One of my friends that works at a local shop called to tell me that Larry Vickers is selling some of his collection and had some pretty rare and interesting guns, so of course I just had to head out and take a look.  There are/were about a dozen guns and surprisingly not overpriced and more than a few that are on my bucket list.  Of the few guns there that I had the money on hand to walk out the door with was the Vektor CP1 9mm compact pistol. 

They were made in South Africa and were imported to the USA during the 1994 AWB with reports of only 2000 sent over and being sold.  Now on top of that small number there was a safety recall due to the possibility of the gun inadvertently firing if dropped and instead of offering a fix, Vektor offered to buy back the pistols at 100.00 MORE than the MSRP so most of the guns were sold back to make a quick profit.  There are no hard numbers of how many remain but the number has to be a small fraction of the initial 2000 imported making it a rare piece to this day.

The styling is very futuristic looking with flowing lines, beautiful curves and not a single sharp angle anywhere.  Nothing sticks out anywhere and is virtually snag-free.  The only controls are a magazine release and a garand-type manual safety, there is no slide release but there is an internal slide stop that locks back on an empty magazine.  There is a type of trigger block on the face of the trigger, but unlike on a Glock or XD it only locks out the trigger from being pulled and doesn't influence the striker or firing system in any other way.  The 2 magazines hold 12 or 13 rounds, but both of mine (and every other CP1 magazine as I'm aware of) are AWB compliant and only hold 10 rounds despite the extra length.

The ergonomics IMO are pretty good as all of the curves and rounded surfaces make it comfortable.  The magazine release isn't as easy to operate is it sits flush with the frame but it also prevents inadvertent ejection from accidental bumps or whatnot.  The manual safety takes a little bit to get used to as it's very unusual on a handgun but it is very easy to disengage as it slides very freely and stays in position.  The front sight is windage adjustable white dot and the rear sight is a fixed molded polymer U-type black notch and it offers a clear sight picture.  The sighting system looks to be a no-snag design to go along with the overall design of the handgun itself.

This pistol uses a delayed gas blowback system that is almost identical to the HK P7 series in that there is a cylinder right below the chamber with a port just in front of the chamber.  The front of the slide has a piston attached and how it works is that when the round is fired high pressure gas goes down through the port into the cylinder and the gas holds the piston in place until the pressure drops to a safe level and then the slide operates under the blowback principle and cycles the action.  The barrel is also fixed to the frame like the P7 series but that is where the similarities end.  The HK is an all steel gun with a striker firing system and a very low profile slide.  The CP1 features a polymer frame, is hammer fired and has more of a normal profile slide.  The trigger is a single action with about a 6lb pull (I'll measure it before I take it to the range) and has a fairly short reset.

I've not shot it yet as it's pretty cold out now and I don't enjoy shooting when I can't feel my fingers.  Its supposed to warm up a bit next week so that's when I plan on taking it out along with some other guns that need some lovin' as well.  This gun has been shot as there was still some carbon on the piston, so I know it does work and since Larry Vickers is an accomplished pistol smith I'm confident that if there were any function issues he would've taken care of that.  I am anxious to see how this interesting little handgun performs even though I bought it mainly as a curiosity and because it's a rare piece.  If there's any interest I can post an range update...anyway here are some pics.

13 round magazine inserted, 12 round magazine below


12 round magazine inserted


(another pic taken with flash)


field stripped, recoil spring fits over the barrel, piston is visible attached to slide


close up of frame


hammer cocked


hammer in fired position

This gun was seen in one of the Mission Impossible movies, I think the second one.  Used by a Villain. 
They are very cool looking.  I love the lines. 
I shot one many years ago... and if I remember right, the sights and the trigger were detrimental to the guns accuracy, which would have otherwise been excellent. 
I do not remember why they suddenly dropped out of popularity just as they started to gain traction... Importation was halted. 
Either way - You've got a great pistol there.  Truly unique and now pretty dang rare.  The one I had shot - That's the only one I've seen in person since.

The pistol has appeared in a few sci fi TV shows, Battlestar Galactica and Firefly (with a stainless slide).
There was a recall because of a fault that meant some pistols could go off if struck. Not an issue with mine that is, of course, deactivated. It's never going bang again. However, the trigger pull of mine feels 'squishy'. I think because of the trigger safety. It would be interesting to know if a live pistol is the same.