9 mm 92FS vs. P226 vs. M&P

Welcome to the board. The only real way you'll figure this out is going to a range and renting the ones you're interested (or becoming a paid member here and going to a shoot). American Firearm School in N. Attleboro and Manchester Firing Line in NH are the rental ranges that come to mind.

Personally, I own both a 92FS and a M&P 9c with an Apex kit. I like both a lot for different reasons, 92 - Home defense/range time, 9c - carry once I lose my lovely restrictions/range time. I tried a 226 at AFS and just didn't shoot it as well. It had been on my short list, but the short time renting it and the higher cost led me to the 92FS. Best of luck deciding.
 
I've never used a M&P, but I have extensively used both the 9mm Sig P226 and 9mm Beretta 92 models (M9s) during my 9 years in the Army and 14 years in LE.

I like both, but I'm partial to my current duty issued Sig P226R. Rock solid performance and reliability! The 226 is kinda large for concealed carry depending on your stature/frame and clothing/weather, but I've been able to conceal it and I'm only 5'9" with a stocky build.

However, I'd like to note that my primary off duty carry handgun is a .40 S&W Glock 27 and occasionally a snub-nosed .357 revolver. As previously mentioned, Glocks are solid performers too, especially with a trigger job, and they're less expensive than both the Sig or Beretta, even after tricking them out a bit. You see a lot of Glocks used on police departments and in competition for good reason.

It really all does come down to personal preference and intended use, though. Choose wisely.
 
Just from a gunsmith prespective, with the Beretta you a lomites to sights and trigger. It also has a very long DA. The Sig will allow you to grow and change sights, the trigger out of the box is smoother than the Beretta and has a shorter stroke. I don't own either, but work on both.
 
I have three M&Ps and a 92FS. The latter stays in the safe, the former are used more often than any other pistols I own.
 
AND here we go again

[horse]
IBTL, this is a conspiracy, has to be! Topic is new on the board every week.
This board need auto correct for this. MP9 is POS auto delete, & done

Shoot the hell out of a few of your favorites and pick the one you can hit shit with.
Give a damn if it is a 92FS, M&P, Sig, G-Lock, or a Makarov.
 
Hydrogenous said:
I was in your shoes not too long ago and jumped on a 92FS. I have almost no complaints about it. I bought it a month ago and 600 rounds later I haven't had a single problem. If you have big hands, go for the 92FS. If you have normal hands, get the Sig. All in all I'd recommended holding each one and seeing what ergonomic layout works best for your physiology.
Click to expand...

have you ran drills with it? i.e. tap, rack & push... cleared malfunctions? ran it for an entire day w/o needing to clean it?
 
eta:
The best selling pistol in
Four Seasons history
Click to expand...

also:

http://pistol-training.com/archives/222


again, this gun sells like hot cakes for a reason. while there ARE some out with 15+ pound triggers (i've dry fired a few), most are between 8 and 12 out of the factory. some even less [wink]

some of you have weak little girl hands if you can't squeeze one off. it's a gun, grip it like man, rack the slide... maybe one buy one of these:

31AROtZboGL._SL160_.jpg


[laugh] [rofl] yes Dench, i'm talking to you
 
sevenMMmag said:
yes
Click to expand...

how many rounds?


i think i got about 400ish out of mine on two range trips before it started to bind and NOT go into full battery. it's italian made (not sure if that matters).

the same with my M9 during a range qual / dynamic shooting.. during the tap, rack and push, i put the damn thing on safe more often than NOT. the open breach is also an issue as the round does NOT have the same ejection pattern like a sig, glock, m&p. the saftey is "backwards" IMO and not natural to draw and click off.

these are beefs withe the 92FS. again, nice gun... i'd never carry one...
 
well over 800 between cleanings and it worked fine, but I like cleaning. Like the AR15, the M9 needs lubrication, but does not need extreme amounts of cleaning.

I have not yet managed to put it in safe during a malfunction drill. I use the palm technique where my off hand thumb fits under the safety, so there is really no space for the safety to engage.

