Posted: 8/1/2025 4:29:59 PM EDT
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The full story with some Cougar history: I posted this in the general discussion, but it should belong here. In 1996, I bought my Beretta Cougar in .40S&W for $550 and I still enjoy shooting it in .40, but I somewhat regret not buying it in 9mm, mostly because 9mm is much cheaper to practice with. I did some research to see if a caliber swap was do-able and found that this caliber swap was more involved than just replacing the barrel and using a 9mm magazine. While the 9mm barrels fit perfectly in the .40 slides (Beretta made the .40 version first, then adapted the design to fire 9mm), because their diameters are the same, there were other differences that might have made a reliability difference. The recoil spring assemblies are different as are the extractors, to begin with. The killer though was the slide assemblies are different because the breech face machining diameter is wider for the .40 vs the 9mm - makes sense though. Fortunately, after asking a few members online to measure their 8000 frames, the dimensions were the same at the rails, so in theory, an 8000 slide should fit on an 8040 receiver. Regardless, I realized I'd need a complete slide with a barrel and recoil spring. I had also emailed BerettaUSA previously about the possibility of interchanging complete slide assemblies, but they cautioned me not to do it. However, as my wife says, if you tell me something is impossible, I'll try it. Beretta had made the Cougar (1994-2004) in Model-F (DA/SA with decocker/safety), Model D (Double action only with no hammer spur or decock levers), and G (Decock only, no safety). I wanted to stick with the F-model to keep slide and receiver functions the same. I also wanted it reasonable because Beretta parts tend to be pricey. Good luck, right? The last few years I've been searching for a 9mm F-model slide assembly that was reasonably priced, but most of the ones I found were Stoeger Cougar slides. Stoeger got the machinery from Beretta to make the 8000-series pistols after Beretta stopped producing them and made them for a number of years (2006-2017). Stoeger slides are mostly interchangeable (the central block and recoil spring assembly are a little different) with Berettas, but I wanted to keep the gun all Beretta and besides, I never really liked the way Stoeger reprofiled the slides. Beretta 8000 Model-F slides are hard to come by and when you do find one, they're around $400 and up, usually without the barrel. New Beretta 9mm barrels from Midwest are $257 alone! I didn't want to sell my 8040 either to fund an 8000, I just wanted to be able to switch barrels and mags, like I do with my G23 and BHP .40. Recently, I found an EE seller selling a complete 8000F slide assembly and all the receiver parts for $165 in excellent condition, so I jumped on it. It arrived today and it all fits and functions perfectly! The entire slides swap smoothly and are equally tight. All the levers work and the gun cycles snap caps perfectly - just got to get it to the range now. Here are some pics: Here's my Cougar in .40 with the 9mm slide assembly and magazine below it. The bag on the left are all the additional parts that came with the 9mm slide.  In 9mm with the .40 slide assy and magazine below.  A comparison of the 9mm (top) and .40 (bottom) parts.  Mags for both. Unneutered mags for the 9mm are 15 rounds and 11 rounds for the .40. The bad - both are hard to find and expensive. The good - they're dimensionally the same as the Beretta 92/96 magazines, which are plentiful. The only difference is the location of the release slot. However, there are plenty of videos of guys machining the extra slot so 92/96 mags can be used in Cougars. I could use one more original .40 mag and five 9mm mags if anyone is willing to sell them to me.   |
USAF-retired, GOA, FPC
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Originally Posted By doublecheez: Have a Beretta 8040 which I think is a keeper. Nice informative post. Considering doing this. Thank you. Here's an update...I decided to try to make my own mags using some of the buttload of 92FS mags I have laying around. I used mil/LEO only mags and converted five. Here are four of the converted mags lined up with an original Beretta 8000 mag at the top for reference. If you want to see how well the mags fit, the gun in the picture has one of my created mags inserted. The fit is outstanding. I did notice in the picture the second mag from the top had a stuck follower and fixed later.  Here's a closeup of my handiwork. The bottom mag is an original for the 8000 and above it is one of the five I made using a 92FS mag. The notch on the left is the original one for the 92 and the notch on the right is the one I cut out for the Cougar. I did scratch the mag finish a little when I was using the jewelers files to finish the slot, but I can live with that. So, the process: 1. I started by carefully measuring where the new slot should be then marked the rectangular area with a silver Sharpie. 2. I used a worn (small diameter) Dremel cutting wheel and cut just enough of a starting notch to be able to insert jewelers files. 3. I used several jewelers files to finish forming the rectangular opening as close to the original slot shape as possible. 4. Important Note: The ejector bottom hit the top of some of the magazines preventing them from locking smoothly. The fix was to very gently file the outer left lip of the magazines from a square surface to rounded. It just needed a hair, it's almost imperceptible. The reason is that the .40 ejector sits to the left about 1mm compared to a 9mm ejector, so when some mags are inserted, the top of the mag hits the ejector squarely rather than sliding past it. By filing the mag top to a rounded shape, it would shift right just a hair and clear the extractor. 
