Posted: 4/23/2015 12:28:52 AM EDT
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Diamondback DB9 For those who have fired one, total POS or decent BUG? handled one today at Academy. Very small, light, and a bit crude. But is it reliable? |
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It is probably one of the best IDEAS for a firearm ever.
They are very light, and actually small, unlike the vast majority of 9mms people call small rivalling some 380s. They have usable sights, recoil is far milder than you might expect, accuracy is good enough to hit an 8" plate at 25yds with boring regularity. It's enough to make you overlook the lack of a slide lock and occasional slide bite, while racking not firing. Then you do a little reading and you learn about broken triggers, bad recoil spring assemblies, bad magazines, and broken slides. I only warranted mine once but not since Taurus started handling CS and distribution so I don't know how that goes. The recoil spring assembly on mine screwed up, the "hat" was made too small, somewhere around 200 rounds the spring slipped over it and eventually jammed up the gun, HARD. Quick call, they know about the problem, and drop a part in the mail gun runs again in less than a week, great... wait, this is a CC piece, a gun people will trust their life to, with a known major reliability problem (actually several)... and no recall? That doesn't sit well with me. Since then it's had a few hundred more rounds though it, but I still have reservations and can't in good consciences recommend them. Also no +P, or greater than 125gr bullets if you obey the manual. I think they went a little too far for lightweight, I also think they're a good bit under sprung, possibly for easier slide manipulation, which lets it beat the shit out of itself, mine chucks brass 20+ feet. The firing pin spring also must be on the light side, or maybe it's the mass of the firing pin, firing Tula one or two in each mag was a light strike misfire, guess the primers must be a little harder than Win, MagTech, and whatever Hornady uses, but they've lit reliably in multiple other nines. TL, DR Great idea, poorly executed |
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I love mine, and it's the only pocket gun I'll carry. I won't carry a gun unless I've put several hundred flawless rounds through it. While it did digest 200 rounds of Speer gold dots flawlessly, it was a very unpleasant experience. I'm by no means recoil-averse (I own a 500S&W magnum and fire 700-grain loads out of it), but the combination of light weight and narrow frame make it very unpleasant to shoot in an extended range session. I also dry-fire mine quite a bit, with no issues. Yes, there are very mixed reviews on the interwebz, but I guess I'm just lucky. |
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OK, so I'm getting that when it doesn't break, it's reliable. But it can break a lot. I wonder if there are some beefier aftermarket parts for it, like stainless steel op rods. I don't care as much about weight, it's mostly size that matters, and this pistol is small. Price is also good at $259 on Buds. I'm OK with using 115gr ammo, it's actually the most common, seems a lot harder to find 124gr and really hard to find 147gr. I get that any of the tiny pocket nines are going to be unpleasant to shoot, but if the DB9 has a nicer trigger, then that's a plus. So is Diamondback owned by Taurus now? Not a huge fan of Taurus that's negative. Thanks for the reviews. I may have to try this one. Although for $50 more I can get a shield, or striker fired LC9. I will have to put it side by side again with some of the others at the gun store. Thanks for the input guys. |
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OK, so I'm getting that when it doesn't break, it's reliable. But it can break a lot. I wonder if there are some beefier aftermarket parts for it, like stainless steel op rods. I don't care as much about weight, it's mostly size that matters, and this pistol is small. Price is also good at $259 on Buds. I'm OK with using 115gr ammo, it's actually the most common, seems a lot harder to find 124gr and really hard to find 147gr. I get that any of the tiny pocket nines are going to be unpleasant to shoot, but if the DB9 has a nicer trigger, then that's a plus. So is Diamondback owned by Taurus now? Not a huge fan of Taurus that's negative. Thanks for the reviews. I may have to try this one. Although for $50 more I can get a shield, or striker fired LC9. I will have to put it side by side again with some of the others at the gun store. Thanks for the input guys. Arent they 180$ or so at cdnn. |
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I've had mine for around a year or so now,.... I've done a ton of research and learned a bunch about this pistol.
