TTAG reader Bill Julian writes:

Recently, I purchased a Beretta PX4 type D from budsgunshop.com. It came with two magazines. One has the standard magazine base retainer and the other has the upgraded locking retainer. After shooting the gun I discovered that the standard mag’s base moves under recoil. I called Beretta a couple of weeks ago to discuss the issue. I talked to one of their customer service representatives. His reply: get a new magazine. I explained that there’s nothing wrong with the standard mag save the baseplate . . .

I told him that the mag with the locking retainer works perfectly. His answer: buy a new magazine. I asked if I could buy a locking base. Nope. Not available. So I purchased a new magazine. It too has a base that moves.

So I called again and spoke with a Customer Service Representative. I told him I’d purchased a replacement magazine; it was no better than the one it replaced. I explained that the magazine with the locking base retainer worked a treat. So . . I’d like to purchase two please. Nope. “Law enforcement only.”

I asked him why it was OK for a civilian to have an inferior magazine? I use my Beretta for home defense and concealed carry. * Crickets chirping *

Beretta USA should really think about supplying flawed magazine to owners. I don’t see how they can, in good faith, NOT swap out the poor retainer for the locking retainer or, at the very least, offer the extended base as a fix to owners of the flawed mags.

 

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44 COMMENTS

  1. Get the functional base to a machine shop to have more made. Tell them it’s for a dispenser which supplies copper-alloy tubes to a punch device.

  2. Reminds me of my adventures buying SIG magazines… very expensive, and when I tried a couple of no-name brands, they had problems feeding and even locking in. Turns out my SIG only likes official brand mags or Mech-Gar. No others.

  4. Interesting.

    Based on scuttlebutt from berettaforum.net, those Budsgunshop PX4’s are former property of the Maryland State Police , who dropped Beretta like a plutonium pellet due to magazine related malfunctions with their duty PX4’s. If Beretta couldn’t fix the guns when the MSP owned them, the OP is screwed.

    • I’m actually starting to think Glock just took advantage of some issues and got the MSP to drop them for G22s at a better price. I bought one of these trade ins and mine has been flawless. Mary an issue to be found.

    • I am the guy trying to get the locking retainer, I know they exist as one of my magazines has it and it functions perfectly… I wonder why Beretta USA will not sell them to current owners of their arms… Why are civilians not allowed a stamped piece of steel called a locking retainer? If several other manufacturers had this issue it’d be fixed. Beretta USA not so, Why?

  6. And now we know why I don’t buy firearms based just on the company name. Haven’t been real fond of Beretta since 1985.

  8. Beretta’s have always have had magazine problems. There are numerous inferior mags for the M9 when I served. When I ran into a few old and bad ones I got yelled at for attempting to discard them. I also have a Beretta Cougar in .40 for the life of me that I cannot find mags for.

  10. Michael,
    Thank you for the email to Ben Cook, upon searching I’ve gathered that he is
    Product Marketing Manager -Tactical Products at Beretta USA. I certainly hope he can help me with getting my magazines fixed..

    • My take: this gentleman created a problem that no knew existed and now wants Beretta to fix the problem now!

      • I learned long ago not to argue with idiots, they will bring you down to their level and beat you with their experience…. and for the rest of your posts as well :>)

  12. Yes, the magazine base is held by the magazine base plate that also retains the magazine spring which holds the magazine follower; if the magazine base moves far enough it can essentially unload the contents of the magazine and its components rendering the PX4 Storm useless as a self defense arm. Beretta knows that there is a problem hence the locking base retainer shown on the right in the photo above, they designed the locking retainer and it works beautifully… now they need to make them available.

  13. I think this may have been mentioned but JIC buy a Glock 19. Don’t like Glock? Buy an S&W M&P. That is all.

  14. Just checked.

    Nope. I still do not own a single Beretta.

    And reading stories like this will do nothing to remedy the situation. (not that it needs to be)

    I am very happy with my quality German products.

  15. Keep us updated on this situation. Its good to hear that TTAG is doing something expose bad customer service.

  16. My normal mags wiggle like you say, my extended 17 round (.40) mags don’t. As a matter of fact, I can’t figure out how to disassemble them.

  17. I have 10s of thousands of rounds through multiple PX4s in tactical training and in IDPA competition over the last 4-5 years. I had one instance of a magazine falling apart (out of 20 some different mags) during IDPA practice. I dropped the mag body, loaded a fresh mag and kept going. I doubt typical homeowner (or even most LEOs) will be running their guns as hard as I have in these situations.

