The 459 is an excellent weapon. The 459M came in third in the 1984 JSSAP trials that ended with the US Army's selection of the Beretta 92FS, now the M-9 (another great 9mm IMHO). Smith and Wesson disputed the results. IIRC the 459M was one of the last pistols standing. The Sig-Sauer P-226 and Beretta 92FS were judged to be equal but Beretta won because they were cheaper. Of course, the US Navy S.E.A.L.S. discovered a weakness in the 92F's slide and experienced some slide breakage. This resulted in the 92FS modification that involved a stop to keep the rear of the slide from striking you if it broke. The Navy decided they'd go a different route and went with the P-226.

None of this stopped the FBI from adopting the 459 as their SWAT pistol. It continued in this capacity until sometime after the 1986 FBI Miami shootout. The 459 was discontinued in 1988 in favor of the updated 3rd Generation 5900 series.

Once again, IMHO the 5900 series would have won if it had been the S&W selection for JSSAP but this is just an opinion.

I got a little off-track but the 459 is a great pistol and did beat out a great many better known 9mm's in head to head testing.

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N.R.A. BENEFACTOR Member