# God looked down upon me from heaven, smiled, and gave me a Beretta



## Lincoln (Sep 28, 2008)

Hi all, newbie member here. :mrgreen:

I'm a first time gun owner and am the proud keeper of a Beretta M9 (92FS), given to me as a gift from a friend who used to be in the service. I had the luxury of trying out several guns at the range before settling on one, from the Sig Sauer to a 357 Police Special (had to get up off the floor after firing that one.) But as soon as I held the Beretta it was love at first shot. :smt1097 It was also the only firearm I was able to shoot dead center with too. 

Other than that though, I know zip about guns and thought you guys could help a newbie dweeb out.

First, what's the best ammo I can buy for the M9? I want something cheap, clean, accurate and ideal for someone who is just starting out. I checked out CheaperThanDirt but quickly got confused. So many manufacturers, and the ammo never says just 9mm like I thought, It might say 9mm Luger or Makarov or Steyr and I don't know what the F^% any of that means.

Secondly, where and what's the best cleaning kit I can get?

Thirdly, I need gloves. I have clammy hands and want to make sure I always have a firm grip on the gun, and also protect the finish from my corrosive hands that's been known to erode even titanium.

Thanks for any suggestions all. :mrgreen:


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## tekhead1219 (May 16, 2008)

Welcome from southeast TX. As far as clean ammo...good luck, they're all dirty, just some more than others. WallyWorld has the cheapest I've found. I pay approx $19.00 + tax for 100 rds of 9mm. It is good enough and cheap enough for target practice. Get a Hoppes cleaning kit and it will come with all you need to get started. Good luck with your future handgun endeavors and congrats on your new acquisition.


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## undrgrnd (Jul 10, 2008)

welcome to the forum first off. as already meantion all ammo is dirty. wwb (winchester white box) is one of the better of the cheaper ammos which can be found at walmart. I also picked up my cleaning kit at walmart but I use hoppes products along with it which can be found at anu academy sporting goods.


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## TOF (Sep 7, 2006)

Welcome from Northern Arizona

First and most important. The ammo you need is 9MM Luger. The other 9MM cartridges are different dimensions. If buying in bulk search out low price on the internet. Don't forget to factor freight and tax. For a box or 2 Wallmart seems to be the best on average.


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## JeffWard (Aug 24, 2007)

Congrats, and welcome to the forum.

Echoing above... yes 9mm Luger... and I buy Winchester White Box, or Remington UMC at Walmart, which ever is cheaper. The WWB is a little cleaner than the UMC.

Ditto on the cleaning kit. Lots of good cleaning products out there. Buy a combo kit, specific to 9mm, and then keep your eyes open for the cleaning threads around here.

Watch your magazine quality on the M9. It seems the ONLY issues people have here with them is feeding issues from poor mags. I'm not the expert on Beretta Mags, but Forum Mod, Mike, serviced a few thousand of them "over there" in the desert, and will have some great advice.

Enjoy!

JeffWard


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## BeefyBeefo (Jan 30, 2008)

A lot of great advice.

I will second the notion from _Jeff_ above that the cheap mags are really the only issues I've seen with them. *But*, I believe the factory Beretta magazines are fine, it's the cheap aftermarket ones that cause issues. I also purchase WWB from Walmart as it's the cheapest. Good luck with it.

-Jeff-


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## Lincoln (Sep 28, 2008)

Thanks for the responses all! 

See I always thought a 9MM was well, a 9MM. I didn't know there would be different sizes within the same caliber. So I assume the Luger is the only ammo I can get that will fit the M9?

No problem with the magazines: they're all Beretta made. :smt023

I might be wrong but I think Walmart is not allowed to sell handgun ammo here (I'm going today to find out for sure though). Welcome to New York, where criminals with guns are treated like citizens and citizens with guns are treated like criminals. I asked for a full carry and stated that I had a constitutional right to it and they all laughed themselves sore for 20 minutes. I hate this state.


