Beretta Nano 300 round test

I recently bought a new Beretta Nano 9mm; it came with one 8 round extended magazine and one flush fitting six round magazine. The Nano does not have an internal lock or magazine disconnect, if it did I wouldn’t have bought it. I also bought night sights and an extra six round magazine.

First thing I did was check sight adjustment; I shot 25 rounds of 124 gr. Winchester Ranger T and made a minor adjustment to the rear sight. I subsequently replaced the original sights with night sights, taking care to put the rear in the adjusted spot, and applied some Loc-Tite.

Next shooting session was 200 rounds of four different types of ammunition, 50 rounds each.

Third session was 50 rounds of my handload (a Hornady 115 gr. XTP) and another 25 rounds of the Federal 124 gr. HST +P bringing the total rounds to 300.

Chrono results, in ascending level of KE, average for 5 shots:
Federal 124 gr. Hydra Shok @ 991 fps / 270# KE
Federal 147 gr. JHP @ 914 fps / 273# KE
Hornady 115 gr. XTP handload @1,110 fps / 315# KE
Federal 124 gr. HST +P @ 1,144 fps / 360# KE
Winchester 124 gr. Ranger T +P @ 1,184 fps / 386# KE

Ammunition performance in water filled jugs, average recovered diameter:
Federal 124 gr. Hydra Shok- back of 4th jug / ~.53
Hornady 115 gr. XTP handload- back of 3rd jug / ~.61
Federal 124 gr. HST +P- back of 3rd jug / ~.68
Winchester Ranger T 124 gr. +P- back of 3rd jug / ~.74

Ejection of brass:
Federal 124 gr. Hydra Shok: acceptable ejection pattern, majority at 3-4 o’clock
Federal 147 gr. JHP: erratic ejection pattern, some thrown close to or over my head
Hornady 115 gr. handload: very good ejection pattern, consistently about 3-4 o’clock
Federal 124 gr. HST +P: very good ejection pattern, consistently at 3-4 o’clock
Winchester 124 gr. Ranger T +P: erratic ejection pattern, some thrown close to or over my head

I bought the Nano as a potential pocket carry pistol. I don’t like the look of the Nano with the extended eight round magazine inserted and it would eliminate pocket carry; however, the eight round magazine is useful as a spare.
My choice in ammo is the Federal 124 gr. HST +P for the most energy and consistent ejection of brass, with my own handload as an acceptable (to me) alternate.

Summary, I shot 300 rounds of various ammo through my Nano with no malfunctions.

I included two pics showing the Nano beside a J frame for size comparison.

bannockburn said:

CDW4ME

Nice evaluation and write-up. Good to see that with the first 300 rounds there were no malfunctions of any kind. It also looks like from your tests the Federal 124 gr. HST +P and the Winchester 124 gr. Ranger T +P gave you the best expansion and penetration. Did you have a chance to do any accuracy testing with these particular loads?

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I don't do any accuracy testing, nearly all my shooting is offhand at 6 -7 yards. Sorry.

The Winchester Ranger 124 gr. +P did generate the highest energy and greatest recovered diameter, but I would not select it as a carry load in this pistol due to the erratic brass ejection and significant recoil.

jpruitt said:

Good to hear your experience, as I just got a Nano myself (I didn't care for the 8-rd magazine either).

What I want to know is where the heck you found 300 rounds of 9mm. I haven't been shooting in months for lack of ammo. I really want to break this thing in.

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I bought that ammo prior to the last election.

All three magazines locked in place just fine.

YZ said:

Does Beretta warn against using any particular ammo type, weight, steel casing, etc?

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I see warnings against handloads, reloads, and remanufactured ammunition.
It also states that +P or +P+ may reduce service life.

I already violated those.