TFB Review: FN 545 vs FNX-45 Tactical
TFB Review: FN 545 vs FNX-45 Tactical – Who is the 45 ACP Suppressor Host King
TFB Review: FN 545 Tactical vs FNX-45 Tactical – Who is the 45 ACP Suppressor Host King?
If you’re a fan of the ol’ 45 Auto round and love yourself a good suppressor, then you are likely very familiar with the FNX-45 Tactical. What many would refer to as the benchmark for suppressed 45s, the FNX-45 Tactical was born from military origins and has been a civilian favorite ever since. More recently though, FN went “back into the lab” to deliver us the FN 509 series; and eventually, a 45 version in the FN 545 Tactical. So, it begs the question: what is better? The FN 545 Tactical or the FNX-45 Tactical? Let’s settle the debate today!
FN @ TFB:
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The Gauntlet: FN 545 Tactical vs FNX-45 Tactical
You have old versus new. Proven versus inexperienced. Hammer-fired versus striker-fired. All of which comes from one legendary company – FN. The question is simple: who is best?! Yet, with so many similarities and simultaneously numerous differences, it is not as simple as it seems. I brought both of these pistols to the range, fed them, warmed them up, hung a bunch of accessories off of them, and waited to see who would fail or falter, first.
Specifications: FN 545 Tactical .45 ACP
To kick things off, let’s take a look at the new kid on the block in the FN 545 Tactical. Introduced in 2023, this pistol takes all of the 509 series goodness and is built out to house the .45 Auto cartridge. For those who still love the .45, this could be your favorite love child.
Cartridge: .45 ACP (.45 Auto)Operation: Double-Action, Striker-FiredMagazine Capacity: 15/18 RoundWeight: 31 ouncesBarrel Length: 4.71″Overall Length: 8.3″Twist Rate: 1 in 16” Right-HandHeight: 6″Width: 1.45″Trigger Pull: 5.5 – 7.7 LbSight Radius: 6.1″
If not for the big ol’ threaded muzzle sticking out of the end of the slide, it would be difficult to distinguish this handgun from any of the 9mm versions in the original 509 series. It has attractive lines, a moderate size, and multiple panels of varying grip texturing.
“Leave nothing to chance with 18+1 rounds, setting a new standard capacity in .45 ACP. Suppressor-ready, with a threaded barrel and co-witness tritium night sights, this industry-first pistol is upgraded with the proven ergonomics of the FN 509® Tactical. Shooters can mount their favorite red dot optic in minutes, adding pinpoint control on command. Complete with the high-endurance striker and crisp, approximately 6lb. trigger pull, the FN 545 Tactical is what other big bore pistols want to be when they grow up.”
Specifications: FN FNX-45 Tactical .45 ACP
Now, let’s take a gander at ol’ faithful: the FNX-45 Tactical, first introduced back in 2012. If you had wanted a threaded .45 in the past 15 years, you would be utterly foolhardy not to contemplate this big boy. Large in size and large in what it has to offer, this pistol nearly needs no introduction.
Cartridge: .45 ACP (.45 Auto)Operation: Double-Action/Single-Action (DA/SA)Magazine Capacity: 15 RoundWeight: 33.3 ouncesBarrel Length: 5.3″Overall Length: 8.6″Twist Rate: 1 in 16” Right-HandHeight: 6.5″Width: 1.58″Trigger Pull: 8.8 – 12.1 Lb (Double-Action) | 3.96 – 5.06 Lb (Single-Action)Sight Radius: 6.4″
As FN explains in greater detail below, the FNX-45 Tactical is actually an improvement from an even older design in the FNP-45 Tactical. Both of which are hammer-fire models which the military has been known for liking over the years because of their reliability in adverse environments.
“Improving on the FNP™-45 Tactical, developed for the U.S. Joint Combat Pistol Program, the FNX™-45 Tactical. It is the latest in technological advancements in handgun engineering, offering .45 ACP performance and a host of unique features that no other handgun can match.
