Anyone have personal experience with the EAA Witness line of pistols, in particularly their 10mm guns? They're made by the Italian group Tanfoglio. Thanks, Don
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DonD
I had a "compact" Witness in .40. Excellent pistol in terms of being a range toy (accuracy and comfort), but it had a fair share of problems.
Allow me to elaborate. DA/SA was problematic on mine, it wouldn't always set off the first shot in DA. Once the hammer was cocked it was fine. No gunsmith could figure it out, as it was very intermittent for me and the smith didn't feel like shooting 500 rounds in DA to get it to mess up once or twice. I was advised to carry it cocked and locked (being as it didn't have a decocker for some reason, that's technically "safer" not risking an ND not thumbing down the hammer correctly). One day, I took the pistol off and noticed that the safety had worked itself OFF, with the hammer cocked on a loaded chamber. The holster I had fit the gun well, but apparently not well enough (and I had tried dozens). The knowledge that I was subject to being shot by my own pistol without me touching it was too much, had to get rid of it. I traded it for my first Glock, a gen3 22 and never looked back.
I also recall reading on forums that the 10mm was prone to frame cracking. If I grab another Witness (or indeed any of the CZ-75 clones or the actual article), it will be in 9mm.
Allow me to elaborate. DA/SA was problematic on mine, it wouldn't always set off the first shot in DA. Once the hammer was cocked it was fine. No gunsmith could figure it out, as it was very intermittent for me and the smith didn't feel like shooting 500 rounds in DA to get it to mess up once or twice. I was advised to carry it cocked and locked (being as it didn't have a decocker for some reason, that's technically "safer" not risking an ND not thumbing down the hammer correctly). One day, I took the pistol off and noticed that the safety had worked itself OFF, with the hammer cocked on a loaded chamber. The holster I had fit the gun well, but apparently not well enough (and I had tried dozens). The knowledge that I was subject to being shot by my own pistol without me touching it was too much, had to get rid of it. I traded it for my first Glock, a gen3 22 and never looked back.
I also recall reading on forums that the 10mm was prone to frame cracking. If I grab another Witness (or indeed any of the CZ-75 clones or the actual article), it will be in 9mm.
I have had:
1. A basic DA/SA .45 acp. It was reliable and okay.
2. A customized SA .45 acp with a .38 super longslide conversion. It was reliable, accurate, and fun.
3. A Stock 1 Tanfoglio 9mm(imported by IFG). An expensive($1200) piece of garbage that even an expert Tanfo gunsmith couldn't fix. Sold it at a $500+ loss. Trigger would not reset.
Quality is hit or miss, and the customer service of both EAA and IFG flat out sucks. I would just buy a CZ.
1. A basic DA/SA .45 acp. It was reliable and okay.
2. A customized SA .45 acp with a .38 super longslide conversion. It was reliable, accurate, and fun.
3. A Stock 1 Tanfoglio 9mm(imported by IFG). An expensive($1200) piece of garbage that even an expert Tanfo gunsmith couldn't fix. Sold it at a $500+ loss. Trigger would not reset.
Quality is hit or miss, and the customer service of both EAA and IFG flat out sucks. I would just buy a CZ.
I picket up an EAA Witness in 45ACP, at a Gun Show.
At the range it was flawless, and very Accurate, soft shooting.
I kept it for a while, and enjoyed shooting it. It seemed it be a heavy pistol, but probably wasn't if you compared it to a 1911.
At the time I didn't have a 1911 to compare it to.
A little later I ran across an EAA Witness in 9mm and picked it up too. It was also a good shooter, and Very Accurate.
I liked both of them for Range guns, and ran a lot of rounds through both of them. I ended up trading both of them for Glocks that I liked better. The only thing that I didn't care for was the shape of the slide, just hard for my hands to grip.
Just me, no fault of the pistols. They were heavy for me to carry for off duty.
At the range it was flawless, and very Accurate, soft shooting.
I kept it for a while, and enjoyed shooting it. It seemed it be a heavy pistol, but probably wasn't if you compared it to a 1911.
At the time I didn't have a 1911 to compare it to.
A little later I ran across an EAA Witness in 9mm and picked it up too. It was also a good shooter, and Very Accurate.