Do you have small hands? I have medium sized hands, but the safety is extremely easy to disengage. You use the bottom joint of your thumb to flick it off. That's the part of your hand that is closest to the safety. If you are using the tip or pad of the thumb to disengage the safety, I can see how it feels unnatural. However, by using the bottom joint of the thumb, it's almost as easy as taking off a 1911 safety

But then again, I never carry the 92FS with the safety on as it is unnecessary.

Why does ejection pattern matter? The open breech minimizes stovepipe type jams.
 
sevenMMmag said:
well over 800 between cleanings and it worked fine, but I like cleaning. Like the AR15, the M9 needs lubrication, but does not need extreme amounts of cleaning.

I have not yet managed to put it in safe during a malfunction drill. I use the palm technique where my off hand thumb fits under the safety, so there is really no space for the safety to engage.

Do you have small hands? I have medium sized hands, but the safety is extremely easy to disengage. You use the bottom joint of your thumb to flick it off. That's the part of your hand that is closest to the safety. If you are using the tip or pad of the thumb to disengage the safety, I can see how it feels unnatural. However, by using the bottom joint of the thumb, it's almost as easy as taking off a 1911 safety

But then again, I never carry the 92FS with the safety on as it is unnecessary.

Why does ejection pattern matter? The open breech minimizes stovepipe type jams.
Click to expand...

I like to see the round going over my right shoulder... just a personal pref. i guess. [cheers]

i can palm a basket ball. [laugh] not a leather one, but a rubber one. [rofl]

i am of the keep it simple stupid frame of mind. again, it's a very sexy gun. just has a couple flaws (IMO) so it's not of "carry piece" caliber.
 
wolf223 said:
again, this gun sells like hot cakes for a reason.
Click to expand...

Because NES pushes it like crack onto the new shooter.

Having once been new to pistol caliber firearms, I once took that advice so relentlessly pushed upon people here.

I didn't "try before buy" and, honestly, I didn't see anything about how bad the trigger needed work. I saw that people were getting trigger jobs, but I never fully understood just how horrible the whole action of it was. Then again, I wasn't a forum junky back then, so I could have missed that.

Either way, your point is useless. If everyone else jumped off of a cliff, I suppose you'd be right behind them under that logic.
 
flintoid said:
Because NES pushes it like crack onto the new shooter.

Having once been new to pistol caliber firearms, I once took that advice so relentlessly pushed upon people here.

I didn't "try before buy" and, honestly, I didn't see anything about how bad the trigger needed work. I saw that people were getting trigger jobs, but I never fully understood just how horrible the whole action of it was. Then again, I wasn't a forum junky back then, so I could have missed that.

Either way, your point is useless. If everyone else jumped off of a cliff, I suppose you'd be right behind them under that logic.
Click to expand...


so YOU took advice from commandoes of the keyboard and got a gun you didn't like. ????

then you got butt hurt because it didn't suit your needs?

i am simply pointing that the gun is a proven platform, but because YOU don't like it, it means i am going to jump off the cliff. right?

i then posted my personal reasons, my own opinion for why i would NOT carry an M9. i didn't care to look as to why the M9/92FS is inferior or superior. i posted as to why the M&P is NOT.

i've shot a couple few sigs. i own all of the rest. i have no beefs with any of them. the sigs are nice, but they need to wake the eF up and adjust the prices. IF LE didn't have mostly Glocks and Sigs, the military (i'm active duty btw) didn't shoot the M9, 3/4 of the COD commandoes would be going with the flow.

i've been carrying my 1911. [wink]
 
i've talked about this and written back and fourth with friends about the S&W M&P series.

as more PD's transition to the platform, it will get the credit it's due. do NOT confuse a "crappy" pistol with the Mass-compliant M&P's is all i'm saying.


say, i'd love to see DoD go to M&P 15's and M&P 9's... then it would be like OH SHIIIITE, I NEED TO GET A M12 (M9 = berretta, M11 = sig) and an M4 A5, possibly a M4 A6... i hear the SFODA's are testing a mk-zulu based on the M&P 15.

-then, this thread would be totally flip flopped.

