Beretta Pico vs Remington RM380

The RM380 is my favorite little 380. I gave my first one to my nephew for his birthday but replaced it immediately. They are slightly thicker and a bit heavier than the average polymer pocket 380 but still disappear in a front pocket. Both of mine have been 100% reliable. They are very soft shooters. I've heard a lot of complaints about the trigger but if you can shoot a revolver you can shoot one of these too. I owned a Pico briefly and really liked it. So much that I currently have another on the way to my FFL. It's hard to pass up the deflated prices on handguns in today's market.
 
Thanks. The RM380 seems to have a lot going for it. Most of the bashing I've read/seen is directed more towards Remington as a company than the pistol itself. Picos were recently on sale for around $230.
 
You'll be very happy with the RM380. As stated above, mine is not ammo finicky, easy to rack, a real pleasure to shoot. Only thing negative I could add is a minor issue - the slide treatment is easily scratched; again, not a huge deal. I, too, bought 2 of these .380! :)
 
I loved my RM 380 until my neighbor needed a very concealable pistol to take to church and ran off with it. A very snappy shooter but controllable and concealable also well made. Must get another.
 
I looked at all of the small pocket guns back in November. The RM380 was high on the list but the Pico won the day because of it's size, especially it's thin profile. Both pistols had the features I wanted but the RM380 is thicker and heavier than the Pico.

In these 9 months the Pico has proven to be very reliable and shootable. Beretta offers two other frames, with a laser or a light to enhance the Pico. Frame change and take down is incredibly quick and simple, another plus over the Remington.
 
I really wish that they would make the Remington in .32 as well as .380.

I've fired the .380 version and its very tough on my shooting hand. Seems to amplify recoil in all of the wrong places.
 
I have been a pocketgun enthusiast for years. I have not owned a Rm380 but have read quite a bit about them and their specs and visited their forum to just get a general view of the gun. However, I really do not want to comment one about my feeling toward the gun as I have not owned one or shot one. They appear to be in the same class as the LCP but shoot milder, easy to rack. All 7075 aluminum.
That said, My favorite pocket hands down is the Beretta Pico. Just a beautiful piece of engineering. Everything part of the gun except the Modular Grip is Stainless steel. Extremely MILD shooting pistol. Like it so much bought a second one just to have. Stopped counting how many rounds fired when I reached 2000 and all flawless. The second one now with over 600 rounds all flawless.This gun is built like a tank I have no doubt that they will last a very long time with a whole lot of rounds fired through them. And they have "Double Strike" capability and are advertised to shoot Plus P ammo. The modular grip is very nice especially since I had grip cracks in other pocket pistols. Some of the best sights in class and very easy to change out to night sights. Take down of the gun is the easiest I have ever seen in any pistol. A robust take down Pin of stainless steel, and even shipped with a stainless steel recoil spring. Magazines are stainless steel and look like magazines of High end quality custom 1911's. Even the follower is stainless steel.
The first model had it's share of problems but when the new model came out those were all corrected.

I give the Pico 5 stars all day long and it the best "Concealment" in class.
 
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Mike Irwin said:
I really wish that they would make the Remington in .32 as well as .380.
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To be fair, the Pico isn't available in .32 either.

FWIW at the time of the pistol's release, Beretta advertised that a .32 conversion kit would be made available, but AFAIK it has never materialized.

I think your warning about the felt recoil is worth noting however. (I can't comment directly as I haven't fired one.)
Carl the Floor Walker said:
And [the Pico has] "Double Strike" capability and [is] advertised to shoot Plus P ammo.
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Are you sure about that second point?

No industry standard exists for .380 Auto +P. I seriously doubt that ANY mainstream gunmaker is going to advertise their products as being safe to use with .380 ammo that doesn't meet industry standards.
 
Are you sure about that second point?
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From page 18 in the instruction manual:
"NOTICE: The Beretta Pico is designed to safely use the ammunition marked as +P. The extended use of +P ammunition may decrease the component part service life expectancy."
 
Carmady said:
From page 18 in the instruction manual:
"NOTICE: The Beretta Pico is designed to safely use the ammunition marked as +P. The extended use of +P ammunition may decrease the component part service life expectancy."
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Yes, I would agree that extended use of Plus P MAY decrease the component part service life expectancy". That would be true with any Pluse P rated firearm. But the significance is that he can shoot the ammo which is a testament to the quality of the Pistol. I have shot Plus P or HOT ammo through the gun that I would never attempt out of some of my other Pocket guns. And although I shoot the pistol almost each weekend, I do not seldom shoot Plus P. I would say that I shoot plus P 5% of the time. I doubt there is any detrimental effects to the pistol.
And yes, It is double strike capacity. (Not sure if you were also questioning that).
 
carguychris said:
To be fair, the Pico isn't available in .32 either.

FWIW at the time of the pistol's release, Beretta advertised that a .32 conversion kit would be made available, but AFAIK it has never materialized.

I think your warning about the felt recoil is worth noting however. (I can't comment directly as I haven't fired one.)
Are you sure about that second point?

No industry standard exists for .380 Auto +P. I seriously doubt that ANY mainstream gunmaker is going to advertise their products as being safe to use with .380 ammo that doesn't meet industry standards.
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Yes there is no "Industry Standard" for 380 Plus P. However, we all know regardless of a Industry standard, their are standards we all know as HOT 380 ammo and if there were a Industry Standard then I would think it a safe bet that those loads would be included as Plus P.

As far as 32. cal conversion, I have seen so much talk of this, however I do not think it will happen. I personally would not be interested as the recoil of the Pico is already very light and easy to handle.

By the way, I took a number of pics showing the difference in barrel and receiver thickness for comparisons. I might post some later. Interesting since many of the thinner receivers are 7075 aluminum or other alloys vs the much stronger stainless steel.

By the way, the Pico, the Kahr and the Kimber are the only 380's I know that advertise to use Plus P or HOT ammo.
 
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I can only see one advantage of a .32 Pico, and that's a weaker recoil spring which would translate into easier slide racking. I gotta make my pimp hand strong.
 
Carmady said:
From page 18 in the instruction manual:
"NOTICE: The Beretta Pico is designed to safely use the ammunition marked as +P. The extended use of +P ammunition may decrease the component part service life expectancy."
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Velly intellesting! :)
Mike Irwin said:
I e-mailed Remington last week asking if they planned to make a .32 ACP version... [t]hey don't.
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It's sad that gunmakers other than Kel-Tec seem to have almost completely given up on .32 ACP. :(

FWIW Beretta recently imported a batch of 81FS pistols for the first time in 20± years AFAIK, but at $700± street price, I'm not sure this is really a vote of confidence for the caliber so much as an effort to make a few bucks from diehard Series 81 collectors. :rolleyes:
Carmady said:
I can only see one advantage of a .32 Pico, and that's a weaker recoil spring which would translate into easier slide racking.
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FWIW many pistols offered in both .32 and .380 use the same recoil spring, so this may not be a factor.

The main advantage should be slightly lessened recoil.
 
The main advantage should be slightly lessened recoil.
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With the Pico's pleasant recoil in .380, I'd be looking for a non-recoil related reason to opt for the .32. I think .32 ammo costs more too, IF you can find it. That stiff slide is my #1 gripe on the Pico, but that's just me.
 
To me, the main advantage of the .32 ACP in all forms is that, well, I LIKE .32s in all forms...

.32 S&W, .32 S&W Long, .32-20, .32 ACP.

Just like it.
 
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