Touting themselves as “the value experts,” TriStar Arms imports a variety of hunting, competition and tactical shotguns, as well as a number of handguns. TriStar’s recent handgun products have been its American Classic line of M1911s and SPS Pantera 2011-style pistols. New for 2025, the company is expanding its handgun offerings with the Protégé X Sub Compact, adding a dedicated concealed-carry pistol to its lineup.
Manufactured by Kral Arms of Turkey, the Protégé X is a single-action, hammer-fired, semi-automatic pistol chambered in 9 mm Luger that has lines reminiscent of John Browning’s classic M1911. A bilateral safety allows for the pistol to be carried “cocked and locked.” With a steel slide and aluminum alloy frame, the frame has an extended beavertail to prevent slide bite.
Sights consist of a front blade with a red fiber-optic insert and a rear notch with two white dots fitted into a dovetail. Feeding from a seven-round single column magazine, two are provided with each pistol—one flush fit and one with a finger rest baseplate. Magazines are compatible with the Kimber Micro 9. It has a 3.2” barrel with an overall length of 6.18”, a height of 4.63”, and weighs 17 ozs.
With a Cerakote finish, Protégé X pistols are available in six color configurations, including black, silver, flat dark earth (FDE), tungsten and two-toned black/olive drab and black/purple. All models have an MSRP of $569. For more information, see the company’s website.
