Beretta 96

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I have a 96 Centurion. It is my prefered pistol to shoot. I live in Texas and have to conceal, so I do not carry it day to day.

It is pretty heavy, but is very accurate. I have had it jam twice in 600+ rounds, both along time ago and because of my inexperienced self limp wristing it.

I also like how easy it is to disassemble, and all the cool things you can find to add on to it.

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sandbandit0331 wrote:

The beretta is the best paper weight ever manufactured and it should stay that way!! The one time in IRAQ I needed this piece of junk to work it malfunctioned ! For this reason this "weapon " will never find itsself in a personal defense role with me again!!!!:cuss::cuss:

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I'll tell you why... the gov't outsources the locking blocks and magazines to a 3rd party manufacture to cut down on costs... your Beretta in Iraq was not 100% Beretta. I saw the collection of parts that are sent in from around the services that weren't Beretta made that were found in issued service pistols when I went through Beretta armorer courses while attending gunsmithing school. Some of the tolerance specs are disgusting dangerous...

The combat instructor for Beretta I spoke to had dozens of stories and dealing with top-brass. They would call up to complain about reliability issues, Beretta would send out a handful of parts the govt doesn't buy from them and ask them to call them back in the morning. They'll receive a large order of those parts within a week to the same base.

The gun design isn't flawed. It is, from a mechanical and engineering standpoint, one of the finest designs on the market... Its the fake organs that give it a bad rep. If your a safety queen, there is no more reliable safety/decocker on the market.



Only malfuction I've ever had out of my 96 was due to a MecGar mag. The mag was promptly chucked downrange and used for target practice.

I consider it the most accurate handgun I've owned. (Then again, I don't own any race guns.)

Protip: I agree the standard FS and G model triggers are a little heavier than needed. Here is a factory tip: Replace your hammerspring with the D model (Double action only) hammerspring. It cut the weight down 3lbs on the double and 2lbs on the single action. Reliability is unchanged. I found my hammerspring replacement on Gunbroker for $4. Makes it feel like a whole new pistol. Still no cure or long trigger pull or trigger reset though.... :?

Buy one. They are great guns. The above picture is the one you'll find in my dresser drawer. First pistol I ever owned, and one that I'll never sell.

AC

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Passionate much, Sand?

These Berettas, BTW were based on the design of the Walther P.38. And I have yet to have a prob with my P.38. Maybe you just got a bad one?

I am thinking about getting an "U.N.C.L.E. Special" conversion kit (basically shorter barrel and anodized aluminum grips) for my P.38. Might make a better concealed piece that way.

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just get the factory mags and yuo will be fine

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sandbandit0331 wrote:

The beretta is the best paper weight ever manufactured and it should stay that way!! The one time in IRAQ I needed this piece of junk to work it malfunctioned ! For this reason this "weapon " will never find itsself in a personal defense role with me again!!!!:cuss::cuss:

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+1 I was in Korea when they issued the M9 to us. I dang near cried as I turned in my M1911. Went to the range and could not hit the broad side of a barn with the little piece of junk. Sites were so far off that I had to aim clean off the left side of the E-type silhouette just to get it to hit paper. You couldn't give me one.

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My 92 - the 9mm version - is my current carry gun. I am only 170 lbs, but can still carry it IWB with a comptac holster and wear a t-shirt.

It's VERY accurate.

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Compared to a 1911, the M9 is junk. The change was a mistake. Too many parts that are prone to break, or even fall out. I've fixed many a gun that someone lost their trigger bar spring.

That said, I really like my Taurus PT99, which is very similar. Though none of the parts are interchangeable. The PT99 has a safety switch that functions similar to the 1911, and still has a decocker. It's accurate as hell, and the only problems I've ever had was it choked on blazer ammo. Eats everything else just fine though.

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Omar Little (on the HBO series The Wire) facing off Brother Mouzone; Mouzone being armed with a .380 Walther PPK and Omar being armed with a 1911 in .45 ACP :

"Caliber like this? At this range? Even if I miss, I can't miss."

Yup.

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PrayingForWar wrote:

Compared to a 1911, the M9 is junk. The change was a mistake. Too many parts that are prone to break, or even fall out. I've fixed many a gun that someone lost their trigger bar spring.

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I disagree with you about it "being jumk." That's just 1 person's opinion and not fact.

For a carry gun, I prefer DA/SA over cocked and locked.

I LOVE my 1911s. But after almost getting robbed many months ago - I want a gun I can draw and shoot with. Sometimes you're lucky to even be able to draw your gun in certain situations. I don't want to have to remember to flip a thumb safety on top of everything else if I'm staring at a gun pointed at me.

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Felid`Maximus wrote:

I like my 92FS, it is my favorite semi-auto pistol. The 92 is the same as the 96 but in 9mm.

The military uses the M9, which is basically the same gun.

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In the middle of July 92 I was issued my first M9 Baretta (92FS). Went out to test fire and qualify. I fired two magazines worth before I figured out that the dang thing was going way right and over. Finally put bullets on the E-type sihlouette, and then cried because they took away my M1911. I wanted to pitch that Baretta as far as I could. I could count on one hand the number of rounds I'd ever missed with a 1911.

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Have you ever shot one since?

I think that had some other gun replaced the 1911 - there'd still be guys complaining about whatever that gunw as.

