Beretta Brigadier & Border Marshall in .40, opinions needed!

L

long shot

New member
I would like opinions on the Beretta Border Marshall & Brigadier models in 40. I'm looking at these two models due to the beefed-up slide & locking block. This pistol would be used for home defense & range work.

Questions:

Is the bruniton finish fairly rust resistant?

Is either of these models available in the "decocker-only" version?

How's the recoil/accuracy/reliabilty ect...of these pistols?

Would it be better to go w/the Elite model do to the stainless barrel?

All experiences & opinions are appreciated!

Thanks in advance,
long shot!
 
I have the 96 G Elite, and it's a fine pistol.

I can't comment on the durability of the Bruniton finish from personal experience since I don't carry this particular pistol, but I've not heard of any widespread problems with it.

The G Elite is a decock only type, and the Brigadier and Border Marshall are the FS safety-decock configuration.

My Elite is much more accurate than my Beretta Cougar and at least on par with my Sigs, and is a real pleasure to shoot. My understanding is that target shooting was one of the primary applications Beretta had in mind with this pistol. It's very well-balanced, points well, and recoil is very manageable.

The stainless barrel on the Elite offers a nice visual contrast, and may be a practical consideration given the particulars of your climate, mode of carry etc. I also like the looks of the shorter barrel on the Elite and Border Marshall much more than the longer Brigadier configuration, and IMO it has potential carry implications as well.

The primary differences between the Elite and Border Marshall concern the longer grip, slightly different backstrap shape, stainless barrel, skeletonized hammer and rubber magazine pad of the Elite, and the night sights, rubber grip and lanyard ring of the Border Marshall. The Elite fit me best, but I like the night sight option of the Border Marshall, and I plan to add a set to my Elite.
 
INS/Border Patrol think the reliabilty is 3 times better than the SIG229, 5 times better than the Glock. OTOH, DEA and FBI disagree... :)

Excellent gun! I think the slide is beefed up, not the locking block, though the block takes less stress due to the heavier slide/slower cycle.

Bruniton holds up pretty well. It is on the slide, not the barrel BTW, so ya might want the ss barrel if rust is a big concern. I've had my issue M9 very wet for extended periods of time; slide/frame were fine, barrel got little specks that rubbed off w some Break Free.

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http://home.att.net/~brokenarrrow/
 
I have a Beretta 96 Brigadier Inox. I have put 1650 rounds thru it so far with out a problem. I too was looking at the border Marshall, the only reason I went with the Brigadier is the extra barrel length. I happen to like the look of the longer barrel. I can shoot it just as good as my Sig P220 or P229, but to me the Beretta produces less felt recoil

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Thanks for the info!

I also read a review on a 9mm "Brigadier Elite G" w/stainless bbl,strenghthend slide & ambi. decocker,this sounds pretty much like what I would want.

Another question,how is Beretta's customer svc., & are parts readily available?

treeprof,do the std. Elite pistols come w/ the strenghthend slide?

Best,
long shot!
 
There's the Elite I and the new Elite II. The Elite I has a flush stainless barrel, front and rear cocking serrations, dovetailed white dot sights, skeletonized hammer, rubber mag pad, no lanyard ring, radiused backstrap, Brigadier slide, decock only.

The Elite II is a two-tone with all of the above except the slide is stainless, the front/backstraps have thick checkering, sights are black/lowered Novak, heavier skeletonized hammer, 92D hammer spring for lighter/smoother DA pull, target barrel crown, hex grip screws, and I think a larger mag release. I tried an Elite II in .40 recently and I really want one. Barely any kick and was sickeningly accurate.

The Bruniton finish seems to hold up pretty well I don't see having any problems with it. I've seen spare parts available from the Gunparts Corp and Brownells. I've heard customer service is good and Beretta is definitely progun, unlike Slick & Willie.

The standard 92/96FS has the regular slide, extended barrels. The Brigadier 92/96FS models have the heavier Brigadier slide, extended barrels, and dovetail sights. The Border Marshall is basically a Brigadier 92/96FS with 3-dot night sights and a flush barrel. I don't think the locking block is beefed up at all on any of the guns but the design changed from the old ones.

If they feel good and shoot well, go for it, they're excellent guns. No stamped parts whatsoever. Reliability, accuracy, and durability are good. Only quirk is that Berettas seem to require a bit more lube than others but that's no big deal.

Check out: www.berettausa.com www.beretta.com and http://beretta.squawk.com/

The armorer notes on the last site are nice.
 
Is the bruniton finish fairly rust resistant?

Yes. I assume the M9s that the previous post refers to were parkerized, not Bruniton-ed (is that a word? <g> )?

Is either of these models available in the "decocker-only" version?

No, only the Elite and Elite II are available in "G" (decock only) form.

