“Wow! Is this trigger even legal?” Those were my words after mag dumping the Tanfoglio Limited Master Xtreme pistol for the first time. While I’ve never owned a Tanfoglio pistol before, I have shot my friend’s guns before. So, my expectations were already high. Even with those expectations, this gun surprised me. From the look and feel to the functionality, the Italian Firearms Group (IFG) knows how to build a perfect pistol.
The Tanfoglio Limited Master Xtreme
As you can see from the photos, I have blackened the muzzle of this chrome gun with the hundreds of rounds of ammunition I put through it. As a competitive shooter, I wanted to try different ammunition, chronograph it, test the gun’s accuracy, and see how quickly I could pull the trigger. Not only did it run flawlessly, but it also grouped ammunition with ease.
I can attest that if you want to race, the Tanfoglio Limited Master Xtreme is up to the task. This gun can easily go head-to-head with some of the best 1911 double-stack manufacturers. Any issues on target are the shooter, not the gun.
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Let’s Talk Competition
A Tanfoglio is one of those dream competition guns that most shooters have on their “want” list. Typically, competitive shooters start with whatever they have at home, which is any number of polymer-framed guns. After determining which sport and division to compete in, they begin looking at steel-framed guns and eventually consider custom-built pistols.
The race-ready Limited Master Xtreme is $2,790.00. It is optics-ready, outfitted with a light, semi-flat trigger, a flared magwell, light rail, and more. To compare, most double-stack 1911 pistols begin in the $1,500-$2,000 range as a “base model” and only increase in price depending on brand, features, and upgrades.
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Most of the “base model” double-stack 1911s I own have needed all new internal parts, a completely different trigger, an ambidextrous safety installed, and in a rare case, a whole new grip module. These upgrades can quickly add another $1,000 in parts—plus labor costs for a proper gunsmith.
Customizable to Your Shooting Sport
The Tanfoglio Limited Master Xtreme also features customization options that allow you to tailor the gun to the specific shooting sport and division in which you plan to compete. For example, the frame is pre-drilled for thumb rests or optic mounts. A thumb rest is valuable to shooters who struggle to create a proper grip each time they draw their pistol. It acts as an indicator point for your support hand thumb.
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You are missing out if you’ve never mounted an optic to the frame rather than the slide. A frame-mounted optic doesn’t take all the recoil impulse like a traditional slide-mounted optic. The reticle is also much faster to pick back up than its slide-mounted counterpart.
The Limited Master Xtreme’s lightened slide helps with cycle speed, especially with the added weight of a red dot optic. IFG also ships the gun with two extra recoil springs, allowing you to tune the gun to your specific ammunition. The gun also ships with four extended magazines with Xtreme base pads. So, there’s no need to dabble in the aftermarket with the purchase of this gun.
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Shooting the Limited Master Xtreme
I took the Tanfoglio Limited Master Xtreme to the range several times and had some friends test-fire it. My friends Maggie and Steve are perfect for test-firing any gun I get because they couldn’t be more different.
Steve reviews pistols regularly on his YouTube Channel and has one of the best pistol grips I’ve seen. Maggie’s insight is valuable from the female perspective as she has smaller hands and can relate to common struggles women tend to have with various firearms.
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Maggie’s wrist injury doesn’t allow her to grip a gun firmly. So, she has a natural way to test how prone a firearm is to malfunction due to limp-wristing. Likewise, she is great at identifying the amount of muzzle rise with a lighter grip.
Steve, Maggie, and I were all impressed with the performance of the Limited Master Xtreme pistol. The gun’s weight, paired with slower velocity ammunition, negated most of the would-be muzzle rise. I don’t think I saw the muzzle rise at all in Steve’s hands. Maggie’s imperfect grip didn’t cause any malfunctions. And I couldn’t pull the trigger fast enough. The gun just shot better than I did.
It was great to gather different perspectives and reviews of this pistol to demonstrate how well it accommodates all hand sizes. Despite our different hand sizes, we were all able to manipulate the safety and reach the trigger without issue.
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Collecting Data
I tested the Limited Master Xtreme with 124-grain and 147-grain 9mm ammunition that I would use in competition. Each type of ammunition grouped well, which is a testament to both the pistol’s accuracy and the ammunition. The chronograph data was most important to me.
