So… is the Beretta M9 still the Worst?

[YouveHadYour6]

I enjoy my M9 and Colt 1011-a1 both - I also greatly enjoy the p2-- series from Sig, but would be hard pressed to spend more than about $5 on a 320. And yes, several have come my way - I don't like them at any level, they just aren't for me.

Love that the thread has devolved to the praises of Glock now... (And yep, own those too)

 

[alwslate]

The Beretta M9 has been called the most tested pistol ever made and has stood the test of time in the battle field. It is one of the very best 9mm handguns ever made. And... the 9mm is a better military ctg than the old slow and heavy .45 acp despite the old nonsense about "if it don't start with a 40"it's useless.

 

[Harv 24]

The Beretta M9 has been called the most tested pistol ever made and has stood the test of time in the battle field. It is one of the very best 9mm handguns ever made. And... the 9mm is a better military ctg than the old slow and heavy .45 acp despite the old nonsense about "if it don't start with a 40"it's useless.

Actually it had a lackluster performance in the GWOT (I know, due to Magazines) but it still got it's reputation tarnished. While I agree the 9mm cartridge is fine, the Ball run has lackluster terminal performance. And I'm going to say the Glock has been torture tested way more then the Beretta. Rd count alone.

 

[S-W4EVER]

SrA Andy Brown did fine with his Beretta M9. Stopped a nut with an SKS who was shooting up the base hospital…

I remember when that occurred at Fairchild AFB… (wasn't there but there was a lot of talk about it in LE.)

 

[rockquarry]

Agree 100%… but it is an interesting option.

I'll have to look up RXM as I've never heard of it.

 

[alwslate]

Harv 24 my comment about the M9 being the most tested was about the US Military's tests in finding a replacement for the 1911, not in torture testing round counts. But it's hard to know for sure about round counts. Beretta says that the M9 has a mean of 30,000 rounds between malfunctions.

 

[Claymore33]

With all the hubbub and friendly banter about the teething issues with the SIG-Sauer M17/P320, one has to wonder if the much-hated M9 is really that bad?

Hey, at least the unintended kill count of the antiquated M9 is still 0. With that said, we all know the broken slide issues of the early M9s that maimed SEALs.

So which would you rather have? A half-baked plastic ticking time bomb, or an overweight Italian boat anchor with a lousy trigger and breakage issues?

Or, how about this?

View attachment 781825

Sorry, but the M1911A1 is the finest fighting handgun EVER MADE.

If I were serving, I'd take one from mothballs and carry it with pride. The M9 is was a mistake. But the M17 is a disaster.

Glenn

 

[Claymore33]

I vote 1911A1 still the best. Sig P226 best In 9 mm. M9 Berreta the worst. I had to carry M9 in Iraq and hated it.

 

[DWalt]

What has been your personal experience with this pistol, just for a little background information?

I was the chief engineer at the USAF gunsmith shop at Lackland AFB. We worked on hundreds of them and converted them to General Officers pistols. We would get in M9s that had gone through 100K to 200K rounds in range service. I can't guess how many rounds I have put through M9s and M11s. Even tested them to destruction. If nothing else, I know M9s. Also M240Bs, M249s, M16A2s, and M4s. We rebuilt them by the thousands.

 

[Faulkner]

I was issued a Beretta 92 for uniformed LE carry for two years and am not a fan. The horrible double action is a no go for me. We transitioned from the 92 to Glocks and although I was not originally enthusiastic, I became a believer in Glocks and have been carrying one for over 25 years.

My opinion is the 1911 did yeoman's duty for most of the 20th century, and did it well. I wouldn't want to carry one today, I'd go back to something like a model 686 revolver before I'd carry a 1911.

 

[biku324]

We got 150+ M11s for a project I worked. Two were nonfunctional out of the box and were destroyed to BATFE standards; the rest were accurate & reliable but a little heavy and hard to conceal for undercover officers.

 

[rockquarry]

I was the chief engineer at the USAF gunsmith shop at Lackland AFB. We worked on hundreds of them and converted them to General Officers pistols. We would get in M9s that had gone through 100K to 200K rounds in range service. I can't guess how many rounds I have put through M9s and M11s. Even tested them to destruction. If nothing else, I know M9s. Also M240Bs, M249s, M16A2s, and M4s. We rebuilt them by the thousands.

Thank you for the insight. Are you aware of any other pistols that will offer better high mileage service than the Beretta?

 

[rockquarry]

I vote 1911A1 still the best. Sig P226 best In 9 mm. M9 Berreta the worst. I had to carry M9 in Iraq and hated it.

Objectively, why was it the worst?

 

[Glenn R. McMannly]

I vote 1911A1 still the best. Sig P226 best In 9 mm. M9 Berreta the worst. I had to carry M9 in Iraq and hated it.

It's funny, it seems those that actually carried the M9 into harms way almost universally despised the pistol.

It's only the internet commandos that seem to hem and haw for it.

 

[RebCop]

I never used a double action auto as a cop. But when I retired the first time I took a job training the Iraqi Police and was going to be armed with a Beretta and a M-4. I borrowed aM-92 from another Officer and put 6,000 rounds through it and then carried one for a year in Iraq. It is a very reliable system that virtually eliminates the stovepipe malfunction. It is also soft shooting because of the low bore axis and accurate. It made me reevaluate how I feel about DA auto's.

 

[LVSteve]

It's funny, it seems those that actually carried the M9 into harms way almost universally despised the pistol.

It's only the internet commandos that seem to hem and haw for it.

But how much of that was created by the "lowest bidder" magazines many of the troops got saddled with.

 

[NY-1]

Most folks that disliked the M9 in service were used to shooting the absolutely clapped out, beat-to-**** examples the military continued to field well into the new millennium and onward IMO. The military's third-party magazines causing malfunctions, and over-pressure proof rounds cracking slides shouldn't be held against the platform. The 92-series are fantastic guns, but I'll say that the wide grip does make them a little more difficult to handle for those with medium or smaller-sized hands, and I still prefer a frame safety over a slide safety. Especially since the slide safety could be inadvertently activated when using the overhand slide rack style. The G-conversion decocker-only models are ideal if you're stuck with the slide lever placement IMO.

Also, they're some of the prettiest semi-auto pistols of all time, but I digress.

 

[hkcavalier]

In the 90s those of us in uniform that shot a SIG (P226 or P228) generally preferred it. No one cared for the Beretta's slide mounted safety, and we felt the gun was kind of big and fat for a 15 shot 9mm. Then came all the US-contract made magazines with the rough finish that were pure crap re: feeding and dropping free.

It wasn't terrible, but it clearly was a result of compromises. The M17/18 family have nice barrels and are easy to clean, but those seem to be their finest qualities. It's pretty telling that the "special" units get better handguns. But that's fine with me...the pistol really is the least important weapon system in the military.

 

[Dadah333]

If the M9 had been issued by DoD in non-NATO 40 S&W used with full-weight FMJFP bullets folks might be singing louder praises.

I wouldn't.

 

[BillinAlamo]

I'm not a 92 fan and prefer the ergos, trigger and safety of the 1911. As to the 9mm, I was working part-time post-retirement at a Sportsman's Warehouse back in 2008-2009, and EVERY active duty service member home on leave from the Sandbox wanted to see and handle our .45s -- especially the H&K Mark 23.