Beretta 950 .25 vs. Guardian .32 for Pocket Carry?

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Kestrel

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Well, I have a Guardian in .32 for pocket carry, but have recently wondered about a little Beretta Jetfire in .25. I know... with a .25, you would have to shove it up their nose or into their eye socket, but it's lighter than the .32 and I might carry it more often, due to the ligjhtness.

I guess I'm just thinking out loud, but does anyone have any thoughts on the comparison of these two?

I also was told by a gun shop that Beretta had discontunued the Jetfire/.25??? Is this true?

Thanks,
Steve
 
My experience with these little guys was: Keltec, needed the fluff and buff to run and did so reasonably well but not 100% all the time. NAA guardian was a nice little pistol but on round number 3 or 4 the trigger mainspring snapped right in half! NAA shipped me two new springs within a day to two replaced it, but tough to trust it after that. Beretta 950 has been totally reliable 100% of the time shoots anything. For me with a relatively low risk index it is great.
 
I haven't heard anything about the Jetfire being discontinued...

But, I hope not. It's a completely reliable little .25ACP. I own the "INOX"
version and I keep it stoked with a "Magsafe" in the pipe and a magazine full of Hornady XTP's. I replaced the black plastic grips with smooth walnut "EL" version (THAT one has been discontinued) grips. My Jetfire is in my pocket a lot as I walk around the house and yard. If things are serious, like having to go downtown or something,
I always have something large on my belt and my Seecamp or Guardian in my pocket.
Both of those are loaded with RBCD's. My Seecamp in RJ's Front Pocket LE is less than an inch wide. (I LOVE pocket pistols. :) However, they're almost never the only guns I depend on.)

KR
 
I've really been satisfied w/ my 950. I've had it for almost 2 years & it's been very easy to carry and very reliable to shoot.
I use to say it was my false sense of security. Now, I'm thinking if the 1st rule of gun fighting is to have a gun, I've got one ;)

As for them being discontinued, I haven't heard that. You may wanna try the http://www.berettaforum.net/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi
 
That Guardian is pretty darn small. I doubt you would get much an upgrade in portability, especially when compared to the down grade in caliber, IMHO.

Not to say you shouldn't buy a neat little .25 if you like it. I have a Browning Baby copy. It's neat.

But paying $10 per box of .25 hurts.
 
Pocket Carry

Have you looked at the new Kel-Tec P38T??? 9mm kurz beats either of those two all to heck and from what I understand, the P38T is no bigger than the P32!!! :eek:

I personally have not seen the little bugger yet, because the supply train has not made it past the Mississippi!! (it must be horse drawn) :confused:

But, from scant reports I have read, it seems to be OK!!! :scrutiny:
 
Honestly Id go with the NAA 32NAA version. Its the 380 rechambered. Its a tad heavier and bigger than the 32 but almost 2 times the energy.

The KT's are good, but dont trust them as of yet..the ones Ive shot didnt run like they r supposed to. Even after the Fluff/buff was done.

The .380 KT has gotten good and bad reviews..as is expected with a new gun...or I should say possible with a new gun.

The 25 caliber is my last choice when you can get a gun that has ALOT more energy...when your talking pocket pistols...25, 32 or .380 (or 32 NAA) I figure why not get rid of as much of the variables as you can a carry the one that packs the most wallop.

Shoot well
 
I have a Beretta and I really like it. Very well made and reliable. As long as you keep the limitations of the .25 in mind, I'd encourage you to ge the Beretta. You won't regret it.
 
No Jetfire on the Berreta USA website-------just the double action version in .22 and .25 and the Tomcat.
 
I'd take 22 over 25 any day. At least the .22 has some velocity and it will penetrate better than .25. Though i'd take .32 over either. Why not go with a guardian 380?
 
I owned a .25 Jetfire and although it was an absolutely reliable gun I was delighted when NAA came out with the .32 Guardian. For the slight difference in size and weight I would much rather have a .32 over a .25 any day. These are all marginal stoppers at best and if I can't have anything larger than a pocket pistol with me I want it to be the most powerful I can carry. I definitely think the .32 has a lot more going for it than the .25. Mike
 
PCRCCW...

I hope you come back to this thread,'cause you got me to thinking. :)
I LIKE bottleneck rounds. They're very reliable feeding cartridges.
Is that .32NAA bottleneck cartridge fired from the new & larger .380 frame pistol or the older & smaller .32 frame pistol? (Or is that even possible?)
When the .32NAA bottleneck round first came out, I wasn't interested in the least. Now, with further thought, that puppy should be quite reliable. Like the necked down .357 Sig round. I don't think I've EVER heard someone say they get jams with .357 Sig.

