The Beretta 92FS Series Pistol is a semi-automatics and operates on the short recoil, delayed locking block system, which yields a faster cycle time. Each features a lightweight, forged frame made from aircraft-quality aluminum alloy. A combat trigger guard is standard. The slide and other steel components are coated with Bruniton, a Teflon based material that provides superior corrosion resistance and reduced friction between frame and slide.

History

The Beretta 92 pistol evolved from earlier Beretta designs, most notably the M1922 and M1951. From the M1922 comes the open slide design, while the alloy frame and locking block barrel (originally from Walther P38) were first used in the M1951. The grip angle and the front sight integrated with the slide were also common to earlier Beretta pistols.

The Beretta 92 first appeared in 1976 and was designed by Carlo Beretta, Giuseppe Mazzetti and Vittorio Valle, all experienced firearms designers on the Beretta design team. About 5000 copies of the first design were manufactured from 1975 to 1976.

92S

In order to meet requirements of some law enforcement agencies, Beretta modified the Beretta 92 by adding a slide-mounted combined safety and decocking lever, replacing the frame mounted manual thumb safety. This resulted in the 92S which was adopted by several Italian law enforcement and military units. The later relocation of the magazine release button means these models (92 & 92S) cannot necessarily use later magazines, unless they have notches in both areas.

92SB (92S-1)

Initially called the 92S-1 when it was specifically designed for US Air Force trials (which it won), the model name officially adopted was the 92SB. It included the changes of the 92S, added a firing pin safety, and relocated the magazine release catch from the bottom of the grip to the lower bottom of the trigger guard.

• 92SB Compact (1981 – 1991), shortened barrel and slide (13-round magazine capacity). It was replaced by the "92 Compact L".

92F (92SB-F)

Beretta modified the model 92SB slightly to create the 92F (and 92G) by making the following changes:

• Redesigned all the parts to make them interchangeable between 92 variants to simplify maintenance for large government organizations.
• Modified the front of the trigger guard so that one could use finger support for easier aiming.
• Modified the front angle of the grip to allow for better instinctive aiming.
• Hard chromed the barrel bore to protect it from corrosion and to reduce wear.
• New surface coating on the slide called Bruniton, which allegedly provides better corrosion resistance than the previous plain blued finish.

Introduction of polymers

After 1992 Beretta started producing model 92s with some polymer parts, to reduce wear and save production costs. Polymer parts found on newer pistols include guide rods, triggers, safety levers, hammer spring caps, lanyard loops, and magazine bottom plates and followers.

U.S. Military use

Marine Security Guard students perform rapid-fire exercises on the Department of State pistol qualification course Feb. 4 as part of their MSG graduation requirement

When the U.S. Air Force (USAF) began the Joint Service Small Arms Program, Beretta entered the competition. The Beretta 92SB (92S-1) won, but the Army contested the Air Force's methods. There would be several more competitions, and Beretta refined the design of the Beretta 92SB into the Beretta 92SB-F and in slightly modified form the Beretta 92G. These designs were ultimately selected by the United States (Beretta 92F, U.S. Military designation of M9 Pistol) and France (Beretta 92G, French military designation of "PAMAS"). The M9 Pistol was intended to replace the M1911A1 and .38-caliber revolvers and pistols. Over 500,000 M9 pistols were made and the switch-over was largely achieved.

The USAF has scheduled switching over from the early model M9 (92F) to the 92FS standard, according to planning documents. In May 2005, the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) posted its intent to award a sole-source contract to Beretta for 3,480 "M9A1" pistols (M9 with an accessory rail, also available to the public from June 2006). In the U.S. Army, selected M9s were scheduled to be replaced by XM8 compact carbine variants. However, XM8 and the entire OICW Increment 1 program were suspended in July 2005. Current model M9s are scheduled for replacement under the Future Handgun System, which was merged with USSOCOM's SOF Combat Pistol program to create the Joint Combat Pistol (JCP) program. The JCP winner is specified as having a number of new features; chambered for .45 ACP, an integrated rail, Day/Night sights, and capable of accepting a sound suppressor. In early 2006, the JCP program was renamed Combat Pistol and seemingly split from the Army program.

Confusing matters, the U.S. Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM) purchased 5,000 Ruger P95 and 5,000 SIG SP2022 (SIGPro) pistols in December 2004. However, these pistols were purchased solely for issue to Iraqi security forces.

