Beretta 92F Custom 'Samurai Edge'

Samurai Edge (M92Fカスタムハンドガン) is a series of customised Beretta 92Fs produced by Joseph Kendo on behalf of the Kendo Gun Shop in Raccoon City. The Samurai Edges were purpose-built for the Special Tactics and Rescue Service, and inspired later lines of modified Beretta 92s.

Designing
First commissioned in December 1996 as the "M92F S.T.A.R.S. Special", the handguns was built on the request of the R.P.D. during the formation of the S.T.A.R.S. unit. After almost a year of experiments and trials, Police Chief Brian Irons approved the concept in Feburary of 1998. The prototypes were tested by select S.T.A.R.S. members, namely Chris Redfield, Jill Valentine, Barry Burton, and Albert Wesker. After receiving a few further adjustments, when the completed models were ready to be delivered Robert sent a fax to the S.T.A.R.S office which also explained Joe had given them the name "Samurai Edge". He derived the name from how the wide, black angled slide and white rounded barrel resembles a katakana. They were first issued in June.

Use
On July 23 & 24 1998, during the events leading up and during the Mansion Incident, S.T.A.R.S Bravo and Alpha brought their Samurai Edges when they were dispatched respectively. None of the members who who died had their weapons salvaged and Chris presumably lost his on his way to the Spencer Mansion.

Later on September 27 as during the Raccoon City outbreak, Jill brought her Samurai Edge with her as she escaped the city. After destruction of Raccoon City, most of the Samurai Edges were presumably lost or destroyed. With the S.T.A.R.S. teams disbanded, these uniquely modified weapons would have no longer been utilized by any paramilitary group.



In 2009 during the Kijuju Autonomous Zone Incident, Wesker is still using this variant. He saved it to kill his old comrade, Chris, who recognized the gun when aimed upon by it and gave Wesker an angry stare, remembering his treachery. Wesker loses his Samurai Edge in the cargo bay of his bomber near, and it is presumed that he did not retrieve it before the bomber crashed into the volcano, and therefore is lost or destroyed.

The current locations of Jill's and Rebecca's models are unknown as they were both known not to have lost theirs.

Legacy
During the wake of the 2004 Abduction of the President's Daughter, Leon Kennedy requested Joe Kendo to make a customized handgun for him, in which Joe offered to build an entirely new gun from scratch. When Leon came to pick it up, Joe described the gun as a "this is absolutely a new Samurai Edge" and Leon named it "Silver Ghost".

After for formation of the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance, Quint Cetcham had created a new weapon for Jill called the "Samurai Edge A1 Jill Valentine Model" based on her Samurai Edge but built upon the more modern M9A1 frame instead of the M92F. After hearing about his work, Barry Burton asked a new weapon too which Quint crafted and dubbed the "Samurai Edge Barry Burton Model Ver. II".

Throughout 2012 while Red Umbrella was conducting experiments and testing equipment, they equipped some of their subjects with replicas of the regular Samurai Edge and Wesker's variant.

Before his death, Albert Wesker had used the namesake and aesthetics to design the "Samurai Edge - AW Model-01" handgun, a anti-BOW weapon. The design was used by Blue Umbrella and further developed and eventually used in 2017 during Dulvey incident by Chris Redfield and briefly by Ethan Winters.

Design and variations
The Samurai Edge was built under a very strict set of requirements:


 * As the regular R.P.D.'s standard issue Beretta 92F, it had to be chambered for the same 9×19mm Parabellum cartridge.
 * It had to have a magazine capacity of at least 15 rounds.
 * It had to have fixed sights and dotted posts.
 * It had to be capable of producing at least a 2-inch grouping within 25 yards, with no variation after 3,000 rounds.
 * It had to be capable of double-action fire.
 * It had to be ambidextrous.
 * When unloaded, its weight could not exceed 35 ounces.

The final version of the Samurai Edge hosted a wide range of features not present on the standard 92F. The wraparound grip panels were enlarged and extended below the magazine foot, and consisted of wood with synthetic recoil-absorbing inserts on the side panels and backstrap. This grip design also required replacing the hammer spring cap (which normally would have a lanyard ring on the end). Further modifications include a heavier Brigadier slide (allowing it to withstand the use of higher pressure rounds), target sights, an extended slide catch, and a stainless steel barrel. Kendo also emblazoned each handgun with the S.T.A.R.S. logo, placed upon the left side of the slide below the ejection port and on a medallion in the center of each grip panel.

