I mentioned a while back I had some money kicking around in the gun fund. While I'm lusting over the Kahr PM9, I'm going to wait a bit. I'm going to take some very generous folks up on their offers to shoot their Kahrs, thanks to everyone that e-mailed me. The gunnie community never ceases to amaze me with how friendly and helpful gun owners are.
With that in mind, I've come across something I'm somewhat interested in, a Beretta 96. This is the same frame as the storied 92, but only in .40 S&W. The 96 intrigues me for several reasons - the price is right, for starters; it would be the second gun chambered in .40 S&W in the G. armory as well as the first Beretta; and I've got a soft spot for the 92, having grown up as a teen in the 1980s watching "Lethal Weapon" and "Diehard". However, I already have a full-sized, single/double-action, double stack 9mm.
So, what's the consensus on the Beretta 96? Beretta fanboys, this is your moment to shine...
That is all.
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23 comments:
My experience with the Beretta 92 is less than enthusiastic. One friend couldn't get his to hit anything, despite add ons, and my friend in the Army Reserves has no use for the piece. Although, have a look at the Beretta Cougar, that interests me, and you can get it in .40. I would like to try the SIG 250, and I think the .40 cal is available in it as we speak. It fit nicely in my hand.
I have a 96 Beretta Vertec. It has similar geometry/grip as a 1911. If you're looking for a CC piece I would suggest looking for something different although I do CC mine in an OWB holster. Although the Vertec shoots well, it does have a very long trigger pull which takes getting used to. Some other cons (specific to the Vertec) is a lack of holsters (Beretta discontinued the Vertec after only a short period of time). It does have a Picatinny rail if you want to mount a light/laser (or a bayonet?) All in all, I've been pleased with my purchase. BTW - Vertecs can be had for around $500 - $600.
It's a dandy gun. You'll experience more locking block fatigue in the .40 S&W version than you do in the 9mm version, but all that means is that you should change the locking block out in the Beretta 96 every 10,000 rounds instead of every 20,000 rounds like you do with the 9mm. I like 96.
libertyman,
I'm not looking for one; there's one for sale locally. I know the seller (I bought my Mossberg from him last year) to be a good guy, so I'm not terribly concerned about the condition of this actual gun.
Of course, he's also got a Colt 1991A1 compact for sale... ;)
I'd LOVE to get the Sig 250, but they're not MA-legal...
Anon,
DEFINITELY not looking for it for CCW! :)
Really, it's just a good price for a gun I like in a caliber I have stockpiled... ;)
Caleb,
I had a feeling you couldn't resist... ;)
10,000 rounds. For you that's, what, a weekend? For me, that's several lifetimes...
Good info to have. Think I'll give the gentleman a jingle and see what happens...
Jay -- the 96 is just the 92 in a different caliber isn't it? Same design? Have they improved it over the 92? If it is a good deal, try it!
I actually like the looks of the big Beretta more in stainless. Heck , buy the thing and shoot it for a while. You will be unlikely to lose money. By the way, Kittery Trading post has a couple in their used gun department.
libertyman,
I'm fairly certain that the 96 is just the 92 scaled up for .40 S&W over 9mm. IIRC, the frame itself can take either caliber (as there are conversion slides for the 96 to shoot 9mm and it doesn't make a helluva lot of sense to make two separate frames IMHO).
That's kinda what I'm thinking - pick it up, if it sucks I'm not out a lot of scratch. If I like it, I can get a 9mm slide and/or a .22LR slide as well.
To be perfectly honest, one of the big reasons for the interest in the Beretta is its iconic nature. The 92 was the PREMIERE movie gun in the 1980s - it was the first double stack wünder nine to break into the mainstream IMHO.
The fact that it's a 96 in .40 S&W is icing on the cake - the 92 in 9mm would be adding a second SA/DA all-metal 9mm, the third full size 9mm in the armory. Superfluous.
In .40 S&W, it's only the second .40 I own, and the only all-metal (the SW99 is polymer).
Something like this Jay?
http://www.glocktalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1118255
Jay -- you can't kid a kidder! You have your mind made up already. Enjoy your new Beretta!
Mike,
Kinda sorta. The one I'm looking at is all blued and not the Elite, but it's also less than half the price... ;)
Beretta?
YUCK!
http://weerdbeard.livejournal.com/587857.html
I've had a 96 Border Marshal and a 96D. Both worked fine.
The 96D was my bedside gun from '01 to '04, FWIW...
Well, unlike libertyman, the 92FS I've shot was an accurate and fun gun to shoot, with no add ons. FWIW it was a pistol range rental in thailand. It was actually the first pistol I ever shot and I scored 75/100 in 10 shots at 20 meters, I mostly hit 9s. It was calibrated for straight shots, not competition style precision(ie: it wasn't calibrated for aiming at low 5 to hit center).
But I wouldn't consider myself a fanboy... (I'd rather have a 1911).
I do love their semi-auto shotguns though, colour me fanboy on that front. I was hooked when I tried out the 1200F when I was 14.
+1 on the shotguns. The Wife's Ureka is a SWEET shooter on the trap field.
And when the SHTF I won't be able to pry that big fucker out of her hands.
Well, it appears that the 96 has been traded. Oh pooh.
Then again, it means the Colt 1991A1 compact is back in play... ;)
Sorry for your loss, Jay. :)
FWIW, I'm no Beretta fanboy, but the wife is a fangurl. She has both a 84FS and a 92FS inox. Both decent guns, never any problems. Not something I would buy myself, but they make her happy.
No 96? Try the Kittery Trading Post prices.
Jay-
A gun question I can answer! Awesome! I sold my 96 last year. It was a beautiful beautiful gun, with a terrifically smooth action, but I could never hit a darned thing with it. MAYBE if I dropped it I'd give you 60/40 that I'd hit the floor with it.
The DA-only, LONG trigger pull combined with the fat handgrip and the snappy .40cal just wasn't a good combo for me. Even after I solved my limp-wrist problem and put in a new, stiffer mainspring, I still couldn't hit anything.
So I sold it, and just recently sold my Sig P229, and now I'm .40cal-less.
But man, it's a gorgeous piece. If you like .40 and have a big hand I say go for it.
CZ offers a smattering of their 75B variants in .40 S&W.
The P06 is an alloy-framed compact with 10+1 capacity, and you can get one for under six bills, delivered. It's big brothers are steel-framed high-caps.
Drat, "Its" not "It's".
I hate myself, now.
Shame the 96 is gone. I'm not a Beretta 90-series fan SOLELY because the ergonomics of the guns don't work for me (funny, the Taurus 92 pistols felt fine) -- I'll readily acknowledge that they are perfectly good guns (maybe even excellent) in their respective calibers and classes.
My real issues with the Beretta 90 series for other people has to do with institutional issue (it's just too bloody big for many hands), and military use (sorry, guys, but when you're Hague-forced to use FMJ, the old "9x19mm Parabellum vs. .45ACP" shtick is a valid discussion, unlike when dealing with non-Hague users who can use modern JHPs.)
Well... if I was in the market for a .40, the 96 would be on the short list. Right alongside the Highpower, and...
Wait a sec: that IS the extent of the list.
I have a 92. With the right holster, it CAN be concealed. Which makes me giggle at times: pretty sure I'm smaller than some of the folks that complain they can't conceal a full-size service pistol.
Yes, the difference between a 96 and a 92 is the frame and barrel. And ejection: I've watched someone at a pistol match catching a friend's brass from a 96 roughly 50 feet away...
slide and barrel
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