    Just for the record, the mag problems with the M9s with the military were with cheap non-Beretta mags.

    Having said all that, Beretta does have asinine policies regarding what they will sell to LEOs and civilians.

  18. If in the Military or Law Enforcement, can you buy your “Own” magazines? I mean you are issued a side arm in a battle zone. With L.E.I do not see a problem unless Mayor Bloomberg goes up the NYPDs rear canal! I have a 92 FS. The stock (15 rd) mags were removed at the last second before I left the store. Then my ole buddy Sean gave me two thumbs UP (My ***) and was nice enough to provide me “unbalanced” 10 rd (Kalifornia) mags. Still got the 15s, Pistol fires Great!

  19. Contrast with Ruger, when I told them I had lost the floorplate when I was changing to the extended pinky-grip on my LC9 magazine and the spring sent it flying across the room into no-mans land. They sent me a few spares, free of charge.

  21. What ARE you on about?
    There is a KNOWN problem with these particular baseplates working loose & your contribution is sarcastic comments.
    I suggest you do a little research before you dismiss someone’s legitimate beef with Beretta (I have no beef with Beretta & enjoy using their reliable & well made shotguns).

    • I don’t really speak the Queen’s language, but here in America, Joe Schmo doesn’t call a large corporation with anecdotal evidence of a supposed problem with a magazine that probably numbers in the millions and demand a version made only for the Maryland State Police and then expect to be catered to. DOESN’T happen.

  22. I received an email from Beretta USA today from the Product Marketing Manager, Ben Cook.
    This restores my faith in Beretta USA and their customer service. Here is a copy of the email.

    Mr. Jullian,

    I am very sorry to hear about the trouble you have been experiencing with your Px4 and more so that the issue has yet to be resolved.

    I have 2 magazines here on my desk that I would like to send you that I believe will fix all of your issues.

    If you would provide a shipping address, I can get these out the door to you.
    Regards,

    Ben Cook
    Product Marketing Manager
    Pistols & Tactical Products

    Beretta U.S.A. Corp.
    17601 Beretta Drive, Accokeek, MD 20607

  23. What he really meant:

    Dear Mr Jullian:

    I will give you two magazines to just shut down your Internet whining.

    Appreciate it.

    Ben

    He probably wiped his a$$ with the magazines before he put them in the envelope.

  24. Speaking of springs, I got the Px4 9mm for Christmas 2013 and the magazine spring on one of the magazines kept stove piping on the 13th and/or 14th round. I was afraid to use for concealed carry and believe the magazine springs were not up to Beretta Standards. I told myself that I just needed to break it in but to no avail. I have 2 Glocks that have never ever stove piped or ever missed firing a round. So I ordered two Glock 19 magazine springs which are Chromium treated. Side by side they look identical except the Beretta springs are blue due to high carbon and thinner to the Glock Chromium treated and thicker. All ISMI Glock magazines springs are wound from chrome silicon alloy and go
    through post-winding processing that includes heat treat/stress relief. My Px4 operates flawlessly now. Too bad the Maryland State troopers dumped their duty weapons when Glock springs would have been a lot cheaper.

  25. According to Berreta USA, if mags are not bought directly from them, they refuse to warrant them, repair them or replace them what so ever… this according to a Customer service agent I spoke with June 2, 2015. It doersn’t matter that the 2 17 rd .40 SW PX4 mags I bought new from Midway USA last year have NEVER functioned properly since day one. They bind when loading, and fail to feed if you ever manage to get them partially loaded. Following Midway’s info, I left them fully loaded for a long while, and simply forgot about them until May 30, 2015 when I had an issue with vandals on my property and my neighbor’s adjacent lot. No maker should ever dismiss QA on their products when purchased thru proper channels. BTW when I asked the CS agent to send me that policy statement in writing, he refused outright. Well, OK Berretta, Never again will I buy your products, and regret buying my CX4 Storm using PX4 mags. Never again.. or any other weapon which uses Beretta components. .

  26. Had the same experience except the magazine baseplate would pop off and eject all the rounds out of the bottom of the gun. CS refused to replace it. Told the CS rep i was ditching the Storm and never buying another Beretta product for the rest of my life. His response was “Fine.”

    Don’t do business with these scumbags. They don’t care if you get killed because their magazine baseplates fall off. Give your money to a company that has some integrity and honor.

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