Beretta Pico

[FergusonTO35]

Anyone have experience with the Beretta Pico .380 pistol? I've been thinking about getting a .380 that is more compact than my Glock 42 and the Pico looks nice. The only complaint I have read is that it has a heavy, true double action trigger which Beretta has upgraded since the pistol came out.

[Outpost75]

Several Picos owned by others which I tried were ammo sensitive and occassionally misfired.

My Ruger LCP has over 1000 rounds through it and eats everything with no drips, runs or errors. Feeds Accurate 35-122T with big meplat and tolerates either Winchester Train Low Recoil FMJ flatnose which other pistols frequsntly bobble with, or hot handloads with 122 grain cast and a casefull of Alliant #2400.!

I found the 6-rd. ProMags ran well, as do the original Ruger mags, but any extended capacity long sticks have issues.

Unless you have small hands, you will want to add the Hogue grip sleeve.

I get 850 fps from Remington 102-grain GSHP Ultimate Defense and you can obliterate target pasters at 7 yards.

[Lefty Red]

Same as Outpost's findings. The Pico and Nano have weird high barrels and odd grips. I couldn't shoot either with a hoot, nor anyone else that have shot them from around here.

LPC or TCP cheaper and better weapons.

[FergusonTO35]

Thanks. How far does the LCP throw brass with standard ball ammo? Also, do you find the POI matches the sights?

I carried the Glock 42 in the pocket all day. It can be carried this way no problem, but is at the absolute upper limit in weight .and comfort for me. Drawing this gun from the pocket is not exactly fast either.

[Outpost75]

My LCP puts the brass into low earth orbit over Ohio firing Accurate 35-122T, 122 grain cast LFN with 6.3 grains of Alliant #2400 or 7 grains of #2400 with 102-grain Golden Sabre HP in Federal brass with Federal 200 primer at 0.95" OAL.

Blot out target at 7 yds. with front sight. If you inlaid a dot in the front sight that would be point of impact. Windage was dead on.

Fiocchi 95-grain FMJ less accurate, but you can find all of the brass within 6 ft.

[FergusonTO35]

That sounds good, I'm going to save the bone crushers for the Glock. A Lee 356-95-RF or 356-102-2R at 800 fps is plenty for me. Will go to the fun store this week and see if they have one.

[Outpost75]

Here is my .380 test data summary:

Velocity of .380 ACP Factory and Heavy Cast Bullet Handloads
in Beretta vs. Ruger LCP

Ammunition Type_________3.4” Beretta M1934______2.75” Ruger LCP

Fiocchi 95-grain FMJRN_______984 fps, 25 Sd, 86ES_____853 fps, 34 Sd, 116 ES

Winchester 95-grain FMJFN____891 fps, 17 Sd, 44ES_____804 fps, 18 Sd, 63 ES

Remington 102-grain GSHP____893 fps, 27 Sd, 60ES_____845 fps, 44 Sd, 151 ES

Accurate 35-122T, 2.5 Bullseye_ 836 fps, 11 Sd, 29 ES____768 fps, 29 Sd, 77ES

114-grain 35-122THP 2.5 BE___ 870 fps, 9 Sd, 21 ES_____815 fps, 15 SD, 60 ES

35-122T, 6.3 grs. Alliant #2400__896 fps, 36 Sd, 115 ES___859 fps, 22 Sd, 58 ES

164718164719164741

[hp246]

I have one. Probably 500 rounds through it with several types of ammo including a couple different reloads. No malfunctions to date. It is what it is. A very compact backup gun. If you are looking to go out and do some bullseye shooting at 25 yards, forget get about it. If you want a compact backup, it works great. With the smaller magazine, I can hide it behind the cell phone on my belt, or put it in my suit pants pocket. It doesn't print through my suit pocket. It does have a high center of gravity. But if you shoot a Sig, it is about the same or a bit higher. The trigger pull is a a strong double action pull. I think it is a safety mechanism for people like me who put it in their pockets. If you are familiar with Michigan MCOLES standards, I am able to qualify that course of fire easily with the gun.

[OS OK]

Impressive how that round peeled back and did not fragment the jacket.
Those little .380's are loud…huh?
Don't remember the years but Cops used to carry the .380 as a backup…it's lethal.

[Lefty Red]

That sounds good, I'm going to save the bone crushers for the Glock. A Lee 356-95-RF or 356-102-2R at 800 fps is plenty for me. Will go to the fun store this week and see if they have one.

those are my Casted bullets for the 380, Colt Mustangs Pocketlite and XSP.
i even went and got the 102-2R in hollow point version. Nice little bullet!
I can never get the Gold Dots or XTPs when in stock.

[C. Latch]

Thanks. How far does the LCP throw brass with standard ball ammo?

Is this a normal thing with Ruger's compact pistols? I ask because my LC9 literally puts brass on the roof of the house when I shoot off the deck. I climbed up on a table to clear some out of the gutters this afternoon.

