When it comes to choosing the size of a concealed carry handgun, there’s no one right answer for everyone. Guns come in all different shapes and sizes to fit the needs of concealed carriers and people end up on either end of the spectrum of handgun size, or somewhere in between. The Palmetto State Armory Dagger line of pistols offers models to fit carriers no matter where they fit into the spectrum, but here we’re focusing on two pistols that are geared toward carriers who fall on the extreme ends.
On one end, we’ve got those who insist on carrying a full-size gun no matter what time of year or how impractical it may be in certain instances, or they open carry OWB often or every day. They will want to look at the Sabre Dagger Full Size - S, released just last year.
On the other end, we have those who revel in the convenience and concealment afforded by a micro compact gun, regardless of circumstances or dress. In this case, we’re looking at the Dagger Micro.
PSA Sabre Dagger Full Size - S: Review
Handguns absolutely must perform at all costs, but they can look great, too. Before we get into the performance side of things, let’s take a minute to appreciate the aesthetics of this gun. With a stippled frame that’s sporting a black magwell and black slide, the M81 Woodland Cerakote camo finish on the frame makes the gun stand out in a crowd and complements the black parts on the top and bottom of the gun with a little throwback flavor.
The pistol is available in a number of colorways and with additional barrel options, including threaded-barrel variants.
Slide
This handgun is absolutely packed with features. The slide has front and rear serrations along with cutouts on both sides and the top near the muzzle. The side cutouts are there to cut weight and improve balance; the one on top accommodates the ported barrel.
The slide also comes cut for optics with an RMR footprint, and the blacked-out sights are tall enough to co-witness with your choice of red dot.
This gun not only looks good, it also performs, and that’s due in no small part to all of the details hidden in plain sight among the aesthetic choices made by Palmetto State Armory. First, the Sabre Dagger Full Size - S pistol combines a full-size frame with a compact slide to give you the benefits of full-size frame ergonomics with compact slide concealment. The pistol has roughly equivalent dimensions to a Glock G45 pistol, which combines a G17-size frame with a G19-size slide.
Frame
The stippling on the frame and serrations on the slide are perfect and work well, and the laser stippling on the frame perfectly blends function and comfort, providing excellent purchase on the frame while not being so aggressive as to hurt your hand during longer range sessions or be uncomfortable against your skin when carrying it.
The grip sports a singular finger groove for easy indexing without forcing your fingers into specific grooves: a plus for people whose hands don’t fit into regular molded finger grooves. Second, there’s a nice palm swell angle to the rear of the grip that effortlessly forces your hand to ride higher on the grip, thereby giving you a better hold and recoil control.
The magwell is a nice touch, not just because its flared for easier reloads, but it also has a forward flare that gives the bottom edge of your pinky a nice place to index on the frame.
Mags
That magwell accepts standard Glock 17 magazines with the always impressive capacity of 17 rounds. The pistol ships with two Magpul G17 mags already fitted with +5 Sabre extensions that bring the total capacity to 22+1 rounds per magazine.
Trigger
The aluminum flat-face trigger, which has a safety dongle built into the center (much like a Glock trigger), was smooth with just a tiny bit of creep and overtravel. Since it isn’t a competition gun, that’s really not a big deal, and it is a striker-fired pistol, after all. The important thing is that it had a pull and break that was consistent each and every time. This helps when developing muscle memory during both dry and live fire training.
Barrel
The ported, fluted barrel is also a nice touch. It works exactly as it should, helping to minimize muzzle rise to get back on target quickly for follow-up shots without adding extra length with a compensator.
While I didn’t shoot the gun at night, I did shoot it in lower light conditions and there’s no denying that the flash from the ports was certainly visible; it wasn’t blinding. To help your eyes combat some of the port flash, the frame has an accessory rail for you to mount a gun light.
Oh, and I almost forgot to mention that the gun comes with a really nice pistol case that has all sorts of room to store the gun, mags, and other stuff you might want to take with you to the range.
In the end, I found the Sabre Dagger Full Size - S pistol to be a very enjoyable gun to shoot. I didn’t have any feeding or ejection problems from the provided Magpul magazines with the extenders. My only complaint is about the sights. I’m not a big fan of completely blacked out sights, and if you’re not running an optic to co-witness, the extra height can be a bit of a nuisance. But since that’s my problem, I’d say we’re doing pretty darn good.
