PROJECT: Break my FNX-9.

[The Dumb Gun Collector]

Hey guys,

It is my birthday! And in honor of this insanely awesome event, I purchased myself one of the nifty FNX-9s I have been looking at recently. I was considering getting another G17, but damn that is boring. I figured since you don't see much about the FNX I might as well torture test one. So, in the spirit of my HK P2000, HK45 and the aborted G26 test (aborted by my losing interest in the gun, not a problem with it) I am going to torture test my FNX-9. In fact, I am actually going to shoot it until it breaks. I will not oil it or clean it (except the exterior) until it actually malfunctions. At that point I will oil it or clean it if necessary (why? Why the hell not!?). I also plan to find some humorous tests to perform with it. I am hoping to hit 15k in one year.



Out of the gate, here are my thoughts.

1. I like the format. A Truly ambi DA/SA with cocked and locked mode. It can be run as a true DA/DA if you just ignore the safety. You can also run it DA with safety on if you are a true masochist (or are storing it bedside).

2. The sights are excellent. Best factory sights I have seen. I love the serrated rear rounded notch. I also like the larger front dot. Some clear thinking went into these sights. I was interested to see they skipped on the whole "ledge" thing. Not a big deal since the chances of me using my sights to rack the slide are pretty low.

3. Trigger. In SA it is very light. The reset is short. The DA is garbage. HK and FN should really buy a few 80s and 90s SIGs and see how they managed to make a decent DA. However, this gun is really best carried C&L, so it hardly matters. It does have a weird pre travel click that occurs when the trigger is pulled after the safety is taken off.

4. The grip is better than a Glock, but no HK P30. The grip feels like a thinned up sig. It is actually very good, but it doesn't have the loving feel of the HK P30 and HK45 grip. It actually feels like an HK45c with a Gen4 Glock grip.

5. I really like the slide release(s). It is kind of like a Glock or Classic SIG with a little shelf that should prevents you from riding the slide release. It certainly should be less of an issue with this gun than the P30.

6. The X200 and X300 fit with no drama. Just clicks on with the P adaptor plate.

7. It comes with three mags. Thank you FN. Everybody else, get with it you cheap bastards. Now, if only FN would have given me three mags with my SCAR-17.

8. The mag release is OK. I prefer the HK style but hey, everybody has their own thing.

9. Take down is like a Classic Sig. In other words, perfect and sillyness free.

10. I am a little concerned about the 17 round mags. They feel no where near as sturdy as the HK P30 mags. I know this is unfair since HK is pretty famous for over-building their mags. But it also bothers me that the HK mag is wider, and basically the same height but carries two less rounds. I hope FN didn't cut corners to get those last two rounds in there. My test will tell.

11. Fit n' finish. The FN is not great in this department. Now, this department means the least to me, but I know some folks will care. The red "safety off" dot is only half painted on mine. And there is actually some of the paint on the safety. That tells me they actually have some dude or dudette with a model paintbrush dabbing that on. The black finish is nice, but totally frill free. The plastic "feels" cheap, but it is hard to say if this means anything. It feels very light, which probably contributes to the "cheap" feel. The FN is no HK in this department, but you get to save $300. I can buy a bit of red paint for that.




12. I like the hammer. First, it looks like a Commander/BHP hammer which is always nice.

13. The now industry standard grip panels are a nice touch. Fn tosses in several flavors. I always just keep the standard panels so this doesn't do much for me either way.

[AMMOTECH]

Please post some pictures and offer plenty of honest feedback as you go.
Thanks.

.

[Dave L.]

I think these are great guns that get little attention.
...I only wish they made a striker fired version.

[brushy bill]

...I only wish they made a striker fired version.

https://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=70748 they do

[Pappabear]

I really forward to this test as well. I own the forty five and it too impresses me. I also have noted before the mags pale in comparison to the HK mags. But whose don't?

I expect this gun to do well, I sure hope it does. If so, maybe it will get some well deserved attention.

[JR TACTICAL]

Sounds like its going to be fun, and good luck with the test. I have 2 FNP 9's one with over 2K down range and all I have done is wipe off the dust from the exterior. Its by far the best 9mm I have owned and I have owned glocks,m&p's and XDM's. I think you wi be plesently surprised if you can get over the garbage DA pull and mags. Again good luck and I look foward to following this thread.

[kmrtnsn]

https://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=70748 they do

They don't import it here yet.

[The Dumb Gun Collector]

Hey guys,

Shot 300 rounds today.

203 rounds GECO 115 grain 9mm.
50 rounds Gold Dot 124grain +p
50 Rounds Federal HST 147 grain.


All ran perfectly.

My buddy Dan actually shot an unknown number of his own reloads through the gun today, but I forgot to ask him. He reported that the pistol kicked harder than his Steyr M9. I don't doubt this but I have never really noticed much difference in recoil between guns of the same caliber.

I ran the gun in a crappy Uncle Mike's holster.

50 Rounds draw practice. 1, 2, 3 rounds per draw at three targets at 21 ft, 30 ft and 25 yards.

100 rounds box drills at 21 and 30 feet. These were done while loading only 5 rounds in the mags. I practiced reloads from a comp-tac clip on mag holder made for the P30.

50 rounds strong and weak hand, plus some 100 yard shooting for funzies.

50 Round of HST various but primarily 30ft and 25 yards.

50 rounds of Gold Dots doing transition drills while shooting my SCAR. Yes, I was doing transitions with a SCAR H because I am an idiot.

I don't expect to shoot any more premium ammo through the gun unless I just run up on some. I only did this to see if the gun would act up. It did not.

So far so good. I have to say I am not sure why this gun isn't more popular. It brings pretty much everything to the table with no detectable downsides. I guess people hate safety switches, but this gun gives you a lot of good options. C&L gives you a very good SA trigger and short reset. And the DA is basically a restrike mode. You can also run it DA with the safety for beside the bed duty.








Mother and daughter!




I did not shoot the Ranger +P pictured. I got bored shooting so I didn't feel like wasting the ammo if I was no longer concentrating or having fun.

[MTechnik]

Are you able to go beyond a field strip on it without sending it in to FN?

My FNP-9 ate anything I fed it never balked once - but I'd keep knocking that decocking lever with my high thumbs-forward grip.

[tdoom15]

The decocker doesn't allow my strong hand thumb to grip as highly as I typically would without it there, that being said, it doesn't bother or hinder me whatsoever.

I find my thumbs forward grip is perfect on this gun, my weak hand thumb rests perfectly on the takedown lever giving me an excellent reference point to grip the pistol the same everytime.

As far as decocking by accident, I've never had it happen to me. I use the the knuckle of my trigger finger as a "stop" for the decocker, this allows me to forcibly push down the safety without deocking. If you're considering the FNX, try handling it and I think you'll see what I mean.

Edit: You can't detail strip the FNX