Lethal Weapon 92FS takedown?
I'm sure everyone who owns a 92/96 Beretta is familiar with the scene in Lethal Weapon IV where Jet Li removes the slide from the frame while Mel Gibson is "holding him at bay". Well, today I got a real surprise when visiting one of my favorite local gunstores in Athens, GA. They have a new clerk, older guy about my age with a son serving in southern Afghanistan who while talking with a friend who was looking into trading an FNP40 DASA for a Springfield XD in 9mm. During a lull in the conversation I asked him if they had any Beretta 9000S's in the store, I didn't see one in the case and they have a significant backroom stock as well. Well, he looks at me and tell's me that his son is carrying one and he strongly wished he could get him a replacement as Beretta's have a design flaw where a perp could remove the slide from the frame while covered, he went on to say he'd seen it done 3 times. Wrong question as he started into a diatribe on the ease with which it could be done and that the question when posed to Beretta, on their website Q&A said that the answer was to shoot the perp prior to allowing him to grab the weapon. As he has a son serving and there is no reasonable reason to get into it, I let it pass. Once home after the range and 200 rounds downrange through the 92FS, I got a bug in my head and went to the Beretta website and searched all the posted Q&A, yep, not one mention of the Jet Li move. I had my girlfriend hold the 92, unloaded covering me and tried the move as seriously as I could, not possessed of Jet Li's dexterity and coordination, I was still unable to perform the action, especially before she could pull the trigger on a snap cap. I could however use the move taught us which works for all semi-auto's, push shaply against the end of the slide to push the weapon out of battery where it cannot be fired. Kinda like grasping the cylinder on a revolver to prevent it being fired. Both of these moves are only very last ditch effots when out of other options. I send women on a very regular basis to this shop when they take my take my S.O. sponsored course. I respect that the clerk has a son serving and wouldn't "challenge" him in his place of work nor would I go to the owner who is a personal friend. I will however rethink sending any references to the shop in the off chance they would get this guy. The point of this diatribe iw to see if anyone with a lengthy experience with carrying a Beretta 92/96 or 9000s has actually seen or heard of this happening other than on a movie set. My confidence in the weapon is not diminished in any way and my girlfriend made a great point, I taught her and her class that you don't fully extend the weapon at the perp if close in. You keep it close to your body and shoot often enough to have your training kick in under stress. Let me know if you've actually seen this in reality. Thanks for your time.
Just noticed another thing in picture
Shipwreck,
Take your 92FS and actuate the takedown lever, the slide immediately moves forward to the dissassembly position. The recoil spring must be removed from the movie gun as well as it still looks in the full battery position.
Sorry to let this get so next to me, but the guy I took to the shop is relatively new to handguns and the clerk seemed intent on trashing the 92/96 design like it was a personal mission. He was very pro-Glock. I don't shoot Glocks well due to grip angle and design I guess, but have a 22 the S.O. issued me while I carry the approved Beretta 96. I have always looked at the movie scene as
"creative license" by a screen writer.
Again, thanks for working through it.
Scratch
Unclassified shooter Range report
Well, the 92FS did what it is supposed to, I won the side pool by a fair margin over 3 1911's, 2 XD9's, 1 H&K USP40, 1 96FS, and 3 Glocks 2 19's and 1 22.
$200.00 is gonna buy ammo when I can find it locally.
Wally World gets in 2 cases of Blazer Brass 9 x 19 mm and it goes out in hours. I check daily and the last time I was the lucky one, I bought 12 boxes, not the entire stock. Sells for $8.97 a box here. Gonna order 2 boxes of PowerBall 100gr as well for carry.
Thank you to everyone for their input. I appreciate it. Looks like we'll add a 92 Compact to the family this weekend when we go back over. GF has small hands but likes the 92, wants the Compact for the slightly smaller size. She shoots my 96's and my 92 well and having her own as of this weekend will allow her to get a CCW and carry.
We had a woman shot at a QuickTrip in the county seat about 3 miles from the local GSP Post and 5 miles from the County Jail. My GF runs a company that sells and installs high end door locks and other specialty items. She's in less than desirable parts of the Metro area regularly.
Have a great weekend everyone.
The "Beretta strip / grab" as Seen in Lethal Weapon 4...
This may be a little off subject.I am not a beretta fan but know they are a reputable company and have a long history in firearms.I was looking at a lot of disarm techniques and one had a move that by grabbing muzzle portion and pressing a button the slide came off.The 92fs was issued to A.F. security police long after my time.This is what the gun looked like.I thought that was something to file away if the perp had a beretta.I am I correct in this thinking.I also put this as another reason for not purchasing one.Is this true about being able to push a button in front of gaurd to remove slide.
