I just wanted to post a few observations about the Full size Beretta APX I picked up last week.

http://s57.photobucket.com/use....jpg.html?sort=3&o=4
http://s57.photobucket.com/use....jpg.html?sort=3&o=2
http://s57.photobucket.com/use....jpg.html?sort=3&o=1

The first thing I noticed when picking up the APX is the feel of quality. It definitely feels like a well made Pistol. My example has almost no decernable play between the slide and frame and a very solid feel. The grip feels slim with the medium back strap. I'm sure the folks with smaller hands will appreciate the ability to switch to the smaller size without having to replace the whole frame module like you do with the Sig 320.
I know some people don't really care about swappable frames but I think it's going to become the standard in the years to come.
There are just too many advantages. For one, the Polymer frame is the weakest part of the pistol. If you do screw up a stippling job, you can replace the frame in 5 minutes. You could also change calibers,Grip lengths, Colors, put competition versions with large mag wells.... the list goes on.
Of course, this all depends on Beretta releasing them. Based on the options already out there from Beretta like 21 round magazine, Fiber Optic adjustable sights,night sights etc., I believe they will.


Anyone who uses a pistol hard (Competition Shooters) for example, know just how quickly polymer stippling becomes worthless. That's why Grip tape is so popular. The APX has very good stippling as it comes from the factory. The pistol really locks into my hand. The Trigger guard is undercut and you can get a really deep grip on the pistol. While the bore axis isn't Glock low, it is pretty close. To all who think that doesn't matter, try gripping your pistols as low as possible and tell me how it goes.

The gun appears to built from the ground up to handle .40 caliber. It has a very robust slide.
The serrations may look ugly to some but they allow you to rack the slide from just about anywhere on the pistol. This is a nice feature IMHO.
Anyone running a pistol in a hot humid environment should appreciate this.
The total number of parts is around 45. A little over half as many as the ridiculously complex VP9 that has close to 75.
I believe it's a testament to the thought that went into the gun. It appears to be a very clean design and should be easy to maintain.
The ambi slide stop/Releases work equally well from either side and drops the slide with ease. I can't say that about a lot of other pistols.
The inside machining looks flawless and the internals well designed and robust as well. It also appears to have a milled extractor. There are very few visible pins on the pistol, unlike some of the other new entries. While not a deal breaker by any means, the fewer pins to drift/loose the better.

Inserting fully loaded magazines on a forward slide much better than most pistols i've tried. This should eliminate the need to download magazines because the magazines may not seat properly. Chambering a round with the slide down using a fully loaded magazine doesn't offer any resistance like you get with Glocks for example. it is very smooth.
The magazine release appears to be very robust with a heavy spring. I don't think many will accidentally drop magazines. The magazines lock into the pistol firmly.
http://s57.photobucket.com/use....jpg.html?sort=3&o=0
It's not completely ambi but it is reversible. I really don't want too many ways to eject my magazines so i'm ok with this.

The sights are steel. The rear sight has a ledge to allow one hand manipulation. They are nothing special and will more than likely be replaced at some point with something smaller.

Field stripping the gun is EASY. Some of the early videos made it look way harder than it really is.
I'm not saying TheYankeeMarshal is an idiot!

The trigger is very good as it comes. I suggest you spray a little CLP into the action and put a couple of hundred rounds through the gun before you draw any conclusions. It has a nice short reset.

Bottom line........ I believe this is a very good gun. If you're in the market for a full size gun, I suggest you take a look it this pistol.
I paid $525.00 for mine and I feel like it was a bargin.

Thanks for the write up. Do you feel any pinch between the mag and frame? Like like a little gap.

quote:

Originally posted by Lord Vaalic:
Thanks for the write up. Do you feel any pinch between the mag and frame? Like like a little gap.

I have not. The beveled base pads i'm sure help.

"The total number of parts is around 45. A little over half as many as the ridiculously complex VP9 that has close to 75."

Do you have a count of a G17/19?

quote:

Originally posted by craigcpa:
"The total number of parts is around 45. A little over half as many as the ridiculously complex VP9 that has close to 75."

Do you have a count of a G17/19?

The Glocks are around 34 or so. Gen 3s anyway. They set the standard.

Never shot one. But have handled a couple. The build quality does seem excellent. The trigger however sucked on both the examples I have handled. It might be better in actual use but I did not like the trigger.

I dry fired one at the lgs today. The reset seemed sluggish or less positive. Does your pistol do this. My n=1, but that's all I have to go on.

