Beretta 80X Cheetah .380 ACP Flat Dark Earth Pistol

Bought this Italian-...

Bought this Italian-made Model J80XTD10 because of the threaded barrel and a seriously persuasive TFB-TV review. And I just like Beretta. (My original .380ACP was a Beretta 70S, which I sold, like an idiot. I replaced it with a Beretta .380ACP Pico. Talk about small and flat....) When the 80X arrived my gunshop owner was super impressed with the double action trigger. "I'm gonna get me one!" The 80X Cheetah is a real gun -- no plastic except for the grip panels. It's a mini 92 with extras. Traditional grip side panels. (May buy some tricked-out walnut grips on eBay to dress it up, though the factory grips are terrific.) The frame is nicely textured aluminum. Checkered front and back strap. Should last forever. Picatinny rail for lights/laser should you choose. Double action with a frame-mounted decocker, which becomes a frame safety. With the safety engaged (up) if the hammer is back, the hammer lowers safely and the trigger does nothing. With the safety down, you're in DA mode. A smooth pull and the 80X fires, then goes into SA mode and a lighter trigger pull. Be aware when Beretta says "optics ready" Beretta means you must buy a $59 adapter plate for the red dot of your choice. I chose the "H" plate, for Holosun, as I opted to put an HE507K-GR-X2-ACSS Vulcan sight on top. Tighten the little Torx-10 screws to 12 in-lbs. Plates are offered by Beretta or Freedom Gorilla. The rear sight is machined into the removable optic plate. When you change plates to mount your optic, you lose the rear sight, so no co-witnessing. I suppose someday an extra-tall front sight may appear that will let you employ the rear notches of the Holosun to see an extra-tall front sight, but I've found "suppressor height" front sights make finding a holster that accommodates that tall front sight really tough, so I'm good with the standard front sight, as, with the ACSS optic in place, I won't even use that front sight. (Side note: the Primary Arms/Holosun ACSS Vulcan system uses large dotted outer ring that guides you to the center dot, and is remarkable. No more searching for the dot. The outer ring tells you where to move to center the dot. Very cool. And the green dot really jumps out, at least for my eyes.) The 80X disassembles very differently from your Glocks, Sigs and Walthers. Actually, easier. Reassembly is a bit tricky. Once you have the slide on the frame, push the barrel against something -- even your palm -- and the takedown lever snaps into place. Very nice, once you see how it works. Comes apart and reassembles easier than any pistol I own. This particular model came with two steel 10-round mags with FDE baseplates. Opted to buy a spare steel 13-rd mag from Beretta for another $49, along with the $59 "H" plate. But they got here very quickly. I wish it had come with 2, 13-round mags instead of 2, 10-round mags. The 10-rd and 13-rd mags are the same flush-fit external dimensions. The followers are not interchangeable. (Probably a California thing.) TFB-TV also touted Falco Holster in the Slavic Republic as a holster supplier. I wanted a leather OWB with a sweat shield. They offer a combo OWB/IWB model that is similar to my preferred "Avenger" style. Falco was really good at adding features like threaded barrel and optic relief. The FDE finish on the steel slide and polymer grip panels is beautiful, and the bronze anodizing of the aluminum frame perfectly complements the FDE. The 1/2x28 threaded barrel is suppressor-ready. The barrel has a small red rubber O-ring to lock the thread protector or suppressor onto the barrel. Nice touch. The protector should not loosen with firing. Bud's got the gun to my Arizona FFL dealer quickly and efficiently as usual, with good tracking info. Very pleased.