I wondered if each load would meet the minimum power factor requirements for IPSC (International Practical Shooting Confederation), USPSA (United States Practical Shooting Association), and IDPA (International Defensive Pistol Association).
A minimum of 125 is required to compete in all IPSC divisions, all handgun divisions in USPSA, and most IDPA divisions. Calculating power factor involves multiplying the bullet weight by the velocity and dividing that number by 1000. The ammunition I tested was all well above the minimum power factor limit. Performance results are listed below.
RMSx Shield Sight
With this gun review, I had the opportunity to try a Shield Sight for the first time. It’s incredible how large the firearms industry is and how many brands there are to keep up with. I had not heard of Shield Sights (even though I’ve heard of the Shield footprint). So, I was excited to try something new.
IFG shipped the pistol with the RMSx (reflex mini sight) XL lens in electric blue, matching the gun. That alone was a WOW factor for me. It uses the Shield footprint, so it’s easily compatible with major optic plate systems. This optic comes in 4 MOA, 8 MOA, or 65/2 Ring and Dot options. It is also available in eight different colors.
The large window of this optic makes it easy to acquire the reticle, which results in faster follow-up shots. It operates on the popular CR2032 battery, making replacement easy and inexpensive.
The dot is always on, as it has an auto-adjustment feature. That was something to get used to, as my competition-style red dot optics have adjustment buttons. The adjustments when zeroing the optic were also new to me. Each adjustment mechanism doesn’t use “click adjustments,” so you can fine-tune it to the perfect zero.
I was pleasantly surprised by the RMSx optic and thought it was a unique design.
Hearing and Eye Protection
This is a reminder to always wear proper hearing and eyewear protection when on the range. Sunglasses and Apple AirPods, for example, are not designed to be ballistic or decibel-rated (respectively) for shooting. Proper hearing protection and shooting glasses must comply with ANSI safety specifications and are typically marked on the product or mentioned in the product description.
Wardbird Pro’s Intrepid BT muffs have been tested with ANSI Specifications and are one of the most comfortable sets of shooting muffs I’ve tried. They are outfitted with gel ear seals, have multiple Bluetooth and ambient noise modes, have an 8-hour battery life with an auto shut-off feature, and are NR 23dB rated.
For eyewear, I highly recommend Hunters HD Gold. They manufacture ANSI-rated lenses in ANSI-rated safety frames. The lenses adjust to the amount of UV light exposure, making them great for indoor and outdoor use. They’re also available in prescription lenses to provide proper eye protection while maintaining clear vision.
Final Thoughts
I can’t say enough good things about the Tanfoglio Limited Master Xtreme. I’m still over here drooling over the trigger. It’s no surprise to me why competitive shooters choose a Tanfoglio pistol. They tend to be race-ready and perform well with any ammunition you throw at them.
If you’re looking for a low-maintenance, ready-from-the-factory gun to compete with, this is it.
Tanfoglio Limited Master Xtreme Specifications
| Gauge | 9mm (also available in other calibers) |
| Action | Single-Action only |
| Capacity | 17 rounds |
| Barrel Length | 4.75 inches |
| Weight Empty | 2.9 pounds |
| Sights | Fiber optic front sight and fully adjustable SuperSight rear sight, and is Optic Ready |
| Finish | Chrome (also available in black) |
| MSRP | $2,790.00 |
Performance
| Federal Gold Medal Action 147-grain Total Metal Jacket Flat Nose | |
| Velocity | 928 fps |
| Accuracy | 0.61 inches |
| Federal Syntech Training Match 147-grain Syntech Jacket Flat Nose | |
| Velocity | 1053 fps |
| Accuracy | 0.83 inches |
| Super Vel 124-grain Full Metal Jacket | |
| Velocity | 1052 fps |
| Accuracy | 0.76 inches |
| Remington Range 124-grain Full Metal Jacket | |
| Velocity | 1112 fps |
| Accuracy | 0.88 inches |
(5 Rounds Shot at 20 yards and Chronographed using the Garmin Xero C1 Pro)