How's the recoil/accuracy/reliabilty ect...of these pistols?

I have a BM 96 and it is one of the more accurate service pistols I've owned, although no more accurate than the SIG P226, which I personally prefer. I also like the grip on these newer Berettas better than the earlier frame (which may still be used on regular 92s/96s? -- but I believe that the E, EII and BM all have the same reduced thickness at the top of the backstrap) -- it's narrower at the top. (Feels more like a P226? <g> )

Some say that recoil in a Beretta is more manageable than in other pistols with higher bore lines (vs. grip), such as SIGs. May be, I haven't proved it for myself and even if it's true, I suspect the difference is very small, so unless you're competing and measuring times in hundredths of a second, I think that difference (if any) is illusory.

I am probably going to get zapped for saying this, but I have had some reliability problems with this pistol. I have had a number of feedway jams, which I've never had with any other modern service pistol. However, in fairness to the pistol, these have occurred with a non-stock 15# recoil spring, so it's possible (maybe even likely) that the jams are the result of the slide returning faster than the mag can push up the next round. When I asked about this on the Beretta mailing list, however, there were some replies to the effect that the 96s in general do not feed as well as the 92s (wholly apart from non-stock recoil springs, so you may want to think about that. I don't know, although the Beretta 92 and 96 have some prestigious adoptions (JSSAP, INS). There is nothing at all wrong with the 92 or the 9x19 that it shoots, and hi caps are probably the most plentiful and least expensive of any comparable pistol.

Would it be better to go w/the Elite model do to the stainless barrel?

The non-INOX Berettas are one of very few (maybe the only?) current production pistol that comes with a chromed bore. This is harder than stainless, and easier to clean. The stainless might (in theory) be more accurate, but you won't notice it for your purposes. Maybe in theory the SS barrel would be more trouble-free in jungle conditions (you could get rust in the locking block area, I suppose?). I prefer the carbon steel with chrome bore. The only reason I can think of to buy the Elites is the "G" (decock-only) feature, which is not a huge point. You might also want to compare the sights, which I believe differ on the EII, to see which you prefer.
 
IIRC, Bruniton consists of baked epoxy enamel over parkerizing. So there are in effect two layers of rust resistance.

(In principle Bruniton reminds me of the phosphate and varnish of older military BHPs, although I assume that the epoxy enamel offers superior durability.)
 
Yes, the slide on the Elite is strengthened, as others here have confirmed, and in fact has the word "Brigadier" etched in the slide along with "Elite". Elite II's weren't out when I purchased mine, but they have some attractive additional features. No feeding problems in mine, but I haven't shot a lot of different ammo types with it. It's one of those guns I'm kind of "saving", but don't know for what, because I really like to shoot it.
 
I have the Border Marshal in 9mm, and I love it!!! I use it for home defense, range work and for CCW. I've put about 500 rds. through it so far, no problem.
 
I've been able to shoot my Border Patrol agent buddy's issue Beretta a few times. He's carried it (obviously) constantly for about 3 years and it has a great deal of finish wear, completely lacking around the muzzle and very thin over the entire slide.

Recoil is pretty light.

The DAO trigger sucked big time. If I used anything other than the very tip of my finger (big hands) I ran out of finger travel before the trigger broke. Once I got the hang of the trigger, it shot well and accuracy was acceptable.
 
The M9s have anodized alloy frame, Bruniton slide/levers,internals, etc, phosphatized barrel. Bruniton has Teflon in it too, part of the reason why they cycle so smooth.

IIRC (and I may not) the score for the M9 in the rust resistance test of the M10 trials was 248 (hours?). I can see the slide doing that, but not the exterior of the barrel (pretty damn hard to rust that chrome-lined bore). Polished blueing can do as little as 2 hours, Parkerizing about 48, some grades of "stainless" steel will only go 50 hours BTW, most a lot more (150+) some of the nickel/teflon/polymer finishes 1000+ hours.

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[This message has been edited by BrokenArrow (edited August 10, 2000).]

[This message has been edited by BrokenArrow (edited August 10, 2000).]
 
Haven't read some of the responses so I may be saying what others have said....

I own a Brigadier Elite in .40 S&W, with the stainless barrel. I don't get to shot it as much as I would like (to many other good choices) but have had absolutely no problems with the gun. I shoot both hand-loads and factory, and have NEVER had a problem with this gun not feeding or misfiring. It is not the most accurate gun I own, but it is competing with a Kimber Gold Cup, a Colt Gold Match, and S&W Model 625 (probably the most accurate). It is more than accurate enough for any use, and you could even shoot it in competition.

The finish is excellent, it has only the de-cocker, the recoil is mild to say the least.

Hope this helps.

Casey
 
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