They make the 365 in .380 now too.
I carry one of these two a lot

and do not feel undergunned with them. The new Beretta would be more of the same for me

 

They make the 365 in .380 now too.
I carry one of these two a lot
View attachment 1184711
and do not feel undergunned with them. The new Beretta would be more of the same for me

I love those pistols. Had one that got away from me and regret it immensely.

I do carry .380 but only as a backup gun or when I need something extremely concealable.

 

I do carry an LCP.

 

I tracked down a PPK/S after a Bond marathon a few years ago. Only pack it when I’m wearing a tux, (read, never have, but will if the occasion arises). It lives in my desk drawer at work. Otherwise it’s a P938 at least.

 

I used to carry a .380 PPK a lot - but it has been eclipsed by the P365 when I need deep concealment.

HOWEVER....my .32 PPK still goes in a shoulder rig once every few years or so, because I always wear it to a new Bond film on opening day.

I actually like the .32 a little better than the .380. AMAZINGLY easy shooter! You can dump all 8 rounds in a nice tight group - FAST. But, while I have little problem with carrying a .32 or .380, or 9mm, I prefer to have a .45 on my hip.

 

42 or 911 works for me everyday…

 

While I normally carry something a bit larger and more powerful, I've been known to slip one of these into my belt from time to time when channeling my inner "Boggie".

They run like sewing machines and are more than accurate enough inside 15 yards.

And while I wouldn't feel undergunned with the new or old Cheetah, think I'd prefer to stay with the Colt's.

Just my $.02.

 

I wouldn't be interested in carrying a .380 regardless of make or model.

 

Nope, no 380 for me. My wife carries one because that is all she can handle, but if I want to rely on something to protect my life or the life of a loved one, its gonna be a 45.

 

No
Don't want to carry a low power round.

 

Many many years ago, one of my part time jobs was courier (💵) work, CCW was a Beretta 84. I’m always on the lookout for A Great priced beretta, especially an 87 or 85, the new cheetahs are interesting have to wait and see.
Nothing wrong with the Langdon lineup of pistols 👍

 

Many many years ago, one of my part time jobs was courier (💵) work, CCW was a Beretta 84. I’m always on the lookout for A Great priced beretta, especially an 87 or 85, the new cheetahs are interesting have to wait and see.
Nothing wrong with the Langdon lineup of pistols 👍

I sent my Stainless 92 FS to Langdon Tactical for the MO3 Trigger job. The best I own by far...

 

I do carry a 380 .LCP Ruger Max 12 plus 1 hollow points .This is at work.Easy carry don't know I have it on.Dings and dirt don.t matter.It's about shot placement.I tell my son n law my 380 in hand is better than his 45 in the truck.Hope I never need it.

 

I normally carry a 9mm Sig P365, but on a really hot Florida day I might slip my .380 P238 into my pocket...anything larger will be 9mm or more.

 

I carried a model 84 years ago because I was a die hard Beretta fan. Then I shot my first 1911. Gonna miss you Beretta.

I'm also a lover of the 81 Series Berettas. However, in this day and age, there are way too many great compact 9mm choices to be packing .380.

 

Nope…I’m even skeptical about carrying 9mm.

 

The Beretta Cheetah's are really nice guns. They have accuracy like a fixed barrel and the open top slide makes them reliable with a really wide variety of ammo.

For a range gun or something to teach with, a Beretta Cheetah is nice. But it wouldn't be my choice for a carry .380. Recoil on the blowback Cheetah isn't going to be any better than any of the new similarly sized locked breech 9mm choices on the market. I do carry .380, but only when I want the advantage of a smaller footprint like a Colt Mustang or Ruger LCP.

The price on these doesn't seem out of line to me with classic versions in like new condition going for even more. But if cost is an issue, Tisas has a Cheetah clone at half the price.

 

I'm not afraid to carry a .380 or even a .32.
Pocket pistols have their place - concealed is concealed.
Ammo selection is very important.

It's the gun you don't see until it's too late that will kill you.

