Beretta 96G .40 opinions?

[yotasmob]

A local gun shop had a bunch of S&W .40 from a police trade in a while back and I was all set to buy one, but twiddled my thumbs and he sold them all by the time I came back. I just checked and he now has several Berreta .40 96Gs, also police trade ins. They are in in great shape and he is asking less for the Berettas than he was for the S&Ws. I really liked the S&Ws but I know Berreta makes good guns. Just curious if anyone has experience with the 96G. I checked and it is CA legal.

I know the standard response is "go rent one and shoot it" however our local range that rents out guns doesn't offer the 96G and I don't know anyone that owns one. I figure since it was good enough for LEOs, it has to be good enough for me, right?

Its basically going to be a carrying/home defense weapon. Aside from Glocks, most all .40s and .45s feel pretty comfortable in my big hands to shoot.

Good, bad? So so? Any and all feedback welcome! Also this will be my first hand gun purchase. My price range is 500 bucks or less when all said and done. Thanks.

[WillyPete]

If it's a police trade-in, it ought to be substantially less than $500. More like $300, $350 if it's in great shape.

I didn't mind shooting the M9, but the safety sucks ass. It's a stretch for my thumb and it's an unnatural movement.

I do like .40S&W.

Go for it if it's not too expensive. You can always sell it if you don't like it.

[pb4u4x4]

I had a 96D and it was one of the best shooting pistols I have ever owned. The slide felt like it was on glass, good balance, and was more accurate than I. It was a but big for CCW, but I managed.

[thedonn007]

Would be fine for HD, but kind of big for a carry gun.

[zainyD]

I've carried a 96G for the last five and a half years as a duty weapon and found it to be a good pistol. My agency will be going to Glocks later this year and we were given the opportunity to buy our pistols for $290. Since I have no need for a full size .40S&W at the moment I opted not to buy mine, but it's served me well throughout the time I've had it. If the price is reasonable I'd say go for it.

[comeonstart]

Originally Posted by zainyD

I've carried a 96G for the last five and a half years as a duty weapon and found it to be a good pistol. My agency will be going to Glocks later this year and we were given the opportunity to buy our pistols for $290. Since I have no need for a full size .40S&W at the moment I opted not to buy mine, but it's served me well throughout the time I've had it. If the price is reasonable I'd say go for it.

Is there anyway a person like me could buy one at that price?
________
PamelaXS

[Sully]

I had a 96 a few years back. I liked it. Big, heavy gun. Lousy for CCW. But comfortable to shoot, accurate, and very controllable. Lost it when all my guns were stolen in 2001.

[Sully]

Originally Posted by zainyD

My agency will be going to Glocks later this year and we were given the opportunity to buy our pistols for $290. Since I have no need for a full size .40S&W at the moment I opted not to buy mine, but it's served me well throughout the time I've had it. If the price is reasonable I'd say go for it.

Seems to me that you ought to have bought it and then flipped it for a few bucks. Could easily have gotten 350-400 out of it. Maybe a little more if you waited.

[Mudinyeri]

In general terms, Berettas are top-quality guns. I have no reason to believe the 96G would be any different. After spending a lot of quality time with my M9 in the Army, I purchased a 92FS. I agree with WillyPete that the safety is a less-than-ideal feature of any of these guns. My safety was/is always in the ready position keeping me from worrying about it in a high-stress situation. That, of course, was against Army policy but I'd rather face an Article 15 than be fumbling with my safety while dodging lead.

Other than the safety ... buttery smooth would probably be the best term to describe most Berettas I've shot or fondled.

The 96G would be a big CC gun, but a bigger person with loose-fitting clothing could certainly pull it off.

Practice, practice, practice follow-up shots after the first DA trigger pull if you decide to buy and carry the gun.

[WillyPete]

Originally Posted by Mudinyeri

My safety was/is always in the ready position keeping me from worrying about it in a high-stress situation. That, of course, was against Army policy but I'd rather face an Article 15 than be fumbling with my safety while dodging lead.

