[cool45auto]

My fiance had been carrying a P32 for a while now and everything had been fine but it suddenly developed a FTF problem on the third round of every magazine. I had it looked at and changed mags but nothing seemed to work.
We stopped by a local gun shop to look around and she asked to see the Bersa. It's black and stainless and she really liked it a lot. She was wearing her P32 and I asked the guy if we could trade it toward the Bersa and we worked out a deal. I did a search and everyone seems to like them here. I was scared to death she'd get into a dangerous situation and the P32 would let her down but I'm not worried now because of her carrying the Bersa.

[gbelleh]

Sounds like a good deal. Bersas are great little guns!

[Snowdog]

I personally love my P32, but I'd imagine your fiance would be better protected by a handgun chambered in .380acp anyway.
I'd say you did well.

[firestar]

That sounds like a heck of a good deal to me! Anytime you can trade an unreliable gun for a reliable gun, you did good! As Mr. T would say, "I pitty the fool that buys a Kel-Tec".:D

I traded my unreliabe Kel-Tec P-32 for a Beretta 21A and I have never been happier. I think you will both be pleased with the Bersa. It is more accurate, reliable, easier to shoot, more confortable, more powerful and all around better gun. It is quite a bt larger and heavier so it is hard to compared the two but if you wife will carry it as often as she carried the Kel-Tec P-32, I think she is better off on all fronts.

Good job on you upgrade!

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello, sir. You may have already seen it, but a time back I did a "range report" on the Bersa. So far it continues to work fine with no undue wear.
The range report is at the link below:

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=25882&perpage=25&highlight=range%20report&pagenumber=1

The Bersa is mentioned at my site in this article as well:

http://www.hipowersandhandguns.com/BestBuys.htm

Please keep us updated on your observations with this pistol if not too much trouble. Thank you in advance.

Best.

[AUTIGER04]

I hope that you guys have better luck than I with the BERSA. Never again will I lay my hands on a Bersa handgun. But my opinion dosnt account for much anyway.

The experiance that I had with Bersa was one of the worst in accuracy, reliablity and I really didnt feel comfortable carrying it. Thats why I now own a Makarov. I also own a Kel Tec P32 it has been flawless. Im keeping mine no matter what. I feel that I can keep her running if she breaks. Just take a look around on various boards even 1911s and Maks break.





ps, Just curious What was your trade in value for youe P32?

[Murphster]

Congratulations on your Bersa. I bought one after reading the various reviews available, particularly the excellent (as always) in-depth evalution conducted by Mr. Camp. Those of us susceptible to slide bite on some other blowback .380's find the small semi-beavertail on the Bersa to be a boon. Mine is accurate and reliable.

I'm one of the lucky ones who has a P-32 that is extremely reliable. Wife likes the .32's so it's her hideout gun of choice. I realize that reliability has been hit or miss with the tiny Keltec.

[Safety First]

In your report on the Bersa 380, it appeared to me that the Federal classic 90 gr JHP might be the better ammo in terms of accuracy for this gun. Would you agree? If not what would be your ammo of choice..I am
stiiiiiiiiilllllllll trying to find a nickel Thunder 380 thru my local dealer. I dropped by today to see if his distributor had sent one to him, he has had one on order for me for weeks...

[cool45auto]

ps, Just curious What was your trade in value for youe P32?
We paid $170 for the P32 during a local gun shop's customer appreciation day sale. This gun shop allowed me $150 for it and was asking $200 for the Bersa. They also threw in a box of ammo.

[AUTIGER04]

:scrutiny: & :scrutiny:

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello, Safety First. From the targets, yes, it would appear so, but there's still some human error in there. I've found the Federal Classic JHP to be pretty accurate out of most .380's I've fired it from. Though I've not tested nearly as much of it, Hornady's XTP factory load in that caliber generally groups. I like the round-nose profile on the Federal JHP as it is feed-reliable and not too likely to gouge the aluminum frame portion of the feed ramp.

Best.

[9x19]

I have Bersa Series 95 pistols (iteration before the Thunder models) in .32 and .380, and have been quite pleased with the performace of both.

Good luck with yours.

[Matthew_Q]

You just can't beat the Bersa for the price if you need a reliable .380.
I got one last December, and it's a GREAT pistol. Got a few hundred rounds through her, and I don't think I've had a single problem.

[AUTIGER04]

Why did you trade the Kel Tec? Because of all of the Negatives that you heard here or personal experiances? I can tell you some Horror stories of my old Bersa.That thing was a Nightmare. But I wont go in to that . I hope that yours works better than mine did. IMHO the Makarov runs Circls around the Bersa.
All that I can say is good luck.

[Dorrin79]

Hope you enjoy it.

My Bersa was such an enjoyable gun, I'm thinking of getting another one even though I have no "need" for a .380 automatic.

