Iraq Veterans, what is your true opinion on the M9 Beretta 9mm?

J

JohnH1963

Moderator
I think this is a question worth asking. What is your true opinion of the M9 Beretta 9mm? What pistol would you rather have by your side in Iraq if not the Beretta (in terms of both caliber and model assuming there are no resupply issues with the ammo)?
 
How 'bout an opinion from an afghanistan vet?

I disliked the bulk of it more than anything. The M9 looks and feels like a toaster next to an M&P9. Mine worked fine, but was in VERY bad shape. Unless parts are broken and the weapon simply will not fire, no high-level maintenance is done. It was not very accurate, and shot about two feet left of POA at 25 meters. We all passed it around and nobody could get much of a group out of it when shooting across the hood of a truck for support. I'm not a great pistol marksman, but I'm not THAT bad. I can get head shots on rabbits with my 1911 and a Ciener .22LR slide(at about 20yds), if that tells you anything.

I'd rather have an M&P45, or M&P 40. The 9mm isn't a terrible round. However, 115gr FMJ's are less than desirable. I never shot anyone with my pistol, so I can't speak specifics on how good it was a stopping bad guys. I'd have felt better with a magazine full of 124gr Golden Sabers or HydraShocks.

All in all, a smaller, lighter pistol with either a bigger or better bullet would be nice. It would also be nice if maintenance criteria were changed so weapons could be fixed before they were too dangerous to carry.
 
Never unholstered mine except at the end of the day, so I can't speak to its effectiveness, but I sure would have liked a lighter pistol. Several pistols are 6-12 oz lighter and would be easier to carry around all day.
 
I owned the civilian 92FS. Unreliable. Picky with ammo. Too large and heavy for a 9mm that holds a mere 16 rounds. Smaller, more reliable 9mms are available.

I qualified in the Army with the M9 despite several failures during my qualification.

I was in a combat brigade in Iraq. Thankfully I was issued an M4. I would feel terribly under-armed with only an M9 in combat. It's purely a defensive weapon and not a very good one at that.
 
What is your true opinion of the M9 Beretta 9mm?
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Accurate, reliable, heavy, bulky, uncomfortable.

Although, that's just from my 92FS. I never carried a pistol in combat, just a M4, M14 or M24.
 
I carried one through two tours in addition to my longarm (M16A2 the first tour and M4 the second). I never had to get any farther than unholstering it when it came to use in combat (Iraqis are more compliant when they see a pistol instead of a rifle). But mine was accurate and reliable when I used it at the range over there. The only modification I made to mine was adding Hogue finger-groove rubber grips. I'd prefer an upgrade to .40S&W, though. The bulk of the pistol sucks up the recoil nicely and 15 round magazines are available from Mec-gar now.
 
I've had the same observations of the Berettas since they came out. A friend of mine once accidentally dropped his off of a desk and it started to rattle everytime it shook. I lost faith at that point as any good pistol should be able to stand a drop of about 5 feet onto a hard floor without any damage.

There were many police departments using this weapon a while back, but I dont see them using it anymore.

Im not saying its not a reliable, accurate weapon just saying based on my observations, which may be limited, Im not going to trust it with my life.
 
Very accurate, very reliable...and just as cumbersome as the old 1911's that I carried when I started my career. I have trusted my life to it and did so with reservation.
 
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fixed sights.
need i say more?

carried it thru haiti, and iraq. the one in iraq was the "vehicle" weapon, left in the TC hatch.
both were terribly inacurate, jammed constantly no matter how well maintained, ammo sucked, literaly bounced off tires.

any modern .40, or .45 would be better.
 
The M9 has an interesting role in Iraq. You have to take yourself out of an American perspective where we have lots of pistols, deer rifles, shotguns. In Iraq there are a lot of AKs. It's not illeagal to own one and many households do. People there have grown up seeing light machine guns and they don't carry the psychological weight that they do here in the states. Also, remember that when Saddam's henchmen would execute someone in the streets, it was always done with a pistol. So, the pistol in Iraq means business. The pistol in Iraq is personal.

It's hard for the American mindset to understand but you can have a convoy with MK19s, M2s, M249s, and every Soldier with a M4. The convoy gets stopped due to a traffic blockage. People are starting to walk up to the convoy for handouts or whatever. You want them to stop. Do any of the previously mentioned weapons do the trick? Nope. Unholster an M9 and everyone stops. It's kinda crazy but in that theater, the M9 can be the most powerful weapon in a platoon. And you don't ever fire it.

All that said, the M9 is extremely valuable and effective in Iraq. However, it could be a Kahr, Sig, Glock, 1911, or whatever and do the same job. In the military if you are having to fire a sidearm, you've just found yourself in a very bad situation and you've been overrun.

Hope that brings some persepective.

Mark
 
Citadel99, that's an amazing write up and description of pistols vs assault rifles.

I appreciate you sharing that, I enjoyed reading it a lot.
 
I am struck by the observations above that Iraqis are more intimidated by handguns than rifles or machine guns. Those long guns are combat weapons; pistols are personal.

During Vietnam my combat weapons were airplanes, so I am just an observer in this very interesting thread.

Cordially, Jack
 
jaydubya said:
I am struck by the observations above that Iraqis are more intimidated by handguns than rifles or machine guns.
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It's like Citadel and I said: Iraqis see a guy with an assault rifle and they think he's going to the store for milk. Iraqis see a guy with a pistol and they think someone's about to get one in the back of the head.
 
its similar in haiti with shot guns.
they see the little hole in the barrel of the m4 and they dont respect it.
but they see that big hole in the shotgun and they respect it.
 
As an armorer in a M.P. unit we lost our 1911's and were issued the M9's. They were not as reliable as the 1911, They held twice as much ammo but with G.I. Ball you need more hits to stop. Unit armorers weren't allowed to work on them as much as the 1911, for most work they had to go to Depot. Some like but most wanted the 1911 back.
 
So let's recap.

Apparently the pistol is a show stopper. They think someone is going to get wacked and they don't want it to be them (at least the civilians, not the terrorist.) And the shotguns the terrorist fear. Hmmmm. Sounds like a good 1911 and 12 guage would have been good companions to have, military, LEO, or civilian contractor.
 
I'm an Iraqi Vet AND was a MP. I dislike the Beretta and I would prefer to have a Glock or a 1911. For the fact that My M9 malfuncuted on me during a fire exercize FTF and I had ejection problems, feeding problems. They are way to bulky and I don't like the eurgonamics sp? Thats just My opinion. I also don't beleave the 9mm is worth a **** at all. If I'm shooting a Crack head Iraq a 9mm and this is proven don't work worth a damn.

I want something thats gonna make you bleed, shock you, and just general give you a bad day.

Just my 2 cents.
 
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