Beretta Neos 22LR Pistol, good buy?

[Bellasogno]

On sale for $230, and I thought this would be a nice Christmas giftf for my 21 y/o son. We've taken up shooting together at a nearby outdoor range, and I thought this would offer a fun new challenge for him. Anyone own it? Nice gun?

[redfisher43]

Nice pistol, I have the 6" barrel version. Have ran about 700 rounds with no problems.

[aarondhgraham]

That's what I paid for mine over 2 years ago.

Some people think the NEOS is too funky looking for words,,,
But the fact is it has a nice balance with the 4.5" barrel,,,
And the 6" barrel isn't bad at all.

Remember though,,,
It has a very narrow grip,,,
It may not fit large hands well.

Overall though,,,
A very well performing handgun.

I put a $49.95 reflex sight on my 6" barrel,,,
It is now a clay pigeon buster at 50 yards distance.
http://www.aarondgraham.com/lwat/handguns/22-neos.JPG

Aarond

[PSP]

For the price I paid a couple years ago, $219, I consider the Beretta a "best buy". It isn't my favorite, but there is nothing to dislike about the pistol. It has a very respectable trigger and offers competent accuracy. It would make a very nice gift to your son.

[Kyce]

Was considering this as my next purchase since it has a carbine kit. Makes it look even more funky though. Thought it would also be a good way to bring my son to the range with me as a carbine and I could then use it as a handgun trainer for myself.

[AustinTX]

Nice price. I'm one of those who can't really get past the NEOS's styling, but the gun largely draws positive reviews.

[Grapevinebill]

I have one with a six inch barrel and I think it is a great gun. I have about 750 to 1,000 rounds through it and not a single problem to speak of. I got mine used with 5 magazines for $250 earlier this year. It was in pristine shape and I thinkit's a great gun for your son!

And Love those sights you added Aarond!

http://i1227.photobucket.com/albums/ee424/Grapevinebill/Neos.jpg

[aarondhgraham]

Love those sights you added Aarond!

I got that particular one from Cabela's,,,
It was $49.95 normal price.

It's a little bit Buck Rogers in it's looks,,,
But my almost 60 year old eyes needed a bit of help.

That holographic sight is worth every penny I paid for it,,,
And it helps me channel my inner Flash Gordon. :D

Aarond

[Onward Allusion]

Bellasogno
Beretta Neos 22LR Pistol, good buy?

It's love 'em or hate 'em due to the space gun looks. I love mine 'cause they are decent plinkers for the money. Double check the Beretta website to make sure that the one you will be getting isn't an old stock item that was produced before the firing pin recall.

[Onward Allusion]

aarondhgraham
That's not a bad price at all,,,

Dang! I have the exact same sight on mine! Makes shooting longer distances easier...

[JeiC]

Unfortunately I don't have anything useful to add. I'm new here and to firearms in general and I'm highly considering getting this one for my first gun (okay, it basically is decided). But I did want to also thank the people who replied here for those of us that are shy and have been lurking the forums.

The only debate left for me on this really is if I want to get the 4.5" or 6" barrel.

[Deadonmyfeet]

Do what I did and get one of both! I also have a reflex sight on my 6" barrel one for steel challenge. It outshoots me.

[crispy]

You want the 6" barrel. Longer sight radius. More weight. There's a reason most Rugers and Brownings have long barrels too.

Its a plinker/target gun. You're not carrying it. No reason for the 4.5"

[Grapevinebill]

Hey jeic,

This was my first hand gun and I don't think you could do better. It's a great plinker fun gun as you have read. Get the six inch and you won't be sorry. Enjoy, be sahe and welcome tom the board.

[JeiC]

Thank you all. I did manage to have the chance to hold the 6" recently. My husband was keeping the 4.5" in mind for the lighter weight factor, but the 6" didn't bother me. Just wish there was some place in the area I could rent one.

I'll probably get one in the next couple of months. But Deadonmyfeet, you've tempted me about getting both eventually. :p

[aarondhgraham]

Just buy a 2nd barrel.

It only takes about 60 seconds to swap from one to the other.

Buy the handgun with the 6",,,
And then the 4.5" barrel separately

Click here please (http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productNumber=452468.).

If I'm out just wasting ammo with my buddies,,,
I like shooting the 4.5" barrel for fun.

Just a thought,,,
It worked for me.

Aarond

[TailGator]

I have a six-inch version, too. Nice fun gun - everyone loves shooting it, from petite women in their 20s (my daughters and their friends) to my 84-year-old father (couldn't hardly get it away from him). Some people online have griped about the trigger, but mine is light and smooth, if not particularly crisp. I bought mine used, so maybe having a few hundred rounds through it improved it over its new state.

