Tomcat carry question

[fpm]

I posted this on another forum but thought I would move it over here since it concerns a beretta firearm. My freind has a tomcat, he is carrying it with a round in chamber, saftey on(sometimes off) with the hammer at half cock. I told him I think he should carry with the hammer all the way down, not at half cock. Am I correct. thanks for any advice.

[MrMurphy]

You are correct.

Halfcock is not a safety, it's a backup for if you have the hammer cocked and something makes it slip so the hammer falls when you didn't pull the trigger, it'll catch on the halfcock notch.

Insert the mag, chamber a round, decock it with the safety/decocker and carry it as is (safety on or off) but USE the built in decocker or you defeat several of the internal safeties.

[fran m]

I had a beretta Tomcat. It had a manual safety but that safety was not a decocker. You load a round into the tip up barrel and insert a loaded mag. There is no need to have to chamber a round by working the slide. The only time the hammer would be cocked would be after firing a full or partial magazine,I would carry with the hammer all of the way down safety on.

If you fire the gun the hammer will remain cocked. If you do not empty the magazine all of the way,you will then have to lower the hammer. To do this safely with no chance of Accidental discharge, tip the barrel back up, lower the hammer by sqeezing the trigger while at the same time thumbing down the hammer.

Check Beretta USA web site, Tomcat Manual, Page 13 and 14.