Description
The Arex Zero 1 Compact is the shorter version of the Zero 1, keeping the hardcoat anodized aluminum frame and the hammer-fired single and double action trigger while trimming the barrel to 3.85 inches and the grip to a 15-round magazine. At 27.6 ounces it is still a metal-framed pistol, which is the whole reason to choose it over a polymer compact.
Compact Without Going Polymer
3.85-inch barrel and a 5.0-inch grip height, against 4.25 inches and 5.6 inches on the Standard.
Hardcoat anodized aluminum frame with a black nitride slide and black polymer grip panels.
Weight drops to 27.6 ounces from 29.3, so the Arex Zero 1 Compact stays heavy enough to shoot softly.
Single and double action trigger, so the first shot can be fired double action from a decocked hammer.
Dimensions and Capacity
Overall length 7.2 inches, height 5.0 inches, width 1.49 inches.
Two 15-round magazines supplied, giving 15+1.
Accessory rail on the dust cover for a weapon light or laser.
Same width as the Standard, so holster shells often interchange between the two.
Made in Slovenia by Arex and imported by Global Ordnance.
Arex Zero 1 Compact Specifications
- Caliber: 9mm Luger
- Capacity: 15+1, two magazines supplied
- Action: single and double action, hammer fired
- Barrel: 3.85 inches
- Overall length: 7.2 inches
- Height: 5.0 inches
- Width: 1.49 inches
- Weight: 27.6 ounces
- Frame: hardcoat anodized aluminum, black
- Slide: black nitride
- Grips: black polymer
- UPC: 815537022797
Compact metal-framed pistols occupy a shrinking corner of the market, and that is a shame, because the arithmetic still works. A 27.6-ounce compact recoils less than a 22-ounce polymer gun of the same size, and the difference is most noticeable exactly where it matters: on the second and third shots. The trade is carry weight, which is real but smaller than the numbers suggest once a proper belt is involved.
Why it is worth considering
- Aluminum frame in a compact, where polymer is now the norm.
- Single and double action trigger with a genuine single action press.
- Two 15-round magazines included.
- Same width as the full-size Zero 1, so holsters often interchange.
- Accessory rail for a weapon light.
Who it suits
Shooters who want a carry pistol that still shoots like a range gun are the natural buyers, and the Zero 1 Compact suits anyone who finds polymer guns too snappy. If concealment is not a priority, the Standard adds two rounds and a little more sight radius for the same money. Both are offered in flat dark earth as well as black.
Zero 1 Variants and Feeding It
Arex builds the Zero 1 in Standard and Compact sizes, each offered in black or flat dark earth. The Standard in black adds barrel length and two rounds, and the Compact in flat dark earth is this same pistol with a two-tone frame. Browse the wider handgun catalog. Arex pistols are imported by Global Ordnance.
For practice, 115-grain full metal jacket is the standard load, with a 124-grain jacketed hollow point for defensive use out of the 3.85-inch barrel.
One point worth understanding about single and double action pistols: the first shot from a decocked hammer is a long, heavy double action press, and every shot after that is a short single action press. That transition takes deliberate practice, which is why the design fell out of favor for issue pistols. Shooters who put the work in generally prefer it. All firearm orders ship to a licensed FFL dealer for transfer, and MAG5 Firearms will coordinate the paperwork with the dealer of your choice.
On holster fit: because the Compact and the Standard share the same 1.49-inch width and the same slide profile forward of the ejection port, many kydex shells cut for one will take the other. What differs is grip length and barrel length, and a holster that is open at the muzzle accommodates both.
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