The only failures I have had have been occasional failures to extract when the extractor gets fouled. It is tiny, so a little extra attention there when cleaning pays off. Other than that, it eats absolutely anything, and is plenty accurate enough for fun and practice. Definitely worth the price you are looking at. Grab that sucker.

[erwos]

I'll repeat a previous post I made about it...

It's a terrific gun, and very under-rated. Definitely recommend the 4.5" barrel version - the 6" and especially 7.5" barrels tend to be a bit front-heavy (although I guess if you're that rare bench rest pistol shooter, that super-long 7.5" barrel could be handy). There's also the carbine kit (now legal to take off - thanks, ATF!) that can let you leverage your investment in magazines.

A couple other cons besides the trigger and barrel:
1. The rear sight screw is notorious for coming out on its own. Hit it with some clear nail polish once you have it sighted.
2. The sights absolutely suck, and are quite literally the worst on any gun I own. I would kill to get some XS sights on it. If you buy a Neos, assume you will be mounting a red dot on it.

[Bellasogno]

OP here. Thanks for the replies. I just bought the Beretta, and thought the red dot scope was very cool, but the store didn't have that model or brand. I asked manager what he had for $50, and he said he'd drop price of Barska Electro from $70 to.$50. I boughit and store will mount and bore site it. Just finished reading online reviews of this particular Barska, and most say it is junk. Does anyone here own one? Junk, yeah or nay? I've got two days to tell the store to disregard mounting it, then return it.

[aarondhgraham]

Tell them not to mount the sight,,,
At least that's what I would do.

If you are referring to the sight on my NEOS (post #3),,,
It's not a red dot, it's a reflex style sight,,,
$49.95 at Cabela's on-line store.

Click here please (http://www.cabelas.com/product/Shooting/Optics/Red-Dots-Lasers|/pc/104792580/c/104752080/sc/104526180/Sightmark-Sure-Shot-Reflex-Sight/731245.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Fshooting-optics-red-dots-lasers%2F_%2FN-1100252%2FNs-MIN_SALE_PRICE%3FWTz_l%3DSBC%253BMMcat104792580%253Bcat104752080%26WTz_stype%3DGNU&WTz_l=SBC%3BMMcat104792580%3Bcat104752080%3Bcat104526180).

This one was recommended to me by several TFL members,,,
It's been worth every penny I spent on it.

Aarond

[Te Anau]

The Neos really is a great handgun bargain.Mine has never had a problem with inexpensive bulk ammo.I think the best inexpensive red dot is made by TRUGLO and one can be had for less than $50.00
The $30.00 one at this link would work beautifully.

http://www.gandermountain.com/modperl/product/details.cgi?i=401218&pdesc=TRUGLO_Traditional_2_x_42_Red_Dot_Sight_2_5_MOA_Black&aID=503I10&merchID=4006

[Bellasogno]

Couldn't help myself - the Beretta I bought today was for me, not my son. :o

But, he likes it, and wants to see how the grip feels (his hands are larger than mine).

Anyone know if there are aftermarket grips for this pistol? jic?

He really likes it, except for that air gap under the slide. But, he still likes it.

[JeiC]

I haven't seen any larger grips for it, just these primarily:

http://www.berettausa.com/products/u22-neos-grip/
http://www.berettausa.com/products/u22-neos-dlx-grips/
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productNumber=184249

Sorry I'm not much help. One reason I ended up choosing the Neos because my hands are kind of small. If he's looking at potentially a different .22, have him check out the S&W 22A. I found the grip on that one to be a bit too big for me to be comfortable, but it might work for him.

[old22shooter]

I am relatively new to the sport and just go plinking with a number of 22's I bought. I had some jams with the Neos and had to send it back in but the company make some repairs and it works fine now.....they suggested winchester super x which works well. I think for the price it's a great pistol. The style and grip angle make it very user friendly. Only thing I like better is a Sig p226 that I got with the 22 conversion....but that's over twice the price of the Neos.

[Edward Cravey]

I bought the Neos with the 6" barrell, ordered the 4.5" barrel and found the balance to be better. Added Tasco Reddot from Walmart; used 2 Bullseye seasons before a FTFeed. Reason:Didnt clean it or lube it after barrell change. Tasco sight allowed improvment in scores. Best ammo: Wolf Target, Federal Automatch in 40gr. lead. Have Hi-Standard Duramatic. Same basic design features Visible fireing pin, grip attachment(long screw), barrell mounted by screw on HS, Nut on Neos. Grip angle is simular. One, HS the old way of making guns; Neos, the newer way as their shapes suggest.

[pgdion]

I really like the NEOS. I have a lot of .22's and the NEOS is by far my favorite (I have 2 of them). I like the 4.5" barrel better than the 6 (the balance on the 4.5 is perfect) and it might just be mine, but the inox seems to be of better quality than the black. It seems to me the stainless steel is harder and wears better.

