FNS-9 Compact

[mike8194]

Interested in the new FNS-9 Compact. Hoping to get some dialogue started and see what others think. Looks to be a winner. Comes with 1 flush 12rd, 1 ext 12 rd, and 1 17 rd mag with sleeve. Having trouble finding much info online. Very limited reviews. What do others think?

 

[sinac84]

I'd try it. I like the full size ones except for the stupid manual safety. Wish they wouldn't put those damn things on good guns.

 

[spencer60]

I fell in love with the FNS full-sized gun about 6 months ago, and purchased the Compact as soon as I was able to find one. I've switched to it for carry (relegating my XDs 45 to a backup) and I can't say enough good things about it.

The ergonomics on this gun are just as good as the full size FNS. With the same 17-round mag and the grip sleeve on, this will just feel like a slightly shorter-barreled version of the duty gun. Besides the sleeved 17-round magazine, it comes with (2) 12-round mags.

One of them has a Pierce-style pinky extension which works fine but tends to make the gun print more. The other has a flat-bottomed mag plate that is shaped to give you the best two-finger grip you will find.

The curve at the front acts like a finger scallop that fits between your pinky and ring fingers, giving an amazing amount of control. Yet it's still flat and presents the minimum chance for printing.

The controls are all the same as the duty sized, and you can get it it with or without a manual safety. There is also a choice between the standard 3-dot sights, and 3-dot night sights. Both have the unique FN setup where the front dot is noticeably larger to make it easy to distinguish from the rears.

Accuracy with the Compact seems to be slightly better than the duty sized gun so far. This may be the same deal as with the Glock 26 (in that a smaller gun is more rigid) or it may just be me. EIther way I consistently shoot (slightly) tighter groups with the Compact than I do with the full-sized gun.

It comes with one backstrap that increases the back-swell slightly. Fit and finish are the same as the duty gun (excellent). The pistol is fully ambidextrous, with all controls on both sides of the gun.

Best of all, none of the FNS pistols have those ridiculous finger grooves on the front-strap of the gun (are you listening Glock?).

For downsides, it has the same flaws as the duty gun.

First, the trigger is not great.

If you are used to a tuned Glock or an M&P/Apex trigger, the FNS triggers will not impress you. They are perfectly suitable for a 'combat' gun and they do smooth out after a few hundred rounds, but they will never be great competition triggers.

The second issue is aftermarket support.

There are some sights available out there if you want to swap out the factory units, and there are a bunch of holsters, but other than that there isn't much available. Apex was talking about a trigger kit for the FNS, but nothing came of that. In fact I can't even find a source (including FN) for more of the 17-round mag sleeves.

However the only unique issue I've found with this gun is that they used a different (and worse IMHO) magazine release button. The duty gun has a ridge along the release button that makes it very easy to feel and helps with leverage to push it in fully.

The Compact has a lower-profile button, which makes sense. However I find the button is hard to actuate without changing my grip on the gun, something I never have to do with the duty gun. I understand the desire to keep the release low-profile, but in this case I think they went too far.

That one annoyance aside, I really think the FNS-Compact is probably one of the best carry guns I've run across. I would give it an 8+ out of 10, with a Glock 19 being about a 7.

 

[spencer60]

I'd try it. I like the full size ones except for the stupid manual safety. Wish they wouldn't put those damn things on good guns.

You can get them without.

 

[Cadcom]

You can get them without.

And safeties have been around for like 100 years. They really don't require a PhD to operate. Very similar to an emergency brake in a vehicle.

 

[Cadcom]

You can get them without.

And safeties have been around for like 100 years. They really don't require a PhD to operate. Very similar to an emergency brake in a vehicle.

 

[spencer60]

Agreed, but I hate them on anything that isn't a 1911...