9mm carbine selection need help

[socalbeachbum]

I fired a Ruger PC9 this evening at the local indoor range. And a CMMG AR-15 9mm. Was very impressed with the CMMG. Tomorrow they will let me try a Just Right carbine in 9mm which shares mags with a Glock.

Any suggestions as to an accurate, reliable 9mm carbine? maybe Beretta CX or the M1 carbines in 9mm?

any suggestions?

 

[jamesinalaska]

The answer is: UZI.

God and the Uzi have been keeping Israeli families safe and free for 60 years, and they will do the same for your family . . . if you let them.

 

[DPris]

Considered the Colt?
Denis

 

[socalbeachbum]

UZI, sure, industrial strength for sure.

Colt, do you mean an AR-15 9mm Colt?

 

[Scooter22]

I have a early Marlin Camp Carbine in 9MM. Always been reliable and very accurate. Had to replace the buffer once and glue a crack in the orignal wood stock just behind the receive. Still a great gun. I can fire off 10-15 rounds fast on a paper plate at 50 yds. Most in the center 4-5" with factory sights.

 

[clang]

I've got an early Ruger Police Carbine in 9mm.

Nice guns, but they've gotten expensive since they were discontinued.

 

[HGM22]

I'd go with the AR15, but then again I really like ARs. That being said, there is a whole lot more aftermarket parts available to the AR.

 

[JIMMYK]

I would go with a Thureon Defense, they can use Glock mags, and if ya like a little fun get a Slide Fire stock, and rock and roll.

 

[DPris]

Colt 9mm AR-15.
Denis

 

[Snowdog]

One may roll their eyes, but I love my sub 2000. I bought mine because it's so darn convenient when folded. But after a few hundred rounds of jhp this and fmj that, I couldn't be more impressed with the performance. As far as construction, the handguard feels a little on the flimsy side. But it runs wonderfully. The inexpensive 33 round Glock mags are nice too.

 

[chris in va]

My CX4 has been stellar. Super easy to field strip, ambidextrous controls, light and compact package. Mine uses 92fs mags so many options available.

I also like...wait for it...that it isn't an AR. It has a reciprocating bolt handle, a bolt release in the proper spot and there aren't any odd protruding bits like a magazine, grip or front sight.

 

[Redstate]

My Hi-Point model 995 is a great shooter and priced right!



You can spend an afternoon taking it down and cleaning it too!

Seriously... A bit cumbersome to clean but fun to shoot and is accurate and reliable.

Beauty is in the eye of beholder...

 

[Deog]

Agree with Chris from VA.

Cx4 is a flawless piece of hardware. A bit spendy. Light, small, accurate, easy to take down, ambidextrous .
And hockok45 loved it.

 

[Phaedrus/69]

The Beretta Storm is a really fantastic carbine. The OAL is just a tad over 30", very very short. Mine is very accurate and 100% reliable so far. The only real knock is the trigger. The trigger on mine is atrocious. It maybe has gotten better as it breaks in or maybe I'm just used to it being awful! First time I took it the range I thought I'd forgot to disengage the safety; nope, it's just that heavy. Again, it seems to have smoothed out with use.

Down the road I'll probably have Sierra Papa install their new custom trigger parts in it. They make parts that greatly improve the gun and as an additional benefit they're 922r parts if you mod the gun enough to require it (say, SBR'ing it and hanging a can off it).

I'm pretty interested in the new Patriot Ordnance Factory PSG (Patriot Sub Gun). I think it's due out later this year. AR form factor but with a lower machined to take Colt 9mm mags. Nice thing is the price ($999 MSPR) and the fact that being all American made 922r doesn't apply. The Thureon Defense is supposed to be good but it's a little spendier and I know less about the company vs POF.

 

[HRnightmare]

I built an 7.5" SBR off of the CMMG 9mm. I love it. It is a blast to shoot, especially suppressed. My only regret is that I built it before the Glock mag versions (other brands)ones were around. IT would have been nice to have mags that switch between 3 guns
(Glock 17, Sub2000 and the AR)

It takes modified UZI mags which are not that difficult to find. I think I paid like $25 for them.

 

[bikemutt]

I've got a Rock River 9mm albeit in pistol form factor, very solid, very reliable and accurate.

Also, have a Kel-Tec Sub2000 in 9mm, Glock mags, also very reliable and surprisingly accurate.

A Wilkinson Arms Linda carbine rounds out the 9mm fleet, it's one of those rifles that I just like for reasons I can't explain.

 

[Furncliff]

The Ruger pc9 is well thought of, but you may have trouble finding one.
The Marlin Camp 9 is a good pistol caliber carbine and half the price of the Ruger.
The Hi Point is cheaper still and way more reliable than its price would suggest.
The AR might the most fun?

 

[Sour Kraut]

I have a CMMG 9mm SBR. Gas to shoot and very reliable!

 

[eldon519]

My Colt 6951 is one of my favorite guns. It's a good way to train with the AR platform too if you have others. Reloaded 9mm is very cheap to shoot. More fun than a .22 conversion kit but less blast and noise than a 5.56.

