TFB Review: Stribog SP45A3 (1,000 Rounds)

The Grand Power Stribog has grown from a curiosity to a staple in the pistol caliber carbine (PCC) market. It started out as simply a blowback-operated 9mm, but is now a whole family of guns. I saw the new-at-the-time SP45A3 at SHOT 2024 and received one for review late in 2024.

PCC @ TFB:

• New 10mm Grand Power Stribog Carbines
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• [SHOT 2024] CZ Displays Shadow 2 Compact And .22LR Scorpion
• New: The 10mm Auto Ruger LC Carbine

Global Ordnance contacted me to set up this review and supplied this gun. They also provided 500 rounds of Winchester FMJ, an arm brace, and an additional 25-round magazine. This is the first time I have worked with Global Ordnance.

Features

Grand Power follows the typical PCC or SMG layout with the SMG45. The magazine sits in front of the pistol grip, and the receiver is more or less a rectangular tube that contains the barrel and bolt. The trigger mechanism is housed in the same sub-assembly that contains the magazine well. It is secured to the receiver by a pair of push pins. Disassembly is simple and begins by removing the rear push pin. This allows the endcap to pull out from the receiver, with the recoil spring and bolt assemblies pulling out to the rear. The charging handle stays affixed to the receiver while the gun is stripped.

The barrel is threaded and is engraved “.578-28” underneath the handguard which is a great detail. It is so much easier to get the right suppressor parts when this information is made obvious! There are no iron sights but the top of the receiver has a continuous Picatinny rail for sights, optics, or other accessories. Another rail runs along the bottom of the forend.

It includes three 20-round magazines, and Global Ordnance was kind enough to send me one of their 25-round UMP magazines. That’s right, it takes UMP mags. Real H&K German ones are an option as well but they are very pricey. The gun and magazines all come packaged in a hard case.

Arm Brace

I opted for the PDW collapsible arm brace with the Gear Head Works Tailhook. Folding braces usually add a lot of thickness, and the beauty of a gun like this is how well they slide into bags. The Tailhook brace is an interesting design that stores in the closed position but unlatches to provide a surface for the shooter’s arm to rest on. Shooting the SP45A3 one-handed (because, according to US law, pistols are designed to be fired that way) with the Tailhook open provided very usable support. The length adjustment of the brace also allowed me to set the brace in the optimal position on my arm. In all shooting positions, the brace was stable and aided in accuracy and controllability.

On The Range

The SP45A3 is a lot of fun. .45 ACP ammo hits with authority down range but is not abusive or painful to shoot. Being that this is a semiautomatic pistol the gun does not climb or twist even when fired as fast as my trigger finger can go. The recoil impulse is more substantial than an AR-15 but feels better than most 9mm blowback guns I have used.

For obvious reasons, the Stribog is frequently compared to the UMP family. The SP45A3 takes UMP-45 magazines and bears more than a passing resemblance. But the SP45A3 is actually more like the MP5 internally than the UMP thanks to the roller-delayed operating system. If my memory serves, this Stribog is smoother than the UMP-40 machine gun I fired once upon a time.

The controls are very AR-ish, with the exception of the nonreciprocating charging handle. The safety has a 90-degree throw and is in the usual AR location. The magazine release has two options, much like some HK firearms. I use the paddle more frequently as it is a little easier and faster. The button rotates in place when depressed which makes it a little tight.

Grand Power includes three 20-round magazines with the SP45A3, which adds to the gun's value proposition. UMP-45 magazines are not the most common style, and most people do not already have a pile of them at home (though buying magazines for guns you plan to own is not a bad idea, but I digress). At first, I had numerous failures to feed malfunctions with the factory mags, both suppressed and unsuppressed. Three or four times per magazine the round would hang up on the feed ramp, often smashing the projectile back into the case. But once I switched ammunition the failures went away completely. The factory 20-round mags ran great with S&B, Federal, Norma, and Nosler FMJ and hollow point ammunition. But switching to Winchester ammo, regardless of whether it was ball or JHP, caused immediate issues. All ammunition worked fine in the Global Ordnance 25-round magazine.