Interesting, all things weird about the NEOS I actually really like. The magazine release is odd yet perfectly placed and smooth as silk, ejections have never been easier and never by accident. The grip looks small and weird but actually feels really good. The gun looks odd yet fits two handed shooting well, that extended sloped area at the front of the trigger guard makes a great second grasp/rest point.

Only faults, the rear sight likes to walk up, it needs greater detents or a stronger spring. Take the sight screw out, put a drop of blue loctite on the threads, and put it back in and adjust. Problem solved.

[Joystick]

I bought mine two months ago and have fired about 500 rounds over several sessions at the range.

My only complaint was with the trigger. It was a little heavy which I could live with, but the pull was long and gritty. The firing pin actually moved rearward just before the gun fired.

I read about mods to help loosen things up and smooth out the pull, but they seemed like a lot more work than I wanted to do and the cost to have the work done was almost the same as the gun.

I managed to fix mine by adding some shim stock to the notch in firing pin. It does not require any serious dissembly and it only takes a few minutes That mod reduced the length of the trigger pull and also the force required to pull the trigger. Bad news was that it disabled the safety. I never use that anyway. I never consider a loaded gun "safe." I unload mine and use the chamber block.

It is a great low cost gun and a lot of fun to shoot.

[Fishbed77]

Personally, I'd lean towards a Ruger Mark III or 22/45 or a Browning Buckmark. They're just better-made pistols for the money.

That said, my uncle has a Neos and it's a pretty accurate pistol. The stock trigger is pretty horrible, but there are some instructions online to make it more tolerable.

[Cheapshooter]

My son has one. It's a pretty decent shooter for the $, but I just can't get past the fact that it looks like water should squirt from the muzzle when you pull the trigger.:eek:
I think I'll stick with my P22 (oops, did I say that?), Buckmark, High Standard HD Military, and probably add a Ruger Mk some day.

[Joystick]

I bought my first Rugger over 30 years ago. It and the new MK III's are better built than the Neos. I loved everything about it except cleaning it.

The main reason I got the Neos is because I'm lazy and it is way easier to clean.

Now that I have the Neos and have shot it quite a bit, I find that I also like the balance of the gun. The extra barrel weight up front helps reduce the shaking from my hands and helps me get back on target faster.

Last week my best rapid-fire five shot group was 2 1/4" at 10 yards. Four of the shots were within 1" of each other, I pulled one to the right. I can't do that with the Rugger.

Yes, I know everyone who reads this can shoot way better, faster, farther, etc., but I don't think that is too bad for a 69 year old, half-blind, fat guy who only shoots a few times a year.

[Joystick]

Here is the firing pin mod I used on my Neos to clear up my trigger pull problem. This one is also easily reversed, since no parts are altered.

It is best to use the smallest thickness of shim stock possible to reduce the possibility of accidental firing. Mine worked out to be .030" thick shim stock. This will also disable the safety.

[bustersmaster]

I had one a few years ago, bought it new at Gander Mt. at the time and $219 comes to mind. I don't know if it was me or the gun, but I found it far from accurate and decided to "off" it rather than trying to figure it out.
I'm a reasonably good shot with most handguns and I found for me that the Bersa 22 is a lot more accurate, in spite of the short barrel and whatever folks seem to think of the Bersa's reputation. Oh, the Bersa seems to have a lot fewer hickups than the Neos did. Probably just me, but for some reason, I seem to shoot short barreled guns more accurately than the 6" versions. (my Neos was a 6" model)

[allenomics]

It's a good gun in the $200-$235 price range if you like its looks.

[jason_iowa]

They seem to be hit and miss. My dad has one that's very nice. My cousin has one that won't shoot better then about 4in groups with about 8 different kinds of ammo to reach that. That's after he sent it in to be rebarrled. Couple buddies of mine have had some poor quality ones that got fixed with some trips to the factory.

I would not tell ya to stay away from em they seem pretty good for the price but you may need some patience.

[Joystick]

Here is a picture of my Neos. The NcStar sight works great. It has a fairly narrow field of view, but works well for target shooting.

The five-shot group was at 10 yds and in about 5 seconds. It is about half the spread of my best group with open sights.

[Hicksville Kid]

The grip is too small for me. It appears to be even smaller than my 22/25 which always bothered me. I had the grips ground off that and went with a much fatter Hogue wrap around. I'd buy one if I could get a bigger grip.

[Joystick]

The grip size was a concern for me when I bought the gun. I am 6'-2" and have fairly large hands; 8" from wrist to fingertip.

I tried the grip on the S&W and I have a Ruger Mk I.

So far, the narrow grip has not been an issue for me.