 

[MCgunner]

If I just HAD to have a 9mm carbine, it'd be this....

http://www.legacysports.com/m-1-9mm-carbine

Okay, I admit I like the M1 Carbine a lot. I have the M1 22 and it's a way cool gun. The 9 is a little more pricy and, well, I mostly wanted the M1 22 because it was a .22....and it's affordable. But, there's a new inland branded M1 Carbine out that's WAY more than this 9mm version from Legacy Sports, so I guess if I wanted a centerfire M1 Carbine, this would be a good choice. But, really, I've got no use for it. .22LR is a useful round. If I wanna carry a carbine in the woods, I'll take my SKS or buy me a Ruger mini 30.

 

[moxie]

I'm just wondering why, if you move away from handgun size to carbine size, you don't also move up in ballistic capability? The CX4 and similar are nearly 6 pounds, not much less than many ARs. The pistol caliber carbines are about the same size as ARs too.

So why, when the packages are roughly similar in size and weight, limit yourself to 9mm or .45acp when you can have the power of the .223/5.56? Plus all the other advantages of an AR. Optics, grips, big or small mags, modularity, etc.

For training, for fun at the range, sure. But for SD, I'll take an AR.

Bulk ammo for the 9mm and .223 are in the .30 a round range, and .45 acp is usually higher. So there's not much to gain there either.

And that Hi-Point looks about as easy to take apart and put back together as a Weber carburetor.

 

[eldon519]

I agree, a 5.56 or 7.62 carbine is better for HD, no doubt.

For me there are lots of little reasons (many particular to my own circumstances) that make it worth it to me, but no single overall compelling reason. Here are a few:
Cost of cast lead 9mm reloads and ease of straight wall vs bottleneck reloading
Local range will not let you shoot rifle rounds at less than 50
Related to above, can actually see my holes without spotting scope
Similar recoil to 5.56 but less blast which makes it more enjoyable for me and new shooters
Easier on steel targets
For whatever reason, I love the feel of a 32rd stick mag
Doesn't heat up much under rapid fire

Anyway, those are a few of the reasons for me specific to training with a 9mm AR. Many are personal and circumstantial, but like I said, it is one of my favorites. I like it even better than my 6720, but if I could only have one, it would be the 5.56 6720.

 

[DPris]

For certain circs, the 9mm carbine has its place.

I'm currently building up a Beretta Storm as a compact car & house gun, for close-in distances generally inside 50 yards.
It'll be zeroed for 100 & fully capable of max-distance engagement that far out, if it has to.
There is no AR package in 9 or anything else that offers a full stock with such compact handling characteristics.

The Colt AR would have been my second choice. The new one I worked with recently was accurate to 100, reliable, and had identical controls to the .223s I already have.
3.7 million AR accessories available to fit it.

9mm muzzle blast is less than .223, for enclosed spaces.
Cheap to shoot.
Ammunition takes up less than half the space for storage & transport.
For close engagements, the 9mm gains 150-200 FPS through a longer barrel & is perfectly adequate, with the right bullet (go heavy).
9mm FMJ can out penetrate .223 FMJ, in some instances.

The Storm, in particular, is uncommonly handy, dynamic & shootable, with either hand.
Also much more practical to work inside a car and around angles & through doors inside a house.
With the standard Beretta 9mm pistol mag, good capacity.
With a good red dot, quick pickup.
With Sierra Papa guts, major improvement.
Denis

 

[HJ857]

I think the Beretta is a nice carbine but I hate the trigger on it. I have one of the CMMG 9mm uppers and it's been very reliable. On the downside the firing pin (on mine) was terrible and wore out very fast. It's an easy replacement, but still. Also, it's not all that accurate. It's accurate enough, but it's no match grade rifle, not that a 9mm carbine needs to be a one hole rifle. It took a lot of fiddling to get it to run initially.

One thing about AR-9s, they seem like they can be cheap to put togethger, but if it's finicky then it becomes a pretty expensive rifle. If I were to do it all over again, I'd get a complete AR that is purpose built for 9mm rather than use an adapter to convert a standard AR lower.

 

[MCgunner]

I agree, a 5.56 or 7.62 carbine is better for HD, no doubt.

For me there are lots of little reasons (many particular to my own circumstances) that make it worth it to me, but no single overall compelling reason. Here are a few:
Cost of cast lead 9mm reloads and ease of straight wall vs bottleneck reloading
Local range will not let you shoot rifle rounds at less than 50
Related to above, can actually see my holes without spotting scope
Similar recoil to 5.56 but less blast which makes it more enjoyable for me and new shooters
Easier on steel targets
For whatever reason, I love the feel of a 32rd stick mag
Doesn't heat up much under rapid fire

Anyway, those are a few of the reasons for me specific to training with a 9mm AR. Many are personal and circumstantial, but like I said, it is one of my favorites. I like it even better than my 6720, but if I could only have one, it would be the 5.56 6720.

I fully understand the thinking, here. I have a Dillon Square Deal set up specifically for 9x19 as I used to shoot 9x19 in IDPA competition and bought the Dillon for its capacity. I fired up a lot of ammo per week in practice and only the progressive press could keep up. I'd never have kept up with loading bottle neck rounds. So now, I have ALL this 9x19 brass, mold, bullets, etc and add to that the round is cheap to load, WAY cheaper than .223 if you cast. And, then there's compatibility with my pistol ammo. I've thought about buying that M1 9mm just for this fact alone, no other reasons.

You don't get much more ballistically out of a carbine length barrel, but 9x19 +P is a decent SD round even out of a pistol. Don't need no cannon in the house. I'll keep my pistols, but if you feel you can shoot a carbine better, and most can, then go for it. It don't have to be logical to anyone, but you.