Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Rimfires Beretta 21A .22LR FYI

I bought the 21A 6 months ago, only have put about 100 rounds through it. I have read some good and some bad on this gun. Mine functions flawlessly with stingers and flawed with other types of ammo. So I got to wondering one day, today to be exact. Just how many rounds will these little guns handle. So I called Beretta and the service rep told me about 2,000 rounds, stating that they were defense guns and meant to be carried alot and shot a little. Now I have heard that term before, but this is just a heads up. According to Beretta these pocket pistols have an expiration date! I just didn't expect it to be that soon. Any thoughts? Anyone shoot more out of these with out problems?

I've had mine for about 15 years and only fire maybe 50 rounds a year. Played with it last week at 25 yards and surprised myself. 2 mags at a full size silhouette and all torso hits. I would not have expected these guns to wear out at 2,000 rounds. Wonder what the life expectancy of the 32ACP Tomcat is?

Ernie

I think you will get way more than 2000 rounds through one
of these pistols before you notice poor accuracy.

What inspired me to call Beretta was reading a review where a guy said that he called Beretta about his TomCat and they told him 2500 rounds was the service life of that pistol.

I don't know that accuracy is the issue, I think it is before you suffer some kind of breakage. Most likely slide problems.

I was expecting like 5 or 6 thousand rounds but I guess not.

CCI Stingers ain't cheap!

Nor are Velocitors, Quik Shoks, etc.



But regardless, maybe an 'expected life' is motivation to use more sedate or less powerful .22LR ammo to plink and practice with? 'Standard Velocity' .22's perhaps?

I was going to pick up one of these M21A's for mouse gun usage, and will limit its wear and tear, and amount I shoot it!

I think that expected service life is with the recomended standard velocity according to the manuel. They just don't function well in the gun.

Mine feeds HV hollowpoints and solids only. It will not reliably feed velocitors, or Yellow Jackets or any truncated cone type bullets. Plain old HV ammo is it for mine.

Ernie

Not Velocitors!!??


I don't use Remington Copperheads nor Yellowjackets, tried one of them once in a Ruger MkII pistol and the round would jam! As the nose of the bullet 'smashed' against the ramp going into the chamber .....

Velocitors are like a .22 version of the Gold Dot with a rounded profile (standard .22 profile).

Any chance the ramp in / on the M21A can't be 'smoothed-up' to better load the Velocitors? (unless you just don't want them)

I had one for a while and fired more than 2k it and it was just like new.

Mine worked with any of the traditional high vel loads either hollow or solid point.

Mine was a great reliable little gun that shot much better than it should. So long as the chamber was cleaned and the gun lubed every 500 rounds or so the little gun perked right along without any issues.

Wish I had it back.

StubbleDuck, I don't know about working the feed ramp. I tried two mags of velocitors and had a FTF with each mag. I was really hoping that they would work but I'll take 100 percent reliability with the standard HV ammo. The Tomcat sees the majority of use now anyway, but I still like the 22 a lot.

Ernie.

Good for you with the Tomcat. .32ACP, isn't it?

I'm not a 'fan' of anything smaller than a .38Spl+P for serious self-defense, but the .32 is a definite improvement over the rimfire.

Yep 32ACP. FWIW I live in a state where CCW is a felony, so if one chooses to carry it damn well better stay concealed.

Ernie

although i lack specific experience with the .32 auto, i'd always heard that the .22LR was much preferable for any practical use, given a pistol that functions reliably...

does the .32 penetrate better, or have more power??? what makes it better???

The 32ACP is listed at about 950 fps out of the short barrel pocket pistols with 60 to 65 grain bullets so they do offer more power than the 22lr out of a very short barrel. The 32ACP cartridge is more reliable because the bullet is inside lubricated as opposed to the outside lubricated, heel type bullet of the rimfire. The centerfire bullet is the diameter of the inside of the case and seals and stays put better than the rimfire bullet that is the diameter of the outside of the case except for the small heel that fits inside the case. I have found the rimfires to be more easily damaged or contaminated from moisture or oil.

Ernie

I agree on the 38 special as well. A 638 is usually what I carry. The point was a short service life of these pistols. What prompted me to call Beretta about the 21A was another guy who was told by them that the TomCat only had a service life of 2500 rounds.

I've had waaaay more rounds than that through mine, and it's still plugging along. There is a retaining pin that has developed a tendency to walk out one side of the frame and make it impossible to remove the slide without first pushing the pin back in. The pin won't come all the way out, since the slide blocks the end of it - but it is a bit of a trick to spot the problem and another to get a small enough flat screwdriver in there to push it back. Only happens sometimes after at least several hundred rounds though, and it doesn't effect normal operation of the gun. If it becomes an annoying problem, I'm sure it could be fixed with a new roll pin.

I easily have more than 2000 rounds through my 21A (.22lr). Mine is around 10 years old and probably has more like 3K or 4K through it.

I mostly shoot CCI Standard Velocity through it. With a suppressor it is 100% reliable. When dirty and shooting without a suppressor the pistol will sometimes fail to eject a spent cartridge. The suppressor adds enough back pressure to positively eject cases.

These are fun little pistols and I'm surprised to hear Beretta would estimate the life expectancy so low.

Mark

Sorry I'm late getting back to the discussion,


As mentioned the .32ACP is bigger and more powerful than even the Stinger or Velocitors.

Plus Winchester used to offer a 60grn load in Sivertip for the .32 that was no slouch, nor what Glaser used to offer, and possibly Cor-Bon(?).

As for the "life" of the M21A, I'm keeping the one i got and hope to find another - will shoot them till ..... whenever!

Purpose? For a tiny trail (grouse) gun if accurate enough, and mousegun if ever needed and somehow the Glock got left behind or lost.

ADDED: I've been eye-ing the NAA Mini-Master 5-shot revolver too. With its 4-inch barrel and ability to shoot .22 Magnums!