Beretta 92FS or Sig P226? / Rant

[zerosoma]

Originally Posted By: Astro14
Excellent choice. You'll enjoy that one.

One note of caution with a new gun, you'll have a stiff main spring. Some of the cheaper range ammo might not allow the slide to cycle fully resulting in a failure to feed. Not a problem with quality ammo, or self-defense rounds, but noticed this with the 92 when it was new...


whats 'cheap' range ammo? worst stuff ive got is remington umc. after that its pretty much federal and blazer brass.

for the record it WILL probably be a good six months before i walk thru the door with it. so any tips beforehand are mucho appreciated.

and as a side note I ALMOST walked out with a Sig SP2022 instead. What are those guns like for build/reliability? Good choice on refusal? Glad i didnt as even though its a Sig, and was $75 cheaper, it seems cheap/gaudy now that i think about it. Def wanted to stay away from that this time around. No cutting corners! Only thing I regret is that they didnt have the INOX version, would really have liked it even at $120 more.

 

[Astro14]

In my case, it was whatever they had in stock, 115 GR PMC, I think. It really depends on the load/recoil...I remember thinking that the recoil was quite light...and it was...so light that the slide didn't cycle fully back against that new spring. I've never had a problem with PMC before, but this caught my attention, with 3 or 4 failures in 100 rounds.

100 rounds of Speer Gold Dot hollow point (intended defensive round) were flawless in the same gun (which was still dirty, though I cleaned the barrel) after shooting the PMC and the gun has been fine with subsequent shooting using Winchester White Box, so I am certain it wasn't the gun....just that her new Beretta didn't like PMC...so I thought I would warn you in case your new gun has the same issue.

I've put thousands of rounds through well-worn M9s with Gov't ammo and never had one malfunction, and they shoot accurately even when they're worn, so I have a high opinion of the gun.

I think you'll be fine with the Remington UMC, I don't consider that cheap, and I think you'll really like the Beretta 92.

 

[JHZR2]

Both are good, Ive put a lot of rounds through each. Id give the 229 a look though as well. A bit more convenient size.

 

[ufbbc]

P226 without a doubt if the choice is the 2 you listed only. I can also say I love my SA XD9 subcompact.

 

[zerosoma]

whats so much better than the sig p226 other than the high price? i seriously considered it but $829 (low) and $1,099 (high) was more than i wanted to spend. beretta felt like a friend, sig p226 felt "just okay". sights on the 226 were a tad friendlier with the large dots but it was nothing the beretta couldnt get me used to. It felt solid but just out of my price range. I even asked the counterman what he would get and he admitted they were both fine guns but if it were his choice to make he would have to go with the Beretta.

 

[Tempest]

The two are very different guns, that operate very differently in almost every way. From the decocking/safety to the delayed lock mechanism, trigger pull...different.

If the 92 feels good in your hand and the operation fits you well, it will be a good gun for you.

 

[WhyMe]

The 92 is way big for the cartridge is shoots IMHO. The 226 is slightly smaller and the trigger reach is less.

In the price range you are looking at, I would get the MP9 hands down. Holsters, accesories are everywhere. They shoot accurate and are reliable. If you are LEO or first responder, SW thanks you with a special program.

Go MP and don't look back

 

[CarbonSteel]

Both of my Berettas were Italian made and the thing that sticks with me after all these years is the action and slide moved like "butta". They had the smoothest action of any pistol that I have shot to date.

I think you will be quite happy with your choice--do not over think it; go shoot it!

 

[Lakersguy]

I have an Italian Beretta 92F for 18 years now. It's the first pistol I ever bought. Only thing I ever did to it was change the sights from a two dot stock to three dot which I think is standard today. I have many hi Cap Mags for it and it has never jammed on me one time in 18 years. Thousands of rounds.

 

[zerosoma]

Originally Posted By: WhyMe
The 92 is way big for the cartridge is shoots IMHO. The 226 is slightly smaller and the trigger reach is less.

In the price range you are looking at, I would get the MP9 hands down. Holsters, accesories are everywhere. They shoot accurate and are reliable. If you are LEO or first responder, SW thanks you with a special program.

