FN Five Seven, why so expensive?
- Thread starter eldon519
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D-Day
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Probably because it's largely a proprietary design not made popular yet. More tooling/manufacturing costs. Not to mention new and unique.
earlthegoat2
Member
Why is the PS90 so expensive, why the FS2000, why the FNAR, SCAR
Probably has a lot to do with design and development and the fact that no military in the world is latching on to them in great numbers to offset the cost of their civilian sales.
They are very cost prohibitive guns to say the least. They are not overpriced I think but just plain expensive guns.
If you look at the FNP series you will see they are typical cookie cutter poly framed DA/SA pistols and are very deserving of their price tag. Not that they are bad, just not unique compared to the established poly market of Glock, XD, and M&P. If you look at the FiveseveN you will see it is built with a little more engineering in play. Add that to the fact that it fires their proprietary cartridge and is the greatest thing since sliced bread if you ask FN and you see the price justification.
Oddly, the FNP series, which is the most modestly priced firearm FN makes, does not sell well at all.
I am trying to sell off a bunch of FN products for a local store right now because they are eating up inventory. I am trying to sell them at steep discounts so the store can at least recoup their cost on them. The only reason they bought them in the first place is so they could get some SCARs. Big mistake if you ask me. The loss in profits on all the rest more than make up for the substantial profits on the SCARs. The FNARs are the original turd. They just sit there and stink. You have to sell them at a loss to get rid of them.
The thing is that they are all good guns. Just a little pricey. If I were a gun dealer though I would only stock one of a few of them. Maybe a FiveseveN, PS90, a 9mm and 40 and 45 FNP, and that would be it.
Probably has a lot to do with design and development and the fact that no military in the world is latching on to them in great numbers to offset the cost of their civilian sales.
They are very cost prohibitive guns to say the least. They are not overpriced I think but just plain expensive guns.
If you look at the FNP series you will see they are typical cookie cutter poly framed DA/SA pistols and are very deserving of their price tag. Not that they are bad, just not unique compared to the established poly market of Glock, XD, and M&P. If you look at the FiveseveN you will see it is built with a little more engineering in play. Add that to the fact that it fires their proprietary cartridge and is the greatest thing since sliced bread if you ask FN and you see the price justification.
Oddly, the FNP series, which is the most modestly priced firearm FN makes, does not sell well at all.
I am trying to sell off a bunch of FN products for a local store right now because they are eating up inventory. I am trying to sell them at steep discounts so the store can at least recoup their cost on them. The only reason they bought them in the first place is so they could get some SCARs. Big mistake if you ask me. The loss in profits on all the rest more than make up for the substantial profits on the SCARs. The FNARs are the original turd. They just sit there and stink. You have to sell them at a loss to get rid of them.
The thing is that they are all good guns. Just a little pricey. If I were a gun dealer though I would only stock one of a few of them. Maybe a FiveseveN, PS90, a 9mm and 40 and 45 FNP, and that would be it.
Jed Carter
Member
The price will (should) come down if and when other manufacturers offer pistols and carbines in the 5.7x28 cartridge. Right now if you want one you have a choice of... one. I like the cartridge but the pistol that FN offers is not what I would pay that price for, maybe a carbon fiber wrapped barrel sleeve, titanium this and that, it should weigh less than 1 pound unloaded, a smaller concealed carry version, something without the shark fin front sight. I would pay $1000 for a FN built model 1911 in 5.7, but not the FiveSeven, the first one's looked like a Nambu.
Price shouldn't be a major consideration when it comes to choosing a tool that could potentially safe your life. Even if you are only fulfilling a "want" you may as well get the one that fills that need regardless of price, comprimise only leaves you wanting more 
Why is the five seven so much money? Simple, it is the only semi auto 5.7 pistol. When you are the only game in town you are much more free to charge high prices. One can not justify the price of the five seven on build quality etc. (BTW I have shot the five seven a lot and I like it for what it is) It ought to cost much closer to what the other polymer FN pistols cost. If glock (or other top tier manufactures) had a 5.7 pistol priced in the $500s there is no way the Five Seven would sell for $900+.
Good question about the price. I can say this, it's a super good pistol and easy to load, aim, and shoot. It's Glocklike in it's reliability and ease of use, and it's really easy to shoot. Plus you get 20+1 and 3 mags. I love mine. I don't think about how nice a pistol it is until I shoot it. Then I realize why it's such a terrific outfit. I will carry this thing when it gets cooler. I trust it and I should not be running out of ammo in an emergency .