[rofl]
 
wolf223 said:
i've talked about this and written back and fourth with friends about the S&W M&P series.

as more PD's transition to the platform, it will get the credit it's due. do NOT confuse a "crappy" pistol with the Mass-compliant M&P's is all i'm saying.


say, i'd love to see DoD go to M&P 15's and M&P 9's... then it would be like OH SHIIIITE, I NEED TO GET A M12 (M9 = berretta, M11 = sig) and an M4 A5, possibly a M4 A6... i hear the SFODA's are testing a mk-zulu based on the M&P 15.

-then, this thread would be totally flip flopped.

[rofl]
Click to expand...

Hey, they're claiming they shot Osama with a 416. Buy stock in HK [laugh]
 
Love my Sig. Yea as of late Sig has had some QC issues, you can find a Western German made Sig used for around $600.
 
I have never shop the Berreta 92 but do shoot Glock's , Sig,s, and the S&W M&P and S&W99 as well as a number of 1911's. If you live in a state where obtaining mags with more than 10 rounds is an issue and you desire mags with greater capacity then the choice narrows to Glock and Sig since you can find pre ban mags. Personally i do not find the ergonomics of the Sig 226 ideal and you always have to be carefull of your grip so as prevent interference with the decocker. For me the ergonomics of the Glock's is not ideal but better than the Sig 226. I prefer the S&W99 in terms of ergonomics and the unique ambidextrous mag release. The S&W M&P line is great - my newly acquired M<&P45 feeds everything for 185 gr. LSWC to 230 gr. FMJs with total reliability and place all ten shots within a nice tight 1 1/4 to 2 inch group at 50 ft.
 
wolf223 said:
so YOU took advice from commandoes of the keyboard and got a gun you didn't like. ????

then you got butt hurt because it didn't suit your needs?

i am simply pointing that the gun is a proven platform, but because YOU don't like it, it means i am going to jump off the cliff. right?

i then posted my personal reasons, my own opinion for why i would NOT carry an M9. i didn't care to look as to why the M9/92FS is inferior or superior. i posted as to why the M&P is NOT.
Click to expand...

slow down, turbo. I never said you were jumping off of a cliff. I was implying that "everyone else is buying them" is never a good reason to go out and buy something.

And I'm not butthurt. Admitting to the fact that I took internet commando NES advice is quite the opposite, IMO. Humbling, even. I'm just sharing with the NES community my opinion of the platform in MA form, which is what people buy here. I do not believe that something I buy, brand spanking new, should require more money and work to get it to work properly unless it's a rifle parts kit that was gas torched by drunk Ivan in Yugoslavia. Do you buy new cars that require a tune up in order to run? Therefore m&p = stupid ass gun.

But what do I know, I'm not active duty or some competition shooter badass like all of you guys. I'm only a simple casual shooter that trains for self defense and buys things that suit my taste. 20lbs triggers don't fall within that category, but maybe you highly trained folk do just fine with them. You probably do.

So I'll stick to building rifles and pissing off Smith and Wesson homers on the internet. You guys got this.
 
The 92FS is out based on principle: the safety is in the wrong place (slide), is backwards, and is unnecessarily. A 92G or 92D would be a better option if you can find one. The 226 is better in theory: It's decocker only. I had a P6 that I really tried to like. I shoot a lot of revolver so I don't have a problem with a long and/or heavy DA trigger. What I have a problem with is the DA/SA trigger. A police trade in 226 with a DAO trigger might be an option if you can find one. The M&P would be my choice but I would probably be just as happy with a Glock.
 
flintoid said:
slow down, turbo. I never said you were jumping off of a cliff. I was implying that "everyone else is buying them" is never a good reason to go out and buy something.

And I'm not butthurt. Admitting to the fact that I took internet commando NES advice is quite the opposite, IMO. Humbling, even. I'm just sharing with the NES community my opinion of the platform in MA form, which is what people buy here. I do not believe that something I buy, brand spanking new, should require more money and work to get it to work properly unless it's a rifle parts kit that was gas torched by drunk Ivan in Yugoslavia. Do you buy new cars that require a tune up in order to run? Therefore m&p = stupid ass gun.

But what do I know, I'm not active duty or some competition shooter badass like all of you guys. I'm only a simple casual shooter that trains for self defense and buys things that suit my taste. 20lbs triggers don't fall within that category, but maybe you highly trained folk do just fine with them. You probably do.