Its 15-round magazine is precisely engineered to take a dive to the prone position and naturally roll up toward the target. The checkered polymer frame has a low-bore axis for reduced felt recoil, enhanced operator control, and a grip angle that provides an unmatched natural point of aim. Four interchangeable backstraps come standard to quickly customize the grip feel. All operating controls are fully ambidextrous for ease of use. The 5.3-in cold hammer-forged stainless steel barrel has a threaded muzzle to accept suppressors or compensators. The optics-ready pistol includes two plates to mount miniature red dot (MRD) optics and features suppressor-height night sights that co-witness with most installed optics.”
Features – FN 545 Tactical .45 ACP
The FN 545 Tactical sets a new bar for magazine capacity in a .45 ACP pistol with 18+1 rounds on board of 45 Auto. It also touts FN’s Low-Profile Optics Mounting System™ made famous by the FN 509 series. Additionally, you get their precision-tuned trigger sporting a clean break, and their enhanced grip frame for what they state is “unmatched control” while firing.
SlideSlide cut to mount most optics, no gunsmith neededMachined steel with front and rear cocking serrations, loaded chamber indicatorTritium lamp steel dovetail sights, co-witness with most MRD opticsHigh-endurance conical strikerBarrel4.71” cold hammer-forged, target crowned for enduring accuracyPolished feed ramp and chamber for feed reliabilityThreaded 0.578″ x 28 TPI to mount compensators and suppressors
Features – FN FNX-45 Tactical .45 ACP
The FNX-45 Tactical boasts raised 3-dot Trijicon, green tritium, night sights standard, and the width of the raised night sights perfectly size up the shoulder width of a target at 25 meters. So, this makes for a good judge of distance in the heat of the moment while shooting.
SlideStainless steel constructionExternal extractor with loaded chamber indicatorFront and rear cocking serrationsSlide cut and threaded for optional electronic red-dot sight (not included)Raised night sights for suppressor useBarrelCold hammer-forged stainless steelPolished chamber and feed rampThreaded 0.578” × 28 TPI with thread protectorFramePolymer construction with replaceable steel frame/slide railsFour interchangeable backstraps with lanyard eyeletsMIL-STD-1913 accessory mounting railSerrated trigger guard
Comparison: FN 545 Tactical vs FNX-45 Tactical
Grip
Looking at the grip circumference of these two pistols, I believe the FN 545 Tactical has the edge. It is slightly smaller. So, me with my very average hand size – not midget hands, not ogre hands, very middle of the road – the FN 545 Tactical fit me the best. Yes, both handguns have additional grip panels to play with, but FN 545 Tactical still wins in this metric. Also, with 3 different stipple textures throughout the grip it catches your hand better and more assuredly.
Recoil Impulse
For recoil – with or without the use of the same silencer – these 2 pistols were nearly identical, but the more I shot both of them, the FNX-45 Tactical felt ever-so-slightly lighter in recoil. Since the FNX-45 Tactical weighs 2.3 more ounces, has a 0.6” longer barrel, and 0.3” longer overall length, it makes sense that the dimensionally larger handgun recoils less.
Accuracy
For this measurable, I am going to call an all-out tie. There was no discernable difference in accuracy after becoming reacquainted with each firearm by shooting a couple magazines. They do have different feeling triggers since one is hammer-fired while the other is striker-fired, but once you surpass that learning curve, these pistols are equally accurate. I had both of these handguns shooting “silver dollar” sized groups at 10 yards within a couple magazines, and that continued for several hours of gun range tomfoolery.
Optic Readiness/Sights
If you want to only run the iron sights that come on these pistols, the FNX-45 Tactical has the tiniest edge because of the thoughtfulness in deploying Trijicon quality irons. For both pistols, you can’t really see over the top of a silencer though. I was playing with a SilencerCo Hybrid 46 which is not overly large in diameter, and neither pistol had sights tall enough to see completely over the top of a silencer.
The biggest separation between these 2 pistols is their ability to mount optics. I brought to the range several Shield RMSc footprint red dots as well as multiple Leupold DeltaPoint Pro footprint red dots. The FNX-45 Tactical only had plates in the box for Trijicon RMR or Noblex-Docter footprint sights. That makes sense for the time period the FNP-45 Tactical and FNX-45 Tactical handguns came out, but nowadays, that makes them a little outdated. The FN 545 Tactical with FN’s Low-Profile Optics Mounting System™ had significantly more options for mounting red dots making it the easy winner in regard to optic readiness.