Go MP and don't look back


wah wah. i dont mind the large frame! and i hear 17 round mags are available with no physical increase.

as for the smith, I picked up the mp9, fiddled with it for 10 seconds and said "no". it may well shoot good but to me it certainly felt cheap. slimmed down my. hoices in a hurry.

 

[zerosoma]

is the consistency from italian berettas good? i fell in love with the one i handled and hope i like the one in the box. also i saw some oil on it is that ok?

 

[CarbonSteel]

Originally Posted By: zerosoma
is the consistency from italian berettas good? i fell in love with the one i handled and hope i like the one in the box. also i saw some oil on it is that ok?

My 92FS and 96FS could have been clones in every way save for the larger hole in the barrel of one of them

They were both very smooth and performed flawlessly; I just did not care for the takedown mechanism. I think some oil is probably there from packing/shipping.

 

[Spazdog]

Originally Posted By: zerosoma
is the consistency from italian berettas good? i fell in love with the one i handled and hope i like the one in the box. also i saw some oil on it is that ok?


I qualified expert on the combat pistol range with the M9 Beretta first time. (tankers qualify with pistol, not M16)

It was a beautiful weapon. Incredibly easy to field strip, easy to shoot, well balanced and comfortable.

There was a lot of talk about slide malfunctions and that the barrel had to be changed every 1000 rounds.

Never knew anyone who experienced any slide malfunctions. Then again, the M9 was brand new when I was in OSUT.

I had to requalify with an M1911 at my Guard unit. A worn extractor and recoil spring reduced my score to Sharpshooter. (Ithaca made from something like 1943) It was smooth and silver but not because it was nickel plated, the matte finish had worn off of it years ago. Credit where credit is due for being built well enough to not blow my hand off, but it was an ungainly weapon. I definitely preferred the feel of the Beretta.

 

[FastGame]

I always wanted the Beretta 92FS but got talked out of it. Three days a week my part time job I'm in contact with LE, Military (active & retired) Border Patrol, Coast Guard, they told me the Beretta was a great gun but it wouldn't be their first choice. I asked what they would choose and across the board they said Glock 17/19, S&W MP or FNX 9. I bought the M&P 9 Range and Carry and the gun is excellent.

I may still get the Beretta some day to see what I missed, but for now I'm happy with the M&P.

 

[Win]

Originally Posted By: WhyMe
The 92 is way big for the cartridge is shoots IMHO ...


There are smaller versions of the '92. A couple of years ago, there was a small run of 92M's that Academy Sports and Outdoors sold. The 92M is slightly shorter in the barrel and in the grip. There is also a 92L, which is a single stack variant of the 92M, but I have not seen those come up for sale in this country, at least not since November 2008, which is when I became interested in guns.

 

[Win]

Whoops ... got that backwards.

Checked the safe this morning, the 92L is the double stack compact 92. The M must be the single stack.

 

[Tempest]

Quote:
There was a lot of talk about slide malfunctions and that the barrel had to be changed every 1000 rounds. shrug Never knew anyone who experienced any slide malfunctions. Then again, the M9 was brand new when I was in OSUT.

To the best of my understanding, this came from Navy SEALs using subgun rated ammo in the 92F when it was first tested by the military. This caused a catastrophic slide separation which injured the shooter.

Changes were made in the design to prevent this and the "S" (Safe) was added to the designation.

The problem was the subgun rated ammo that is well over +P+ and only safe to use in the much stronger subgun (MP5).

 

[Wheels123]

Beretta makes great handguns. Just curious why you bought a Hi-point not too long ago but now are willing to spend quite a bit more?

 

[zerosoma]

Originally Posted By: Wheels123
Beretta makes great handguns. Just curious why you bought a Hi-point not too long ago but now are willing to spend quite a bit more?


I bought it wondering if handguns were my thing. They are, I do like to shoot them and more than just once in awhile. The Hi Point is still a good gun - not great but definitely not a terrible gun aside from this broken sight screw.

I guess to answer your curiosity I'm willing to spend a bit more now because I want to.

 

[GenSan]

Like most things in life there are good, better, and best.

Hi-Point firearms missed the cutoff.