Members of S.T.A.R.S. added further customizations based on their personal preferences and their time in S.T.A.R.S.

Chris Model
Chris' Samurai Edge had been upgraded with a blued finish slide and a silver trigger. In addition, minor internal modifications were done to make it a competition-capable weapon, such as a medium-weight slide and adjusted trigger pull.

Jill Model
Jill's Samurai Edge has been upgraded with a standard sized slide-stop lever and the logo on the grip is a much brighter shade of blue.



Barry Model
Barry Burton had a heavily customized version of the "Samurai Edge." It fired .40 S&W caliber bullets and featured a longer barrel and compensator for increased accuracy and stability. This Samurai Edge is not based on a 92FS like the other versions of the weapon, but rather a 96F.

Wesker Model
Albert Wesker's weapon is the most heavily modified Samurai Edge. Wesker's Samurai Edge has the lower frame and takedown lever replaced with Inox (stainless steel) parts, in addition to a skeleton hammer and Brigadier sights. Interestingly, Wesker is seen using this design throughout both the remake and Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles, with the exception to the opening cutscene to "The Mansion Incident" and during the player's first encounter with Sergei Vladimir. Wesker's handgun also features either an integrated Vertec style accessory rail on the bottom of the frame, as well as a beavertail horn—a feature that was introduced on the 92 platform (during the design stages of the 92 Combat), but never put into production.

The Samurai Edge manual also mentions that "A large removable silencer [which mutes sound sufficiently] can be mounted directly to the frame in a one-touch motion. The silencer type installs directly into the barrel, but accuracy doesn't worsen because a brake is not used on shorter recoil." Wesker used this feature in Dark Legacy (Silenced Handgun).

In Resident Evil 5, Wesker's Samurai Edge is seen with a Laser Aiming Module (LAM) unit attached to the frame. Wesker's Samurai Edge is also seen in cutscenes as he points the gun to Chris.



Rebecca Model


Rebecca Chambers' Samurai Edge is unmodified past the original Kendo design. This is probably due to her having been in S.T.A.R.S. for less time than her teammates.

Other S.T.A.R.S. Members
It is presumed that the rest of the S.T.A.R.S. members also used unmodified Samurai Edges. During Bravo team's search in the Raccoon City forest they all had lights attached to the frame of their Samurai Edges where as Alpha Team did not use those attachments. Albert Wesker instead used handheld flashlight even though his Samurai Edge is one of the two in the series that has a rail.

Gameplay
In many game the Samurai Edge is a weapon players can use.

In Resident Evil 5, Wesker sometimes uses it during his fight with Chris and Sheva on the takeoff platform.

Other appearances
The only mention or use of the Samurai Edge in the Resident Evil films is in the most recent film, Resident Evil: The Final Chapter. In the final climax of the film Wesker is using his iconic gun as he holds Claire Redfield hostage, all though it is barely shown for a few seconds at a time it is used a lot in the final moments of the film, and is handled by multiple characters including Claire Redfield, and Dr. Alexander Isaacs.

Merchandise

 * Tokyo Marui, an airsoft company, produces a licensed "BioHazard" line based on Resident Evil that included various Samurai Edges that come with manuals that include in-universe styled information about the weapon. They also have published various articles that also have Samurai Edges as the subject. The general grip design of their Samurai Edges has also been widely copied by other airsoft manufacturers, most notably by HFC for their "M190" pistol series.
 * Another airsoft company, CYMA, also released several Samurai Edge airsoft replicas. One is a full sized, spring powered handgun that includes a plethora of accessories (many of which were never featured in Resident Evil), while the other is a "Super Deformed" version. Both are of notoriously poor quality.
 * A new company (according to most online retailers, HK; others, WE) made full-metal Samurai Edge replicas of good quality and lower cost than Tokyo Marui's offerings. They have all the correct markings; with slight difference in the blue color in the logo on the grip panels. A silver-slide version is available as well as the normal unmodified Samurai Edge. Externally, the metallic slide (assumed to be aluminum until proven to be zinc alloy) and frame makes them superior to the Tokyo Marui standard Samurai Edge. They are also 100% compatible with Tokyo Marui parts, making it possible to install new parts to replicate the custom versions of Samurai Edge, or simply make the gun more reliable.
 * Wesker's Samurai Edge with the Laser Aiming Module accessory is on the Samurai Edge that comes with Hot Toys' 12-inch figure release of Wesker.