The Beretta APX (Advanced Pistol X) is a modern, lightweight pistol designed by firearms company, Beretta.
History[]
In 2011, the United States Army and Airforce released a request in favor of replacing the aging Beretta M9 service pistols which had seen service for nearly thirty-five years. Due to multiple delays within the event, deadlines would be pushed to February of 2016, which allowed Beretta to design their own concept firearm to replace the 92 models. Originally, Beretta opted to re-propose their M9A3 design to replace the original M9 model, however it was decided that the changes which occurred to the M9A3 were too significant to find wide-spread military service. The United States Department of Defense also preferred to undergo the choice of having an entirely newly designed pistol as well. Beretta would begin work on their design in 2016, and wanted the pistol to be aimed for the police and military market. The choice of allowing the pistol to chambered in the round of choice by the user is what denotes the "X" in APX. It was also insisted that the need of a hammer to cock the firearm would be unnecessary, and it was settled for a striker-fired system, similar to the Glock's design. Another benefit of this is that it allows the firearm to be fully modular, and can change pieces like frames and the slide fairly easily. Grip sizes can also differ upon the users request, judging by their hand-size. Ultimately, the APX would not be the pistol of choice that would see success in the XM17 Modular Handgun System competition, with the SIG Sauer P320 design being the eventual victor of the trials. However, the handgun has since seen success with limited usage by police forces in certain countries, most notably in Brazil, France, and the United States. Other users such as Albania settled the pistol as the sidearm of choice for their counter-terrorism agencies. To further compensate, the APX would be released for retail to the civilian market, which would increase sales and also would lead to the creation of different variations for the firearm. Three variants of the APX would be announced by Beretta in 2018, thus being the Centurion, a model with a smaller frame, Compact, a model with a sub-compact frame, slide, and barrel, and the Combat, which had a threaded barrel and a MIL-STD-1913 rail mounted upon the side. However, variants of the firearm would not conclude in 2018. 2019 brought upon a year in which Beretta would release the Carry design for the APX. It would be produced with a single-stack magazine, and compact design which would be aimed at those willing to conceal-carry pistols.
Design Details[]
The weapon benefits from a simplistic, yet modular design. Many features upon how the firearm works were inspired by the Glock series of pistols, such as opting for a striker-fire operation system, availability in common pistol cartridge's, and the choice to use a polymer-frame instead of steel or metal. Another choice that differs from most Beretta pistols is the tilting-barrel, short-recoil system, a design created by John Browning. A drop-safety mechanism was also institutionalized for the handgun, which in-turn means that the weapon will not accidently misfire by inertia if the handgun were to be dropped. High-modularity for the pistol was also a choice by Beretta. Especially present is the wide availability of different frames for the APX, with models existing in olive drab, tan, dark earth, and grey. Frames that do not have finger-groves present are also available to civilians. The frame of the weapon consists of the iron sights, which are dovetail 3-dot sights, some models are also produced with Trijicon night sights. The handgun utilizes a MIL-STD-1913 rail beneath the front of the frame, which allows users to mount accessories such as laser-sights or flashlights upon the pistol.
Ammunition[]
The APX is designed to be available in three different calibers. 9×19mm Parabellum, 9×21mm IMI, and .40 S&W are all available in models to purchase. Magazine size produced with the handgun also differ depending on which caliber is utilized. 9×19mm box magazines are present in 10, 15, 17, or even 21-round detachable magazines. 9×21mm IMI is limited to a 15-round detachable box magazine, as well as .40 S&W, which is fed from an 18-round box magazine.
Variants[]
Italian[]
Centurion[]
Model produced with a slightly-smaller frame to compensate comfort in some shooters.
Compact[]
Model produced with a sub-compact frame, slide, and barrel. Aimed at sales in the concealed carry market.
Target[]
Model designed for usage in shooting competitions, with features such as a slightly-longer barrel.
Combat[]
Model designed with a threaded-barrel and excess picatinny rail mounted to the side of the pistol.
Carry[]
Model produced as an even more compact variation of the Compact model. Features a single-stack magazine.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- The APX is the first striker-fire designed pistol by Beretta.