Selected Handgun Detail

Manufacturer
	Fabbrica D' Armi Pietro Beretta SpA More Info

About the Gun

Tiny double-action/single-action blowback pocket pistol with an alloy frame, an open-top slide, and Beretta’s tip-up barrel. An exposed hammer and a frame-mounted thumb safety sit on a slightly thicker 950-pattern grip that houses the double-action drawbar. Finish is blued or blackened alloy with checkered plastic or walnut grips. Fixed blade-and-notch sights are minimal. The barrel hinges at the muzzle so the first round can be chambered without racking the slide.

Production

Production ran from 1968 through 1985.

Market value

MSRP at production was around $175. Current used market value for examples in good to very good condition ranges $250–$400.

Cartridge Specifications
Cartridge:	.25 Automatic
Alias:	6.35mm Browning
More Info

Analysis

Beretta introduced the Model 20 as a double-action successor to the single-action 950 Jetfire. Early trials used 950 frames; production guns added an external drawbar on the right side and replaced the 950’s torsion wire spring with pivoting arms over coil springs in frame tubes. Magazines interchange with the 950. Italian manufacture began in the late 1960s. The pistol was too small for U.S. import after 1968, so the examples seen here were built at Beretta USA from 1983 through 1985. About 30,000 were made in all. The 21A Bobcat, introduced in 1984 and cataloged in .22 LR and later .25 Auto, replaced it. The current 20X Bobcat is a later redesign, not this model. Used supply is thin next to the 21A. Clean U.S.-marked guns in original finish bring the upper end of the range; Italian guns are scarcer on the American market.