Most "Common" problem is the failure to feed one... and there are Two typical ones of these... 1 - Bullet nose dives into feed ramp instead of chamber - Cause - Week mag Spring / Fix - install a shortened PF9 Spring. 2 - Bullet stands straight up and gets pinched between slide/breech and barrel - Cause - Too wide a gap on Mag. lips . Fix - adjust mag lips to given specs. There have been other occasional issues such as trigger breakage and recoil spring/guides. I have done a full polish job on mine as well as the Mag. Spring mod and it's been running great. Fits in my back pocket perfect and I carry it at work on a daily basis (I carry my Sig. Ultra Compact when not at work) Thanks Rick |
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I wouldn't consider that to be a particularly thorough test. Quoted:
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Mine is great, no problems 200ish rds. I wouldn't consider that to be a particularly thorough test. Good for you. It's a pocket gun, not a service weapon. It feeds the rounds that I carry in it no problem. I don't need it to feed every 9mm round known to man or shoot 1k rounds flawlessly to feel confident in it. If you are going to carry a pocket gun you need to accept the serious compromises you are making by carrying it. |
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Arent they 180$ or so at cdnn. Quoted:
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OK, so I'm getting that when it doesn't break, it's reliable. But it can break a lot. I wonder if there are some beefier aftermarket parts for it, like stainless steel op rods. I don't care as much about weight, it's mostly size that matters, and this pistol is small. Price is also good at $259 on Buds. I'm OK with using 115gr ammo, it's actually the most common, seems a lot harder to find 124gr and really hard to find 147gr. I get that any of the tiny pocket nines are going to be unpleasant to shoot, but if the DB9 has a nicer trigger, then that's a plus. So is Diamondback owned by Taurus now? Not a huge fan of Taurus that's negative. Thanks for the reviews. I may have to try this one. Although for $50 more I can get a shield, or striker fired LC9. I will have to put it side by side again with some of the others at the gun store. Thanks for the input guys. Arent they 180$ or so at cdnn. Cheapest I can find right now is $219.99 + $25 shipping, so $245, on Gunbroker, for a new one. I will check CDNN. The only other nine that comes close to the dimensions of the DB9 is the Beretta Nano, for quite a bit more coin. |
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Cheapest I can find right now is $219.99 + $25 shipping, so $245, on Gunbroker, for a new one. I will check CDNN. The only other nine that comes close to the dimensions of the DB9 is the Beretta Nano, for quite a bit more coin. Really? All the pics of the Nano make it look like a giant brick, about the size of a KT PF9. have you considered a Kahr CM9? |
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The Kahr CM9 is probably the closest comparison size wise and had has been more reliable for me.
My experience with an early production DB380 has forever colored my opinion of guns from the company. Customer service was outstanding, but I only know that because it had to go back so much until they finally replaced it and I traded it away. The good things I can say is that it had an outstanding trigger and good sights and a simple design. I honestly liked the gun and wanted very badly for it to work. If it had, I'd probably own a DB9 today, but it didn't so I own a Kahr CM9. There have been significant revisions to the gun, I believe. Others here have pointed those out before and posted pics of the changes. If the price was right and you were willing to take a gamble on it, then it may be worth considering. They really are very small. I have a bit of a different philosophy than Castillo does. Not saying he's wrong and I'm right, but just that I think differently. The gun that I carry the most, I shoot the most. It is the gun that I most likely will need to save someone's life with, so I make sure I get the most trigger time with it. So my carry gun gets about 200 rounds per week through it. I'm not satisfied with a carry gun that can't do that. Not because I think I will need to have a prolonged battle with it, but because I need it to stand up to the rigors of weekly training. That is one of my requirements for a carry gun, it may not be yours and that is your business not mine. |