 

There's a lot packed into this thread title!!

Would I ever "Switch" to carrying a 380? No. Absolutely not.

Would I ever "Carry" a 380? Yes. I've had a Ruger LCP for many years. I pocket carry it in a holster when I need to be as discreet as possible. I'm talking one step from not being able to carry a firearm at all. I also pocket carry it when mowing. It has accounted for several snakes. One was a good size velvet tail and also quite a few armadillos.

I was caught in one incident carrying only the LCP in my pocket and I had my wife and our grandkids with me. Looked like things could possibly get very sporty, real quick. I said never again will I be under gunned if I don't have to be.

I'm quite sure the Beretta 80X is a fine handgun, most Berettas are. But in my opinion, if you can carry a compact or larger handgun and don't have a problem with recoil, then you should certainly be carrying a larger caliber.

NEVER settle for being under gunned "By Choice".

And no, I don't mean everyone should be carrying a 460 or 500! 🤣

James/SCO

 

I get hooted down regularly for this, but I carry a Ruger LCP. I find it's easy to shoot and remarkable accurate for a small gun. Anecdotally, I've seen a few folks shot dead and they were all shot with .22 and .380, so there's that.
I don't have any personal experience with the Cheetah, but I like the way it looks!

 

In 35 years as an LEO I bet you’ve seen a few more than ‘a few folks shot dead’…

I did, ironically, also do 35 years on the street-as a Paramedic. Also seen a few folks shot-shot the f’ up, shot dead, shot and wounded, shot while re-holstering, shot with most every kinda firearm around (well, never .50 cal-except once a .50 cal black powder…) that people will use on each other in the course of social intercourse

Honestly, my anecdotal observation has been that placement trumps caliber-seen a single shot from a .25 auto kill near instantly (aortic placement), many small caliber cases that have proven very effective-especially when its multiple rounds striking chest and/or neck

Sure, no argument that bigger caliber is better (I just received a custom .45 Colt Defender thats gonna be my preferred after I proof it at the range). But fellas, it’s very weird to see a guy (or girl) shot multiple times with a large caliber handgun round and arrive to find them conscious and even up and moving. Happens. More than you’d think.

Shotgun and rifle calibers…well, thats a whole different ballgame

I’ll carry a .380

Often I go places daily where only a deeply concealed weapon is acceptable-I even have a .32 Seecamp that sees some carry (just got it back from Teddy J., for those of you that know-holy crap, the work that guy does!!).

9mm seems the best compromise for preferred, daily carry-but the micro 9’s, its just hard to make rapid, multiple shots hit a tight group. I’ll take a .380 for deeper conceal over a micro 9-not just any .380 though-and not just any 380 ammo either. The short list for me of 380’s I tried, own or have owned that I can shoot effectively is:

Ruger LCP 2-very much modified with Innovative Arms sights mod, Galloway Precision trigger, NDZ mag baseplates, Magguts and hogue rubber over grip-love that little thing! It gets carried frequently when size is an issue

Ruger LCP Max-even though it comes with pretty nice sights I sent the slide down to XS for some yellow Big Dot sights

Sig P238 Legion

Kahr CT380 (liked this one-don’t know why I sold it-shouldn’t have) is the 7 round longer grip version of the CW380. I want to try shooting a P380…

S&W M&P Bodyguard (the little 380 auto DA) also modified with XS sights, Magguts, Galloway Precision trigger and Hogue rubber grip

I guess my overall preference when I can carry whatever I wish is an officer/compact sized 1911 or 3” Defender or one of my EMP’s, but the little 380’s-and even the Seecamp-definitely have their place and utility

…better a little gun you have on you that a bigger gun in your safe or glovebox
<add to that ‘a little gun you can hit well with’>

 

I had a few 380s, I sold them all for two reasons. I ammo is expensive and often hard to find, they are not much smaller that a 9mm. I'll take the 9mm over a 380 every time, but I'm not recoil sensitive.