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USAF-retired, GOA, FPC
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Interesting. I picked up a barely used 8040 a few years ago, got it dirt cheap as nobody {but me} seemed to have any interest in it. I think the Cougar was an underrated pistol. Good looking gun, too. I do find the grip a bit thick. I do believe I will keep it in .40, as I've started to have an interest in carrying .40 again. |
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Nice conversion, and the mag slot cut looks good. Just put tape on the mags before filing them if the scratches bother you. I like these caliber conversions. I am still waiting on Beretta to release their factory .32 conversion for the 80X, just for fun. I know there is an aftermarket company making barrels now, but Im kot in a hurry. |
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Originally Posted By mikebaker1129: Thanks for the informative post. I am thinking about doing the opposite caliber conversion on a stoeger. I have a .40 Stoeger parts kit and a Stoeger 9mm Cougar. Did you swap the ejector? No, I left the .40 ejector in place and so far, no issues. If you do your conversion, would you do me a favor and take a few pics and some measurements of your ejector relative to fixed locations on the frame? I looked at the parts breakdown for an 8000 and 8040 and indeed they have different ejectors, although they look identical except for a small nub at the end of the 9mm ejector - maybe the 9mm needs to eject sooner? I'd like to see if there are any positional differences in the two (i.e., does one sit further inward or forward than the other). If I start having ejection issues, I may switch to the 9mm ejector for both calibers. .40 & .357 Sig ejector (courtesy Numrich)  9mm ejector (courtesy Numrich) 
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USAF-retired, GOA, FPC
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Originally Posted By sparkyfender2: Interesting. I picked up a barely used 8040 a few years ago, got it dirt cheap as nobody {but me} seemed to have any interest in it. I think the Cougar was an underrated pistol. Good looking gun, too. I do find the grip a bit thick. I do believe I will keep it in .40, as I've started to have an interest in carrying .40 again. I think they're pretty good guns, but I agree, they're a bit thick. So is the 92/M9. Maybe the Italians have big hands or something. For the thickness reason, I've left the thin factory grips on mine, although I'd like to find a thin pair of rubber grips. Unfortunately, they seem to be unicorns. You know, on the plus side, although the factory .40 hicaps are only 11 rounds (and very expensive if you can find any), you can easily modify flush-fit, reliable, Mecgar 13-rounders to bring the gun closer to modern capacities. |
USAF-retired, GOA, FPC
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Originally Posted By Jambalaya: Nice conversion, and the mag slot cut looks good. Just put tape on the mags before filing them if the scratches bother you. I like these caliber conversions. I am still waiting on Beretta to release their factory .32 conversion for the 80X, just for fun. I know there is an aftermarket company making barrels now, but Im kot in a hurry. The scratches are only superficial, so they don't bother me at all, for now. If everything works consistently and reliably, I'll probably sell the converted mil-spec mags and modify either Mec-Gar or factory Beretta 18-rounders and keep them. At that point, I'd probably use tape to protect the finish though. I'm a fan of conversions too, especially if they extend the life of a gun or give it a different capability. With that in mind, I have 9mm and .357 Sig barrels for my G23 and both work great. I also have a 9mm Barsto conversion barrel for my .40 HiPower. Two weeks ago I modified a 7.62x25mm Polish Tokarev barrel bushing to fit a Chinese 9mm Tokarev barrel and spring so my Tokarevs can be fired more often with cheaper 9mm ammo. I haven't shot them yet, so I don't know if I'll need to get a 9mm Tokarev mag too - I've read sometimes they can simply use 7.62 mags. |
USAF-retired, GOA, FPC
