Among the finds in my father-in-law’s gun collection was this little thing: a Beretta 950B in .22 short rifle. the cartridge is still produced and was the first metallic cartridge patented by Smith & Wesson in 1857 for their No. 1 revolver. At 27 grains, the new CCI ammo moves at about 1100fps…out of a rifle. At best, it’s hitting 600fps out of the Minx. Judging from the serial number this was produced in 1950, not 1952, when supposedly the Minx started shipping to the United States.

It had obviously been forgotten in a drawer somewhere and hadn’t seen any real care for decades. Thank goodness we live in the desert. Using some Lucas Extreme Duty CLP and grease, I spent half an hour getting rid of the light rime of rust and getting the mechanism back in order. This is one of the “tip up” models, so takedown is incredibly easy: clear the magazine, pop open the barrel and rotate it forward til it stops, then bring the slide back a hair and lift up — you’re done. I took the grips off to get to the internals for some TLC, as well.

The Minx was the smaller cousin of the Jetfire 6.35mm (.25ACP) version of this gun, made quasi-famous as “that damned Beretta” in Dr. No. In the Fleming books, James Bond carried the Jetfire for several novels before having it replaced with the Walther PPK in 7.65mm. Quite a difference in size…

I love the old stuff and had a box of .22 short from test firing a 1950s Galesi Model 9. Seventy-six years old…let’s see how it shoots. I put 50 rounds of CCI through the pistol with zero malfunctions. The magazine holds six li’l bullets, then you pop the barrel up and load a seventh. It’s easier and safer than racking the slide. Dropping the magazine requires hitting the button on the left grip panel by the butt of the gun. It’s a terrible location for the magazine release, and especially if you’re a lefty. While the magazine is out and/or the barrel is tipped up, the gun is on safe and will not drop the hammer. 

The best way to load these things is leave it at half cock, insert the loaded magazine, pop open the barrel and load, then lock the barrel in place. It’s is supposed to be carried at half cock for safety as there is no drop safety, and no manual safety on this model. (Although later models in the late ‘60s started employing a safety lever.) It’s a bare bones “vest pistol” or what I call an “oh, shit!” gun. 

There’s no recoil at all, and it’s louder than you might expect with (maybe) two inch barrel. The ejector did its job well and chucked the empties two rows down the firing range. Accuracy up to five yards is adequate to good — no more than three inch groups without really aiming…since this thing barely has sights, just a trench for the rear and a tiny front sight blade.

At seven yards, the groups opened up, but going slow I could do safety drills with a double tap in the nine ring (if not in the same area of the nine ring) and a square hit to the melon with the third shot. It shoots better one handed, and with my longish hands, I had a tendency to shoot off to the right. By the last magazine I was able to put all seven in the head of a man-sized target at seven yards.

It’s a neat little thing, but not something I’d stake my life on. If you needed a deep cover pistol, a Kel-Tec P32 is about the same size and weight — the Beretta is surprisingly light for a metal gun — and punches much harder. As a little plinker and curiosity for the guys at the range, the 950B is a nice curio, and like the Galesi, a blast to go fooling around on the range.

These are running about $300-600, depending on the condition. This saucy little Minx is about 95%, so she’d be on the higher end. Would it be worth it? As a collectable for a shooter who likes old or exotic, maybe. For self-defense, nope.