I first became acquainted with the FMK 9mm pistol and its maker late this past Spring in Florida at a writer’s event held at the Gander Mountain Academy in Lake Mary. Like many modern auto pistols, the FMK 9C1 is a polymer-framed pistol with modern safety features which are now required in many jurisdictions of our nation. One thing that makes the FMK unique among pistols is that it is manufactured in the state of California. The Golden State has succeeded in driving most of the gun manufacturing business away, as it is difficult for a handgun maker to build and sell a weapon in that state that will actually fire a bullet down its bore. Most pistol builders in California have either gone away or gone under, but FMK is building pistols in what is the most hostile environment in the nation for a handgun manufacturer.

Lake Mary is where I first met David Wolfe. David was present representing FMK Firearms. At this event, each manufacturer presented their wares, and we had some trigger time with each at the range, but what set David apart from the others at the event was his outward expression of patriotism. The folks at FMK have a passion for freedom unlike any other Americans whom I have ever met. They have an appreciation of our Constitution like I have only seen openly expressed by someone who has grown up under severe oppression in another country. While this article is about a pistol, it is also about FMK’s outward expression of patriotism, as I cannot separate the two. While some wear their patriotism on their sleeve, this FMK wears it on its slide.

I appreciate firearms from all over the world, but still I like to pick up a gun and read “Made in the USA”. On the FMK, the slide reads “Proudly American”, but FMK goes a bit farther, inscribing the entire first ten amendments to our Constitution upon the slide, along with “In God We Trust”. Better known as our Bill of Rights, these ten amendments were expressly added to our Constitution to protect the people from the government. That bears repeating. Our Bill of Rights is in our Constitution to protect us from an oppressive government. Our Constitution acknowledges that these rights are God-given; not issued at will by a benevolent government, but protected from infringement by that government. Anyway, FMK places the Bill of Rights proudly upon the pistol as a reminder to the owner and others that freedom is precious, and is to forever be fought for, because it was won at a price, and must be maintained at a price. The freedom that we enjoy and so often take for granted as citizens was not free, but bought with the blood of patriots, and is ours only so long as we are willing to bleed for it again.

Anyway, FMK has chosen to embellish this pistol with the words of liberty, along with a thanks to our troops and an acknowledgement of our God, and in these days when a bottom-feeding federal judge can prohibit students from even bowing their heads in silence at a graduation ceremony, FMK is neither afraid nor ashamed to stand up for God and country.

All of this would be pretty cool for a special non-firing replica pistol to hang upon the wall, but this FMK 9C1 Gen II pistol is made to serve the most serious of needs; personal defense. While our nation’s founders desired to guarantee each of us the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, there are those among us who seek to deprive us of all three. When one human chooses to violently attack another to gain his property or to do him harm, that attack must be answered swiftly and with equal or greater violence. Self defense is not for the timid. No sane and moral civilian carries a gun with the hope of using it to take another’s life, or to go in search of a fight, but if we do choose to go heeled, we must be ready to use that weapon decisively should a fight come to us. The weapon of choice, by necessity or convenience, for most of us is a handgun. Any handgun is a compromise in a fight. We carry a handgun because we cannot comfortably conceal a twelve gauge fighting shotgun. In choosing our defensive weapon, we must balance size, weight, power, cost, and concealability with our daily wardrobe and lifestyle. Most of us end up finding that balance in a handgun that we can conceal in a good holster or pocket, that is not so heavy nor cumbersome that it is often left at home or in the vehicle. The FMK 9C1 is of a size that most folks can carry, keep it out of sight until needed, and go about our daily lives. The size and weight of the 9C1 places it in the same class as other popular polymer-framed carry pistols. The trigger is of the double-action-only variety, meaning that the pull is smooth, long, and the same for every shot. The 9C1 also can do a repeated strike on a bad cartridge should it fail to fire on the first try, unlike many of its better-known competition, such as the popular Glock design, which must have the slide manually retracted slightly to reset the trigger for another pull. There are no manual safeties to manipulate to fire the FMK, except for the safety built into the trigger blade, which is automatically manipulated as the trigger is pulled. The FMK has an internal striker safety, to prevent accidental firing if the pistol is dropped. It also has a magazine safety to prevent the weapon from firing with the magazine removed. At the rear of the slide is a visual and tactile loaded-chamber indicator. The FMK 9C1 is as safe as a handgun can mechanically be, and still fire immediately when needed. The 9C1 will not discharge unless the trigger is pulled with a magazine in place. The FMK is both Massachusetts and California compliant and approved. The FMK has a black-finished carbon steel slide. The polymer frame is a matte black, but other colors are available as well.

