CHATTANOOGA, TN — Lodestar Technology released optics-ready versions of its LNK9 pistol today. There are three of them, with a 2 MOA green, red or gold dot, and the MSRP is $1,865.
I’ve already been shooting the optic-cut slide. I’m a paid Field-Testing Advisor on Lodestar’s Independent Advisory Board, and I’ve been testing these guns for months. Ever since I got one, I’ve been asking for an optic-cut slide. I was about to have mine milled when Lodestar shipped me their first one.
It’s a direct mount with the Holosun K footprint, so there’s no adapter plate. I put a Holosun 507K X2-GR on it. Buy the optic-ready version from Lodestar and it comes with a Holosun EPS, which is an enclosed optic.
So far I have 617 rounds through the optic-cut slide. I’m tracking them in Armorer, the firearm maintenance app I built. I haven’t had any issues with the mounting system. The screws haven’t backed out and everything has stayed put.
I like it better than the iron-sight version, which shouldn’t surprise anyone. I’m thinking about running it in a USPSA match soon since I’m getting back into competing.
If you haven’t seen the LNK9 before, it’s a biometric, user-authorized 9mm. Authorized users unlock it with a fingerprint or a PIN code, and the owner manages who has access through Lodestar’s phone app. Fingerprint data is stored on the gun, and the core authentication works without the cloud or any outside network.
The LNK9 has a 4.02-inch barrel, a polymer frame, a compact slide on a full-size frame, 17-round or 10-round magazines, a Picatinny rail, a reversible magazine release, status lights and inductive charging. “For us, innovation has to serve a practical purpose,” Lodestar CEO Shawn Campbell said in the announcement. Lodestar says it handles development, manufacturing and testing at its Chattanooga headquarters.
The optics-ready models are available through FFL dealers, distributors and Lodestar’s website. For reference, Lodestar announced the standard LNK9 in March at an MSRP of $979.99.