I liked both of them for Range guns, and ran a lot of rounds through both of them. I ended up trading both of them for Glocks that I liked better. The only thing that I didn't care for was the shape of the slide, just hard for my hands to grip.
Just me, no fault of the pistols. They were heavy for me to carry for off duty.
My buddy has a 10mm EAA Witness
He is a bit weird but he shot a bear with it one year and swears by that thing
He is a bit weird but he shot a bear with it one year and swears by that thing
I owned an all steel 10mm Witness for quite a while. It was a trouble free pistol for me. Shot very accurately as well. I sold it a couple years ago as I was not really shooting or carrying it and my friend really wanted a 10mm. As far as I know, it is still running strong.
I did the triggers on both my production Stock 2's, and can confirm there's a significant amount of delta between guns. That seems to be pretty common knowledge, though.
They are great guns, easily on par with CZ in terms of build quality. I like the Tanfo's better.
I've been thinking about getting a carry Witness to mess with, but that's not a high-priority project. I would plan to do a trigger job on any Witness, so really not that concerned about how the trigger works out of the box.
They are great guns, easily on par with CZ in terms of build quality. I like the Tanfo's better.
I've been thinking about getting a carry Witness to mess with, but that's not a high-priority project. I would plan to do a trigger job on any Witness, so really not that concerned about how the trigger works out of the box.
I had a Witness in 10mm years ago. It was rough, trigger was really heavy and was under sprung from the factory, but it was a $450 gun and reliable. Shot a Witness Match recently in 10mm and it was a completely different gun in a good way. In the end Tanfoglio puts out really good stuff from what I have seen.
I have a Witness Match in 40 that echoes the experiences of others above. I got it back before prices went through the roof, around $400 I think, back in the early or mid-2000's.
The trigger is great on this gun, and it's very accurate, but I had numerous problems with it for years. I'd shoot it for awhile, experience multiple FTF/FTE's, polish the feed ramp and chamber, then not shoot it for year or so. Finally, after about a thousand rounds and polishing the ramp/chamber 9 or 10 times, it's finally gotten to where it's about 95% functioning.
It's become a project over the years. I'll keep messing with it until hopefully one day it will be 99-100%.
I would not buy another, but then my sample size is only one. And to be fair, I've never sent it back for service.
The trigger is great on this gun, and it's very accurate, but I had numerous problems with it for years. I'd shoot it for awhile, experience multiple FTF/FTE's, polish the feed ramp and chamber, then not shoot it for year or so. Finally, after about a thousand rounds and polishing the ramp/chamber 9 or 10 times, it's finally gotten to where it's about 95% functioning.
It's become a project over the years. I'll keep messing with it until hopefully one day it will be 99-100%.
I would not buy another, but then my sample size is only one. And to be fair, I've never sent it back for service.
Had a Linited in 38 Super. Shot great
I wouldn’t exactly call them high quality, but they shoot well.
I wouldn’t exactly call them high quality, but they shoot well.
I had a full size steel wonder finish Witness for about one year. It was heavy, accurate and a rough DA\SA trigger. I ended up trading it off for a WASR-10 AK. I won't buy any more pistols that have front sights milled into the slide as i prefer having options to swap different types of sights.
There are basically 8 different Witness frames....I own them all. Multiples of most.
Large Frame Compact (Poly or Steel)
Large Frame Full Size (Poly or Steel)
Small Frame Compact (Poly or Steel)
Small Frame Full Size (Poly or Steel)
The large frame guns can shoot all calibers, but the small frames can only shoot 9mm, 357Sig, 41AE, 40SW, etc. Then you have two Classes.....the Pro Models which run $1,000+ and the Consumer Models that are around half that. There is a big difference in built quality between the two classes so when you hear an internet opinion, you need to know what Class they are talking about. It's like a Husquvarna/Stihl chainsaw. If you bought it at Home Depot, it's a low grade saw regardless of brand. If you want a nice one, you go to a real dealer and get a Pro model.