PSA Sabre Dagger Full Size - S Specs
Model: Palmetto Sabre Dagger Full Size - S
Caliber: 9mm
Action: Striker Fired
Overall Length: 7.15 inches
Overall Width: 1.28 inches
Overall Height: 5.38 inches (without extended mag)
Barrel Length: 3.9 inches
Barrel Material: Stainless Steel, Ported
Barrel Finish: Black Nitride
Twist Rate: SAAMI Spec 1:10
Slide Material: Stainless Steel
Slide Finish: Cerakote, Black
Optics Mount: RMR, Cover Plate Included
Frame: Polymer, M81 Woodland Camo Cerakote, Laser Stippled
Trigger: Aluminum Flat Face
Ejector: Gen4 style for improved ejection
Front Sight: Co Witness Sight (Not A Night Sight)
Rear Sight: Co Witness Sight (Not A Night Sight)
Safety: Striker Block Safety and Trigger Safety
Magazine: Accepts Glock 17 magazines - comes with 2 17-round Magpul magazines with +5 round Sabre extensions
MSRP: $629.99
PSA Dagger Micro Pistol: Review
Now that we’ve covered one extreme, let’s check out the other. Whereas the Sabre Dagger Full Size - S was a (comparatively) large gun with visual appeal, the Dagger Micro is a much smaller handgun in Henry Ford’s favorite color: black.
For size comparison, the Dagger Micro is a bit smaller than a Glock G19 with a shorter barrel and it includes a PSA Dagger Micro double-stack magazine that holds 15+1 rounds, just like the G19.
This pistol is also available in different frame colors and with several barrel options. Word is that there's a brand new upgraded variant of the handgun coming out soon: the Sabre Micro Dagger.
It will included many of the feature found on the Sabre Dagger Full Size detailed above, like a flared magwell, new stipiling on the grip, window cutouts in the slide, and an aluminum trigger. Each will ship with two magazines (more on that later) with +2-round extensions.
Slide
The slide, which is finished in black Cerakote, has what Palmetto State Armory refers to as Extreme Carry Cuts, which gives it smoother angled edges on the front and rear for snag-free draws and effortless re-holstering. These smooth edges are complemented by front and rear slide serrations so that you can effortlessly rack the gun under any conditions while still maintaining the smoothness provided by the carry cuts.
Rounding out the slide’s features are white dot night sights and it comes from the factory cut for the Shield RMSc footprint, which allows the use of a wide variety of optics.
Frame
The polymer frame has texturing built into the sides, front, and back to improve your grip on the gun. While it has “micro” in the name, I had no problem getting a full grip on the gun - pinky included - which is actually nicely supported by a slight molded flare at the leading edge of the magwell. There’s also an accessory rail on the frame for you to mount your choice of a light, laser, etc.
Trigger
The Dagger’s trigger is curved but it has a flat face when you actually press it, because it’s hinged in the center like the earlier Smith & Wesson M&P triggers, requiring you to have solid placement on it in order for it to be pressed, acting as a safety. The trigger pull was a little gritty with a bit of take-up, but it broke clean and there was no overtravel.
PSA Dagger Micro at the Range
I enjoyed shooting the Dagger Micro and didn’t have any performance issues with it whatsoever. The only change I would make is to the grip texture. PSA advertises it as “aggressive,” but I personally found it to be a bit lacking. Sure, it does offer some extra grip compared to the rest of the frame, but I’d hardly call it aggressive.
Finally, it’s 2025. All guns should ship with multiple magazines. There’s simply no reason for the Dagger Micro to only come with one. My advice would be to nix the carrying case and toss in a couple extra mags instead.
Other than those two small things, I liked the gun a lot. If you’re in the market for a small, concealable handgun that you can carry with confidence and ease, the Dagger Micro might be just what you’re looking for.
PSA Dagger Micro Specs
Model: Palmetto Dagger Micro
Caliber: 9mm
Action: Striker Fired
Weight: 15.9oz (unloaded)
Overall Length: 6.5 inches
Overall Width: 1.1 inches
Overall Height: 4.7 inches (without mag)
Barrel Length: 3.41 inches
Barrel Material: Stainless Steel
Barrel Finish: DLC Coating
Twist Rate: SAAMI Spec 1:10
Slide Material: Stainless Steel
Slide Finish: Black Cerakote
Frame: Polymer
Front Sight: White Dot Night Sight
Rear Sight: White Two Dot Night Sight
Safety: Striker Block Safety & Trigger Safety
Magazine: Takes G19 and G17 magazines - Comes with one PSA polymer 15-round mag
Optics Mount: Shield RMSc Cut
MSRP: $359.99
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