Beretta APX
| Beretta APX | |
|---|---|
| Type | Semi-automatic pistol |
| Place of origin | Italy |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Beretta |
| Designed | 2016 |
| Manufacturer | Beretta |
| Produced | 2016-present |
| Variants | APX Centurion APX Compact APX Carry |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 760 g (1.68 lb) (9×19mm) 780 g (1.72 lb) (.40 S&W) |
| Length | 192 mm (7.6 in) |
| Barrel length | 108 mm (4.3 in) |
| Width | 33 mm (1.3 in) |
| Height | 142 mm (5.6 in) |
| Cartridge | 9×19mm NATO 9×21mm IMI .40 S&W |
| Action | Locked breech, short recoil |
| Rate of fire | Semi-automatic |
| Feed system | 21, 17, 15 or 10-round detachable box magazine (9×19mm NATO) 18 or 15-round detachable box magazine (9×21mm IMI, .40 S&W) |
| Sights | dovetailed 3-dot low profile or Trijicon Night Sights |
The Beretta APX is a polymer-framed, striker-fired semi-automatic pistol designed and produced by Beretta.
History
Designed largely for the U.S. Armed Forces' XM17 Modular Handgun System competition.[1] Beretta had offered to provide their M9A3 model at a reduced price as a continuance of M9 procurement program, but were informed that the changes to the M9A3 were so significant that it fell outside the scope of an Engineering Change Proposal (ECP), and that the United States Department of Defense preferred to go through a new procurement instead.[2] Should the Beretta APX have won the MHS competition it would have been manufactured in the Beretta factory in Gallatin, Tennessee. Beretta maintains administrative offices at the location of the first factory in Accokeek, Maryland, but moved the factory due to the Maryland Legislation posture of unfriendliness to firearms makers, dealers, and owners.[3][4]
On February 28, 2017, Beretta USA announced the APX availability for the US civilian market starting on April 15, 2017.[5]
In 2018, two variants of the APX were announced: the APX Centurion, with a slightly smaller frame, slide and barrel, and the APX Compact, with a subcompact-sized frame, slide and barrel.
In April of 2019 Beretta has introduced the APX Carry. Based on the original APX design, it is a single stack magazine variant intended for the concealed carry market.
Design
The Beretta APX represents Beretta's first striker-fired duty-sized handgun. The name APX refers to "Advanced Pistol X" (the "X" referring to a caliber of choice), as the firearm is fully modular and you can change calibers and frame sizes somewhat easily. In order to comply with the MHS specification, the firearms must support different grip sizes to fit shooters of different stature. The APX supports this with replaceable grip straps. The distance from the axis of the barrel to the top of the handgrip has been kept to a minimum of 21 mm (0.83 in) in order to reduce muzzle rise, which increases the ability to accurately fire quick follow-up shots. As specified in the MHS specification, the APX also features a MIL-STD-1913 rail under the front of the frame.[6]
Unlike other Beretta pistols, the APX uses the traditional Browning tilting-barrel short recoil design. The serialized part of the gun is a stainless steel chassis which allows true modular reconfiguration.[6] by allowing the factory black frame to be changed with a number of different options, including flat dark earth (FDE), tan, wolf grey and olive drab. Replacement frames are also available without finger grooves. The slide and barrel are coated in a black nitride finish, except for a newer FDE model that has a cerakote FDE slide and black nitride barrel.
When the APX's striker is cocked, there is a protrusion from the rear of the slide indicating that the chamber is loaded. Unlike a number of striker-fired pistols, such as the Glock, which have to have the trigger pulled during take down, the APX has a striker deactivation button that can be pushed to deactivate the striker, thus preventing accidental discharge, which other striker-fired pistols can suffer due to user negligence during disassembly.[7] Additionally there is also an automatic striker block safety.
The trigger mechanism features a drop safety. If the pistol is dropped, this prevents inertia from causing the trigger to fire the weapon, thus preventing accidental discharge.[8]
Users
Gallatin Police Department [9]
•Wetumpka (AL) Police Department
Poland National Police [10]
Algeria: Presidential Guard
Albania: Police
Honduras: Army
Indonesia: Navy
Lebanon: Army
Kazakhstan: Army
Vietnam: Police
References
- ^ "APX Pistol". Beretta Defense Technologies. Retrieved July 3, 2016.
- ^ "Army rejects Beretta's pitch for upgraded M9". Armytimes.com. February 13, 2015. Retrieved July 3, 2016.
- ^ "Gun maker Beretta celebrates opening of Tennessee plant". WTOP. April 4, 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-04-18. Retrieved July 3, 2016.
- ^ "Because Freedom Matters, Beretta Is Now Making Guns In Tennessee". Forbes.com. April 15, 2016. Retrieved July 3, 2016.
- ^ "Win the Fight". www.beretta.com. 2017-02-28. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
- ^ a b "Exclusive: The Beretta APX Pistol Is 2017's New Duty Gun". tactical-life.com. Feb 28, 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2017.
- ^ Lincourt, Wayne (February 27, 2016). "Trigger Recall : Understanding the GLOCK Trigger - GunsAmerica Digest". Gunsamerica.com. Retrieved July 3, 2016.
- ^ "The Beretta APX striker fired pistol". guns.com. February 26, 2015. Retrieved July 3, 2016.
- ^ https://www.wkrn.com/news/gallatin-police-officers-now-outfitted-with-beretta-apx-pistols_20180326033007701/1077095261
- ^ https://www.milmag.eu/news/view?news_id=2959
