Cleaning a Beretta 84BB

[AirmanRatliff]

So, I'm a newish gun owner, with a firm grip of common sense and not much else! I got a great deal on a 1990 Beretta 84BB, and promptly snapped it up. Of course I disassembled it and checked it over pre-buy, and everything is good. But I've hit an issue. Now, I'm not sure what to oil and lube! My common sense kicked in, and I started oiling all the areas where there were wear marks, but I'd like to find a manual for more info, or someone who has experience. Thanks in advance for any tips, I'd really like to take care of this little biddy.

P.S. Odd bit, everyone I've talked to said that the 84BB didn't come in .380, but mine is!

[carguychris]

Manual can be found here:

http://stevespages.com/pdf/beretta_81.pdf

My normal routine is to put a drop of oil on each slide rail, on each side of the barrel lug where it engages the frame, and on the top of the barrel where it touches the slide. The manual also suggests lubing the recoil spring and guide, but I don't see the need for this; I just make sure they're reasonably clean and wipe them down with a lightly oiled cloth.

Reassembly tips:

• Make sure that the notch in the barrel is centered on the extractor claw on reassembly. The notch tends to hang up on the slide, and the recoil spring and guide rod can be installed with it like this, but the pistol won't go back together properly this way.
• Make sure that the guide rod engages the correct lug under the barrel.
• In order for the takedown lever to be rotated back, the slide must be perfectly aligned with the frame, which can be tricky to manage using only your hands, as one hand is needed to manipulate the takedown latch and release button, and the open-top slide defies grasping from the side with the other hand. I've found that the easy way to do this is to grasp the gun like you're going to fire it, then push it muzzle-down into an old paperback book, and rock it forward such that the slide contacts the book and can be moved back and forth. Once this is done, it's easy to line up the frame and slide, and snick the takedown lever back into place.

Originally Posted by AirmanRatliff

...everyone I've talked to said that the 84BB didn't come in .380, but mine is!

I dunno who you're talking to, but the 84BB only came in .380. FWIW a .32 ACP / 7.65mm barrel from a Beretta 81 can be readily installed, and it actually uses the same recoil spring and guide rod, but you'll need a correct Beretta 81 magazine for the pistol to cycle properly.

Regarding the original caliber, the frame should be labeled "CAL. 9 Short" rather than .380, but this merely reflects the fact that the cartridge Americans call .380 Auto or .380 ACP is called the 9mm Short in Europe, often using the local-language translation of the word (commonly Corto, Court, or Kurz). 9mm Browning Short and 9x17mm are also the same cartridge.

Lastly, almost everything you might want to know about the 84 can be found at this Beretta Forum FAQ link.

[PSP]

Welcome to the forum. Carguychris nailed the answers. Those Berettas are very nice pistols. My favorite .380. Enjoy.

[AirmanRatliff]

Thanks! I didn't wanna make some huge mistake and fowl up my nice new(to me) pistol. So, word on the street is that it is virtually impossible to find lasers, sights, or other accessories for the 84. I certainly haven't found anything but grips for it, have any recommendations?

[Limnophile]

https://youtu.be/TaFk4pr4kpc

[AirmanRatliff]

Since I have you guys here, how do I get this trigger return spring back in??!!!

[carguychris]

Originally Posted by AirmanRatliff

...how do I get this trigger return spring back in??!!!

Oh great googles of moogles. You should never take that out unless you absolutely have to! Don't ask me how I know.

The best advice I have is to get a pair of bent tip tweezers that spring closed rather than springing open, install the takedown button, rotate it 90° upwards, stick the takedown button end of the spring into the hole in the button, and carefully coax the spring into the recess in the frame with the tweezers as you rotate the button back down. The trick is getting the other end into the right spot in the trigger without making the whole spring jump out. AFAIK there's really no easy way to do this. Pray for the patience of Job.

(FWIW Beretta has got to be the most creative gunmaker out there when it comes to elaborate springs.)

[AirmanRatliff]

Thank God! My brother pulled out the takedown and it just flew out.

[A pause for the COZ]

Perfect timing!!! Just got my 84B yesterday.
Reassembly is kind of tricky. Kept at it and figured it. Fun gun!
Thanks for the links.



Hmm actually looking at the FAQ it appears I have a standard 84.
No bother ok with me. I went back and looked at the ad and it was stated as a model84. It has a B in the SN so I assumed it was a B model.

[AirmanRatliff]

How do you like those Mecgar Mags? Are they worth it, or just overpriced beaters?

[A pause for the COZ]

I am not a mag expert, but they seem fine. Fit was just right.
I put 100 rounds down the pipe yesterday with zero issues from the gun or the mag.

