Consensus on full size Dagger?

Enjoying my compact in basic black, and may get a second with slide cuts in a different color. Or maybe a full size?

What’s your experience with the full size?

I have gorilla sized hands, and the full size is the most comfortable/natural grip on a handgun I’ve ever wrapped my hand around. I would expect that if you have small hands, you’d probably find the compact as comfortable as I find the full size. If you have mid-sized hands - probably would have to try both and see what suited you the best.

YMMV.

4 Likes

I fall into the gorilla-sized hands category as well. I love my OG Dagger & have bought the full-size. I haven’t shot it yet but I like the way it feels in my hand. My main, personal complaint with the compact is the bump at the bottom of the grip. It crams my pinky into my ring finger pretty hard. Is it a show stopper? HECK NO! But I’m looking forward to shooting the big brother.

2 Likes

Thanks guys, I’m pretty happy with the fit of the OG, so maybe I’ll stick with that. Now just a waiting game until the PSA email has exactly what I want. :smile:

3 Likes

The bump on the Dagger S is one biggest gripes with it, but at the same time I don’t necessarily dislike it either if that makes any sense. It doesn’t feel terrible in the hand, but its hump is unnecessary, and makes it a larger framed 9MM than most it’s competition. Look, I often boast on the G20 as it’s long been one of, if not my favorite pistol, but I accept it’s larger sized based on it firing a larger and more powerful round. If I’m going for a 9MM I prefer to take advantage of a smaller grip. (And a Dagger S grip is for sure smaller than a large frame Glock) Again, the Dagger S ergo’s aren’t bad, but most smaller people like women will likely prefer a smaller grip gun, and the Dagger S ergo’s would be great if guns like the PDP, 509, any CZ in 9MM, VP9, etc weren’t on the market. I almost hate even complaining about it as the Dagger S ergo’s don’t offend me, they just don’t standout as the best either, and if you look into the back cavity the pronounced hump is unnecessary. I think PSA was trying to mimic HK/Walther type ergos with the high riding hump. I wish it had more of a P80 type, straighter grip, combined with the Daggers more rounded edges. With that said as a man with normal sized hands the Dagger S grip isn’t bad.

Whereas all of us guys with gorilla sized hands think the S sized Dagger is a gift from God. Never held a more comfortable gun in my life.

2 Likes

I don’t believe that. Straight up. Especially with all these adjustable backstrap guns.

2 Likes

Well, believe what you want, my hand disagrees with you, lol. To be fair, I’ve never gone through a gun store and held every handgun they have, and tried all the backstraps that are available for each one. But of the ones I have tried, the full size Dagger is easily the most comfortable. True story.

1 Like

signal-2022-12-18-11-12-38-246

6 Likes

:sweat_smile: :sweat_smile: :sweat_smile:

…aaannnddd Glock doesn’t care either :+1:t2:

2 Likes

Nope. Gaston is an OG member of the IDG AF club.

If anyone hasn’t read his life story, you should do it sometime. Pretty fascinating dude, actually.

2 Likes

Yep. Where would the Gun Community be at today without his “Sporty” attitude?

I’m probably not getting the full size version, I’m happy enough with the Compact. I am way more interested in the Dagger Micro.

That said, I’m seriously interested in the Compact X slide if it means I’ll get a sweet, sweet G19L for a carry weapon.

I have never been more impressed with a firearm than I have been with the Dagger Compact and I’ve owned a VP9SK, a G19 Gen 5, the Ruger American Compact, and a Shadow Systems CR920.

The only firearm that I am as fond of is my P365 in .380 ACP.

I wandered into the Greenville store Friday and got lucky on a full FDE frame. So much more comfortable. I want that Micro like a lot of you. PSA has been killing it with the new stuff lately. My bank account too.

The issue is this, particularly in the Dagger forum people are WAY too defensive of the gun. One of the really cool things that PSA does is they listen to customer criticisms, and they evolve their platforms. This is awesome in comparison to companies like Glock who could care less about what anyone thinks. People even come to PSA’s defense when they’re not being criticized. The thread I made trying to gauge interest in a large frame Dagger that will allow for it to be chambered in 10MM or .45 ACP. Instead of us discussing that topic it quickly became a, “you shouldn’t ask this, and should bestow PSA with props because they made a pistol chambered in 5.7x28,” or “instead of worrying about a Dagger chambered in 10MM or .45 ACP, you can spend $200+ to convert a Dagger to .40 S&W, .357 Sig, .45 GAP, etc.” The thing is, is when compared to 10MM those rounds are irrelevant. By that standard a large frame Glock/potential Dagger can be chambered in 9x25 Dillion, or one of the really hot .45 xxxx calibers, etc. That thread was not meant to be a knock against Dagger just a question/discussion as GEN3 Glock cloning is fair game, and every gun maker and their momma seems to be making replica GEN3 Glocks, but the issue is that they’re all chambered in 9MM. I have a lot of 9MM’s, but it’s only because that’s what the majority of the market keeps turn out. A large frame Dagger that goes for under $400 would probably sell like hotcakes, and other than P80 no one is doing it.

