Some official follow up from the SHOT Show!
First off, we had a great show; we brought six pre-production guns to show and they were very well received. The interest in the Fortis seems to exceed our initial thoughts and the feedback we got from show attendees was most favorable and positive.
And then, enter the Internet Forum.
One of the interesting things that we have done with the Fortis Project, is this blog; it is a (nearly) real time glimpse into the development of the pistol, unlike the conventional marketing aspect of releasing a production product to the market with a “there it is, and it is what it is” statement. The down side to this is that it leaves the project open to much more speculation than normal. The Speculators, free to post their ideas on the many Internet Forums, remain largely free of any contradictory facts… that is, until we update this blog – as always, this is the only source of official Fortis information.
Rumor Control:
We are not yet taking pre-orders, the first step towards the Fortis release will most likely be the opportunity to reserve serial numbers – this will be announced on this blog when it happens.
Fortis production is NOT limited to 2,500 pistols… while that is our target goal for the first run, we will continue to make the original Fortis for as long as there is a demand.
The first release of the Fortis is designed to be as faithful to the original Bren Ten as possible, it looks like it does, because that is what the original Bren looked like – we did take some liberty with all silver “Vice” model, which of course pays homage to the unique pistol used in a popular television show.
We have not changed the “lines” of the frame… the guns that were shown at Shot 09 were on pre-production frames and, while nearly identical to the original Bren, these are not what will be used on the production gun. We do have the drawings, designs and prints from the original Bren, and the Standard Model Fortis is a dead ringer in the looks department.
Yes, there will be other models in the future, but future models will be a marked departure from the original Bren Ten – we hope to use the basic design as a springboard to advance the original concept into a more modern design; however, for now, the only models that are being made are the four different designs that were shown at Shot 09.
The four designs that we showed at Shot 09 were the (1) Standard Model, (2) Vice Model, (3) Special Forces Dark and, (4) Special Forces Light.
The short slide version of the Fortis is called the “Special Forces” model because… well, you can probably guess, that is what the short slide version of the original Bren was called.
Yes… the Gunsite Raven will be used on the Fortis, with permission from Gunsite.
The Fortis is very nice to shoot… the ergonomics and design of the pistol make shooting even full power 10mm Auto very controllable and comfortable – the current long slide Fortis weighs 2.25 pounds empty.
The 10mm Auto pushes a 180+ grain bullet at 1200+ feet per second… there are 15 of them in a Fortis magazine.
The Fortis is designed to use standard Witness magazines… we offer the Fortis with a magazine the replicates the look of the original Bren floor plate, but the magazine body is dimensionally identical to the Witness magazine.
The Fortis grip is not wider than the original Bren Ten; in fact, it is… well, here is what our Lead Engineer sent me about this topic: VLTOR has stated from the beginning that the FORTIS will adhere as close as possible to the original weapons as possible – and we have adhered to that fervently. Criticism regarding the widening of the grip area of the weapon is unfounded. In fact, the FORTIS is actually narrower in the grip area than the original weapon. Changes are planned in the grip area to make the ‘feel’ more true to the original, but rumors that we’ve increased ANY dimensions in the grip are untrue. The receiver is perhaps closer to the original than any other FORTIS component, save for the slide-stop for obvious reasons. We are very proud of this achievement, and hope that those claiming that this area is any wider will trust us on this – the new magazine fits with NO change to the grip. Also understand that any and all changes made to components were made for one of several reasons. Either the original part was not satisfactory in performance (the extractor), or did not lend itself well to either casting or CNC machining (IE: sear housing). We’ve tried to employ the highest quality processes throughout, and it shows in the final product. The FORTIS is rock-solid.
The FORTIS is the culmination of 20 years of dreams, 2 years of in-depth engineering and analysis, 9 months of collaboration with those that knew the most about the original guns, and 5 months of manufacturing setup. The results are high-quality parts that are optimized to production, while functioning more reliably in a similar form-factor to the original so that the final product, though very similar in all conceivable aspects, truly is an all-NEW endeavor. We believe that it is this dedication that will be most appreciated by our potential customers, those that want the gun of a man’s man: AMERICAN made, all steel, chambered for a HOT cartridge, plenty of capacity, and the level of quality one would come to expect from us.
Really not much else to say after that… Range testing continues, the Fortis is coming.
