Beretta Model 1951. Note the mag release at the bottom/rear of the grip and the corresponding notch in the magazine.
Just before Christmas I was alerted to a flash sale. I had a look, though usually these are obscure spare parts for weird guns no has heard of or common early 20th C. Milsurp rifles. This time they had magazines for my beloved Beretta Model 1951 at a genuinely good price, and we’re not talking Promag, Triple K or even Maadi here. These were genuine Beretta magazines! I love my old guns and mags can get expensive so I snatched some right up.
I also love my Sig Sauer P6, but I only had a single spare mag. I’d bought a couple of Promags but of course they were crap and I sacrificed them to a project. But I did note that they were a remarkably good fit in the Beretta. So the Beretta mags ought to fit in the P6…
P6 magazine on the right, M1951 on the left. Gotta say, those are mighty similar...Yep. That Beretta Mag fits just fine, and when I held it in place it cycled rounds through the gun like a champ.
Of course the notch for the mag-catch is in a wrong place, but that’s what Dremel tools are for, am I wrong? I carefully marked the magazine, disassembled it and gently cut a notch for the Sig’s magazine-catch. I’ll be damned… it works.
Loads, releases, cycles. That’s what a magazine needs to do.
Now I have another magazine for the P6. Of course that little bitty notch in no way affects it’s ability to be used in the Beretta too. Might be I should convert a few more…
OK, but it’s at least getting close. After determining the sources of my woes- mysteriously key-holing bullets being among them- I made a steel barrel weight and had the gun up and running just before Christmas.
At New Year’s I happened across an interesting piece of Walnut in the ship and made a set of grips. They aren’t perfect, but they look pretty good. Yes, they are smooth; I grip the gun front-to back with a thumb riding the safety. The grips could be greased and it wouldn’t make any real difference.
The other day I decided that a) I wanted a bit more weight at the muzzle and b) I really didn’t like the look of screw-heads sticking out the bottom of the dust-cover. I figured 1-1/2 – 2 ozs. would do it. After considering steel I decided to go with aluminum. I made a piece to fit the dust cover then trimmed it until it felt right, at about 1-1/2 ozs. This did, uh, interesting things to the gun’s profile but it feels awesome!
Yes, it looks weird.
I have to say I am underwhelmed with the effects of the Birchwood Casey Aluminum Black on this project. I expect different alloys of aluminum react differently; it did a great job on the frame of my Airweight Chief’s Special.
Lookin’ good, feels good… but how does it shoot?
The Pudding
I had picked up a box of Fiocchi 115gr FMC at Pinto’s, and my buddy Lia handed me a box of Norma 115gr. FMC practice ammo for a favor so I had enough to make the trip worthwhile. First things first: the gun ran flawlessly. Excellent. Second things…
7-year rapid-fire. Not tragically bad, but I obviously needed to focus.7 Yards, 1 shot/second. That’s more like it.10 yards, 1 shot/second. This pleases me.15 yards, 5 shots at 1 shot/second. THIS is what I’m talkin’ about!Time for double-taps at 7 yards. Not impressed, try it again.This time I remembered that I know how to shoot– The second string of double-taps at 7 yards.
I’m deliriously happy and somewhat surprised that the gun is working as intended. I’m always a bit surprised when some mad idea I’ve had actually works. Hell, I don’t take the sensible ones for granted. But it’s still not quite done. The trigger is good, but it’s not ‘competition pistol’ good so I’ll be doing a trigger job. Also need to address the final finishing. Maybe a coating. We’ll see.
Then it’s time to practice a lot. I mean really a lot. Got some matches that need shooting…
Stay Safe and take care,
Michael Tinker Pearce, 7 January 2022
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Last year I experimented with a straight-walled .30-caliber pistol cartridge that fit in between .32 ACP and .30 Luger called the 7.8 x 19mm. It started because I had a Helwan with a broken locking block that I’d converted to straight-blowback, some .30 Carbine brass and a distinct lack of adult supervision. You can read the start of that journey here. In the end I discovered I had basically duplicated 7.65 x 20mm Longue, an obsolete pre-WW2 French service cartridge.
In the end I got a new 9mm barrel with a good locking block and I side-lined the project, debating whether to line the new barrel and proceed with testing hotter 7.8x19mm loads through the locked-breech system. No Point now, because Federal Premium ammunition has done it for me.
The newly introduced .30 Super Carry
OK, you can just stop that right now. I do not for one single instant believe that Federal ‘stole my idea.’ I’d be shocked to learn they had even heard of me. A number of people over the years have speculated that since 7.65 x 20mm French was fired through locked-breech pistols that it ought to be able to handle much hotter loads, and the idea of hotting-up various .32 cartridges is hardly new (.32 H&R and .327 Magnum anyone?) It was inevitable that someone would revisit this idea. I just didn’t expect it to ever reach production.
7.65 x 20 mm; neither fish, fowl not good, red meat.
This really does look for all the world like 7.65 x 20mm, though exact specs are not available at the time of this writing. Federal touts this as the first full-power cartridge designed for civilian self defense. OK, whatever. The idea is you can get more rounds on target faster. Power is comparable to 9 x 19mm, you get a couple more rounds in the magazine. What’s not to like? Yeah, let’s get back to that in a bit.
Expansion and penetration look good too. .30 SC comes in bullet weights ranging from 100-115gr, so it is heavy for caliber (for pistols at least) which gives it a high sectional density. This gives it good penetration even with expanding bullets. The fact that these bullets are lighter than many popular 9mm loads means less muzzle-flip.
It certainly looks the business on paper.
Not Much Good Without Something to Shoot it Out of…
You’re in luck there; S&W is chambering the Shield EZ and Shield Plus for this cartridge, and if you really insist on spending ten times as much Nighthawk Custom is offering a gun as well. Seriously, almost ten times as much; the Nighthawk is a skosh over $4000, and you can order it now.
Yes, they’re serious.
That Whole, ‘What’s not to like’ Thing…
OK, it looks like it’s got the performance. You get a bit more ammo and less muzzle flip. But seriously, is this really the right time to introduce a new cartridge? In the middle of the longest civilian ammo shortage since WW2? Where everyone is struggling to stock the current popular calibers and you can basically forget about it if you have an unpopular caliber? Really? If they’ve lost their minds, well it isn’t just Federal and S&W boarding the Crazy Train.
That’s right. Big Green is reportedly on-board also. I really, really don’t know what this all means. I have a suspicion that we’re looking at the semi-auto version of .327 Federal here. Huh… Federal again. Anyway, it seems like a decent idea, but it’s the answer to a question no one was asking and that usually doesn’t bode well for a new cartridge’s future.
I do know that if this ammo is as hard to get as most calibers these days that is going to seriously hurt it’s prospects. I suspect customers are going to shy away from the cartridge and guns in the current market atmosphere. That’s kind of a shame; I like it when people try to innovate and think outside of the box.
OTOH I reload my own ammo and care not a whit if I can’t find it on the shelves. I have visions of an alloy-frame 1911 with an 3.5″ barrel chambered for this cartridge…
I have to say I’ve been really enjoying watching Fudd’s heads explode over this and laughing at their ill-considered and usually spurious objections. Always a good time! We’ll just have to see how it is received, and I wish Federal, S&W and all the best of luck with this. In this day and age it might take more than luck to succeed with a new cartridge.
Stay safe and take care,
Michael Tinker Pearce, 5 January 2022
PS: Hey Federal, if you are reading this send a box or two my way… I’ve got a Helwan itching to get to work again.
