STI International

STI International, Inc. (known as STI in the shooting community) is a Texas-based company that manufactures complete M1911 pistols and parts for competition, duty and self-defense. It is most well known for its '2011' modular frame guns (so-called because the lower grip and trigger guard, which is made of a fiber reinforced plastic, is a separate component from the metal upper portion of the frame that comprises the dust cover and frame rails). STI and Strayer Voigt Inc. share the patent on the modular frame.

History

In 1980, Virgil Tripp, a gunsmith and machinist, started building custom 1911 for competition use, especially USPSA/IPSC. After some time, Virgil began designing parts for 1911s, including electrical discharge machining (EDM) hammers and sears. Virgil's company was called Tripp Research, Inc. and most of his parts were sold and marketed by Chip McCormick, a champion pistol shooter, under his company's name, Chip McCormick Corporation (known as CMC).

Around 1991, an engineer and computer aided design (CAD) guru named Sandy Strayer joined Tripp Research, Inc. Tripp and Strayer revolutionized the 1911 market by designing a modular hi-capacity 1911 frame for IPSC shooters. While Para Ordnance already had a hi-capacity 1911 frame on the market, it was made of steel. The modular frame made use of a fiber-reinforced plastic which combined the trigger guard, grip, and integral magazine well. It used a...
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