FIRST LOOK: Beretta 92G Brigadier Volunteer Pays Tribute to Tennessee

Tennessee enjoys a special designation when it comes to military service. It’s known as the Volunteer State, and Tennesseans have long stood up to fight at critical moments in American history. From Andrew Jackson and the Battle of New Orleans to 30,000 Tennesseans raising an army of volunteers to fight in the Mexican-American War, Tennesseans have seemingly always led the way.

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And though historians disagree over which moment was the seminal act to cement Tennessee’s volunteer legacy, the names alone string together its glorious history—Davy Crockett, Sam Houston and Alvin York, to name a few—along with an untold number who have volunteered their service, and lives, for the U.S. military.

Making Moves

Beretta, of course, needs no introduction here. Nor does the company’s commitment to the U.S. military. After its adoption in 1985, the Beretta M9 served as America’s military sidearm for more than 30 years.

In conjunction with that pivotal contract, Beretta USA set up shop in Accokeek, Maryland. There it produced U.S. military M9s, 92s for the civilian market and more. Then, in 2014, in response to Maryland’s passage of the Firearm Safety Act of 2013, which included restrictive prohibitions against firearm manufacturing, Beretta announced it was moving all of its U.S.-based manufacturing to Gallatin, Tennessee.

On April 15, 2016, Beretta officially opened its manufacturing facility in Gallatin. Beretta family members from Italy and Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam were among those in attendance. “The state of Tennessee was extremely excited to have Beretta move to the state,” said Athlon Outdoors CEO Chuck Allen. “The citizens of Gallatin are very excited and proud to have the company locally. The entire state is Second Amendment friendly, and our governor and state legislature actively recruit firearm and munitions companies to the state.”

Beretta USA’s new Gallatin facility is as impressive as they come. With a 156,000-square-foot building set upon 100 acres, Beretta is immediately capable yet poised for future growth. With 300 employees drawn from a local community proud to have the iconic gun-maker as their own, the future is certainly bright.

Beretta 92G Brigadier Volunteer

None of this was lost on Beretta executives who, upon opening the new facility, immediately began plans to create a commemorative piece to honor the welcome they’d received in Tennessee, as well as the state’s rich heritage.

According to Beretta USA’s Erik Stern, “We were very happy to move to a state that embraces the true values of the Second Amendment, unlike Maryland, where there is actually legislation pending in the upcoming legislative assembly session to further restrict and inhibit individual rights. We wanted to offer what we consider to be one of the best configurations of the 90 Series pistol to Tennesseans, with a nod to the state’s stalwart history of defending the Constitution.”

Naming a 92G to commemorate Tennessee is an obvious choice. It also pays homage to Beretta’s long history of service producing the M9 and its variants. As such, Beretta fittingly chose a working gun, one equally suitable for duty or competition, complete with features that professionals demand.

G Series

“The ‘G’ configuration, in Beretta parlance, is the configuration preferred by most subject matter experts (SMEs) who shoot the Beretta 92 or Px4 competitively and/or professionally,” Stern explained. “The long double-action pull with the hammer down is what most SMEs consider to be a more than adequate safety, and the benefits of the ‘G’ over the ‘F/FS’ configuration are innumerable for serious use. The ‘G’ configuration completely eliminates the chance of having a dead trigger if you have to perform an immediate-action drill, for instance.

“Another benefit is that there is no risk of inadvertently failing to disengage the safety on the drawstroke,” Stern continued. “With the work that has been done to optimize the Beretta DA pull, its weight is a non-issue for fast shooting, and the long trigger pull means that you have mostly eliminated the risk for a negligent discharge on the first shot in a stressful situation due to the actual length of the trigger pull. It is my action of choice on any Beretta pistol.”

Along with an enhanced Brigadier slide, the Volunteer includes an oversized magazine catch, enhanced sights and an Elite competition hammer. The 92G Brigadier Volunteer also features some customization. Further, Beretta engraved the slide with “The Volunteer State” and “1796,” Tennessee’s year of statehood. Meanwhile, the striking walnut grips feature engraving that includes the three stars of Tennessee’s state flag.

For more information, visit beretta.com.