Why is FN 5.7 so pricey?

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Good point Rico, when I started shopping them not too long ago, they were still in the 7-800 range. In the next 3-4 months the price rocketed.

Priced me right out of their product.

Whatever the market will bare.
 
The gun is a bit overpriced, in my opinion. The ammo is prohibitively expensive. High quality polymer guns *cough* HK *cough* can be pricey, but justafiably so. In the case of this weapon, I dont even think about it due to ammo prices.
 
A buck+ per round for ammo is more then I am willing to spend for that particular toy. Especially when 22mag is roughly 1/4 that.
When I first saw the PS90 I thought it was interesting, still do. The handgun, not so much. The PMR-30 is more practical financially for my purpose, which is a range toy, and If KT came out with a carbine version, I would have to get one.
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It's about 40 cents per round. The ammo he was talking about is defensive ammo and I haven't heard anyone regularly plinking with hollowpoints.

High quality polymer guns *cough* HK *cough* can be pricey, but justifiably so.
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How? They are just as good as most other Poly guns.
 
The gun was designed around a certain bullet ss19# or something like that which was armor piercing. That round is prohibited from import, we can't use it. That makes the gun ineffective IMO. I hit a hog with hornady ammo and it did nothing. I can also attest to hitting a jack rabbit with it and the jack rabbit bled but didn't die, got away anyway.

This gun was designed for military purposes for guys behind the lines (artillery) and it was to compliment their smg's which were also 5.7 the ps 90. Not a great choice for concealed carry or primary defense. It just matched the round.

So to answer the question another way, is they cost so much BC the American consumer will pay top dollar for it, just like we pay thousands of dollars for night vision so we can be weekend warrior or get a feel for the mil without having to really sacrifice like a soldier.

Mark, esquire
 
$$$

I suppose at .40 a round the carbine would be fun, but still expensive compared to 22mag and 9mm.
I was going to say I wouldn't spend that kind of money on a pistol when I realized I am about to purchase a Colt XSE for more than that and feed it a diet of .40 per round ammo. :D
So in the final analysis, the question is not why does it cost $$$, but can you justify the cost of the pistol? If the answer is yes then buy it and enjoy.
 
I was looking at the Jan/Feb issue of American Handgunner and saw an article about this--> http://www.americanrifleman.org/GalleryItem.aspx?cid=22&gid=142&id=1240 A .22 TCM is a 9mm necked down to use .223 caliber bullets like the 5.7x28mm. I am watching this to see if this round takes off, and if it becomes popular, I may trade off my 5.7 Herstal to buy one. It looks like when the ammo is available, the regular stuff will be more potant than the regular SS197 rounds most widely available for the 5.7x28mm. Maybe not as hotly loaded as Elite Ammunition but maybe you could handload them nearly as much. Something to consider. LM
 
The gun was designed around a certain bullet ss19# or something like that which was armor piercing. That round is prohibited from import, we can't use it. That makes the gun ineffective IMO. I hit a hog with hornady ammo and it did nothing. I can also attest to hitting a jack rabbit with it and the jack rabbit bled but didn't die, got away anyway.
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Hornady doesn't make 5.7 x 28. The SS197 does use Hornady V-max that was originally meant for .223 Remington. You can buy SS190 which is the factory armor piercing, it's legal but FNH does not want to sell the round to civilians due to PR reasons.

@fivetwoseven i dont doubt the quality of polymer at all. That's why the price is justafiable.
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Still didn't answer my question of how it's better than a Glock or XD.
 
Yeah. I have a lot of questions about these too.

Could be vaporware, but excel arms has a competing pistol on their website. Also a carbine version of the pistol, and a separate design (in carbine and pistol versions) with a mag box forward of the trigger. MSRP is a few hundred less.

I get the whole "expensive to produce" thing, but...really? The cartridge ballistic specs don't read like "exotic uber-pressure whiz bang". They read like 22 WMR. I know 22 WMR is difficult to make into a semiauto due to the weak case, but the 5.7x28 has a contemporary centerfire case.

I suspect that market research has a lot to do with the other big names not making a 5.7 handgun. Or, maybe they are prototyping them and have had issues. It may not be easy to make a 5.7 pistol run.

The FN pistol is certainly different looking. Not just a different barrel in an FNP or BHP. My suspicious guess is that the other guys would have to do likewise and make a new unique design for that cartridge only. And then the little issue of selling enough to pay for development costs and production tooling.

On the other hand, I think the 224 Boz is a standard(ish) 1911. I've also seen folks on the internet loading 30 Tok with saboted 224 bullets. That makes me wonder if the FN 57 pistol is actually optimized for the new cartridge in a way that allows for a less expensive-to-build gun?

What is the patent date on the fiveseven? I think we can mark our calendars for the date when unlicensed (i.e., legal due to expiration of patents) knockoffs will be available for much less.
 
As a new owner of one, I can speak for it. The price is on the high side but the overall fit and quality is better than most standard polymer handguns on the market. It has a great trigger. The gun holds 20 rounds of high velocity ammo that is plenty potent for self defense. It also flies straight out to 100 yards while shooting poa.

In addition, the fixed barrel makes it a great candidate for suppression, as it doesn't require a nielson device and you don't have to worry much about point of impact shifts.

There's a lot the gun can do. Is it worth $1000? The only things I wish it came with for that price were a 10x1 threaded barrel and night sights.
 
