I have been fascinated with the 5.7x28 cartridge since I played with an FN PS90 at a range some years ago.
Not being able to justify the entry fee (yet) for the PS90, I hoped (vainly) that the FN Five-seveN pistol would be my ticket to ride.
Silly rabbit….
Ruger’s 5.7 offering was closer to my price point/justification, but a friend’s version was just too bulky for me, it felt “off”.
Being a bit of a Tisas fanboi, however, has its rewards. When the Tisas PX-5.7 became available - premiering at Shot Show 2024, for around $400, my stars were aligning.
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With 2-20 round mags and my experience that Tisas pistols, denigrated by many but probably fired by few, had proven reliable for me, the credit card rang up another sale.
The PX-5.7 is, in a sense, standard Tisas fare. Hammer forged barrel, polymer frame featuring a green fiber front sight, at one pound -eight ounces in weight, the PX-5.7 I don’t see breaking any new ground, aside from the cartridge.
The field stripping is unusual in my experience. A detent on the right side is depressed using a punch or bullet to allow the takedown lever to move away from the frame. Rotate the takedown lever, then pull back and up on the slide to release.
Loading the cartridges is interesting since the Uplula loader does not work with the longer 5.7 magazine. This is unfortunate. For my initial outing with the Tisas, I loaded just 10 rounds of 5.7 in a 20 round mag. This was doable, but I have no idea how a full 20 rounds would be loaded without the help of a loader. My thumb would be filing for worker’s comp.
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[Cartridge comparison, L_R: .45ACP, 9mm Luger, 5.7x28]
My trial experience had my holes all over the target. Not faulting the pistol, rather faulting my lack of familiarity with it. The front sight sits loosely in the rear sight window, so unless I concentrated on where the front sight was on the target, my holes drifted.
But concentrating on the sight - a novel concept and you heard it here first- brought my groups into a more manageable diameter.
Recoil, as expected for a hopped-up .22, was minimal and a joy. In my initial 50 rounds there was no failure to feed or extract. Trigger break is very clean, at a reported five pounds or thereabouts. Trigger reset is both audible and tactile, but this being my first outing, I let the trigger fully return before the next shot.
With the FN Five-seveN listing at $1,409, the Ruger at $899 and the Tisas PX-5.7 at $499.99 (cheaper on the street), I was smitten.
But…..
After 40 rounds I lost the front sight fiber optic. I now have a hole where it once existed in its green splendor. An RMA request is in process with Tisas.
![Image]()
What role does the 5.7 pistol play in a 9mm world? Well, capacity is great, if you can get the mags loaded. Recoil is essentially non-existent allowing for rapid follow-up shots. I could see a pocket version, high-capacity, low recoil, as being a feasible offering.
And 5.7 performance videos show excellent results against armor. James Reeves was surprisingly laudatory in his review of the Tisas PX-5.7. Then again, I don’t think he lost his front sight.
The 5.7 round, right now, is a niche cartridge. But the market is responding to lighter weight pistols with higher capacity. The .45 1911 has issues in smaller platforms. For close-in defensive work, pocket .380s are providing an option to the larger 9mm offerings.
Following that trend of more with less, the 5.7 is far from a poodle plinker and offers some very real benefits. And Tisas is bringing this option to the masses. Assuming you don’t need your front sight.
Late note: An email to Tisas Support in the evening resulted in a response waiting for me early next morning - a new optic tube is being sent for me to install. The option was given to send the pistol in for their techs to install but I was assured the optic tube was very user installable. Follow-up emails were responded to very quickly. So far, Tisas Support has been right on top of a minor issue for them, but a bit of an irk for me. I could not ask for better response time or additional options to be given. And I will soon have my front sight.
Not being able to justify the entry fee (yet) for the PS90, I hoped (vainly) that the FN Five-seveN pistol would be my ticket to ride.
Silly rabbit….
Ruger’s 5.7 offering was closer to my price point/justification, but a friend’s version was just too bulky for me, it felt “off”.
Being a bit of a Tisas fanboi, however, has its rewards. When the Tisas PX-5.7 became available - premiering at Shot Show 2024, for around $400, my stars were aligning.
With 2-20 round mags and my experience that Tisas pistols, denigrated by many but probably fired by few, had proven reliable for me, the credit card rang up another sale.
The PX-5.7 is, in a sense, standard Tisas fare. Hammer forged barrel, polymer frame featuring a green fiber front sight, at one pound -eight ounces in weight, the PX-5.7 I don’t see breaking any new ground, aside from the cartridge.
The field stripping is unusual in my experience. A detent on the right side is depressed using a punch or bullet to allow the takedown lever to move away from the frame. Rotate the takedown lever, then pull back and up on the slide to release.
Loading the cartridges is interesting since the Uplula loader does not work with the longer 5.7 magazine. This is unfortunate. For my initial outing with the Tisas, I loaded just 10 rounds of 5.7 in a 20 round mag. This was doable, but I have no idea how a full 20 rounds would be loaded without the help of a loader. My thumb would be filing for worker’s comp.
[Cartridge comparison, L_R: .45ACP, 9mm Luger, 5.7x28]
My trial experience had my holes all over the target. Not faulting the pistol, rather faulting my lack of familiarity with it. The front sight sits loosely in the rear sight window, so unless I concentrated on where the front sight was on the target, my holes drifted.
But concentrating on the sight - a novel concept and you heard it here first- brought my groups into a more manageable diameter.
Recoil, as expected for a hopped-up .22, was minimal and a joy. In my initial 50 rounds there was no failure to feed or extract. Trigger break is very clean, at a reported five pounds or thereabouts. Trigger reset is both audible and tactile, but this being my first outing, I let the trigger fully return before the next shot.
With the FN Five-seveN listing at $1,409, the Ruger at $899 and the Tisas PX-5.7 at $499.99 (cheaper on the street), I was smitten.
But…..
After 40 rounds I lost the front sight fiber optic. I now have a hole where it once existed in its green splendor. An RMA request is in process with Tisas.
What role does the 5.7 pistol play in a 9mm world? Well, capacity is great, if you can get the mags loaded. Recoil is essentially non-existent allowing for rapid follow-up shots. I could see a pocket version, high-capacity, low recoil, as being a feasible offering.
And 5.7 performance videos show excellent results against armor. James Reeves was surprisingly laudatory in his review of the Tisas PX-5.7. Then again, I don’t think he lost his front sight.
The 5.7 round, right now, is a niche cartridge. But the market is responding to lighter weight pistols with higher capacity. The .45 1911 has issues in smaller platforms. For close-in defensive work, pocket .380s are providing an option to the larger 9mm offerings.
Following that trend of more with less, the 5.7 is far from a poodle plinker and offers some very real benefits. And Tisas is bringing this option to the masses. Assuming you don’t need your front sight.
Late note: An email to Tisas Support in the evening resulted in a response waiting for me early next morning - a new optic tube is being sent for me to install. The option was given to send the pistol in for their techs to install but I was assured the optic tube was very user installable. Follow-up emails were responded to very quickly. So far, Tisas Support has been right on top of a minor issue for them, but a bit of an irk for me. I could not ask for better response time or additional options to be given. And I will soon have my front sight.