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## BeefyBeefo (Jan 30, 2008)

Lincoln said:


> See I always thought a 9MM was well, a 9MM. I didn't know there would be different sizes within the same caliber. So I assume the Luger is the only ammo I can get that will fit the M9?


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/9_mm_Luger_Parabellum

That might help a little. 9mm Luger=9mm Parabellum=9x19mm



> I might be wrong but I think Walmart is not allowed to sell handgun ammo here (I'm going today to find out for sure though).


Walmart no longer sells handguns, but atleast the ones I have been to still sell handgun ammunition. I guess you'll find out for sure when you get there.



> Welcome to New York, where criminals with guns are treated like citizens and citizens with guns are treated like criminals. I asked for a full carry and stated that I had a constitutional right to it and they all laughed themselves sore for 20 minutes. I hate this state.


Move. :mrgreen:

-Jeff-


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## Lincoln (Sep 28, 2008)

Thanks for the explanations on the different 9mm labels.

I can confirm Walmart doesn't sell ammo here BTW. They did have BB guns though, and plenty of paint gun equipment too. :smt083

Guess I'll have to get it online. In the meantime I'll check out local gun shops to get fitted for gloves, assuming there are any around here that is, LOL.


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## BeefyBeefo (Jan 30, 2008)

Lincoln said:


> Thanks for the explanations on the different 9mm labels.
> 
> I can confirm Walmart doesn't sell ammo here BTW. They did have BB guns though, and plenty of paint gun equipment too. :smt083
> 
> Guess I'll have to get it online. In the meantime I'll check out local gun shops to get fitted for gloves, assuming there are any around here that is, LOL.


Really? That's the first I've heard of that. No locked case behind the sporting goods counter? You may also want to try sporting goods stores in your area or even local gun shops for ammo if you would prefer to not purchase online. If you plan to purchase a large quantity, then purchasing online might be beneficial.

-Jeff-


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## unpecador (May 9, 2008)

Not every Walmart sells ammo. The one near my home doesn't but the one near my job does.


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## BeefyBeefo (Jan 30, 2008)

unpecador said:


> Not every Walmart sells ammo. The one near my home doesn't but the one near my job does.


Weird. I didn't know that. Thanks. :smt023

-Jeff-


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## tekhead1219 (May 16, 2008)

unpecador said:


> Not every Walmart sells ammo. The one near my home doesn't but the one near my job does.


Same for some areas here. By my office (called the Gunspoint area) the Walmart doesn't sell handgun ammo. Go 10 miles north and they do.


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## Lincoln (Sep 28, 2008)

Hi all,

Yeah if you're close to New York City Walmart won't tend to sell ammo. Upstate though, where hunting and ranges are more prevalent is a whole different ballgame. Some of the Walmarts up there definitely carry. :mrgreen:


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## Scratchshooter40 (Jun 17, 2008)

*Welcome and enjoy the Beretta. . .*

All the WalMarts in the Atlanta Metro area I've been to sell ammo and do have the WWB ammo mentioned. I am a Beretta believer in that the 96 fit my hand so well that my natural point of aim was coincidental with the weapons point of impact, just natural pointing action. I carry a 96 for CCW and have a 92 that I shoot due to 9mm ammo cost. My 96 has an LMS1441 LaserMax Guiderod laser sight which is dead on at 25 yards into 10yards very little deviation. I have yet to put it into the 92 to see what it will do there, but I am going to try it one day at the range. Take good care of the Beretta and she will take good care of you. I havent had many 9mm magazine issues as I have access to USMC magazines readily and have 10 with the PB stamp on them. I have never had a .40 cal magazine issue with FTF in any way. Get a boresnake to keep the innards clean as well as a good quality handgun cleaning kit with properly sized brushes and Hoppe's solvent. I use Machinegunner's lube from Sprinco for all my Berettas as it is a moly based lube that stays where I put it on the locking block and barrel lugs each side.


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