Rico567 said:
I see that the lowest listed new price of the FN Herstal 5.7 pistol is around $1K. Anybody have any ideas about why a pistol that can't cost any more than a Glock to manufacture sells for twice the price?
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I noticed constantly climbing ammo prices do not seem to slow down sales.....Gun people seem to have limitless pockets.
 
I was waiting for someone to post about the RIA TCM. That looks like the ticket to me. A fair price point. A familiar platform. Possibility for conversion to cheaper ammo.

I'd love to have a 5.7. I think it's an extremely interesting concept and handsomely executed. However, anything I spend around a grand on is going to be made of steel and designed by John Browning.
 
well one of the major positives of the Five-seveN is how light it is. Its weight can decive you into the idea of $1000 squirtgun
 
It's a neat gun and I like FN. I think the price concerns are a bit silly given what some will spend on an AR outfit or a 1911. It's worth whatever price your personal breaking point is. Some people don't blink at buying Wilson Combats by the pair. That's not me, but I respect it.

That said, I have read WILDLY varying reports on the 5.7's terminal performance, everything from "It was like a BB gun" to "It was like a 155 artillery piece, there were only red gobbets left'. For now, I prefer to stick with the service calibers. 9x19, .40, and .45 have put a lot of bodies in bags, and there's a lot of data available on them. For my personal defense, I tend to avoid novelty.
 
You can buy SS190 which is the factory armor piercing, it's legal but FNH does not want to sell the round to civilians due to PR reasons.
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Not in this country.

SS190 is designed, marketed and intended as armor piercing handgun ammunition.

While it does not qualify under the content requirements, see what happens if you get caught with it.

There is no ATF ruling that specifies SS190 as "not armor piercing", as there is with SS192 and SS196
 
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just like we pay thousands of dollars for night vision so we can be weekend warrior or get a feel for the mil without having to really sacrifice like a soldier.
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I'm sorry, but what a complete BS statement. I would expect more intellect from a Baylor grad.
 
I got a chance to handle and shoot one of my brother-in-laws five-seveNs this past weekend with range time yesterday. With the gun field stripped I looked at all of the internals - the fit of the parts, the fit of the upper to lower, ease of disassembly and quality of materials are top shelf. When fired at 58yards (according to my range finder) I was able to place all 20 rounds within the confines of an 11"x14" target. Recoil is pretty soft and allows quick return of the sights to the target. I personally like the location of the safety - ambidextrous and above the trigger, easily reached by my shooting finger or by the thumb of my support hand. The gun is light. The muzzle report was sharp and loud - which I didn't like. I did no ballistics tests. The slide/upper fit to the lower superbly, much better fit than just about every other polymer gun I have handled. Much different from a Glock or an XD - I found the overall finish better. That said, I am not a huge fan of poly guns - I don't like Glocks (especially ergonomics), I have owned an XD (I do like XD ergos) and I would consider owning the five-seven if it weren't for the complexity of reloading the little cartridges. Is it worth $1K? - maybe, especially if you like really easy to shoot accurate handguns.
 
TXSWFAN said:
I'm sorry, but what a complete BS statement. I would expect more intellect from a Baylor grad.
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It's true tho. Simple marketing, or what are your reasons the FiveseveN price is so high - trying to stay on topic without adding ad hominiems? Oh, you haven't listed any. You just want to call BS on my opinion without backing it up or adding anything positive to this forum discussion. WTG

BTW Davidsons Gun Gallery has the FiveseveN selling for $1,300, not a grand like I stated earlier. The price has gone up since I bought mine years ago, that at least is good news to me.

Mark, esquire
 
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My quote of yours had nothing to do with the 5.7. It had to do with your statement about NV ownership. You said, "just like we pay thousands of dollars for night vision so we can be weekend warrior or get a feel for the mil without having to really sacrifice like a soldier."

Your contribution was asinine and disparaging and is simply not true.

As to the 5.7, it's one of my wife's favorite shooters. She also enjoys the 11" 5.7 upper on the M16. Her follow up shots are really fast.
 
baylor,

I'd argue the first ad hominem was you accusing those who purchase certain items of wanting to play soldier. Do I collect WW2 memorabilia because I'm too cowardly to fight, or because I appreciate the history?
 
LawScholar said:
baylor,

I'd argue the first ad hominem was you accusing those who purchase certain items of wanting to play soldier. Do I collect WW2 memorabilia because I'm too cowardly to fight, or because I appreciate the history?
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Nobody called you a coward.

The FiveseveN is a military designed pistol with a military purpose and primarily a military audience. It was not intended for anything or anyone other than military. This is from FN, not me.

My argument was we pay enormous amounts of dollars over and above what gen 3 night vision actually costs like we do the FiveseveN (handgun) because it gives us that military feel that we see on tv. Consumers will pay a premium for that.

This has nothing to do with collecting WWII memorabilia either. I'm a collector of WWII stuff myself, but you have to admit we like to own that stuff so we can hold a piece of history made by soldiers. It's a great feeling, it's worth money, that's why Gen Patton's sidearm if ever auctioned would fetch a lot more than the gun is actually worth were it just an ordinary curio. But again, my argument has nothing to do with collecting memorabilia. We are talking about today's modern technologies and items.

I own gen 3 nv and two FiveseveNs. I'm speaking from personal experience and it is my opinion nothing more, but it also is a valid point as to answer the OPs question of why it's so pricey. Why are assault rifles so pricey or ak47s? We all know they are cheap to make and there is a surplus of many of them.

You need to offer valid arguments and not attack the way I sign my name, which is my personal choice. You don't like me, don't tell me in here and get this thread locked BC we don't know how to act. ;)


Mark, esquire
 
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