Say goodbye to the M9!

Was just reading the Army has made it official and turned down Berettas M9A3. There's been talk of going back to the .45 ACP. I don't know what the hell they were thinking with going to the 9 mm in the first place. When I was in....5th grade one of my friends shot me in the gut with his dad's 9 mm. Doc told my mom if it would have been a .38 or .45 I'd be dead.

The current favorite is the SIG SAUER P320. Looks SWEET!
http://www.sigsauer.com/CatalogProductDetails/p227-tacops.aspx

The M9 is decently reliable but I can't stand it. 9mm feels so unamerican. .45 should have stayed and I really dig sig. That 320 looks awesome too. We'll see though. It'll be like the uniforms where it comes out and the m9 doesn't get fully phase out for 8 more years.

Holly crap I just noticed it holds 14+1. I was also reading one of the requirements is it has to be ambidextrous and fit both men and women's hands! There also saying .40 and .357 are also being considered but as it stands .45 is the front runner. Looks like the Marines are going to a modified 1911. Hope this isn't to morbid but when my step dad got to talking about Vietnam he would say every time he shot a guy anywhere in the upper chest with the 1911...dead. He said he saw guys take multiple .223 rounds and keep fighting. I'm sure the dense jungle played a part too though.
http://www.colt.com/Catalog/LawEnforcement/Products/ColtM1070CQBPM45A1.aspx

Goodbye M9

Agree - a 9mm to someone coming at you drugged or fueled with rage from adrenaline will act like a zombie and keep coming. A .40 or .45 hollow point will put them on the ground.


.45 guy here. When I get the chance I rent a desert eagle and wish I could choke down the $1-2 a round costs.

The Army turned down buying MORE pistols, not replacing the ones they have, 99.99% of which have NEVER fired a shot in anger.

I can't see a cash strapped Army, downsizing up to 30%, spending millions to replace pistols which are almost an after thought to combat operations. Especially not for a Sig, which with the decocking lever is extremely lefty unfriendly (lefty here!). They won't go Glock either, due to the lack of a manual external safety and, given how old the members of the selection committee probably are, a lack of an exposed hammer (to tell us if it is cocked or not, how else are we supposed to know!!!).

If we did pick another pistol for general use, I absolutely expect it to be 9mm and probably a Ruger.

Then again, we did drop 4 BILLION to pick a new camo pattern instead of spending 30 million to license multicam, so maybe Sig has a shot

Well according to the article I read the M9 will be gradually phased out. The reason Sig is the front runner is because Beretta BARELY beat out Sig in 85. I'm not positive but the new Sig is still under development. The new gun will NOT be a 9mm the Army has mad that clear.

.45 all the way. John Moses Browning was a genius. The Ma Deuce is still in service and can't be improved upon, 1911, M1919 machine gun, potato digger before that, BAR, Hi-Power, the list goes on.

BTW...If your a non-American reading this, 9mm v .45 is a thing. I've seen fist fights break out over this! Full disclosure I'm a .45 guy. I wasn't trying to start an argument though.

Yep its a thing. I carry a Walther PPS as a concealed sidearm. Its a good fit for my body shape and hand. My cousin carries a Walther PK380 in her purse for mostly the same reason that it is a small light sidearm that is a good fit in her hand. I am a moderately good shot (starting to get a little arthritis in my hands) and she is an excellent shot.

But I am a believer in the .45 and never bought into the whole standardization, better cost efficiency, NATO bla-bla-bla that was sold to the America people to justify the change to 9mm. About time we return to the .45 as standard issue.

One day I will own one.

Interesting. So you all are saying that .45 is better than 9mm? Funny, I've never heard this argument before...ever. please, go on. : )

Oh god...what did I just start... For the record though us .45 guys were completely perplexed over the 9mm sales pitch. More ammo capacity better accuracy but you gotta shot your guy 3 times!

1. I just bought a SIG Sauer P320C in .357SIG for my dad for Father's Day. It hasn't arrived yet, but it looks like a pretty sweet gun.

2. Between shooting various rounds, and a TON of research, with modern ballistics I just don't think there is enough practical difference in standard handgun calibers to really argue about. I've seen studies where a .45 wouldn't penetrate a van door on 3 out of 5 shots. And I strongly believe that one well placed shot with a .22 is more effective than 5 poorly placed shots with a .45. The best caliber comes out of your most reliable gun, that you shoot best, and HAVE ON YOU.

I was in the Army when they made the switch to the M9 in the late 1980's. In the Aviation branch, as aircrews we were quite happy because before that we were issued old Smith and Wesson .38 Special revolvers (in a leather holster, nonetheless) that were so shot out they could almost have been classified as smoothbores. They never gave us 1911's. I guess we weren't worthy.

It's always funny to listen to the .45 guys talk about 9mm bouncing off someone, and .45 vaporizing them.

"A 9mm MAY expand, but a .45 will never shrink."

But then, I cast my own .452s.

Any gummint contract is all about politics and the low bidder. It isn't about the best thing for our troops.


AA

Side note-one of my buddies has been in since the birth of Jesus and took a ricocheted 9mm to the testicles. Lost one. Still alive. .45 would have taken the whole package. Just saying.

BSAGuy said:

.45 all the way. John Moses Browning was a genius. The Ma Deuce is still in service and can't be improved upon, 1911, M1919 machine gun, potato digger before that, BAR, Hi-Power, the list goes on.

Click to expand...

Uh. Wait, what?

HolmerJ said:

Was just reading the Army has made it official and turned down Berettas M9A3. There's been talk of going back to the .45 ACP. I don't know what the hell they were thinking with going to the 9 mm in the first place. When I was in....5th grade one of my friends shot me in the gut with his dad's 9 mm. Doc told my mom if it would have been a .38 or .45 I'd be dead.

The current favorite is the SIG SAUER P320. Looks SWEET!
http://www.sigsauer.com/CatalogProductDetails/p227-tacops.aspx

Click to expand...

FWIW, the 9mm is significantly more powerful than a 38 special. The 38 just looks bigger because the cartridge was designed for black powder.

The only reason the 9mm doesn't have stopping power is that the Geneva Convention doesn't allow Hollow Point ammo for combat. I imagine that you were shot with Full Metal Jacket, since you are still here to talk about it.