Thanks,
KR
 
Kent. Rifle,

Yep, the 32NAA is a .380 case necked down to a 32...NAA had Corbon do the initial research and dev. on the round and got the velocity up there in the process.
It mimics a mini 357 Sig....
Both fired from the same length Guardian the 380 has around 175-180 FPE while the 32 NAA has around 210-215 FPE...

And they do use the larger framed gun, its essentially the .380 with a smaller barrel..same mags, extractor, ejector etc............

Defensive ammo gurus with much greater minds than mine, say with a .380 or 32..you dont produce enough velocity to produce penetration and expansion.
The .380 has the same size round as the 9mm, but lacks weight. So you need extra velocity to get the expansion out of the little light bullet, which with the max case pressure tolerated by the blowback recoil design, is a hard thing to attain.
Same scenario with the 32 Acp, but to a further extent.

IMO, what NAA has done is produced a very small caliber round that has the velociy to actually get a good bullet design to perform as it should.
And do it from a very small platform......

Looks promising in theory and in the testing Ive seen.

Shoot well.
 
corbon 380 puts out 220 ft lbs...so i don't see what's so special about the 210-215 from the 32NAA.

32 Auto - 60gr/1050fps/150ftlbs

32NAA - 60gr/1200fps/192ftlbs
380+P - 90gr/1050fps/220ftlbs

Another 150fps and 40ftlbs, versus another 30 grains and 70ftlbs

You haven't convinced me.
 
"corbon 380 puts out 220 ft lbs...so i don't see what's so special about the 210-215 from the 32NAA."

32 Auto - 60gr/1050fps/150ftlbs

32NAA - 60gr/1200fps/192ftlbs
380+P - 90gr/1050fps/220ftlbs

Another 150fps and 40ftlbs, versus another 30 grains and 70ftlbs

You haven't convinced me."


OK....let the convincing commence :D

The data you have on the Corbon is typical and is shot from a 3 3/4"-4" barrel. It wont have near that from the Guardian. 2 1/2" is alot of length/velocity to give up for a total barrel length. Youll get around 950-1000 FPS depending on the load.

The energy given on the 32NAA is actually low from data gathered from shooting/chrono info from the actual Guardian. The Corbon tests at 1250-1300 FPS in alot of articles...George Hill has similar test velocities from his gun review.

The difference is NOT night and day....neither caliber is a massive stopper.

But IMO, Ill take the smaller round that has the velocity to expand and penetrate....theoretically transferring all of its energy to the target.
The 380 very likely will expand also...1000FPS is what they say it takes get full expansion with some penetration. The Guardian actually does very well in both calibers, considering its a pocket gun.

Ok....convincing done....:D

Shoot well
 
Berretta 950

I own a Kimber covert pro and a Berretta 950. I find I carry the Beretta more than the 45 cal. Hope I never have to test the stopping power of the Beretta.
 
I wish I could afford a Guardian. NAA sure make beautiful pieces. I picked up a Kel-Tec P32 instead. I spent my carry fund on a Glock 26. The P32 has been 100% reliable so far with a really good fluff and buff. If it begins to fail in any way, I will certainly report it here. No issues thus far.
 
The jetfire is discontinued (at least for now). I like it a little better than the double action model 21a. You can carry the 21a cocked and locked though just like the 950 jetfire. They are nice guns and have a decent price tag. The .25acp is comparable to the .22lr in power coming out of this short a barrel. Too bad there isn't some +P ammo for the 25acp. Also too bad the .25acp ammo is so expensive.
 
Carrying a 25 automatic is only a little better than throwing rocks, but of course that depends on the rock :eek:

With these little noise makers .........the only thing that matters is penetration

Let me say that again ............ PENETRATION !!

NO these bullets don't have enough power to do much damage, no matter how much they expand. So what you are left with ..........is trying to get deep enough to strike vitals and hope the bullet travels straight enough.

Hollow points in these small calibers are Gimmicks ! You will be hard pressed to get "hardball" ammo to travel completely through a body, so hollow points have little or no purpose. Hollows points were designed to prevent over penetration of magnum rounds at close combat encounters. Expansion of the bullet inside the target was the vehicle that was used to slow the projectile down. Only later, did ammo designers try to increase expansion rates to try and cause more tissue damage. There is a huge debate on whether or not this expansion causes significant more lethality in handgun calibers.

I would load up the .32 with hardball ammo with the highest velocity you can find and learn a whole bunch of prayers..........should you ever need to depend on it to save your life !

JF.
 
Well if you're really serious about feeding your .32 the best ammo try some of the European stuff, Dynamite Noble, S & B, Fiocchi. They are loaded to higher velocities than remington/winchester/federal, etc. I've noticed lately that the European ammo makers are cutting corners. Used to be on the .32 most of the rims were beveled to make feeding from the mag. more positive.
 
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