Yet, rifles and carbines are expected to provide excellent accuracy at 100 yards or 100 meters.
Does shooting a 9mm round from a carbine offer a significant long-range advantage over a pistol?
When it comes to guns and shooting, what do most of us like to do?
How far can a 9mm carbine shoot effectively? The author shows a reasonably long range of hits on steel at 100 yards, 200 yards, 300 yards and 400 yards.
Sure, we all consider self-defense, but what do we truly like to do more than anything?
Springfields SAINT Victor 9mm may just be the solution we are looking for regarding this project.
Lets see just how far we can shoot a 9mm carbine.
The author sighted in his Primary Arms GLx 2X Compact Prism scope at 50 yards. With the BDC reticle, ringing steel was quick and easy.
The Platform: SAINT 9mm Carbine
Why the SAINT Victor 9mm?
This is where the time-tested 9mm chambering comes into play.
It is also a very pleasant-shooting round.
From a rest, the author was accurate out to 300 yards and beyond with the Springfield SAINT 9mm rifle.
The Springfield SAINT Carbine is an excellent gun that feeds reliably from industry-standard stick magazines.
It uses top quality materials and construction.
I will say it is my preferred choice for concealed carry and home/self-defense.
The Primary Arms optic allows the shooter to get on target fast at close ranges. When properly sighted in, the reticle allows you to adjust for ranges quickly.
For most of its history with the military, the 9mm was primarily chambered in pistols and submachine guns.
It was about 20-30 years ago we started really seeing PCCs introduced into the civilian market.
They really took hold and are now incredibly popular.
The author was able to keep rounds on steel at 200 yards without support. From the bench with a magnified optic, the effective distance doubled.
The reasons why are everything we just mentioned.
Its shy of a 5.56 NATO carbines power, but easily surpasses that of the standard 115 gr.
So What Is the Effective Range of a PCC?
So, what does that mean for us?
We can have our cake and eat it too.
Thats pretty reasonable penetration for a pistol caliber past 100 yards.
At 50 yards, we can achieve MOA groups and easily bang the steel out to 200 yards.
Not long ago, Springfield introduced the SAINT VICTOR 9mm Carbine.
Their SAINT line has been very successful with an outstanding reputation for quality and accuracy.
It made perfect sense to add the 9mm to that line.
I included the link below to the SAINT Carbine for all the specs & tech.
I will be completely honest, it is a real challenge at 300.
The hold-over is somewhere around 6-12 feet depending on the ammo and bullet weight.
With absolutely no wind, it is very repeatable.
The bullet is going really slow at that distance, and any wind will really move it.
200 is ridiculously easy and with little hold-over with a 50-yard zero.
I used a Primary Arms GLx 2x Compact Prism Scope with the ACSS Gemini reticle and BDC.
It was absolutely perfect for this gun.
The SAINT 9mm is light and streamline.
It just feels comfortable in the hands both for bench shooting and standing.
If you are shooting from the bench with a bag, you may find the 32-round mag challenging.
I was very surprised how easily I was able to consistently hit the steel at 200 yards standing.
The 16 barrel really helps with that.
Conclusion on 9mm Bullets from the AR Platform
The 9mm PCC has very little recoil.
Whats not to like?
9mm is cheap, and you’ve got the option to shoot more for less.
That lends the pistol cartridge to be a very fun shooter that is still practical and effective.
And, as Ive hopefully demonstrated here more accurate than many people would assume.