What's cool about the Witness guns, is that EAA carries all the slides and barrels for all the different lengths and calibers so once you have the frame, you can swap out everything you want. You can take your 9mm large frame steel compact and put a 10mm long slide on it if you like. Then you can drop a 9mm barrel into that 10mm slide and punch it out to 9x25 Dillon. The caliber combination, barrel length, slide length combos are virtually endless. It's a very customizable pistol without a bunch of work.
Tony
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Large Frame Compact (Poly or Steel)
Large Frame Full Size (Poly or Steel)
Small Frame Compact (Poly or Steel)
Small Frame Full Size (Poly or Steel)
The large frame guns can shoot all calibers, but the small frames can only shoot 9mm, 357Sig, 41AE, 40SW, etc. Then you have two Classes.....the Pro Models which run $1,000+ and the Consumer Models that are around half that. There is a big difference in built quality between the two classes so when you hear an internet opinion, you need to know what Class they are talking about. It's like a Husquvarna/Stihl chainsaw. If you bought it at Home Depot, it's a low grade saw regardless of brand. If you want a nice one, you go to a real dealer and get a Pro model.
What's cool about the Witness guns, is that EAA carries all the slides and barrels for all the different lengths and calibers so once you have the frame, you can swap out everything you want. You can take your 9mm large frame steel compact and put a 10mm long slide on it if you like. Then you can drop a 9mm barrel into that 10mm slide and punch it out to 9x25 Dillon. The caliber combination, barrel length, slide length combos are virtually endless. It's a very customizable pistol without a bunch of work.
Tony
I know a guy who has shot Tanfos in competition, he was certainly sweet on his. I just had some negatives that added up to "nope" on the individual one I had.
I have one in my collection, and it's in 38 super nice gun but only picked it up because it was less than $300 and in 38 super for some reason I really like this Cal.
I have an all metal Wonder finish in 10mm. The only thing I did was change to a heavier spring and shorten the ejector. I got tired of chasing brass. I like it and I have 5 or 6 15rd mags and no problem loading them to max cap. I have had the gun since maybe 2005.
I have exactly one, a DAO .45 in Wonder finish in .45 ACP from 1980. I got it dirt cheap, because the previous owner attempted to blue the Wonder finish, and the results were less than acceptable or desirable.
As Ahnold said, it is one ugly m***** f*****.
Don't care, to date is the most accurate .45 I own, if that means anything. Outshot the Molina before I sold it, outshoots the 21, outshoots the P 90, if I'm going to send some expensive ass ammo downrange is my default handgun.
Now, understand, it swims in a very small pool, and I'm far from a great shot, so take it for what it is worth. Will say, has a great, very crisp trigger, probably the best feature.
As Ahnold said, it is one ugly m***** f*****.
Don't care, to date is the most accurate .45 I own, if that means anything. Outshot the Molina before I sold it, outshoots the 21, outshoots the P 90, if I'm going to send some expensive ass ammo downrange is my default handgun.
Now, understand, it swims in a very small pool, and I'm far from a great shot, so take it for what it is worth. Will say, has a great, very crisp trigger, probably the best feature.
I own a Tanfoglio Witness Match version in 10MM.
It has a sweet SA trigger, holds 15 rounds, is as accurate as any of my 1911's and goes bang every time. I love it. I got one without the rail, but that's a preference thing.
I also own a Witness-P in 45 acp. It's a bit rough but also has been thoroughly reliable. That one is DA/SA and the trigger kinda sucks. The DA is pretty light for DA but loooong and the SA has more takeup than an SA trigger should. But I paid $250.00 new, OTD for it new at a gun show 15 years ago. It was the third gun I ever purchased.
I've only had good experiences with mine. The Match in 10MM would be recommended if that's what you seek. Excellent range gun.
It has a sweet SA trigger, holds 15 rounds, is as accurate as any of my 1911's and goes bang every time. I love it. I got one without the rail, but that's a preference thing.
I also own a Witness-P in 45 acp. It's a bit rough but also has been thoroughly reliable. That one is DA/SA and the trigger kinda sucks. The DA is pretty light for DA but loooong and the SA has more takeup than an SA trigger should. But I paid $250.00 new, OTD for it new at a gun show 15 years ago. It was the third gun I ever purchased.
I've only had good experiences with mine. The Match in 10MM would be recommended if that's what you seek. Excellent range gun.
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