wouldn't hesitate to shoot several hundred rounds at a single range session. I don't know if it's the dual recoil spring, or all of the weight reducing cuts to the slide and barrel, but recoil wasn't a problem at all.

Needless to say I'm very happy with the baby BUL. This is my first BUL firearm, but if this is any indication of the quality of BUL firearms, it probably won't be my last. It's obvious to me now that BUL knows its firearms.

I wish that I had a Staccato CS to shoot to compare it to just to see how they compare. I've seen videos comparing the two and the baby BUL seems to hang right in there even against the CS which is about a thousand or so dollars more expensive. They both seem to be pretty evenly matched.

Who did you get your BUL through?

 

[RLB]

Who did you get your BUL through?

I ordered it directly from BUL on their website. Easy process, it arrived in under a week, $39.95 shipping, but no sales tax.

The only problem, they're out of stock now. BUL does have a waiting list that you can sign up for to get notification when they're back in stock.

 

[Chowser]

Yeah out of stock. Whew. I thought about ordering one. I want something smaller than the Staccato C2. I was looking at this and the Alpha Foxtrot S15. I was leaning more toward the AF since I have a bunch of Shield mags for my Glock 43X already.

So I went and did something stupid. I went the completely opposite direction and ordered an XC to try something different.

 

[RLB]

Wow, when you decide to do something different, you go all out! The XC is about 3X the price of a BUL UL and also about 3X bigger.

But it's definitely not "stupid" if it's something that you want.

Congratulations on a fine pistol. I think you'll be happy with your choice after you get to shoot a few rounds through it. From what I've heard, they're spectacular. You can always add a baby BUL later. Let us know how it works out.

 

[unixfool]

Yeah out of stock. Whew. I thought about ordering one. I want something smaller than the Staccato C2. I was looking at this and the Alpha Foxtrot S15. I was leaning more toward the AF since I have a bunch of Shield mags for my Glock 43X already.

So I went and did something stupid. I went the completely opposite direction and ordered an XC to try something different.

That's not stupid...that's something that you were curious about.

I bought a SAS II UL in March of 2023. I was curious about the S15, so I it 1.5 months after the SAS II UL. I bought the threaded barrel and bobtail variant (this was before they offered the optics cut version).

I've 1080 rounds through the SAS II UL and was carrying it up until last month. It's currently back at Bul Armory for a warranty repair - the hammer was dropping while the grip safety was enaged. While I'm waiting for it to be repaired, I'm carrying the S15.

I've 828 rounds through the S15. It carries a bit better than the SAS II UL, since the grip is thin. The SAS II UL is lighter, though, and it's trigger is $$$! I shoot both very well. Also, PSA Dagger Micro mags work with the S15 (for those folks that hate S15 mags - my four S15 mags are working without issue, though).

I'd thought of Staccato, but I like the eccentric things, and Staccatos aren't eccentric enough for my tastes. Both the SAS II and the S15 are very much unique-looking. The SAS UL is fluted out the ace and is very short and light. The S15's DLC coating and it's slim solid metal grip makes it quite different than most other 1911s. Someone told me I could've bought a Staccato with the money I spent on the Bul Armory and AF1911...yeah, but I don't think I would've been happy, and everybody and their grandmother has a Staccato. I wanted something different.

Good on you for buying with your heart, though.