| Cool project. IIRC the 8040G variant was produced to try and get Houston PD to adopt it when they transitioned to a more restrictive firearms policy. Previously they were an "anything between 38/9 and 44/45acp." I got to shoot one of my coworker's 8040Gs and it was a fantastic pistol. I was carrying a 96G Elite at the time. Too bad more officers didn't buy them as production probably would have continued at least for a bit. |
Crap Magnet Extraordinaire
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My dad bought an 8045D to test for a PD transition around 1997-1998. He absolutely loved the gun. I've thought about looking for an 8000, 8357, and 8040 just to have them all but I think trying to find them all as D models might be pretty tough. Cool project OP. |
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I bought a few of the ProMag magazines and they all work just fine with 40 and 9mm. First ProMags I have ever seen that work well. Fun Fact: They lock and feed fine in a sig pro 2022 as well, but won't hold the slide on the last shot. |
Originally Posted By Det0nate: It takes a special kind of retard to argue the wrong side of second grade spelling.
What made you pick that particular quote for your sig-line?
--Swindle1984
What made you pick that particular quote for your sig-line?
--Swindle1984
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Originally Posted By Ohio: I bought a few of the ProMag magazines and they all work just fine with 40 and 9mm. First ProMags I have ever seen that work well. Fun Fact: They lock and feed fine in a sig pro 2022 as well, but won't hold the slide on the last shot. I never tried a ProMag in the Cougar, nor will I ever, but I'm glad it works for you and it's an option. I've had bad experiences with the ProMags I've bought over the years so I stay away now. Yes, mags for the Cougar will fit and work in the 2022 - except for the slide lock, but they stick out about 1/4", even though they're the same capacity. Sig got 15 rounds into their mag by making it wider and shorter, while Beretta did it with a thinner, longer mag, so Beretta mags in the 2022 are loose. |
USAF-retired, GOA, FPC
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If anyone is interested, I listed my Cougar 8000 9mm slide, barrel, and 2 mags for sale. Just trying to raise funds for a new purchase. https://www.ar15.com/exchange/topicEE.html?b=7&f=89&t=2590661&tl=Beretta-Cougar-8000-9mm-Slide-Barrel-and-2-Mags&type=1&page=1 |
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FYI, GB has a seller listing a Stoeger Cougar 8000 repair parts set (everything except the receiver) currently going for $84. This is an inexpensive alternative to getting Beretta parts for a conversion. GunBroker link |
USAF-retired, GOA, FPC
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Originally Posted By CarlosC: FYI, GB has a seller listing a Stoeger Cougar 8000 repair parts set (everything except the receiver) currently going for $84. This is an inexpensive alternative to getting Beretta parts for a conversion. GunBroker link I bid 100 and was immediately outbid. I bought a Beretta "D" model and really dislike the action. Some day I'll convert it to regular operation if possible. I'll probably sacrifice the parts from one of the Stoegers to do it. |
Originally Posted By Det0nate: It takes a special kind of retard to argue the wrong side of second grade spelling.
What made you pick that particular quote for your sig-line?
--Swindle1984
What made you pick that particular quote for your sig-line?
--Swindle1984
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Originally Posted By Ohio: I bid 100 and was immediately outbid. I bought a Beretta "D" model and really dislike the action. Some day I'll convert it to regular operation if possible. I'll probably sacrifice the parts from one of the Stoegers to do it. I checked a couple of times after your bid and the guy who won was with that bid he used. |
USAF-retired, GOA, FPC
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Originally Posted By Ameshawki: I think Beretta screwed the pooch on these by not using 92 mags. They kinda did, you just need to cut a new locking notch. |
Originally Posted By Det0nate: It takes a special kind of retard to argue the wrong side of second grade spelling.
What made you pick that particular quote for your sig-line?
--Swindle1984
What made you pick that particular quote for your sig-line?
--Swindle1984