I just ordered two more from Buds this morning.So eventually I will be an expert on them.

http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/p...D+380ACP+Blued

[smee78]

Mecgar Mags are great, they make the factory mags for alot of companies. They are the only mags I will run other than a factory mag, they cost about half of a factory mag. I run them in my 84F with out any problems. Welcome to the fold, the little 84's are a favorite of mine.

[carguychris]

Originally Posted by AirmanRatliff

My brother pulled out the takedown and it just flew out.

There is no need to remove the takedown lever or takedown button from an 84 unless something is broken.

Originally Posted by AirmanRatliff

How do you like those Mecgar Mags?

I don't use anything except Mec-Gar mags in my 84BB, and they've functioned 100%.

Also, FYI, the Browning BDA 380—which in fundamentally an 84 with some minor design changes—uses the exact same mags. One of the Mec-Gar mags I bought arrived in BDA 380 packaging and is marked "MG-BDA" rather than "MG-84-BDA" like the others, but there is no discernible difference in cosmetics or function.

[AirmanRatliff]

There is no need to remove the takedown lever or takedown button from an 84 unless something is broken.

We were trying to break it down a bit more, since the internals were pretty dirty. So, does the trigger return go over the takedown's bolt, or under?

[TomADC]

Very nice mine is sort of a knock off its a Browning BDA. Were I to come across the Beretta here I'd buy if price was right very well made pistol.

[AirmanRatliff]

Sidenote, is the striker on the slide supposed to have a notch out of the bottom? I can post pics on request.

[carguychris]

Originally Posted by AirmanRatliff

So, does the trigger return go over the takedown's bolt, or under?

Run a Google Books search for "Beretta 84 disassembly" and several editions of the Gun Digest Book of Firearms Assembly/Disassembly - Vol. 1 - Automatic Pistols by J.B. Wood should come up. (There are some minor variations in the title depending on the edition.) The book contains a picture showing the proper relationship of the takedown button, trigger return spring, trigger bar, and slide stop (the shaft of the latter serves as the trigger pivot pin).

The less hook-shaped end of the spring fits in the hole in the takedown button. The slide stop shaft / trigger pivot goes through the larger loop. The hook-shaped end goes over the trigger bar shaft that passes through the trigger.

The takedown lever is independent of these parts and does not touch the trigger spring.

IIRC I had to rotate the takedown button 90° upwards, insert the spring, rotate the button back down while cramming the spring into the recess in the frame with the tweezers, insert the trigger, and then carefully finagle the spring into the proper position while inserting the other parts. This was a very trying process!

If this doesn't do it, I can post a picture of my 84BB this evening.

Originally Posted by AirmanRatliff

...is the striker on the slide supposed to have a notch out of the bottom? I can post pics on request.

Are you talking about the firing pin?

It has a recess that is supposed to sit at the 6 o'clock position when assembled. There is a slide disassembly guide with pictures in the Beretta Forum Series 81 FAQ I linked earlier.

[AirmanRatliff]

Through looking at that guide, I have discovered my pistol has no Mag safety on top of that, the slide stop spring was installed improperly. I think someone before me has had issues with reassembly on this gun hah

[carguychris]

I've uploaded a side-view sketch of how the trigger spring is supposed to be installed. The spring is drawn in red. Pardon my lousy handwriting. [EDIT: Lousy sketch replaced with much improved sketch. See subsequent post.]

Originally Posted by AirmanRatliff

Through looking at that guide, I have discovered my pistol has no Mag safety

This is nothing unusual. It was an option and most sources agree that a substantial majority of 84s came without one. Also...

• AFAIK there is no way to tell if a given 84 was originally equipped with a mag disconnect unless you have the original box end label, partially because...
• There is no other difference between a mag-disconnect and a no-disconnect 84 besides the presence or absence of the spring under the RH grip panel. (Single-stack 82/85 pistols with mag disconnects have a vertical sliding bar as well, but that's not the case with the double-stacks).

[AirmanRatliff]

Thanks CarguyChris, you've been a massive help through out all of this!

[ferrarif1fan]

I knew I had helped with a writeup on replacing the trigger spring on the 81 Series Berettas over on Berettaforum.net. The link is below. Has both pictures and written instructions. If you can perform this task, you are no longer a newby home gunsmith.

http://www.berettaforum.net/vb/showthread.php?t=113517

[AirmanRatliff]

Well, baptism by fire worked for the Godfather hah.

[carguychris]

Here's a much improved and more accurate sketch of how the trigger spring should be positioned.