When I first dry fired the pistol, it was not as smooth as I was expecting. I sprayed a little clp into the trigger and took it down to my range. I saw a noticeable improvement after the first 100 rounds with smoothness and reset. In its stock form, I believe it should be gtg for most users. I'm sure a heavier TRS might suit some better.

I see where Apex is gearing up to produce triggers for them as well as the FN 509 and CZ P10c.
https://www.apextactical.com/blog/?s=Apx+trigger

I need to put more rounds through the gun and see how it goes.

quote:

The serrations may look ugly to some but they allow you to rack the slide from just about anywhere on the pistol. This is a nice feature IMHO.
Anyone running a pistol in a hot humid environment should appreciate this.

I'm not on the same page with you here. What difference does weather make where and how you grasp a slide?

the triggers have thick grease in them from the factory. spraying them out and oiling is key to a smooth trigger.

Rumor has it there's a factory upgrade kit coming as well as competition recoil springs.

quote:

Together with the spring and spring holder striker Competition for APX gun. The competition spring allows to reduce the weight of the shooting up to 150g with respect to the original shot weight

http://estore.beretta.com/it-e...on-assembly-for-apx/

quote:

Originally posted by egregore:
[QUOTE]The serrations may look ugly to some but they allow you to rack the slide from just about anywhere on the pistol. This is a nice feature IMHO.
Anyone running a pistol in a hot humid environment should appreciate this.

I'm not on the same page with you here. What difference does weather make where and how you grasp a slide?[/QUOT
Sorry I didn't make this clear. i was referring to the positive serrations being easy to grasp with wet sweaty hands.

Thanks for the review, O/P.

How is the recoil impulse, and how is it in terms of being flat shooting/staying on target?

quote:

Originally posted by dehughes:
Thanks for the review, O/P.

How is the recoil impulse, and how is it in terms of being flat shooting/staying on target?

My son and I came to the same conclusions. It felt soft and should handle .40s very well. Because of the great texture and deep grip, The pistol was easy to shoot. We both almost immediately wanted to shoot it fast.

quote:

Originally posted by PGT:
the triggers have thick grease in them from the factory. spraying them out and oiling is key to a smooth trigger.

Rumor has it there's a factory upgrade kit coming as well as competition recoil springs.

quote:

Together with the spring and spring holder striker Competition for APX gun. The competition spring allows to reduce the weight of the shooting up to 150g with respect to the original shot weight

http://estore.beretta.com/it-e...on-assembly-for-apx/

Beretta doesn't seem to be wasting time with the accessories. I believe it was released in Europe first so that maybe why.

quote:

i was referring to the positive serrations being easy to grasp with wet sweaty hands.

OK, makes sense now.

quote:

Originally posted by Jupiter:

Beretta doesn't seem to be wasting time with the accessories. I believe it was released in Europe first so that maybe why.

Also...they have heard their customers loud and clear. Its ridiculous to wait two years for spares or for accessories.

Want a successful launch? Make stuff available at the same time as the gun.

Now, if they could just get the threaded barrels on the market...

quote:

Originally posted by PGT:

quote:

Originally posted by Jupiter:

Beretta doesn't seem to be wasting time with the accessories. I believe it was released in Europe first so that maybe why.

Also...they have heard their customers loud and clear. Its ridiculous to wait two years for spares or for accessories.

Want a successful launch? Make stuff available at the same time as the gun.

Now, if they could just get the threaded barrels on the market...

This says "out of stock" but it looks like they had them or will have them soon.
http://www.berettausa.com/en-u...hreaded-barrel-9mm-/

RMR options are coming as well.
http://www.thefirearmblog.com/...ttas-new-apx-nra-17/

I got to dry fire an APX in LGS yesterday.

I liked the trigger. I bet after a few hundred dryfires it would be very nice.

quote:

Originally posted by RichardC:
I got to dry fire an APX in LGS yesterday.

I liked the trigger. I bet after a few hundred dryfires it would be very nice.

First time handling one I found the APX quite likable. The full slide serrations look odd but functionally make sense. Takedown took a bit to figure out. Average trigger as strikers go but it's serviceable and probably won't drive anyone nuts like a that of a Glock or worse yet, M&P 1.0. To me, Beretta studied the competition well, took notes and came up with a pretty good gun, far better than their last striker, the Nano.

Between the CZ P10 and Beretta's APX, I like the APX better.

More character.