[hp246]

Impressive how that round peeled back and did not fragment the jacket.
Those little .380's are loud…huh?
Don't remember the years but Cops used to carry the .380 as a backup…it's lethal. I used to carry a PPK/S. Loved that little gun. accurate. Nice trigger pull. Not as small as the PICO, but A great little gun. One of those you think about years later and say why did I ever sell that thing?

[Outpost75]

Is this a normal thing with Ruger's compact pistols? I ask because my LC9 literally puts brass on the roof of the house when I shoot off the deck. I climbed up on a table to clear some out of the gutters this afternoon.

Ever shoot a Mini-14 Ranch Rifle? Only rifle I've ever seen that throws brass farther than an HK93!

Ruger likes POSITIVE ejection!!!!

[FergusonTO35]

I spent some quality time with my Glock 42 and the Lee 356-102 over 2.9 grains Bullseye after work. Good grief, what a sweet pistol. Reliable, super easy to shoot, just as accurate as it's larger bretheren, likes boolits. If Glock made a version that was LCP size I would buy it right now. Heck, I may pick up another 42 the next time I encounter a good deal on one. It's just that good of a gun!

[C. Latch]

Ever shoot a Mini-14 Ranch Rifle? Only rifle I've ever seen that throws brass farther than an HK93!

Ruger likes POSITIVE ejection!!!!


LOL.

I had a CETME once and I think you could have killed one person and maimed another with each shot if you lined them up just right.

[Outpost75]

LOL. I had a CETME once and I think you could have killed one person and maimed another with each shot if you lined them up just right.

Don't laugh. There have been SEVERAL successful plaintiff's awards in personal injury lawsuits from ejected brass.

I won't give further details, but those willing to do their due diligence can find the cases.

Just to amuse yourself set up a clear gel block next to your HK91, HK93, Ruger Mini 14 Ranch Rifle and catch the empties from ten feet and then tell me if YOU want to stand next to somebody firing one. Run the brass through your chronograph at the same time and calculate their kinetic energy!

It's impressive if you launch a long burst of the hot brass into a raw beef pot roast at room temperature, then record the sound of the hot brass sizzling, then when the sizzling stops, pull out the slow-cooled brass one at a time like you were eating French frieds, each with a bit of cooked meat stuck to it, dab with a little A1 sauce and try a taste! Close-up video of the cooked meat, bloddy rare in the hole and pink-medium around the edges, with the sauce running down the tester's chin. Yummy!

Yes, this has been done before... Steak ala Spetnaz! The best courtroom theatrics I ever saw!

As good as bacon ala M249!

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

of ...

[FergusonTO35]

I ended up with an LCP. Can't argue with a Ruger for $209.95.

[scattershot]

Bud's is currnely running a sale on the Pico.

[Artful]

Remember thus is the only +P rated 380 ACP that I'm aware of ...

That's interesting

SAAMI list of +P cartridges
Pressure: __Regular___+P
.38 Special 17,000 PSI 20,000 PSI
9mm Luger 35,000 PSI 38,500 PSI
.45 ACP __21,000 PSI 23,000 PSI

What About .380 ACP +P?

There isn’t one listed by SAAMI
- there is no pressure standard for a .380 ACP +P load. You can make on any pressure you want.
As there is no standard, as specified by SAAMI, for .380 ACP +P, It simply doesn’t exist, there are no rules.

ANY ammo, claiming to be .380 ACP +P, is, by very definition, nonstandard.

We don’t know how high the pressure levels may be, do we?
The only thing we do know, is that the pressure levels are almost certainly higher than what SAAMI has established as the standard pressure level.

How much more?

Only the Ammo maker knows, or Do They?

With no upper limit on pressure, you can't say that any gun is "safe" to shoot .380 +p ammo.

Buffalo Bore is really hot load in there stuff called +P, in that it produces around 25,000 psi, by Tim Sundles' admission, which is more than 16% greater than the SAAMI-specified maximum pressure for .380 ACP. There have been documented cases of extreme wear in LCPs and P3ATs on the respective forums for those guns from a small number of rounds of BB.

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

more too!

[FergusonTO35]

I have fed my Glock 42 quite a few homemade "+P" rounds, it handled them with aplomb. Nothing extreme, just bumping the powder charge up a couple of tenths using new brass. My 42 shoots best with ammo at the top of the published charge range so that is what I feed it.

I have no desire to feed the LCP or any other small pistol hot rounds. There comes a point of diminishing returns with that sort of thing. In all my carry pistols I want to be able to shoot quickly with good accuracy, lots or recoil and muzzle jump defeats that.

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

k ...

[762 shooter]

Thread Drift. Friend of mine shot his HK SL7 out if the drivers side window and the ejected brass cracked his front windshield.

Wife uses LCP.

762