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The Kahr CM9 is probably the closest comparison size wise and had has been more reliable for me. My experience with an early production DB380 has forever colored my opinion of guns from the company. Customer service was outstanding, but I only know that because it had to go back so much until they finally replaced it and I traded it away. The good things I can say is that it had an outstanding trigger and good sights and a simple design. I honestly liked the gun and wanted very badly for it to work. If it had, I'd probably own a DB9 today, but it didn't so I own a Kahr CM9. There have been significant revisions to the gun, I believe. Others here have pointed those out before and posted pics of the changes. If the price was right and you were willing to take a gamble on it, then it may be worth considering. They really are very small. I have a bit of a different philosophy than Castillo does. Not saying he's wrong and I'm right, but just that I think differently. The gun that I carry the most, I shoot the most. It is the gun that I most likely will need to save someone's life with, so I make sure I get the most trigger time with it. So my carry gun gets about 200 rounds per week through it. I'm not satisfied with a carry gun that can't do that. Not because I think I will need to have a prolonged battle with it, but because I need it to stand up to the rigors of weekly training. That is one of my requirements for a carry gun, it may not be yours and that is your business not mine. I get where you are coming from, I would counter that if those are ones requirements for a carry gun, then a pocket gun is probably not for you. They (pocket guns) are a compromise. You are giving up capacity, size, sights, shootability, and maybe even ammo compatibility and longevity when you choose to carry a pocket gun. They are not meant to shoot 200 rds a week through, they aren't meant to be duty guns. For me at least, a pocket gun fills a specific niche and isn't an EDC gun anyways. But as you said, your business not mine 
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I get where you are coming from, I would counter that if those are ones requirements for a carry gun, then a pocket gun is probably not for you. They (pocket guns) are a compromise. You are giving up capacity, size, sights, shootability, and maybe even ammo compatibility and longevity when you choose to carry a pocket gun. They are not meant to shoot 200 rds a week through, they aren't meant to be duty guns. For me at least, a pocket gun fills a specific niche and isn't an EDC gun anyways. But as you said, your business not mine
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The Kahr CM9 is probably the closest comparison size wise and had has been more reliable for me. My experience with an early production DB380 has forever colored my opinion of guns from the company. Customer service was outstanding, but I only know that because it had to go back so much until they finally replaced it and I traded it away. The good things I can say is that it had an outstanding trigger and good sights and a simple design. I honestly liked the gun and wanted very badly for it to work. If it had, I'd probably own a DB9 today, but it didn't so I own a Kahr CM9. There have been significant revisions to the gun, I believe. Others here have pointed those out before and posted pics of the changes. If the price was right and you were willing to take a gamble on it, then it may be worth considering. They really are very small. I have a bit of a different philosophy than Castillo does. Not saying he's wrong and I'm right, but just that I think differently. The gun that I carry the most, I shoot the most. It is the gun that I most likely will need to save someone's life with, so I make sure I get the most trigger time with it. So my carry gun gets about 200 rounds per week through it. I'm not satisfied with a carry gun that can't do that. Not because I think I will need to have a prolonged battle with it, but because I need it to stand up to the rigors of weekly training. That is one of my requirements for a carry gun, it may not be yours and that is your business not mine. I get where you are coming from, I would counter that if those are ones requirements for a carry gun, then a pocket gun is probably not for you. They (pocket guns) are a compromise. You are giving up capacity, size, sights, shootability, and maybe even ammo compatibility and longevity when you choose to carry a pocket gun. They are not meant to shoot 200 rds a week through, they aren't meant to be duty guns. For me at least, a pocket gun fills a specific niche and isn't an EDC gun anyways. But as you said, your business not mine
I'll agree with all of that. |
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Really? All the pics of the Nano make it look like a giant brick, about the size of a KT PF9. have you considered a Kahr CM9? Quoted:
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Cheapest I can find right now is $219.99 + $25 shipping, so $245, on Gunbroker, for a new one. I will check CDNN. The only other nine that comes close to the dimensions of the DB9 is the Beretta Nano, for quite a bit more coin. Really? All the pics of the Nano make it look like a giant brick, about the size of a KT PF9. have you considered a Kahr CM9? I had a CM40 for about a year, but it had feed issues, even after one trip to the factory for warranty. I also had an MK9 that I really liked, but it developed a crack in the slide below the recoil rod hole. So I haven't really had good luck with Kahr. The PF9 is one I have considered, not quite as small as the DB9 though. Check out the specs on the Nano, its a little wider but otherwise close to the DB9. |
