When Beretta initially premiered the Beretta 30X, they showed a model with a custom compensator, an extended magazine, and an optics plate. For many, there was likely a big “why” behind those images. Why turn a pocket pistol into such a beastly gun? It seemed odd, but as a guy who liked the odd, I thought it was hilarious.
An Optic on Your Beretta 30X and 20X?
I grabbed a 30X immediately and patiently waited to see when the optics mount would come out. Beretta showed an optics-ready one on the website but never listed it on the market.
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The next year, they released the 20X, and while they dropped the compensator and extended magazine, they kept the optics plate. Again, I was excited. Maybe it was finally coming. Then it did not. I had a 20X and a 30X, and by God, I wanted to add an optic to my 30X.
Why Add an Optic to the 30X?
The 30X differed a bit from the older 3032 Tomcat. They extended the magazine to include a pinky rest, added larger grips, and a heavier, more durable frame. It became a bit larger than a standard 3032. I grabbed the suppressor-ready model with a slightly longer threaded barrel and suppressor height sights.
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I personally never intended to pocket carry my 30X. It is just too big for that. I bought it because tip-ups are a lot of fun. I love them, and I like .32 ACPs, so it was the right combo of fun for me. I wanted to add an optic just for fun. If I carried it, it would be IWB, and an optic does not really matter all that much in that regard.
The 30X uses dovetailed sights, so they can be removed. The 20X does the same. To add an optic, you simply replace the rear sight with a plate. It is not the best way, but it is a way. I got sick of waiting and decided there had to be a solution. It turns out, I was about 30 bucks away from adding an optic to my 30X.
The Galloway Precision Solution
Galloway Precision makes an optic mount plate for the Beretta Nano. I purchased it, and it turns out it fits. It slides into the dovetail of my 30X without a problem. I secured it with the included screw, and bam, I had an optics plate on my 30X.
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There was no filing needed; just a punch and a dead blow hammer pushed it right in place. With that said, as someone who wanted the 30X plate, I did notice some discrepancies. The plate sits a hair higher than the 30X plate Beretta showed at SHOT Show. Lower is always better, but it is not terrible. Sadly, it does not co-witness with the raised suppressor height sight on the 30X.
The big downside comes down to being able to adjust the optic enough to zero it to the gun. If you ever put a dot on a revolver, like the 856 TORO, you recognize that the height of the optic and its adjustments matter. I used a Shield RMSc, which came with a shim that made it easy to zero the optic to the gun. The Shield RMSc certainly is not the best optic, but it’s one I had on hand that worked with this setup.
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Does it Hold Up?
Zeroing took some time; usually, it is a simple affair for me, but I had to read the instructions. The Shield optic uses its own method of zeroing, which turned out to be pretty good. At 20 yards, each adjustment is 1/4 inch, but sadly, there are no clicks to be felt or heard, and I lost the mini wheel tool Shield sends with their optics.
I zeroed it, bringing it way down to make hits at 20 yards, doing some slight adjustments to the right, and bam, we were in business. An optic on the 30X makes it easy to land hits at 50 yards on an IPSC-sized piece of steel. That is extremely fun to do with a Beretta 30X.
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It tightened my groups up and took care of the POI/POA issues I had with the iron sights on the 30X. It made the gun much easier to shoot accurately. I fired 200 rounds of .32 ACP without a problem through the 30X with the Galloway Precision optics plate.
That is not a ton, but with the price of .32 ACP, I was not looking to torture test this thing. As of now, the optics plate works brilliantly, and it will hold me over until Beretta finally ships the long-promised optics plate.
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