Now back to the topic at hand, the Dagger S hump doesn’t ruin the guns ergo’s, but it does stand out when gripping the gun. It’s a very pronounced feature on the grip. It just is. It doesn’t feel bad persay, it just feels like it would be better without it poking into my palm. Most humped grips on pistols who ergos are considered world class generally have a smoother transition and not such a pronounced hump. Again a Dagger S still feels pretty nice, but when compared to CZ’s or Walthers of VP9’s I doubt that most 0 bias people will prefer the Daggers hump. Look I like Glock, but I’m not a fan of the Glock hump. Glock would feel better without it. Normally I think backstraps are gimmicky to pistols with good ergos, but the Dagger is a gun that makes me want backstraps the smooth out the back of the grip.

Here’s a comparison of the Dagger S to a PDP with the smallest humped backstrap. The larger backstraps give the PDP a bigger grip/hump if that’s what you desire.

My other grips with the Dagger are this:
-Stiff mag release that need full compression to release the mag. This was my #1 issue with the Dagger. I fixed it with a 2.5 lb Glock mag release spring which is 1/2 the weight of the stock spring, and I put an extended Glock mag release and filed and sanded it it my liking. It now drops similar to a stock GEN3 Glock with it’s 5 lb OEM spring.

-I paid for a Dagger with the suppressor height, Amerigo sights, the front being a night site, and after barely 100 rounds I about lost that sight as it started dangling loose on the slide. People can try to defend that based on the guns value all they want, but that’s not good and has not happened on any other pistol I’ve ever owned. Loosing a $45-$50 night sight is not desirable, and is something that should be pointed out so that the can rectify it. Blue loctite is the best cure on a Glock sight. I agree that red loctite should be used for thinks like head and main bolts on a SBC or something and not for tiny little screws.

-I appreciate PSA using a stainless guide rod, but I don’t use them in my other guns as they really standout on a poly gun, and IMO are an eye sore. Blackened guide rods would look better IMO, but this is another criticism I don’t like giving the Dagger because PSA took the time to put a quality stainless rod instead of just a poly rod like many gun makers use.

With that said the Dagger is a gun I very much like, but don’t necessarily love, even for it’s value. I love the CZ75, I love the 509, I love the Shield, I love 10MM Glocks, I love the KS47, I love well made AR’s/AK’s. (I don’t literally love inanimate things, but you get what I’m saying) I clicked with these guns very well, but I can, and do find things to ridicule on any of them as none are 100% perfect to me. Just because we’re on a PSA forum doesn’t mean that Dagger is exempt from criticism if it’s fair. Some criticism is an opinion, like ergos. One reason I do it on here is because I want PSA to shine. I’m a native Columbia person. I feel if they read opinions and issues that they’ll examine them, and determine if it warrants a change, evolve their product. PSA has updated many of their guns from AK’s, to the KS47, the AKV I think it’s called. It’s one of the great things about PSA, and why they’ve up their rep from my first PSA AR purchase in I think 2012 or 13.?.? I have many times defended PSA when the internetz was unfairly putting them down and claiming that they were junk, based on bias’s and stereotypes.

Here’s some things to love on the Dragger S:
-Value
-It seems to work as well as a Glock for 1/2 the price. (Other than the mag release)
-The slide catch/release is 2x’s better than a Glocks. The extended Glock slide catch is totally unnecessary on a Dagger.
-It’s a mostly attractive gun, especially the slide milling.
-It takes Glock sights (you should only be thinking aftermarket Glock sights) and magazines, (as well as everything else Glock other than maybe the striker) which is a huge plus.
-Even with the raised hump its ergonomics are still pretty good, and better than average IMO.
-I like the grip trexture.
-People complain about the hinged trigger, but it’s really not bad. I have no desire to change it other than a polishing job and a lighter connector. (Which I did these things already) Basically the same as with a Glock. $160 triggers for Glocks just aren’t $160 better than OEM, especially OEM with a little work.
-A full-sized grip with a 4" barrel is my preferred 9MM for everything other than CC, and maybe competitive shooting if I did that.
-The color/sight/barrel options are really cool and appretiated.
-No stupid Glock, polywhatever rifling that makes it go kaboom if you shoot lead bullets.
-RMR slide cuts that make direct mount easy for the most popular red dots.
-O-ring on the threaded barrel.

3 Likes

Medium sized hands here, and the Full size S feels much better to me than the Compact. Hand-filling but contoured. Pair it with a Compact slide ala Glock 45. Perfect.

The hump is too thin creating a hotspot in the palm. After several rounds, it begins to hurt. If they had widened it, it wouldn’t cause such a painful hotspot.

Please be more specific. I’ve put more than a hundred thru in one outing and didn’t find a “hotspot”.


The hump is very thin in that area. It creates a hotspot in the palm. Painful in my case. Switch between the dagger and say a Glock, you can feel that the Glock being wider doesn’t create that hotspot. Everyone is different so it may not effect you the same way.


That spot?