.I agree with your sentiment, but I didn't say I was interested in it for personal defense. I wouldn't trust my life to the 5.7 round from a pistol anyhow. I want one to play around with because they are supposed to be very accurate, and I think it would be a great pistol to take fishing in the woods to shoot at squirrels, turtles, beavers and such.
I don't mean to belittle it, and I'm sure this will get some 5.7 fans jumping to defend it, but my main interest in it is as a toy, hence the irritation with the price.
NMGonzo
Member
ok ... now I want one.
DAMMIT!!
DAMMIT!!
Carl N. Brown
Member
They are more a curiosity item than a general use defense or sporting gun. I have shot one, fun, but believe I would prefer to bet my life on my H&K USP in .40 S&W.
Well I asked the FN rep last time he was at our local gunshop about the price of these and the PS90 and he said it was almost entirely due to the fact that they are made in europe. He said because of the exchange rate and the higher wages they pay their employees that it cost them more to make in belgium. FN refuses to let them be built in the US ( not sure why). I guess we are to belgium what mexico/india is to the USA, and shipping more of their business overseas is not a popular move.
Just look at how much cheaper the FNP series of pistols are that are made here in the states.
Just look at how much cheaper the FNP series of pistols are that are made here in the states.
They're not *that* expensive. Under $1k shipped, new. That's about in the H&K price range (which is a whole other discussion). I don't have one of these but it sounds like an unsurprising price for an oddball military handgun.
Edit: of course what Gelgoog says is true - European-made guns tend to be more expensive.
Edit: of course what Gelgoog says is true - European-made guns tend to be more expensive.
With all due respect, you could insert almost anything after that point in the sentence and I wouldn't be surprised.
Firearms reps are no different than electronics reps, speaker reps, car salesmen, or any other rep: they are given limited training, know a lot less than they think, and some will intentionally deceive to help make a sale.
I'm not saying what he said was an intentional lie, or that it's incorrect. For all I know, he's right. I'm just saying that when a rep says something, I always verify through some other source. About 50% of the time, in my experience, they'll be somewhere between dead wrong and way off.
My BS meter pings on this one because there are a ton of european-made firearms that are very competitively priced, and they suffer the same exchange-rate challenges as the FiveseveN. It's far more likely that FN is recouping their development, tooling, and marketing costs that were associated with building a totally new platform and round.
true, during the same session I asked him about the PS90 and if it was safe to cut the barrel because I heard that doing so can cause the chrome lining to flake off. He had no idea, and said he knew nothing about SBR laws. It struck me that for a salesmen who is selling a long barreled version of a popular SMG, that alot of people would buy them with the intent to SBR them and he should know this.
So while I believed what he said about the FN/PS90 pricing issue, anything else he said I took with a grain of salt. He was pretty much like myself when I was a salesmen in a butchery/fish shop. I knew enough to sell the product, but there was plenty of stuff I did not know.
To be honest, they are probably selling most of what they produce at the higher price simply because they can. Their pistol is a new kind of animal and people like me (sucker) will dole out this money because it's an interesting kind of animal with positive characteristics.
The recoil is negligible (no joke). The weapon is highly accurate at distance - shoots really flat. You hit what you aim at a very high distance. It's kind of akin to shooting high velocity ammo from my 7.5 inch barreled Ruger Mark III 22 but with much more power. It would be a terrific hunting pistol.
As to trusting my life with it, I've shot a couple of large canned hams (past expiration date) with this thing and the amount of damage is considerable. So if i'm ever attacked by a canned ham - i'm comfortable. Seriously, this thing would do the job. Again, you've got all the ammo you need for one or 2 individuals in an emergency.
I mentioned the pistol was Glock-like in it's reliability and easy to take down. I'll mention it again. It's a piece of cake.
Ammo can be had for about 17.95 a box putting it there in 380 territory. So it's not like purchasing Desert Eagle 50 cal ammo. You can actually find and afford to purchase a box of ammo. They make rifles chambered in this caliber so the ammo is not going anywhere soon.
It's a wonderful to shoot pistol (for the whole family) that only breaks the bank once - when purchased. After that - it's about like shooting a 40 or a 357 sig. Certainly less than shooting a 45 1911 unless you load your own. I must add that the ammunition is first rate.
