Beretta 3032 Tomcat

The Beretta 3032 Tomcat and Beretta 3032 Tomcat Inox are semi-automatic pistols designed and manufactured by Beretta. They are chambered in .32 ACP and are small pistols, designed for concealed-carry and use as backup weapons.

History
The Beretta 3032 Tomcat builds on a long line of small and compact pocket pistols for self defense manufactured by Beretta.

Specifications
The Beretta 3032 Tomcat is a simple blowback pistol with a single and double action trigger mechanism. It is fitted with a frame mounted thumb safety. This safety acts as a slide stop when engaged. The frame is made out of aluminium alloy, the slide and barrel are either carbon or stainless steel.

Variants
It is available in an "Inox" variant, with stainless steel barrel and slide and the frame anodized to look the same. For a short time a titanium model was also available. It's been reported that only 1,500 of the titanium models were made. There was also a Tomcat Tritium version with tritium night sights called the "Alley Cat".

Intended market
The Beretta 3032 Tomcat is a self defense pistol, designed for concealed carry. This makes it a good gun for undercover agents, off-duty police officers (or on-duty as backup), and private person CCW.

Design advantages
The design is simple and small, and very easy to conceal.

Light weight when compared to a full sized service pistol.

Easy to perform a basic field strip and clean.

Inox (stainless steel) version is very resistant to corrosion and allows for low maintenance daily carry.

The barrel can be released to pivot on a pin under the muzzle ('tip-up' barrel). This feature allows a round to be inserted into the chamber directly, without manipulation of the slide. Likewise, the chamber can be easily inspected for its load status, or cleared with a fingernail.

Ammunition companies have also improved on the base .32 ACP load, by producing loadings in 60 grain (3.9 gram) hollow-point, yielding higher muzzle velocity and energy.

Limitations
The safety system is basic. The accuracy of the pistol is best suited for short ranges.

The .32 ACP cartridge is considered underpowered by American standards, but considered to be sufficient to carry for self defense in other nations. Many users of the .32 ACP believe that a full metal jacket (FMJ) type of projectile is preferred over the expanding jacketed hollow point (JHP) type of projectile based upon the premise that a FMJ is more likely to penetrate clothing, muscle, and fatty tissue with enough energy remaining to also penetrate into vital organs.

The pistol lacks an extractor, relying upon the expanding gasses to force the spent casing rearward. This means that racking the slide will not remove either unspent or defective cartridges. This can lead to complications in a self defense situation, but is often balanced out by the tip-up barrel.

The document included with new Tomcat 3032 pistols warns that the owner should never use +P (high-pressure) ammunition that exceeds 130 ft·lbf muzzle energy.

Some owners of the Tomcat have reported that the frame of the pistol will crack, even when the pistol is relatively new and has not fired a high number of rounds (see http://www.thehighroad.org/archive/index.php/t-441751.html). According to the discussion on this and other web boards, Beretta has redesigned the slide of the matte-finish Tomcat to have a greater mass, more comparable to the mass of the Inox version, in the belief that this will reduce recoil stress on the alloy frame and prevent cracking. However, there are reports (as noted in the discussion) of cracking with the Inox version as well.

Technical data

 * Trigger system: Single-action or double-action
 * Frame material: Aluminium light alloy
 * Slide and barrel material: Carbon or stainless steel
 * Grip material: Plastic
 * Safeties: Frame mounted safety.
 * Magazine release: Lower grip heel.