Can't please everyone, I guess.

Plus, part of the problem with the military ones is that they don't use factory locking blocks or factory mags. So, problems with the M9s used in the field can often be traced back to those issues. Govt is too cheap to buy factory parts.

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Nope, never shot one since, never will. Once you have that kind of experience with a weapon, you ever gonna go back and give em another chance? Personally I do not like a 9MM anyhow I'd prefer a .40 at bare minimum. And I don't need to spend the $$ on the Baretta name when there's so many out there just as good if not better.

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shipwreck wrote:

PrayingForWar wrote:

Compared to a 1911, the M9 is junk. The change was a mistake. Too many parts that are prone to break, or even fall out. I've fixed many a gun that someone lost their trigger bar spring.

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I disagree with you about it "being jumk." That's just 1 person's opinion and not fact.

For a carry gun, I prefer DA/SA over cocked and locked.

I LOVE my 1911s. But after almost getting robbed many months ago - I want a gun I can draw and shoot with. Sometimes you're lucky to even be able to draw your gun in certain situations. I don't want to have to remember to flip a thumb safety on top of everything else if I'm staring at a gun pointed at me.

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Yes, it is my oppinion, and perhaps I was too harsh but COMPARED to the 1911 they are found wanting by nearly everyone who's had the opportunity to use both. The military is also using plastic guide rods now BTW. I "do" guns, I've seen a lot of worn out M9's, and common problems. For the most part they work fine, every weapon system has a failure rate. I know people who still love the M60 and hate the M240.

When you train to disengage the safety as you put the gun forward on target it won't be an issue.

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PrayingForWar wrote:

shipwreck wrote:

PrayingForWar wrote:

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When you train to disengage the safety as you put the gun forward on target it won't be an issue.

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I agree with you - and in the 1990s, I had a lot of 1911s and trained for this.

However, I have shot and owned too many different guns over the past few years - and I got out of the habit.

I have a lot of different guns now, and I generally take something different to the range each time now.

So for me, at this point, cocked and locked is no longer second nature to me now. So, I'd rather go with DA/SA at this point in time.

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shipwreck wrote:

PrayingForWar wrote:

shipwreck wrote:

PrayingForWar wrote:

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When you train to disengage the safety as you put the gun forward on target it won't be an issue.

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I agree with you - and in the 1990s, I had a lot of 1911s and trained for this.

However, I have shot and owned too many different guns over the past few years - and I got out of the habit.

I have a lot of different guns now, and I generally take something different to the range each time now.

So for me, at this point, cocked and locked is no longer second nature to me now. So, I'd rather go with DA/SA at this point in time.

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I see, and I can understand your concern. I just never did get over the DA-SA trigger pull difference.

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I have a M96 which I love. It is a great shooting gun and very reliable. I think it is a fine handgun and wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to anyone. Mine has Crimson Trace grips but is very accurate with it's factory sights. One thing to consider is that ammo for the 40 is usually easier to find than a 9mm or 45.

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One thing I like about the P.38 design, which the Beretta is based on, is that multiple strikes on a failed primer are available. Neither a revolver nor a 1911 design offers this - well, maybe the revolver but you would either waste as least as much time putting the failed cartridge back into battery as re-cycling a 1911 slide OR go on to the next round and risk a hangfire detonation . Jams are rare and, due to the large open ejection area easy to clear when they do occur. Accuracy is important of course, but if you are going to be involved in a street-situation firefight it will likely take place at 5-7 yards. At that range I can put three in a paper plate in two seconds with anything I own That said, I would expect any full-sized handgun to be more accurate than a belly-gun snubbie, and my P.38 does very well in that regard although I am not Annie Oakley. And it's a good thing, because buckskin dresses don't particularly become me.

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good points all. My Model 96 is the first Beretta that I've ever owned. I've had my eye on them for a long time. The M92/M96s just look "right" to my eye.

My wife and kids got it for me last Christmas. It has Crimson Trace grips and they also got 3 extra factory mags, 2 very nice leather holsters, 5 boxes of Hydra-Shoks and a spare mag carrier.

My wife's nephew came down last Thanksgiving to visit and he showed me his latest new gun which was a M96. Off we went to Lafayette and I fell in love with it by the time I'd fire the first mag full of hollow points through it.

So, that became the only thing on my Christmas "wish list". So my wife, being the sweetheart that she is made sure that that is what was under the tree.

I have begun to use it as my open carry gun a lot.

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To the OP, bear this in mind...........37 replies and onlyONE of them negative. Do as I do whenever I research something, take the WORST and the BEST reviews and toss them out the door. Those are typically the ones who are so biased, they aren't very reliable as research input.

My 96D Centurion works well. 10's of thousands of rounds later, not ONE single failure. That's with GOOD top shelf ammo and that crappy dirty"hey, it's cheap" stuff. Stockmags, and aftermarket. I've gone weeks without cleaning it between 100'sof rounds.

There's nothing wrong with the gun. :quirky

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I have had a Elite in .40 for probably about 10 years. It has always fired reliably and accurately. During that time I owned 2 different Elites in 9mm. No issues with feeding from the factory mags or the surplus GI magazines I bought at a gun show. All of the people I have ever talked to who shoot regularly at the range have had similar experiences. The only problems I have heard from friends in the military were from bad magazines. With the good magazines, the M9s worked well.