The Beretta M1951 is a 9×19mm semi-automatic pistol developed during the late 1940s and early 1950s by Pietro Beretta S.p.A. of Italy. The pistol was produced strictly for military use and was introduced into service with the Italian Armed Forces and other Italian security forces as the Modello 1951 (M1951), replacing the Modello 1934 pistol chambered for the 9×17mm Short (.380 ACP) cartridge. History The Beretta M1951 was Beretta's first locked-breech design on the market. (Previous Beretta semi-automatic pistols were all blowback-operated.) It was in limited production circa 1953 and in full-scale production from 1956 to 1980. The initial production batch featured a lightweight alloy frame, which proved to be unable to withstand the shock of the relatively high-powered 9×19mm Parabellum round in the long run. This version of the Beretta M1951 was replaced around 1955 by the steel-framed "second series" model. (Although in 1975 and 1976, a small number of alloy-framed Beretta M1951s were made using the new alloy developed for the soon-to-be-released Beretta 92 pistol.) The "second series" Beretta M1951 was nearly 250 grams heavier than the alloy version, but the balance was improved. A special version of this "second series," the Egyptian Contract Model 951, was modified according to the wishes of the military of the Egyptian Arab Republic, who placed Beretta in competition with the Hungary's Tokarev to become its primary supplier of sidearms. The Egyptian Contract Model 951's particular modifications included larger sights, a simplified, narrower grip and an external thumb-spring magazine release, a departure from the push-button release in the lower-right grip of the M1951s. The Egyptians appreciated the Egyptian Contract Beretta Model 951's accuracy, power and uncanny reliability in desert conditions, and approximately 50,000 were produced. Despite intense pressure and incentives from the Soviet bloc, Tokarev's challenger, dubbed the "Tokagypt," was produced in comparatively small quantities. The "third series" model was the definitive version. Its lengthened slide further improved the pistol's balance. The relatively large sights of the Egyptian Contract Model 951 were replaced by the original, smaller, unobtrusive sights, which were less likely to snag on a holster. Serial production of this definitive version initiated in Italy in 1955, and in Egypt in the early 1960s. The M1951 is no longer produced in Italy and was never adopted by the Italian Army. The Italian Army instead opted to keep the .380 ACP Beretta M1934 in service until the adoption of the 9×19mm