I really enjoy mine. Three hundred and seventy five feet as straight as an arrow. It's worth the price if you really enjoy the far off (for a pistol) targets.
The recoil is negligible (no joke). The weapon is highly accurate at distance - shoots really flat. You hit what you aim at a very high distance. It's kind of akin to shooting high velocity ammo from my 7.5 inch barreled Ruger Mark III 22 but with much more power. It would be a terrific hunting pistol.
As to trusting my life with it, I've shot a couple of large canned hams (past expiration date) with this thing and the amount of damage is considerable. So if i'm ever attacked by a canned ham - i'm comfortable. Seriously, this thing would do the job. Again, you've got all the ammo you need for one or 2 individuals in an emergency.
I mentioned the pistol was Glock-like in it's reliability and easy to take down. I'll mention it again. It's a piece of cake.
Ammo can be had for about 17.95 a box putting it there in 380 territory. So it's not like purchasing Desert Eagle 50 cal ammo. You can actually find and afford to purchase a box of ammo. They make rifles chambered in this caliber so the ammo is not going anywhere soon.
It's a wonderful to shoot pistol (for the whole family) that only breaks the bank once - when purchased. After that - it's about like shooting a 40 or a 357 sig. Certainly less than shooting a 45 1911 unless you load your own. I must add that the ammunition is first rate.
I really enjoy mine. Three hundred and seventy five feet as straight as an arrow. It's worth the price if you really enjoy the far off (for a pistol) targets.
usp9
Member
The used market seems pretty active for these guns, and since they are built so well and quite robust, a used gun may be a great way to save hundreds of dollars.
As to why they are so espensive... I'm guessing the quantity and quality curve met at a peak that some bean counter pronounced as "price point". It is a very high quality pistol, made to military/duty specs that is sold in small quantities. One would think that while the round was proprietary, FN would want to move the guns at modest price in order to sell trainloads of ammo... but I guess not.
As to why they are so espensive... I'm guessing the quantity and quality curve met at a peak that some bean counter pronounced as "price point". It is a very high quality pistol, made to military/duty specs that is sold in small quantities. One would think that while the round was proprietary, FN would want to move the guns at modest price in order to sell trainloads of ammo... but I guess not.
The price will (should) come down if and when other manufacturers offer pistols and carbines in the 5.7x28 cartridge. Right now if you want one you have a choice of... one.
That's true. The 5.7 has been around for a couple few years now and you don't see other manufacturers running to make one quite unlike the 40 S&W. I think you may see the 5.7 around as a speciality cartridge but if it hasn't taken off by now I don't think it will do so.
That's true. The 5.7 has been around for a couple few years now and you don't see other manufacturers running to make one quite unlike the 40 S&W. I think you may see the 5.7 around as a speciality cartridge but if it hasn't taken off by now I don't think it will do so.
LightningMan
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- Apr 1, 2008
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Well there is another pistol made by H&K the shoots a similar round to the 5.7x28mm, it's the 4.6x30mm. See--> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4.6x30mm I haven't even seen one for sale around here. I wonder what the price is on one of these? LM
Landpimp
Member
cant own(unless a class 3 SOT) a MP7, but LE price is I recall(I can look monday) around $1500, they make no semi only version
I have a Five Seven coming, picking it up becuase I have been curious and at the price I will get it at I cant not buy it.
I have a Five Seven coming, picking it up becuase I have been curious and at the price I will get it at I cant not buy it.
ohioshooter
Member
I have one and yes it is pricy but most of the guns I buy are due to the fact that i'm intrigued by the design and not so much as the 'name' behind the gun. once I shot the 5.7 I loved the accuracy of it. It's a gun that brings the attention of others and has made my wife take more interest in shoothing which led her to take the CCW class last weekend.
Starcheck55
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- Nov 20, 2008
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- 164
FN bases its prices on how loud a weapon is.
My local gunstore had one for $950 and I would have snapped it up had it been OD green instead of black. It feels comfortable and very light and I like that it has a high-capacity. The ammo now seems to be much more reasonably priced than before, or at least Ammoman has good prices. The AP ammo from what I've seen is Waaaay out there in price.
I'm definitely going to get one once I find it in OD green but with finite money and a long list of guns i want I'm trying to figure out which one to buy first.
I'm definitely going to get one once I find it in OD green but with finite money and a long list of guns i want I'm trying to figure out which one to buy first.
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