I've often wondered how many people in the field did that. We carried them on shipboard watches, so there was no real reason to worry about that. If we were ever boarded, I would just have locked the water-tight door. Good luck getting through inches of steel that shatter drill bits

Hammer down and off safe always seemed like a sensible means of carry for the M9 to me, but not the brass.

[Mudinyeri]

Originally Posted by WillyPete

Hammer down and off safe always seemed like a sensible means of carry for the M9 to me, but not the brass.

That's because The Brass never figured they'd need to use them ... and probably didn't know how anyway.

Hammer down, safety off with one in the chamber is the only way to carry one of these guns, IMO.

[zainyD]

Originally Posted by comeonstart

Is there anyway a person like me could buy one at that price?

No that was for the agency LEO's only.

[zainyD]

Originally Posted by Sully

Seems to me that you ought to have bought it and then flipped it for a few bucks. Could easily have gotten 350-400 out of it. Maybe a little more if you waited.

Maybe so, but the company handling the buyback was requiring that each person sign a form stating that they would not immediately resell the gun. Plus, I just spent all my extra dough on a .357 magnum.

[WillyPete]

Originally Posted by comeonstart

Is there anyway a person like me could buy one at that price?

Shop around. The last police department gun sale that I saw had Glock 22s going for $250-300. If you can find a department getting rid of revolvers, they're even cheaper

Granted, the Beretta is a nicer weapon than the Glock, but you should be able to find a deal on one somewhere. You may have to wait a while though.

[Mudinyeri]

Originally Posted by WillyPete

Granted, the Beretta is a nicer weapon than the Glock ....

Oh, no! The Glock Talk Nazi's will be here to fight you about that any minute now.

[WillyPete]

Originally Posted by Mudinyeri

Oh, no! The Glock Talk Nazi's will be here to fight you about that any minute now.

Nuh uh, I hear there's a tupperware sale at WalMart so that's where they're all headed.

[yotasmob]

Originally Posted by WillyPete

If it's a police trade-in, it ought to be substantially less than $500. More like $300, $350 if it's in great shape.

I didn't mind shooting the M9, but the safety sucks ass. It's a stretch for my thumb and it's an unnatural movement.

I do like .40S&W.

Go for it if it's not too expensive. You can always sell it if you don't like it.

Yeah. All said and done it will be around 350.

Thanks for all the opinions. Especially from those who used them in the field. Great information to have. I was thinking it might be a little big (still havn't seen one in person, just spoke with the owner of the shop over the phone) for CC so we'll see. I know he gets police revolvers (357 I think) from time to time in the 200 price range so I might go for one of those if he has any to cc.

Thanks again for the input. I am a broke ass college student so I can't go all out and get a brand new 1911. Gotta wait until I graduate for that

[yotasmob]

Originally Posted by Mudinyeri

The 96G would be a big CC gun, but a bigger person with loose-fitting clothing could certainly pull it off.

Practice, practice, practice follow-up shots after the first DA trigger pull if you decide to buy and carry the gun.

Thanks man will do.

[kwrangln]

Our SOP was round chambered, hammer down, safety off, and yes this was a mil branch.

Barettas are great guns, just not for me. I hated shooting the M9, only pistol I had to WORK at to shoot good with. Don't know what it was about it, but I couldn't shoot it for shit, just wasn't right. This was shooting probably a dozen different pistols, so it wasn't a sample of one. Sure, I eventually shot expert with it, but it wasn't natural like other guns are.

Just my $0.02.

[yotasmob]

Originally Posted by kwrangln

Our SOP was round chambered, hammer down, safety off, and yes this was a mil branch.

Barettas are great guns, just not for me. I hated shooting the M9, only pistol I had to WORK at to shoot good with. Don't know what it was about it, but I couldn't shoot it for shit, just wasn't right. This was shooting probably a dozen different pistols, so it wasn't a sample of one. Sure, I eventually shot expert with it, but it wasn't natural like other guns are.

Just my $0.02.

Good to know. More food for thought.