 

I have a sneaking suspicion that there were more SHOT debuts in .380 because I believe the Micro 9 is a tougher nut to crack than the industry wants to let on. Folks here should know that in the context of the 1911, that when you deviate from the standard formula and go smaller down the scale, the operational window narrows and narrows.

In terms of size, there's just some places you can't go with a 9mm and maintain a similar level of reliability.

Admittedly, I've had an 84FS for quite a while and it's a very unique pistol in its size and capability.

And lets be real for a minute on .380. The menu of loads is all over the place. I've seen some that are awful to shoot down to stuff that feels like rimfire. What's weird is the "hotter" more aggressive stuff doesn't help its numbers compared to other loads that actually meet certain industry penetration standards.

Folks also fail to recognize that just because their pet load is GTG out of a 4" barrel, the game changes when you cut down the barrel length by 50%. Revolver folks tend to understand this better. Look at some numbers on .357 mags out of 1 7/8" J-frames...they are pretty unexceptional despite all the blast and recoil you get. For example, there are .22wmr's in Jframes that meet industry penetration standards where some popular .357 mag defensive loads will fail to make depth out of a Jframe.
You gotta know what your bullet is doing out of your gun. Regurgitated blanket statements are detrimental to every.


For every "shooting encounter" be it hunting, professional, defensive, there's 3x factors:
1) Getting the gun to the fight
2) Getting the bullet to the target
3) The bullet doing what it's supposed to do.

In terms of guns like the 80's series Cheetah, it's awesome at 1 and 2, and depending on bullet selection capable on #3. Too many folks get wrapped around the last part and neglect the first 2. IMHO, the little Beretta seems to pack quite a bit in a small package (and small footprint mags as well):

Beretta 80X Cheetah vs Smith & Wesson Model 340 PD size comparison | Handgun Hero

Compare the dimensions and specs of Beretta 80X Cheetah and Smith & Wesson Model 340 PD

www.handgunhero.com

 

I have a Seecamp LWS 380. It is carried as a backup pocket gun. I carry a 4.25 inch Colt Python 357 magnum as a primary gun.

 

I'm interested in the new Cheetah. I carry an 84 FS at times, 13 +1 of .380 does not make me feel unarmed.

 

I would not carry it as my primary weapon, but I certainly use it as an easy to carry backup. With Leigh Defense ammo it’s a solid emergency tool.

I really like these baby SIGs which are even nice to shoot and their sights actually work too.

 

I’ve also got a few P238’s-one of them the Legion model. It’s far and away the best of the P238’s IMO. The build quality, the magwell and proprietary mag baseplate-gives it just enough extra grip without the sorta wiggly mag baseplate the regular P238 has-and the sights are pretty good. Finish is very nice as well. I carry it occasionally, also with Lehigh (well, actually Underwood…same same). I like the lead hard cast. One of the reasons it shoots so nicely is its a steel frame-you done really notice that at first.

I also have another P238 I really like-its the harder to find steel frame, silver finish model. Gotta say that one also shoots a bit softer that the alloy frame one that is my third one. The weight difference is noticeable, but in that small size not anywhere near a deal breaker-but man, the difference in how it shoots!

Honestly, if you like the Colt Mustang/P238 guns (I also have a few mustangs, including a couple of Plus 2 models and a couple of Govt 380 models), the Legion P238 is really the best of them from my view

I like it so much I picked up a Legion P938 as well. Only shot it once, its a nice size for carry but wow, is that thing snappy! I think it’s ultimately destined to get traded away or sold

I’d say if you have and like the P238 for regular or even occasional carry-especially if you have an alloy frame version-find a Legiion P238, even if you have to sell your other one to fund it-I think it’s that much better

 

Sure…..

 

I wouldn't switch by choice. In a non-permissive environment, you take what you can get. There are times when wearing business attire in the summertime that anything larger than an LCP simply isn't going to work. The 380 is a marginal defensive cartridge and I will always carry something more appropriate when I can.

The Beretta 80-series do look cool though.

 

Sig P238 and Sig P365