Mossberg MC2sc Optics-Ready Sub-Compact 9mm Pistol: First Look with Video

I’ve watched Mossberg’s pistol program develop since it was a concept. Say what you will, it is a company that understands their legacy and understands their customers. The pistol line, going back to the MC1sc, offers features and performance that punch way above their price point.

The MC2sc brings forward several of the best features of the MC series to give the shooter a very capable “micro-9” package. The pistol follows some of the recent trends from that segment of the market and comes in with a height of 4.25 inches, a length of 6.25 inches and a width (at the widest point, not the narrowest) of 1.1 inch. Like all the MC pistols, the MC2sc features a stainless steel, DLC-coated slide with the very well-designed angled serrations that allow for solid purchase during manipulations. It also uses the SIG #8 pattern dovetails for sights, meaning aftermarket support is available if desired. The nice thing is you don’t really need to change the sights, because they’re just a backup. The slide features an optic cut that is ready for any RMSc pattern optic, and it allows the optic to be mounted low enough so that the stock sights work as backups. The slide also features the Mossberg STS, or Safe Takedown System, that allows the shooter to disassemble the pistol without pressing the trigger.

The frame is the same glass-filled polymer as the previous generation and carry the useful grip shape and texturing forward. It’s aggressive enough to be effective, but not aggressive enough to grab at cover garments. It has an equipment rail and an undercut trigger guard. The trigger itself is flat-faced with the familiar blade safety, and every sample I tested registered between 5 and 5.5 pounds on my Wheeler trigger gauge. There is some creep and a bit of flex and overtravel as expected with a polymer trigger, but it is among the better stock triggers available. The MC2sc will also be optionally available with the much-maligned push-style button safety. I prefer no safety on my striker guns, but the push-button style works just fine and is fast enough to disengage with a little practice that I don’t think it impacts the pistol’s utility at all. Would I put it on a duty gun? No, but for a home defense gun, it is entirely adequate. Inside the sculpted grip, you can have either a flush-fit 11-round magazine or an extended 14-round magazine carried over from the MC2c. I prefer the 14-rounder as it does not impact the concealability except under the most stringent circumstances.

The barrel features cut-broached, six-groove rifling and much like its predecessors, provides excellent accuracy. In my latest sample pistol, equipped with the Crimson Trace CT-1500 red-dot sight, the pistol put everything I shot from a rest into less than 3.5 inches. Shooting on steel was fast and fun, and even shooting the little pistol over several days at Gunsite, the recoil was not nearly as prohibitive as some of the competitors. The little Mossberg can definitely run with the more established names in the category. At an MSRP of $556 and a street price south of $500, the MC2sc represents a powerful combination of performance and value.

Crimson Trace CT-1550: Check Price

For more information on the complete line of Mossberg handguns, please visit mossberg.com.