Rental Gun Stress Test: FN Herstal FNP-45

One of the nice things about standing behind the counter is that while I may only shoot a few rounds through a given gun I speak to a lot of people who, collectively, shoot a lot of rounds through a lot of guns and that is a great insight beyond what works best for me. The FNH FNP-45 is an example of a fantastic firearm that doesn’t work well for me but is a great gun for plenty of other people.

The reliability of the FNP-45 has proven top notch, it’s been behind the counter as a popular rental gun for a number of months now without a problem or a single reported malfunction (that I was present for).  It runs dirty, it runs clean, it runs dry and it runs after it hasn’t been rented for a while.  The checkered grips, adjustable backstrap and 15+1 round capacity make it one of our most requested polymer .45 rental guns.  With the benefit of a high capacity, however, comes the downside of this gun being huge, something that a lot of people comment on upon first inspection of the firearm, also something that certainly hasn’t hurt the gun’s popularity.

I am, personally, not a fan of the brick-like ergonomics and the giant grip (a consequence of trying to cram 15 rounds of .45 ACP into a firearm), but if you want something that will run forever and you are worried about having to shoot 15 people at once and think the only cartridge man should ever need is the .45 ACP then the FNP-45 is definitely the way to go.

 

10 Comments

  1. I have a FNX-9 that I bought recently. Overall I’ve been very happy with it. I have run into one issue with it two days ago with a lot of FTFs and failures to lock back on an empty mag, but I’m not sure yet if it’s because of the reloads, operator error (it only did it during weak/strong hand shooting), or a combo of the two. I’m guessing B or C myself. But I’m self-critical that way.

    I’ll have to finish healing from spraining my thumb with a .500 revolver someone let me try with his max-pressure reloads before I can figure out the problem. Funny thing. When you’re used to keeping your left thumb pointed forward on the frame when you shoot, that ridge running behind the cylinder on a S&W .500 will yank that thumb backwards really firmly after you shoot.

    Ow! Still hit a bullseye though. 🙂 but not worth it. No weight training or weak hand shooting until this heals now.

  2. FNX/FNP-45 USG are some of the most underrated guns on the market. FN appropriated a lot of proven mechanical solutions, put them all in the same gun, and the result Just Works. I do like their one innovation of using a coil spring for the hammer instead of the usual strut and spring arrangement. Surprising that hasn’t been done more, since it’s common on rifles, and does reduce the overall size of the grip while giving the designer more freedom in placement of the hammer pin.

  3. Hate to be an a-hole here, but this “…you are worried about having to shoot 15 people at once…” may not be a great thing to write given the current “high capacity” magazine kerfuffle.

    Maybe I’m just being sensitive…

  4. Or Caleb has got her drinking the 1911 Kool-Aid. If we were meant to have more than 8 rounds in a magazine, the Good Lord JMB would have designed the 1911 with a double-stack mag. 😉

    1. the good Lord DID see fit!! there are several top-of-the-line 1911s out there that are high capacity models. Not many manufacturers attempt this feat but the ones that do are beautiful…STI, Nighthawk Custom, Wilson Combat..check em out when you’re ready to drop 2 g’s on a hi-cap 1911.

  5. Ah, the FN! Fits my hands almost as well as a High Power, which is the best fit for me. Now if only that gdg$@%^%$%& Income Tax Check would arrive…Oh Laughingdog, remember, JMB made the 1911 for the Army. The same Army who were so worried about Ammo being Wasted that they insisted on a Magazine Cutoff on their Modified 1898 Mauser in 30-03? He made the Hi-Power for those who know there might be a Ninth, or Tenth, or Eleventh Zed out there. ; )

  6. I was being facetious, as should be obvious by my first post, about loving the FNX-9 I bought recently.

  7. Actually, I have discovered exactly one thing about the FNH handguns that I find extremely aggravating: almost no one makes holsters for the damn things.

    I am very close to selling this thing off and getting a P30 at this rate.

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