Tag Archives: new gun 2023

Oh, that Cheetah roar

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Probably one of the most underrated of .380ACPs, the old-school Beretta 84/85 Cheetah, with its subcompact alloy frame and its 13+1 capacity, was a rock-solid classic back in the 1990s and early 2000s.

I have a couple of different .32 and .380 Beretta Cheetahs, all recently imported former Italian police guns, and I really like them.

Well, Beretta has brought it back in a very modern second generation, the 80X.

As its name would imply, borrows the Vertec grip, X-treme S Double/Single trigger, and skeletonized hammer as seen on the 92X line, but shrinks everything down a bit while keeping a 13+1 round capacity.

Direct blowback action, it runs a 3.9-inch barrel giving it an overall length of a very handy 4.9 inches. Weight is 25 ounces unloaded. Either way, nice to see folks are still making hammer-fired metal-framed guns for mainstream carry use. 

More in my column at Guns.com.

That 5.7, tho

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So, the FN 5.7x28mm PDW round, which is pushing 30 years young, almost died out by about 2018, with only one small maker (California’s Excel) making pistols outside of FN.

Then the Ruger 57 pistol (and companion carbine), Diamondback DBX, CMMG Banshee MK57, PSA Rock, and Masterpiece MPA57 hit the market just in the past three years, joined by the third generation of FN’s own pistol. Added to this, AAC (PSA’s brand) along with Federal and Speer have started loading ammo for it, while Fiocchi is expanded its own offerings, adding to the availability and likely dropping the price in the coming days.

Well, now, Smith & Wesson has entered the fray with a $699 pistol gas-operated hammer-fired pistol that feels better than just about any of the above.

The 22+1 capacity (not a misprint) M&P 5.7.

I handled it at SHOT Show, and the handgun has a light and crisp feel to it with the felt recoil akin to a .22 Magnum.

More in my column at Guns.com.

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