This brings us to a few things that I would change if I were in charge of making the next generation of this gun. Improving the factory magazines to work with Winchester ammo would be a good addition. The collapsible brace blocks the ejection port in the fully closed position and it jams the gun 100% of the time. Redesigning the brace to sit below the ejection port would fix this issue entirely, but I just treat it like a LAW Folder: The gun will fire one round in the storage position, but it will need some attention before you can take a second shot.

Another thing I would change is the bolt catch. Going with the AR-style position and function of this control was a great decision, but the execution of the part itself should be better. Grand Power used a thin piece of metal that may even be a stamping. It would be much better if it had a paddle like an AR bolt catch, or paddles at the top and bottom like a Geissele Maritime Bolt Catch. This is not a functional issue because the bolt catch does work, but this would be a nice finishing touch. There is an aftermarket option for the SP45 and SP10 (the 10mm version) that has a much larger paddle.

On the topic of controls, the safety lever itself could use an update. It functions very well and snaps nicely between safe and fire (unlike many ARs out there…) but the lever is too smooth and low-profile. Grand Power probably chose this design because it sits under the operator’s trigger finger on the opposite side of the gun, and it is an ambidextrous unit. I think the better approach would be a reversible unit with a long side and short side that the user can change if they are left-handed. At no point was I unable to manipulate the safety when I needed to, but a little extra grip would be helpful.

Accuracy Testing

PCCs with arm braces and short barrels are not guns where accuracy is the main requirement, but I still shot some groups at 25 yards to see what it could do. I used a red dot sight and fired from a rest. All velocity information was collected with a Garmin Xero C1 chronograph.

*The average FPS is over the string of 15 rounds

Suppressed Shooting

The SP45A3 chambers the .45 ACP cartridge, which is usually subsonic. This gun is begging for a suppressor and Grand Power knows it. Helpfully, they engrave “.578” on the side of the barrel, visible through one of the MLOK slots. It operates well as a suppressor host and there is no real shift in the way the gun operates with a suppressor attached. Reliability remained excellent.

I ran the SP45A3 with two suppressors, the Dead Air Ghost 45 and an old SilencerCo Octane 45. Being that this is a .45 ACP handgun and most ammunition options are subsonic, this is a gun that deserves a suppressor. The Ghost 45 would be my recommendation for this gun. It is a modular design that has a removable front section. In the short configuration, it is a little louder but also more maneuverable and easier to stash in a case. Or, in the long configuration, the Ghost 45 takes up more space but it maximizes the sound performance.

Pistol silencers usually incorporate a Nielsen Device to work with Browning-style tilting barrels. That mechanism allows the silencer to move during the recoil cycle so it does not cause malfunctions. But the Stribog has a fixed barrel so it does not need any of that complexity. Dead Air sells both direct thread mounts and fixed barrel spacers that disable the movement of the Nielsen Device.

Conclusion

If you are looking for a .45 PCC the market is a little thin except for options like the Auto Ordnance Thompson reproductions or the Hi-Point carbines. Neither of those is particularly comparable to the SP45A3. There is also the B&T SPC45 for substantially more money, a price increase that does not match the comparative quality of these guns.

The Stribog SP45A3 is a solid little subgun. Being a semiautomatic instead of a true submachine gun, the .45 ACP chambering makes a lot of sense. It is also a fun cartridge for suppressor use. There are a few things I would change but the only real issue is the factory magazines being a little picky. Other than that, it runs like a champ (provided that the collapsible brace is deployed). Grand Power has gone through numerous revisions with the Stribog line and there will surely be more improvements in the future. But as it is, the SP45A3 is a lot of fun and very unique. If you want a backpack PCC that throws bullets twice the weight of a 9mm the SP45 fits the bill, and it is a lot of fun too.