Critical specifications are listed in the chart below. Weights are listed in ounces. Linear dimensions are listed in inches. Trigger pull is listed in pounds of resistance, as measured with my Lyman digital trigger pull scale. Height includes sights and magazine base.

Chambering 9x19mm Weight with Empty Magazine 24 oz. Trigger Pull 7 lbs., 11 oz. Barrel Length 4.02" Barrel Diameter 0.565" Overall Height 5.11" Overall Length 6.87" Grip Thickness 1.13" Frame Width 1.15" Slide Width 1.09" Maximum Width 1.15" Trigger Reach 2.9" Magazine Capacity 14 or 10 Magazines Supplied 2 Accessory Rail Yes

I fired a variety of ammunition over the chronograph to check velocities, with the results listed in the chart below. Velocities are listed in feet-per-second. Bullet weights are listed in grains. JHP is a jacketed hollowpoint bullet. DPX is a hollow nose homogenous copper bullet. EPR is a specialty premium bullet from Extreme Shock. FP is a frangible, pre-fragmented flatnose bullet. FMJ is a full metal jacket roundnose bullet. FMJ-FN is a full metal jacket flat nose Buffalo Bore Penetrator bullet. PB is Pow’RBall, a specialty bullet from Cor-Bon. Glaser is a pre-fragmented bullet. Velocities were taken at an elevation of 541 feet above sea level, with an air temperature of thirty-seven degrees Fahrenheit. Velocities were recorded at ten feet from the muzzle.

Ammunition Bullet Weight Velocity WCC NATO FMJ 124 1021 Fiocchi FMJ 115 1132 Buffalo Bore FMJ-FN 124 1245 Buffalo Bore JHP 115 1288 Buffalo Bore +P JHP 115 1327 Buffalo Bore +P JHP 147 1053 Cor-Bon Glaser 80 1668 Cor-Bon JHP 115 1330 Cor-Bon Pow’RBall 100 1322 Cor-Bon +P DPX 115 1142 Cor-Bon JHP 125 1285 Stryker JHP 115 1024 International Cartridge FP 100 1088 Extreme Shock EPR 115 1124

The FMK proved to be very reliable. I experienced one failure to eject, but that was with only one cartridge of cheap ball ammo, early on in the first range session. I fired a variety of high-performance hollowpoint ammo, and every round fed, fired, and ejected perfectly, even a large quantity of the above-referenced cheap ball ammo. The trigger pull is very smooth, and contributes to good practical accuracy. I did not benchrest the FMK, but fired everything offhand at distances from seven out to forty yards, with good results. Making head shots on a silhouette at fifteen yards was easy, as was keeping all shots well-centered on the torso at twenty-five yards.

The FMK has durable three-dot pattern sights, and windage and elevation changes can be made by switching sights. The FMK comes with extra front and rear sights to make the adjustments, and they are easily interchanged. The FMK 9C1 Gen II pistol comes packed in a durable, lockable hard case with two magazines, instruction manual, eight different sights, and the “Red State Coalition” book.

Check out the FMK pistols online at www.fmkfirearms.com

To buy quality 9mm ammunition, go to www.buffalobore.com and www.luckygunner.com .