[clubsoda22]

Bought a nickle bersa 2 months ago, since then my dad has decided to buy one and a gun dealer i went to the range with has decided to start stocking them. More people have been impressed with my bersa than any other gun myself or my father own.

I have CorBon .380+P for self defence ammo. Hoping corbon makes .380 pow'rball in the near future

[Safety First]

Thanks for that response, when I can finally get my hands on the Bersa my dealer has ordered, I will stock up on the Federal classic 90 grain..This will be used for personal defense, hopefully by my wife and if she refuses to shoot it, well then I have a new toy..But do you feel that is the best round for personal defense in the Bersa? If you have a better choice in a 380 round for personal defense I would appreciate you sharing your preference as I could use a little guidance...

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello. In the three-eighty, the general consensus seems to be that if you get expansion, there's not enough penetration and if you get really deep penetration, you can't have expansion.

My own layman observations are that in "expansion tests" I've done, the Hornady 90-gr XTP is not so aggressive at expansion and penetrates a bit deeper. It should be reliable in your pistol, but you'd need to test fire to be absolutely sure. Federal's 90-gr JHP has been feed reliable in everything I've ever tried it in and expands decently in all media that I've tried it in...including a few animals. Corbon's 90-gr +P JHP is not much faster than the Federal in my Bersa although in slightly longer barrels, the difference is there. Others place Federal's Hydrashock at the top of the list, but I don't use it as I noted little difference in performance and the sharp edge around the JHP might wind up dinging the aluminum alloy frame portion of the feed ramp.

Were I going with the .380 as a primary defense gun for myself or my wife or mother, my first choice would be Winchester's Ranger "T" .380 load, but this can be difficult to obtain. Failing that, I'd try the Federal Classic 90 gr JHP, Hornady 90 gr XTP, and Remington 102 gr Golden Saber. Whichever one grouped best and was 100% reliable is the way I'd go.

Best.

[Safety First]

Thanks Stephen, as always your insights are appreciated....

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello, sir. You are most welcome. While I have some fairly strong views on "stopping power," I don't usually just come and say something like, "This is the most effective load because it is the highest velocity and expands most aggressively" or "This is the best because it penetrates to such and such a depth," or "This is the very best because it reaches X inches of penetration after passing through 4-layers of denim." The reason is that a bullet can do any of the the criteria for the "best" and still fail.

It's my view that placment remains most important regardless of caliber or load and while some loads might very well be better than others, I don't believe that any of the commonly-used defense calibers have enough "stopping power" to deck an opponent for physical reasons unless something vital is hit.

I suspect that we concern ourselves with the "best" ammunition because it is a factor that we do have some control over given the unknowns in a lethal force scenario.

In three-eighty, I'll still go with a JHP over ball despite some arguments from others and not argue should anyone opt for that approach.

Several years ago I was very, very concerned with what was the "ultimate" load for a given handgun caliber. Then one bright day, two officers under my command were forced to shoot a burglar. Without getting into details, he took one round of 12 gauge No. 4 buck in the chest from a distance of about 18 inches and almost simultaneously, a Remington 125-gr .357 magnum SJHP through the neck from a 4" revolver.

Miraculously, the neck shot hit nothing of importance! He staggered back a step or so and told the officer with the shotgun, "I didn't think you'd shoot me" or something very similar. He then deliberately sat down on the floor, leaned against a wall and died.

While I've never been fond of No. 4 buck, at THAT distance, I'd have bet that about anything that blew a "rathole" through the sternum and shredded the heart would have "done the trick." I also think that hit was more "potent" than anything fired from about any defensive handgun! Shortly after this incident, I began working more on accuracy at speed with my own duty gun as well as my off-duty pistols and revolvers.

Toxicology on this bird showed him stond cold sober and free of any narcotics.

I do agree that this is the rarer end of "stopping power" failures, but I sort of thought that while I'd choose to go with the better loads if at all possible, I'd darned sure be able to put them where they needed to be.

I think that in .380, 9mm, .40, and .45 ACP, the "best" loads probably are the law enforcement only Winchester Ranger T loads, but if these cannot be had, I pick a load that was:

1. Reliable in my pistol with all magazines to be used

2. Able to be controlled by me two-handed, strong-hand-only, and weak-hand-only

3. One of the better loads for the given caliber (Lots of opinions here)

4. Gave good accuracy in my particular pistol

Best and good luck.

[Safety First]

Thanks Stephen...All good food for thought..I have the list of ammo you told me about and will look for it when the time comes, but since the
Winchester T is a police load, I doubt I will be able to find it. So, I will be content to test the others when my dealer finally gets his hands on my thunder 380...again thanks for your willingness to share your opinions with the rest of us. There are probably many on this board who are not experts in arms or ammo and bennefit from your experience

Thanks