Suppressor Host
Both of these pistols are appropriately threaded, the necessary, and common to the United States, thread pitch of 0.578″ x 28 TPI to make adding a silencer a cinch. With the correct booster or piston for your favorite XYZ pistol silencer, you can simply remove the pistol’s thread cap, screw on your silencer, and let the good times roll.
My silencer of choice is the SilencerCo Hybrid 46. It is versatile for a multitude of cartridges, good for rifles or pistols, you can even get it in multiple rad colors for whatever “trips your trigger.”
As far as being a good suppressor host, both of these pistols thread on the same, had similar accuracy, nearly identical tone or noise suppression, and cut down recoil to very negligible levels. The small difference that could be noticed is that the FNX-45 Tactical with its longer barrel, slide, sighting radius, and additional weight had better overall balance while shooting with a silencer. So, the FNX-45 Tactical wins by the smallest of margins in this area.
Striker-Fire (FN 545) vs. Hammer-Fire (FNX-45)
The trigger pull weight for the FN 545 Tactical measures out as 5.5 – 7.7lb while the FNX-45 Tactical, in single-action, pulls through only at 3.96 – 5.06lb. That being said, I actually liked the travel, break, and overall trigger of the slightly heavier striker-fire mechanism in the FN 545 Tactical.
As far as hammer-fired versus striker-fire and the reliability of each, I can only speak to both of them anecdotally because I had zero issues with either in testing. Traditionally, the argument is that a hammer-fire firearm is capable of getting debris in the way of obstructing the hammer. Simultaneously, debris or not, if you have a stubborn primer that won’t detonate, with a hammer-fire firearm you can engage in “double-strike” until it hopefully goes off (keep pulling the trigger through double-action to eventually ignite the cartridge).
With a striker-fired pistol, if your round doesn’t go off, there is no double-strike. You need to “tap, rack” and get a whole new round into the chamber. So, there are positives and negatives to hammer-fired versus striker-fired; the FN 545 Tactical versus FNX-45 Tactical. In regards to reliability, I’ll chalk this up as another draw.
Magazines
This is an easier category to judge. The FNX-45 Tactical has 15+1 round magazines while the FN 545 Tactical has higher capacity magazines at 18+1. If you want to simply have the most rounds on board for your shenanigans, you need to reach for the FN 545 Tactical.
Cool Factor
Probably the most important metric for millennials (and me, too, at times) is the “cool factor.” Which pistol passes the “vibe check?” The FNX-45 Tactical wins on nostalgia, military history, video game lore, and cool gun bro vibes. The FN 545 Tactical makes a strong case for its easier ability to mount optics and slap in them extendos, bro! Nostalgia aside, I tip my hat to the FN 545 Tactical for its optic readiness.
And the Winner is… the FN 545 Tactical
That is not the pistol I had in my mind winning this duel at the beginning, but there are too many admirable traits to ignore. The FN 545 has the advantage of being a decade newer allowing it to take advantage of modern designs, trends, and elements that today’s shooters are yearning for. All that being said, I consider this a razor thin decision. If somebody says they are bagging the FNX-45 Tactical over the FN 545, I’m not mad about it. They’re both legit.
Pros: FN 545 TacticalCool FactorMagazine CapacityTrigger PullOptic ReadinessGripPros: FNX-45 TacticalSuppressor Host (Balance)Iron SightsRecoil Impulse (Least)TieSuppressor Host (Noise Reduction)AccuracyStriker-Fire vs Hammer-Fire
Departing Thoughts: FN 545 Tactical vs FNX-45 Tactical
The .45 ACP round is an acquired taste in 2024. Like a fine wine or a vintage whiskey. Everybody might be belly up to the bar drinking their 9mm IPAs, but more discerning and tasteful operators reach for the good stuff; your venerable .45 Auto. If you are one of the latter, more exemplary and intelligent readers of ours (which I know you are), then we hope you found this debate riveting. I thoroughly enjoyed writing it.
Kudos to my father-in-law, Paul, and my magnificent wife, Andrea, for giving me added perspective in writing this review and assisting in perforating the berm at the gun range with these two pistols.
As always, let us know all of your thoughts about the FN 545 Tactical versus the FNX-45 Tactical in the Comments below! We always appreciate your feedback.