Canik SFX Rival Review — The Best Ready-Out-of-the-Box Competition Gun?

Man, we have had such a great week up here at the ranch, and it is so much fun to shoot in the free state of Florida. Today we're talking about probably my favorite gun — or at least one of my top two, because the Canik Elite Combat is right there with it. This is the Canik SFX Rival, and it's an absolute work of art. I've been a huge Canik fan for a very long time, and this one earned it.

This one's in all black, and today it's wearing a Swamp Fox Kingslayer. The RMR plate is installed — the Rival comes with four different plates in the box, and that's one thing Canik really does well: they include all the stuff you actually need. Last time we were out here we shot it straight up with iron sights, and it did amazing on those too.

The slide is ported on the top and the sides, and it also has an underneath comp, which is pretty unique — all that gas gets to explode everywhere except up in your face and back at you. Add the extended mag release (great for competition), a flat-faced trigger, an integrated magwell, 18-round magazines, interchangeable backstraps, a loaded chamber indicator, and a pic rail so you can hang an X300 or TLR-1 on it. That rail is what makes this more than a range toy — competition gun, range gun, or home defense gun, your call.

Now the trigger, because Canik is known for their triggers and this gun is no different. Watch the travel: that's it. Practically nothing, and the reset is so crisp and clean that the first time I shot it, I double-fired twice. If you're still applying even a nominal amount of pressure at reset, it's going to send another one. You really have to get used to smoothing it and caressing it — and once you do, it's an absolute weapon.

Quick story: Canik knocked it out of the park this year with the Rival S, the all-steel version of this gun, and I got a chance to shoot one and it's beautiful. I actually ordered one from Classic Firearms after they emailed that it was available — then got a follow-up a couple days later saying just kidding, that was an error, they didn't actually have any. I ended up buying the Rock Island 5.0 instead, but I still want a Rival S in my hands purely because of how much I love this gun.

We shot from about 25 yards on a fresh set of plates — our last set got stolen from out here at the ranch, which still stings — and man: killer, killer, killer. God, I love this thing. If you're looking for a ready-out-of-the-box competition gun, this is the conversation.