The FN FNX pistol is a series of semi-automatic,

polymer A polymer (; Greek '' poly-'', "many" + ''-mer'', "part") is a substance or material consisting of very large molecules called macromolecules, composed of many repeating subunits. Due to their broad spectrum of properties, both synthetic a ...

- framed

pistol A pistol is a handgun, more specifically one with the chamber integral to its gun barrel, though in common usage the two terms are often used interchangeably. The English word was introduced in , when early handguns were produced in Europe, an ...

s manufactured in

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city ...

, by FN America (branded ''FNH USA''), a division of Fabrique Nationale d'Herstal.FNX pistols are made in Columbia, SC, although marked with "Fredericksburg, VA" on the slide, indicating not the place of manufacture but the registered location of FNH's Federal Firearms License. The pistol is chambered for the

9×19mm Parabellum The 9×19mm Parabellum (also known as 9mm Parabellum or 9mm Luger or simply 9mm) is a rimless, tapered firearms cartridge. Originally designed by Austrian firearm designer Georg Luger in 1901, it is widely considered the most popular handgun a ...

, .40 S&W, and

.45 ACP The .45 ACP ( Automatic Colt Pistol) or .45 Auto (11.43×23mm) is a rimless straight-walled handgun cartridge designed by John Moses Browning in 1904, for use in his prototype Colt semi-automatic pistol. After successful military trials, it ...

cartridge Cartridge may refer to: Objects * Cartridge (firearms), a type of modern ammunition * ROM cartridge, a removable component in an electronic device * Cartridge (respirator), a type of filter used in respirators Other uses * Cartridge (surname), a ...

s. It was introduced in 2009 as the successor to the

FN FNP The FN FNP pistol is a series of semi-automatic, polymer- framed pistols manufactured in Columbia, South Carolina, by FNH USA, a division of Fabrique Nationale de Herstal. The handgun debuted in early 2006 and is variously chambered for the 9×1 ...

Standard features

All variations of the pistols (save some law enforcement models that are decock only) include ambidextrous safety/decocking levers,

magazine release A magazine is an ammunition storage and feeding device for a repeating firearm, either integral within the gun (internal/fixed magazine) or externally attached (detachable magazine). The magazine functions by holding several cartridges with ...

s, and

slide stop A slide stop, sometimes referred to as a slide lock or slide release, on a semi-automatic handgun is a function that visually indicates when a handgun has expended all loaded ammunition and facilitates faster reloading by pulling back the slide o ...

release levers. All variations also include a

Picatinny rail The Picatinny rail ( or ), or Pic rail for short, also known as a MIL-STD-1913 rail, 1913 rail or STANAG 2324 rail (cancelled), is a military standard rail interface system that provides a mounting platform for firearm accessories. It was o ...

, tritium night

sights A sight is an aiming device used to assist in visually aligning ranged weapons, surveying instruments or optical illumination equipments with the intended target. Sights can be a simple set or system of physical markers that have to be aligne ...

, and a

loaded chamber indicator file:M16A2 Safety Closeup.jpg, Close-up shot of a safety of an M16 rifle, M16A2 rifle In firearms, a safety or safety catch is a mechanism used to help prevent the accidental discharge of a firearm, helping to ensure safer handling. Safeties ca ...

on the right side. New models are sold in a plastic hard case with three magazines, and two interchangeable backstraps. As of 2012, new models include 4 interchangeable backstraps rather than two. One is shipped on the handgun and three extra are in the case. The backstraps are two different thicknesses and two different patterns (a cross-hatch pattern similar to the sides of the grip, and horizontal lines similar to the front of the grip). Field stripping is accomplished by locking the slide to the rear, rotating the takedown lever clockwise ninety degrees and releasing the slide stop while carefully allowing the slide to be pushed forward out of the frame. The barrel and recoil spring then separate from the slide to complete the disassembly procedure.

Joint Combat Pistol Competition

The FNP-45 Tactical was developed to be entered into the Joint Combat Pistol from late 2005 to early 2006 for a new military sidearm to replace the M9 Pistol. The program was started in 2005 and run by

USSOCOM The United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM or SOCOM) is the unified combatant command charged with overseeing the various special operations component commands of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force of the United States Ar ...

which was a merger of two earlier programs, the army's Future Handgun System (FHS) and the Special Operations Forces Combat Pistol. The requirements for the JCP included being chambered for caliber .45 ACP, having an integrated

, including day/night sights, and being capable of accepting a suppressor. The FNP™-45 Tactical was offered with a 15-round magazine for the required .45 ACP caliber.

Variants

As of the beginning of October 2012, the only variants of the FNX 9 and FNX 40 pistol were purely cosmetic: both the FNX-9 and FNX-40 are available with the slide finished in matte black or stainless steel. The FNX 45 was released at the beginning of October 2012. It is currently available in Black, Stainless, and FDE (flat dark earth). The FNX 45 has magazines that come with 12 witness holes, numbering from 4 to 15, enabling the shooter to more accurately gauge the number of rounds left. This is in contrast to the original FNX having a hole marked 5, 10, and 14, for the FNX 40, or 5, 10, 15, 17 for the FNX 9. The FNX Tactical was released in .45 ACP shortly after the initial production runs of the FNX 45. It features a threaded barrel, Suppressor height tritium night sights "rear yellow front green" and a milled slide to install optics like a micro red dot sight. Is available in FDE and black color options.

Function

The FNX is a short

recoil operated Recoil operation is an operating mechanism used to implement locked breech, autoloading firearms. Recoil operated firearms use the energy of recoil to cycle the action, as opposed to gas operation or blowback operation using the pressure of the p ...

pistol, much like many other centerfire pistols on the market. Its difference lies in the distance the barrel and the slide travel prior to the barrel dropping and unlocking. The FNX barrel and slide travel up to twice the distance of some other semiautomatic pistols before separating. This helps to reduce the felt recoil of the pistol by allowing the spring to absorb more momentum from both the barrel and the slide. The pistol is hammer fired, as opposed to striker fired; this allows the pistol to be fired in either

Single Action A trigger is a mechanism that actuates the function of a ranged weapon such as a firearm, airgun, crossbow, or speargun. The word may also be used to describe a switch that initiates the operation of other non-shooting devices such as a trap, ...

Double Action Double action (or double-action) refers to one of two systems in firearms where the trigger both cocks and releases the hammer. *Double-action only (DAO) firearms trigger: The trigger both cocks and releases the hammer. There is no single-action f ...

mode. Its safety mechanism is based on the safety found on a

M1911 The M1911 (Colt 1911 or Colt Government) is a single-action, recoil-operated, semi-automatic pistol chambered for the .45 ACP cartridge. The pistol's formal U.S. military designation as of 1940 was ''Automatic Pistol, Caliber .45, M1911'' for th ...

. It is possible to cock the hammer to the rear and engage the safety simultaneously to carry the weapon "cocked and locked". The safety lever acts as a

decocker Close-up shot of a safety of an M16A2 rifle In firearms, a safety or safety catch is a mechanism used to help prevent the accidental discharge of a firearm, helping to ensure safer handling. Safeties can generally be divided into subtypes su ...

when pushed downward.

References

External links

* * —FNH USA
Owner's manual
{{FN Herstal firearms FN Herstal firearms 9mm Parabellum semi-automatic pistols .40 S&W semi-automatic pistols .45 ACP semi-automatic pistols Weapons and ammunition introduced in 2009 Semi-automatic pistols of the United States