Thanks again for all the advise, since most of you agree that I should purchase a full size, that's what I targeted at my local dealer. I found the Beretta PX4 Storm to be the best fit and it has the safety features I'm looking for. Plus he'll sell it to me for $425 which I think is a good deal.
I think you made a good choice. What caliber and what model did you buy?
I'm guessing you got a 9mm. The PX4 comes in three different flavors:
The "D" model is a double action only (DAO) pistol with a bobbed hammer (no external hammer spur) and no manual safety.
The "G" model is a double action/single action (DA/SA) with an external decocker lever but no manual safety.
The "F" model is a DA/SA pistol with an external manual safety that also functions as a decocker.
The most commonly sold model is the "F". It is possible to convert an F model to a G model without buying additional parts should you choose to do this.
Although many will disagree I think that either a DAO or DA/SA pistol is a safer choice for many first time pistol owners than either a single action only (SAO) or striker-fired pistol without a manual safety. The disadvantage of a DA/SA pistol (for some) is the need to master the transition between the first double action shot and the subsequent single action shot(s). This takes practice for most shooters. One way to do this is to fire two shots at a time, the first DA and the second SA, then decock and repeat. Ernest Langdon is an expert Beretta shooter and has a series of three videos with tips on shooting a DA/SA pistol that are worth watching. Here is the first:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FsoX26OhDCY
I own two Beretta Cougars (9mm DAO and .40 cal DA/SA) and one Stoeger Cougar (.45 cal DA/SA). The Cougars were predecessors of the PX4 Storm and share the same rotary barrel lock up mechanism. They are all soft-shooting and quite accurate.
I would suggest you field strip and lubricate your pistol before shooting it. With many new pistols the lubrication is dried out from storage. Your owner's manual will give you the basics on how to field strip, lubricate, and reassemble your pistol but here is a blog entry with much more detail and better photographs:
http://blog.beretta.com/how-to-clean-your-beretta-px4
The blog and the manual suggest using gun oil on all lubrication points. I actually prefer using grease on the bearing surfaces on the interior slide that the barrel rotates on, the double cam and locking lugs on the barrel exterior, the tooth on the central block that mates with the barrel double cam, and the rails that mate the slide with the frame. Don't over-lubricate.
The first time you field strip your pistol, you may well have difficulty reassembling it and despair that you have ruined it. In order to get it reassembled, you have to have the barrel correctly rotated and the tooth on the central block has to be fully engaged with the barrel double cam. You will feel it click into place when the alignment is proper. The central block also has to be properly aligned with its seat in the slide for the slide to go back on smoothly.
A good source of info for Beretta owners is the Beretta forum (dot net).