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I've had mine for around a year or so now,.... I've done a ton of research and learned a bunch about this pistol. Most "Common" problem is the failure to feed one... and there are Two typical ones of these... 1 - Bullet nose dives into feed ramp instead of chamber - Cause - Week mag Spring / Fix - install a shortened PF9 Spring. 2 - Bullet stands straight up and gets pinched between slide/breech and barrel - Cause - Too wide a gap on Mag. lips . Fix - adjust mag lips to given specs. There have been other occasional issues such as trigger breakage and recoil spring/guides. I have done a full polish job on mine as well as the Mag. Spring mod and it's been running great. Fits in my back pocket perfect and I carry it at work on a daily basis (I carry my Sig. Ultra Compact when not at work) Thanks Rick This is what I did and it IS my ankle gun. Once you do the mag spring change it feeds HST every time. It isn't a match gun and not strong enough to be a good class gun but it does exactly what it is supposed to do, put a 9mm round into a BG from 2 feet. |
| I had a DB in 380 and it spent more time at the factory than in my holster. Failure to feed and the trigger would not reset this after two trips back. The gun store that sold me the weapon gave me a store credit for any other gun they had. They sold several others in 380 and 9 and most came back with similar issues. Because of the problems they no longer carry DB. With my own problems and the several others that were returned by people I know we came to the conclusion that their are many better options no matter how cheap they sell them. |
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I had a DB in 380 and it spent more time at the factory than in my holster. Failure to feed and the trigger would not reset this after two trips back. The gun store that sold me the weapon gave me a store credit for any other gun they had. They sold several others in 380 and 9 and most came back with similar issues. Because of the problems they no longer carry DB. With my own problems and the several others that were returned by people I know we came to the conclusion that their are many better options no matter how cheap they sell them. I've experienced the same with my local shops. |
That's my DB9. The trigger seared off in the midst of firing, with a somewhere around 500 rounds through the gun. I sent it back to Diamondback at the end of January and was told it would be about 8-10 weeks before it was returned. It's now sitting at 3 months, with no end in sight. When I called the week before the NRA convention (10 weeks in), I was told they couldn't even estimate when it would get looked at by a gunsmith. As far as the rumors about them being owned by Taurus, they aren't true. I spoke to one of the Taurus engineers at NRAAM and he said Taurus just handles their customer service and marketing. Diamondback is still owned by the same folks, they have simply contracted some services out to a larger, more experienced company (and apparently adopted that larger company's standards in regards to warranty work). Between the broken trigger and the crappy warranty service, I will never again carry a Diamondback gun of any flavor. As soon as mine gets returned to me, I'll sell it (likely list it on Armslist) and use the money to buy a Glock 43. |
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http://www.ar15.com/media/viewFile.html?i=72897 That's my DB9. The trigger seared off in the midst of firing, with a somewhere around 500 rounds through the gun. I sent it back to Diamondback at the end of January and was told it would be about 8-10 weeks before it was returned. It's now sitting at 3 months, with no end in sight. When I called the week before the NRA convention (10 weeks in), I was told they couldn't even estimate when it would get looked at by a gunsmith. As far as the rumors about them being owned by Taurus, they aren't true. I spoke to one of the Taurus engineers at NRAAM and he said Taurus just handles their customer service and marketing. Diamondback is still owned by the same folks, they have simply contracted some services out to a larger, more experienced company (and apparently adopted that larger company's standards in regards to warranty work). Between the broken trigger and the crappy warranty service, I will never again carry a Diamondback gun of any flavor. As soon as mine gets returned to me, I'll sell it (likely list it on Armslist) and use the money to buy a Glock 43. Thanks for posting. I wonder if they sell spare parts to keep on hand. That is poor customer service indeed. I like the design, it has potential, just the execution. Maybe get a trigger milled out of steel by a CNC shop... I like the Glock 43 from what I have seen of it - but it's quite a bit bigger and heavier. |
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Quoted: I like the Glock 43 from what I have seen of it - but it's quite a bit bigger and heavier. Same here. I was excited when I first heard about the 43, but its essentially the same size as a 26, just thinner. No thanks. It's certainly no pocket gun. My DB9 is reliable, and its size makes it more likely that I'll carry it, instead of carrying nothing, especially when I'm dressed lightly in summer. I run 124-gr Speer Gold Dots. Zero malfunctions over ~350 rounds. Loaded with 6+1, it weighs 16 oz. The perfect little package for me. |