Gun Digest Book of Beretta Pistols. Massad Ayoob
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for the period.
The Beretta 84 was and is a substantial .380. There are a lot of .380s that are smaller. Hell, there are 9mm and even .40 S&W pistols that are smaller. With this in mind, Beretta introduced the Model 85 a few years later with a slim single-stack magazine that held eight .380 cartridges, allowing a proportionally slimmer grip frame.
The 85’s slender grip frame and magazine size were retained for the Model 86, which is my personal favorite Beretta .380. The dust cover (the forward part of the frame) was extended to allow for a tip-up barrel a’ la the 950 series. While the lever that pops the barrel up is located on the left side of a 950’s frame and requires only a short arc of movement, the one on the .380 is on the right side and demands a full 180 degrees before the mechanism tilts the barrel upward.
Though the Model 86 looks bulkier than the 85, it is not really so in any given dimension, and its added weight is but a single ounce. A Beretta 86 tips the scales at 23 ounces unloaded, an 85, at 22 ounces.
… the 1934/35 style fit solidly in the hand, and established a reputation as a .380 unbeatable for reliability and accuracy.
For much of the 20th century this was the defining shape of Beretta pistols. The author’s first centerfire handgun, a Model 1934 .380 …
… had a patina from WWII combat use, and the manual safety was removed …
Author’s favorite .380 is the Model 86. It is the most powerful tip-up barrel design. This is a feature that enables use by those with crippled or weakened hands.
I’m partial to the Beretta 86 for the same reason a lot of firearms instructors are: it serves as a special-purpose “orthopedic gun” for a certain type of student. This is the individual who, for reasons of illness, injury, age, or whatever does not have the strength to operate the slide of a semiautomatic pistol.
Circa 1992, the Models 84, 85, and 86 became the Beretta Cheetah series along with the Model 87, which was the same gun in .22 Long Rifle. The design was updated to make the frame-mounted safety lever function as a decocking lever as well.
This, for the most part, is a good feature. Lowering a double-action pistol’s hammer by hand is asking for an accident. There is huge potential for slippage.
If you’re going to carry a double-action Beretta .380 in double-action mode, the Cheetah series (or the Browning BDA) makes enormous sense. If you are accustomed to carrying a 1911 or other type pistol with a frame-mounted safety that is pressed down for “fire” and up for “safe,” you will have commonality with the Cheetah in its double-action mode, and that makes awfully good sense, too.
At the same time, one thing I liked about the earlier design of the Model 86 was that its manual safety design made possible cocked and locked, single-action carry. It was my experience that a person whose limited upper body strength made it hard for them to operate an auto pistol’s slide, often also had fingers so weak or so limited in reach that the long, heavy first shot pull of a double-action trigger would be difficult for them, too. I’ve encouraged a number of people in this situation to go with the older style Beretta 86, and as long as they could live with the .380 ACP power level, they were happy with it. Those same people, almost always, found themselves carrying the gun cocked and locked because it was much faster and much easier for them to get off the first shot. Sometimes, that was the only way they could get off the first shot.
The author thinks the best casual sporting .22 Beretta ever made was the Model 70. This one has adjustable sights, factory thumb-rest stock.
Few pistols point as well as a series 70 Beretta, or feel as good in the hand.
The Beretta Model 70 .22 became famous as an issue weapon for Mossad, the Israeli secret service.
Cocked and locked, the second-generation Model 70 is seen with its ergonomic thumb safety, which replaced the previous cross-bolt design.
Dubbed the “New Puma,” the series 70 Beretta .32 was a sleek single-action auto with some unusual features.
Unlike first-generation guns, the second-generation intermediate frame Berettas had this efficient, ergonomic slide lock design.
Shooting the Beretta .380s
Not until a year or so into production of the third-generation guns (81 series) did Beretta .380s start coming with internal firing pin safeties. This rendered them drop-safe. Prior state-of-the-art was such that if a semiautomatic pistol with a round in the chamber and no internal firing pin lock should be struck sharply on the muzzle or hammer end, the firing pin could be driven forward enough by inertia to fire the weapon. Thus, if you have any pistol without an internal firing pin lock, it is an excellent idea to carry it with an empty chamber and jack a round into the firing chamber Israeli-style when the gun is drawn in an emergency or any other situation where it may be appropriate to fire. The current Beretta .380s with internal firing pin lock are, however, safe to carry with a round in the chamber, the way U.S. police and most of us “in the business” carry our semiautomatic pistols.
I personally thought those sweet, second-generation 70 series models had the best feel of all, but the current generation is awfully close in that positive attribute. This is subjective, of course, but the reader can easily test a given handgun for this factor without firing a shot. Triple check that the gun is unloaded. Pick a spot that could safely absorb a bullet. Lower the gun, close your eyes, and keeping the eyelids shut, bring the pistol up and point it by feel at that pre-selected spot. Freeze everything, and open your eyes. If the gun is aimed where you wanted it to be, that gun “points well for you.” It’s a subjective thing. It’s about you and the gun, not about me or anyone else and the given pistol.
The top of a Series 81 pistol’s slide is somewhat rounded. This makes it more comfortable for inside-the-waistband carry, and is esthetically pleasing. However, it also means there’s less flat area at the rear of the slide with which the shooter’s support hand can engage the grasping grooves. This can make jacking the slide awkward. It’s another reason why I’m partial to the Model 86 with its tip-up barrel. There are some other .380s, notably the SIG P230 and P232, whose slides are easier to operate than those of a Beretta 84 or 85.
The modern Beretta .380s normally come with ambidextrous safety levers. This is always a good thing. You might be right-handed, as I am, but either of us might have to lend our gun to another good guy or gal who will be using it southpaw. At any time, either of us could suffer an injury to our