My thought is that the perfect carry gun will still fill my hand, but is no larger than necessary—“big enough, yet small enough” to be the perfect combative carry gun—regardless of whether it is for personal security or law enforcement. My former agency has always striven to issue a pistol that is medium in size so that the gun can be carried by uniform personnel, plainclothes officers and while off-duty. I happen to agree with this trend and I have seen it in practice across the country by agencies both large and small.

While attending the 2010 NRA Show, I happened into the Beretta booth and moved into a corner where the Px4 pistol line was on display. One model caught my eye because it was a mid-size that I had not seen before and interestingly, no one was paying any attention to it. I picked it up and immediately liked the feel of the gun. It filled my hand without excess material hanging from under my grip, it was not overly tall in the hand and it was compact enough to easily carry concealed, but would also look right at home in a police duty holster. As soon as I got home, I made contact with the folks at Beretta and
was told the Px4 Compact would be introduced later that year.

The pistol employs a rotary barrel system. Note the helical groove around the oversized locking block portion of the barrel.

Uniform Or Plainclothes
The Beretta Px4 Compact is perfect for a dual use police service pistol. With an overall length of 6.8 inches and height of 5 inches, the Px4 Compact is sleek, symmetrical and efficient—and with a weight of 27 ounces, it’s not heavy so it can be carried on a duty or suit belt with ease.