Just got my weekly email from Palmetto State Armory. They have  Italian police surplus Beretta 84 BB pistols for $399 plus sales tax and transfer fee. So about $500 all in.  From photos they look to be in good-very good condition. They have been through Beretta to be checked and parts changed as needed.

This would be mainly a fun gun for me. May carry on occasionally. Unless of course my wife likes it in which case she’ll claim it like she did with my snubby model 10 and my Sig P6 ??.  Would like to hear your experiences with this pistol. Thoughts on the price (seems ok to me)? How expensive or difficult is it to find magazines or holsters? How’s the trigger? I hate heavy/sloppy/rough triggers. Anything else that I have missed?

Looks like another batch of Guardia di Finanza guns.  I have one from an early batch, as well as the 32 acp version.

Nice guns, a tad bulky for a 380.  Haven't run a lot of rounds thru mine but it's been entirely reliable and decently accurate.  Spare mags can be tough to find and pricey when you do.  It seems they show up in batches then disappear for a while.  Holsters are out there, check ebay.  Trigger is typical of a conventional DA/SA pistol.  Not bad, not great.  Perfectly usable.

I picked up one of the last batch, along with an 85.  They're nice guns. I carry the 85 daily.

84 mags are no prob, Midway has Mec-Gars for $25 right now, newer Berettas $35. Original older all metal Beretta ones are available too. I've carried in Desantis and Don Hume iwb holsters, they both work.

I picked up a used, very nice condition Beretta 84 a few years back. It was a gun I’d been on the lookout for a number of years, but never wanted to spend the $ for a new one. I couldn’t pass it up. Kind of old school cool.

Great hand-filling grip (0f course a bit wide for CC) makes it accurate and easy to shoot. Very reliable even with my lead reloads.

Like most blow back .380s, the recoil is a bit on the sharp side, but not unpleasant like the micro 380s.

I don’t shoot it often, and I don’t CC it (much more practical choices) but it is a fun gun to own.

I had a model 84 for a while in 380acp. Mine was a beater imported from Israel. Worked great but was pretty snappy. Ended up trading it off eventually.

Wonderful if somewhat dated pistols, very dependable and accurate even if a bit wide and as noted above, hand-filling.  There is something about that little double stack magazine full of 380s that is reassuring.

Thanks for the replies. Still trying to decide if I want to spend the money. I’ve also had my eye on  S&W .380EZ for teaching new shooters and as a fun gun, or a Beretta Tomcat for pocket carry..  Both of which my wife may decide are hers if she shoots them 🤷‍♂️🤣.

After watching James Reeves TFB video on them a few years ago, I had to have one.  His video did mention it was "snappy".  I found a new old stock 84 at a local shop.  Bought some extra mags & took it out to shoot.  Yes, it was snappy.  So much so, I got rid of it, as I just didn't enjoy shooting it.  But I'm a big fan of "buy and try".  Everyone will have a different experience.

As far as your other choices, the .380 may also be uncomfortable to shoot due to its size.  I like the Tomcat's, but they do have a history of frame cracks around the trigger.  Not sure how the new production guns are holding up?  I have one of the older ones and you really need to pay attention to the power factor of the ammo you're using to prevent the crack.  And from my research, .32 HP ammo will not expand and give adequate penetration.  Ball ammo is a better choice for these.

FYI you can swap barrels and mags around the 80 series (including the 80x). i run 32 acp thru my 85 and 80x regularly

Super dependable.  Super accurate.  Feels much better in the hand than a mouse gun.  Absolutely love my 84 and my 81.

Great guns, big for a .380. Bought mine over 25 years ago. Classic Beretta design.

I these are the guns that Carrie-Anne Moss carried in the Matrix, because she had issues with the Beretta 92 because she has extremely small hands.

Personally, I think that this classic Beretta 84 is a much better gun than the S&W EZ. Another thing to consider -- these Beretta models will likely be difficult to come by in the future, whereas you'll be able to purchase the S&W EZ easily.

I've enjoyed my "80 series" Beretta pistols a lot. If you buy one of these Beretta 84's it's only going to continue to go up in value.  

First wife bought me one as a gift over 25 years ago.

Still have it.

Great gun albeit large for a .380

Sits hidden in the house on guard duty.

CZ-83 or Bersa Thunder Plus are also double stack 380 options that are less expensive and able to have fancy grips put on them

There are plenty of "fancy" grips for the mid-sized Berettas, I daresay more than those other two. Wood, polymer, G10  or get your cartel bad self on.

https://gungrips.org/gun-grips/beretta/beretta-81bb-81f-81fs-84bb-84f-84fs-84fs-cheetah-grips/virgen-de-guadalupe-and-san-judas-tadeo-beretta-81bb-81f-81fs-84bb-84f-84fs-84fs-cheetah-grips/

Remember, Tony Montana used a Model 81 on those two cockaroaches in the nightclub.

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