Early problems

Beretta had two major contracts, about 500,000 units for the U.S. armed forces and about 230,000 units for the French armed forces. In the case of the Beretta 92G, it was agreed that the French would supply the slide steel to Italy until GIAT could start licensed production. Beretta then decided to use 5,000 semi finished slides, intended for the French, to build pistols for the U.S. military. Soon after the US accepted these pistols, a few 92F slides, (less than 10 total) and some older Beretta 92SB slides started to crack and fly off the frame.

An investigation would later discover that this lot had been made with French steel slides which were determined to be metallurgical inferior. Compounding this was 9mm Luger ammunition made in the US whose pressure far exceeded specifications. It was also discovered that the locking block required a design change to increase its service life. As a result, the US military decided to replace their M9 locking blocks after 5,000 rounds, which gave the gun a bad reputation on the civilian market as a gun with a short life span. With the new version of the locking block installed however, the gun was a success and the locking block is now rated for 25,000 rounds. However, something still needed to be done to reduce the risk being struck by the rear half of the slide if it broke. The solution was to enlarge the hammer pin head to act as a slide retention device. A shallow slot in the base of the slider is cut just long enough to clear the hammer pin head during normal travel, but stops the slide from moving back any further. This simple change resulted in the Beretta 92FS. Since then nearly all Beretta pistols are fitted with this simple safety feature.

Tests were also carried out using a stronger closed slide, instead of the now famous cut-away version, but this reduced the ability of the pistol to dislodge sand and debris caught between the barrel and slide. Beretta eventually designed a new slide, one less prone to breakage, by thickening the slide wall at its weakest point. This came to be known as the Brigadier slide. Ironically, although the initial cause of slide breakages had already been remedied, the Brigadier is still sold today as a popular variant as its greater weight helps to control recoil. It also allows the owner to adjust or replace the front sight if so desired.

The trigger spring, which is responsible for resetting the trigger to its original position after each trigger pull, has also been improved. There had been cases where the spring would break which would require the shooter to manually push the trigger forward. Beretta remedied this by changing the spring's design so that each leg is similar, allowing it to be inverted in case one leg fails. Periodic inspection and replacement of this spring is recommended.

Design advantages

The Beretta 92's open slide design ensures very reliable feeding and ejection of ammunition and allows the barrel to cool quickly. The locking block barrel lockup provides good accuracy without the need for tight tolerances. The high capacity magazine reduces the need to swap magazines often. The alloy frame reduces the overall weight of the pistol.

The open slide design is believed by some to increase the amount of dirt and dust that enter the pistol. Some feel that it allows more foreign matter to pass out of the pistol's action, thereby enhancing the design's field reliability. The controversy continues unabated.

The magazine release button is reversible with simple field tools. Reversing the magazine release makes left-handed operation much easier.

The hard-chromed barrel bore reduces barrel wear and protects it from corrosion.

Increasingly, it has become popular to reduce handgun weight using light alloys or polymers, and polymer parts have started showing up in Beretta 92/96 models too. In 2004, the first internal polymer part to be introduced was a recoil spring guide. Many Beretta owners were displeased with the polymer part just because it was "plastic". The polymer recoil spring guide works as well as its steel counterpart but it is possible that weight of the steel part helped reduce recoil. In 2005 new polymer parts started to appear in Beretta 92/96 series guns. New polymer parts include safety levers, trigger, slide release, and the disassembly latch.

Variants

The Beretta 92 is available in many configurations each with a distinct model name. Combining the various options results in more than 50 different configurations, but the major variants are defined by their operation caliber (92/96/98), operation (FS/G/D/DS) and combination of optional items (Inox/Brigadier slide/Compact length):

Calibers

Each model name starts with two digits identifying the caliber:

92

Chambered for the 9 x 19 mm Parabellum.

96

Chambered for the .40 S&W, introduced in 1990.

98

Chambered for 9 x 21 mm IMI. This option was introduced in 1991 for markets where it is illegal to own a weapon chambered for a military cartridge like 9 x 19 mm.

Operation

FS (standard)

The current production version of the 92F with the only change being the addition of a slide-mounted ambidextrous safety (also acts as decocking lever) and a bigger hammer pin and slot in the slide to stop over travel. It is this version that was adopted by the US Army as the M9 Pistol.

G (no safety)

This version was created for and adopted by the French Military as PAMAS ; it is simply a model 92F with a decocking lever that does not also act as safety lever.

D (double-action, no safety)

The double-action-only variant of the 92F or FS.

DS (double-action with safety)

The double-action-only variant of the 92F or FS that includes a safety.