So I'll stick to building rifles and pissing off Smith and Wesson homers on the internet. You guys got this.
Click to expand...

+1

NOT getting an M&P because it's a successful platform is like buying an AK instead an AR. you can upgrade the trigger on an AR too. but *most* shooters can shoot an AR too. not off the bench either. [wink]

[laugh] [cheers]


*all in good debate fun btw.
 
I'm pretty amazed at how polarizing the M&P has become. With a few exceptions, people seem to either love it and own more than one, or hate it and sell theirs.

The difference seems to be willingness to replace the fire control parts. That should give potential buyers an idea of if they're going to like it.
 
wolf223 said:
+1

NOT getting an M&P because it's a successful platform is like buying an AK instead an AR. you can upgrade the trigger on an AR too. but *most* shooters can shoot an AR too. not off the bench either. [wink]

[laugh] [cheers]


*all in good debate fun btw.
Click to expand...

I don't know how the hell you did it, but now all of a sudden my m&p looks sexy to me. God damn you.


In all seriousness, I did upgrade the trigger with Apex parts, and yes, it did help it a whole lot. Apex deserves major props for not only recognizing this glaring problem, but for developing a solution package for it. That not only takes balls in the initial investment R&D, machinist time, and sales strategy, but it takes insight and a know how to accomplish what is needed. Those guys are great and I'm glad I threw money at them.

But as far as S&W goes, and the natural MA compliance stuff... is it really their fault? Or could have they done better but instead were lazy as hell for a low volume product that equates to a drop in the bucket as far as their income goes? (MA model)... we'll never know unless we were that product manager that headed up the project to make a platform legal for our god foresaken state. It's the thought that counts to some people, so it can easily be excused.

But it still rubs me raw. Because I am a faceless a-hole.

The Apex kit did fix a problem. And after pulling it out to play with today, I've found that the trigger is actually getting a little smoother and a little lighter with trigger time.

I guess I just prefer working on pieces of shit when I know they're pieces of shit. This was a surprise to me. Now, it's not a pile. But it was once a pile. And that's why I think it sucked. When I buy a gun, I want it to be all that it can be the moment I take it to the range. Not a gift wrapped dog turd in a surpise birthday present box. Surprises with my firearms suck much like a tranny surprise bar fly with fake tits.
 
Was in the same position as the OP twice, when I got my first carry gun, then my wife's first any gun. We both got Sig's, we shot all three, all 3 were rental range bitches and the m&p trigger did suck but I would have no problem getting the trigger job done and I'm sure I will end up with one, I can't really articulate why but I didn't enjoy shooting the Beretta, plus concealing well is very challenging. Beretta is running a rebate for LEO's and military so that might help with some peoples decision. My wife didn't like any of them except for the Sig. So the best advice IMO is shoot them all and buy what you like. For me it was more of a decision of what I wanted first.
 
TheRoland said:
I'm pretty amazed at how polarizing the M&P has become. With a few exceptions, people seem to either love it and own more than one, or hate it and sell theirs.
Click to expand...

I'm not, especially considering that when the gun first came out, it really was a piece of s**t in terms of QC. I can easily see an early adopter swearing it off, or any of the poor bastards that bought a 9Pro and had the sight come out of the dovetail and had to either use glue (well, loctite) to hold it in or dumped the gun. The manual safety on the .45 sucks, too, but at least you can opt out of buying that version.

"Initial user experience" means a lot. In MA, without sending that gun to a smith, or repairing it, that experience is going to suck by default. It's like a first impressions kind of thing.

The difference seems to be willingness to replace the fire control parts. That should give potential buyers an idea of if they're going to like it.
Click to expand...

The mags are a pretty big issue, too. They really need to follow Glock/Sig/HK's lead here and make 10 round mags that are less gay. I realize it drives up the part counts for them, but truncated double stack mags are just annoying. This is now rearing its ugly head again with the new followers in use. Nobody should have to take a dremel tool to their mag to make it work right. We can make excuses for the trigger, but the new mags are unacceptable.

-Mike
 

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