Thoughts on the FN five seven?

[DDRH]

I shot it back to back with my XDm .40, XD9, HK45, and .22 1911.. The recoil was almost as much as the .40, it has horrendous muzzle flash (range was dark so I really noticed this flashbang effect where the target was obscured by a ring of light).

The gun points well, fells cheap as hell, and loading magazines was easier than other cartridges. I was going to buy one and just rented it to see if I liked it. I absolutely 100% walked away feeling like it was all hype. My brother and father were going to get one too, and walked away with the same feeling.

Its a novelty, and the only reason to carry one is if you also conceal carry a PS90 so you can stick to one ammunition type.

recoil as much as .40? really? i'm confused, because i have both a .40 (HK P2000) and the 5.7 and recoil is NOTHING alike.

[d4v0s]

Almost as much... not equal to as much... Reading comprehension is important.

And yes, with full power rounds (not the blue box only legal in California stuff) the recoil was much more than my 9, and a little less than the fiochi .40 I was shooting.

It is not a gun you can just hold down and unload round after round into a target. In fact, my fast shooting drills showed that I shot my .45 better than all of the pistols that day. I am not your typical calgunner, I actually time my drills and frame the tests in a scientific way. I always do these tests before buying a gun, and the FN Five Seven failed them miserably.

I didn't say it was terrible, for static outside range fun its probably a neat little novelty gun. The OP asked for opinions not "only tell me the positives about this gun".

[Alexander831]

[d4v0s]

LOL, not really a rant when its first hand experience. And I aint mad.. you mad bro?

[DDRH]

Almost as much... not equal to as much... Reading comprehension is important.

And yes, with full power rounds (not the blue box only legal in California stuff) the recoil was much more than my 9, and a little less than the fiochi .40 I was shooting.

It is not a gun you can just hold down and unload round after round into a target. In fact, my fast shooting drills showed that I shot my .45 better than all of the pistols that day. I am not your typical calgunner, I actually time my drills and frame the tests in a scientific way. I always do these tests before buying a gun, and the FN Five Seven failed them miserably.

I didn't say it was terrible, for static outside range fun its probably a neat little novelty gun. The OP asked for opinions not "only tell me the positives about this gun".

understood, you didn't mention the "full power rounds" in your previous post

[fred40]

Buy it....Don't let the 10rd magazine stop you, thats actually a PLUS at almost $1.00 per round.

[JMP]

I'd not want one simply to to fact I don't want more cartridges to deal with unless it's something I have a real need.

[d4v0s]

Well until reading this thread I didn't realize you can't get the hollow points here.

This state simply doesn't surprise me anymore ha ha ha

[12yak]

I've got a FiveseveN as well as many other nice handguns in .22, .380, 9mm, .38 spl, .357, .40, 10mm, and .45. I reload for all of them, including the 5.7 in spite of all the BS about how the round is SO dangerous to reload. I've shot many hot 5.7 rounds as well as all the other calibers and there's NO WAY it has as much recoil as a .40 or a 9mm! As far as I'm concerned, the 5.7 is the most accurate handgun I own, whether its single rounds or double taps. In spite of its 10 round limitation (like every other handgun in CA, btw) I'd be comfortable in any scenario with just that gun. It shoots a .224 caliber round (same as a 5.56 -up to about 50gr) extremely flat, in a round that's about a third the size of a 5.56 so it's easy to carry lots of rounds. If you look at a ballistics report, you'll see that it performs better than 9mm in gel. Those are just some of the reasons why it's in the Secret Service inventory. The FiveSeven is my favorite of all the handguns I own and being able to dual-purpose the round is why I'm planning to get an AR upper chambered for the 5.7 (in spite of the 10 round limit).

[12yak]

Buy it....Don't let the 10rd magazine stop you, thats actually a PLUS at almost $1.00 per round.

I don't know where you shop but I'd look at changing if I were you. Easy to find at .50 per round and if you reload its cheaper to reload than most other calibers. While .50 per round isn't as dirt cheap as 5.56 these days, it's also not going to break the bank. I see a lot of other hangun ammo priced higher than that.

[DonaldBabbett]

For some damn reason Ive been obsessing over the five seven. It just looks so cool the me and cartridge seems awesome. Theres a lot of conflicting opinions on this gun, is it worth getting?

Is the FN 5.7 the newest wondergun since the first Glock and Beretta wonder-nines?

It looks like it fires RIFLE shells.

For self-defense, I'll stick with a good revolver in .38 Special, .357 Magnum, .45 LC or .44 Magnum depending upon my carry or conceal-ability needs.

For the shuck em out fast handguns I have always liked the M1911-style forty-five (I've owned 3 Colt Govt. Models over the years) but I once also owned a Glock 21 in 45 Auto.

[Kyuu]

It looks like it fires RIFLE shells.

Well the 5.7 cartridge is largely identical to the 5.56, just shortened up a bit. That's why it has such a high velocity and flat trajectory compared to most pistol cartridges (also explains the muzzle flash).

The 5.7 is a great cartridge, even minus the armor piercing abilities. Highly accurate and flat trajectory means better at range than your typical pistol, and the small size and weight enables you to carry a lot more (and fit more into a mag, though that's currently a moot point in CA). But the cost of the ammo (versus 9mm plinking ammo in particular) and the cost of the Five-Seven and PS90 themselves make it a bit of a tough sell, no question.

[ILVSMOG]

I've got one that I never shoot. It's cool and I'll probably never sell it, but it's not the greatest thing ever, by any means. Definitely not my first choice if I knew I was going to get in a gunfight.

[_TomT_]

FN would make a killing selling a smiliar looking 22wmr pistol. It probably would have better stopping power as well.

[DDRH]

I've got a FiveseveN as well as many other nice handguns in .22, .380, 9mm, .38 spl, .357, .40, 10mm, and .45. I reload for all of them, including the 5.7 in spite of all the BS about how the round is SO dangerous to reload. I've shot many hot 5.7 rounds as well as all the other calibers and there's NO WAY it has as much recoil as a .40 or a 9mm! As far as I'm concerned, the 5.7 is the most accurate handgun I own, whether its single rounds or double taps. In spite of its 10 round limitation (like every other handgun in CA, btw) I'd be comfortable in any scenario with just that gun. It shoots a .224 caliber round (same as a 5.56 -up to about 50gr) extremely flat, in a round that's about a third the size of a 5.56 so it's easy to carry lots of rounds. If you look at a ballistics report, you'll see that it performs better than 9mm in gel. Those are just some of the reasons why it's in the Secret Service inventory. The FiveSeven is my favorite of all the handguns I own and being able to dual-purpose the round is why I'm planning to get an AR upper chambered for the 5.7 (in spite of the 10 round limit).

This is what i figured, but i've never shot HOT rounds (only blue tip 40gr) so i can't comment on those, but speculating-wise, i wouldn't think HOT 5.7mm rnds could equal .40SW recoil.

.40SW is snappy, much more so than .45ACP
5.7 recoils a lil more than .22lr, but the difference is pretty marginal (HOT Loads may feel different)